Merishausen

Merishausen
Country Switzerland Canton Schaffhausen District n.a. 47°45′N 8°36′E / 47.75°N 8.6°E / 47.75; 8.6Coordinates: 47°45′N 8°36′E / 47.75°N 8.6°E / 47.75; 8.6
Population	783 (Dec 2009)[1]
- Density	45 /km2 (115 /sq mi)
Area	17.57 km2 (6.78 sq mi)
Elevation	533 m (1,749 ft)
Postal code	8232
SFOS number	2936
Surrounded by	Bargen, Beggingen, Blumberg (DE-BW), Büttenhardt, Hemmental, Schaffhausen, Tengen (DE-BW)
Website	www.merishausen.ch Profile (German), SFSO statistics
Merishausen
View map of Merishausen

Merishausen is a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland.

History

Merishausen is first mentioned in 846 as Morinishusun.^[2]

Coat of arms

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Azure a Mullet Or.^[3]

Geography

Merishausen has an area, as of 2006^[update], of 17.5 km² (6.8 sq mi). Of this area, 30.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 65.6% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 3.9% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.2%) is non-productive (rivers or lakes).^[4]

The municipality is located in the Schaffhausen district on the German border. It is located on the Durach river along an important trade route between southern Germany and Switzerland.

Demographics

Merishausen has a population (as of 2008^[update]) of 779, of which 10.0% are foreign nationals. Of the foreign population, (as of 2008^[update]), 50% are from Germany, 10.9% are from Italy, and 39.1% are from another country.^[5] Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 7.4%. Most of the population (as of 2000^[update]) speaks German (97.0%), with English being second most common ( 1.1%) and Italian being third ( 0.6%).^[4] The age distribution of the population (as of 2008^[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 23.1% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 61.2% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 15.7%.^[5]

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 56% of the vote. The next two most popular parties were the SP (22.8%), and the FDP (21.2%) .^[4]

In Merishausen about 78.2% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).^[4] In Merishausen, as of 2007^[update], 2.34% of the population attend kindergarten or another pre-school, 7.72% attend a Primary School, 2.48% attend a lower level Secondary School, and 2.76% attend a higher level Secondary School.^[5]

As of 2000^[update], 14.1% of the population belonged to the Roman Catholic Church and 74.2% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church.^[5]

The historical population is given in the following table:^[2]

year	population
1771	467
1798	674
1850	932
1900	632
1950	539
2000	644

Economy

Merishausen has an unemployment rate of 0.38%. As of 2005^[update], there were 58 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 20 businesses involved in this sector. 29 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 7 businesses in this sector. 54 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 19 businesses in this sector.^[4]

As of 2008^[update] the mid year average unemployment rate was 0.5%. There were 35 non-agrarian businesses in the municipality and 16.2% of the (non-agrarian) population was involved in the secondary sector of the economy while 83.8% were involved in the third. At the same time, 49.6% of the working population was employed full-time, and 50.4% was employed part-time. There were 117 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 49.6% of the workforce. As of 2000^[update] there were 67 residents who worked in the municipality, while 246 residents worked outside Merishausen and 34 people commuted into the municipality for work.^[5]

As of 2008^[update], there are 3 restaurants in the village and the hospitality industry in Merishausen employs 9 people.^[5]

Heritage sites of national significance

The Pfarrscheune or parish tithe barn on the Kirchgasse is listed as a Swiss heritage site of national significance.^[6] The village church was built in 1838 on the site of the earlier, first mentioned in 846, St. Martins Church. The nearby tithing barn was built in 1560, and today is a farm house.^[7]

Weather

Merishausen has an average of 130.1 days of rain or snow per year and on average receives 996 mm (39.2 in) of precipitation. The wettest month is June during which time Merishausen receives an average of 108 mm (4.3 in) of rain or snow. During this month there is precipitation for an average of 11.7 days. The month with the most days of precipitation is May, with an average of 12.6, but with only 93 mm (3.7 in) of rain or snow. The driest month of the year is September with an average of 64 mm (2.5 in) of precipitation over 11.7 days.^[8]

References

1. ^ Swiss Federal Statistical Office, MS Excel document – Bilanz der ständigen Wohnbevölkerung nach Kantonen, Bezirken und Gemeinden (German) accessed 25 August 2010
2. ^ ^{a b} Merishausen in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
3. ^ Flags of the World.com accessed 16-December-2009
4. ^ ^{a b c d e} Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 16-December-2009
5. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Statistical Office of the Canton of Schaffhausen (German) accessed 2 December 2009
6. ^ Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance 21.11.2008 version, (German) accessed 16-Dec-2009
7. ^ Flüeler (1982). Kulturführer Schweiz. Zurich, CH: Ex Libris Verlag AG. pp. 237.  (German)
8. ^ "Temperature and Precipitation Average Values-Table, 1961-1990" (in German, French, Italian). Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology - MeteoSwiss. http://www.meteoswiss.admin.ch/web/de/klima/klima_schweiz/tabellen.html. Retrieved 8 May 2009. , the weather station elevation is 525 meters above sea level.