Municipalities of Switzerland

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Municipalities of Switzerland

Municipalities (sometimes called communities or communes, after the French/Italian names) are the smallest government division in Switzerland, and are called Gemeinden in German

German language

German is a West Germanic languages, thus related to and classified alongside English language and Dutch language. It is one of the world's world language and the most widely spoken mother tongue in the European Union....
, communes in French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken around the world by around 80 million people as first language, by 190 million as second language, and by about another 200 million people as an acquired tongue, with significant speakers in 54 countries....
, comuni in Italian

Italian language

Italian is a Romance languages spoken by about 63 million people as a first language, primarily in Italy. In Switzerland, Italian is one of four Linguistic geography of Switzerlands....
and vischnancas in Romansh. As of January 2006, Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland is a landlocked Swiss Alps country of roughly 7.7 million people in Western Europe with an area of 41,285 km?. Switzerland is a federal republic consisting of 26 states called Cantons of Switzerland....
has 2740 municipalities. While many have a population of a few hundred citizens, the largest cities such as Zürich

Zürich

Z?rich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Z?rich. The city is Switzerland's main commercial and cultural centre and sometimes called the Cultural Capital of Switzerland, the political capital of Switzerland being Berne....
or Geneva

Geneva

Geneva is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie . Situated where the Rh?ne River exits Lake Geneva , it is the capital of the Canton of Geneva....
also have the legal status of municipalities.

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Municipalities (sometimes called communities or communes, after the French/Italian names) are the smallest government division in Switzerland, and are called Gemeinden in German

German language

French language

Italian language

Switzerland

Zürich

Geneva

Area

Area is a quantity expressing the two-dimensional size of a defined part of a surface, typically a region bounded by a closed curve. The term surface area refers to the total area of the exposed surface of a 3-dimensional solid, such as the sum of the areas of the exposed sides of a polyhedron....
of the municipalities varies between 0.28 km²

1 E5 m²

To help compare sizes of different geographic regions, areas between 10 hectares and 100 hectares are listed below.* 1 E+4 m?* 0.1 km? is equal to:...
(Ponte Tresa

Ponte Tresa

Ponte Tresa is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Lugano in the Cantons of Switzerland of Ticino in Switzerland. The picturesque village lies on the Swiss west headland of Lake Lugano, approx 12 km from the city of Lugano on the Italian border....
, Ticino

Ticino

Canton Ticino or Ticino is the southernmost cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. The written language is Italian language in almost the entire cantons of Switzerland ....
) and 282 km²

1 E8 m²

To help compare different orders of magnitude and geographical regions, we list here areas between 100 square kilometre and 1000 km?. See also areas of other orders of magnitude....
(Bagnes

Bagnes

Bagnes is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Entremont in the Cantons of Switzerland of Valais in Switzerland.The resort Verbier is part of the municipality....
, Valais

Valais

The Valais is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland in the southwestern part of Switzerland, around the valley of the Rh?ne from its headwaters to Lake Geneva, separating the Pennine Alps from the Bernese Alps....
).

Each canton

Cantons of Switzerland

File:Karte 13 Alte Orte.pngThe 26 cantons of Switzerland are the State s of the federation of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereignty state with its own borders, army and currency until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848....
defines their responsibilities. These may include providing local government services such as education, medical and social services, public transportation, and tax collection. The degree of centralization varies from one canton to another.

Municipalities are generally governed by a council headed by a mayor as executive

Executive (government)

Sorry, no overview for this topic
and the town meeting

Town meeting

A town meeting is a meeting where the population of an entire geographic area is invited to participate in a gathering, often for a political, administrative, or legislative purpose....
as legislature

Legislature

Legislature is a type of representative deliberative assembly with the power to create and change laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law....
. Most cantons leave the option to larger municipalities to opt for a city parliament

Parliament

A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom....
. In some cantons, foreign persons that have dwelled for a certain time in Switzerland are also allowed to participate in the municipal politics.

Swiss citizenship is based on the citizenship of a municipality. Every Swiss is citizen of one or several municipalities (i.e. the place of origin, lieu d'origine, Heimatort).

Municipalities are financed through direct taxes (e.g. income tax

Income tax

An income tax is a tax levied on the financial income of people, corporations, or other legal entities. Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence....
), with rates varying more or less within a framework set by the canton.

Many municipalities are having difficulties maintaining the civil services they need to perform the duties they are required to do. In an effort to reduce expenses, many municipalities are combining together (through mergers or the creation of special-purpose district

Special-purpose district

There are two types of special-purpose districts in the United States: school districts and special districts. This is a type of district differing from general-purpose districts like municipality, county, etc., in that they only serve one or a few special purposes and do not provide a broad array of services....
s). This restructuring is generally encouraged by the cantonal governments and the rate of these unions is increasing.

"Cities" (villes or Städte) are the municipalities with more than 10'000 inhabitants or smaller places which had medieval town rights. There is no specific designation for smaller municipalities ("villages", "towns").

Population	Number of municipalities (%)
>20,000	30 (1.1%)
10,000–19,999	89 (3.2%)
5000–9999	180 (6.6%)
1000–4999	1025 (37.4%)
500–999	555 (20.3%)
<500	861 (31.4%)
Total	2740 (100%)

Municipalities are numbered by the Swiss Federal Office for Statistics (see Community Identification Number#Switzerland
Community Identification Number

The Official Municipality Key, formerly also known as the Official Municipality Characteristic Number or Municipality Code Number, is a number sequence for the identification of politically independent municipality or unincorporated areas....
). One or more postal codes (PLZ/NPA)

List of postal codes in Switzerland and Liechtenstein

This page is a summary of the postal codes of Switzerland and Liechtenstein....
can by assigned to a municipality or shared with other municipalities.

See also: List of cities in Switzerland

List of cities in Switzerland

These are lists of City in Switzerland. Municipalities with more than 10,000 inhabitants are considered to be "cities" . See Municipalities of Switzerland for a table of the largest and smallest....

Lists of municipalities by canton

*Aargau: Einwohnergemeinden

Municipalities of the canton of Aargau

These are the 229 municipalities of the Swiss canton of Aargau, Switzerland :See also: Municipalities of Switzerland...

*Appenzell I.R.: Bezirke

Appenzell Innerrhoden

Appenzell Innerrhoden is the smallest Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland by population and the second smallest by area, Basel-City having less area....

*Appenzell A.R.: Einwohnergemeinden

Appenzell Ausserrhoden

Appenzell Ausserrhoden is a Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. The seat of the government and parliament is Herisau, judicial authorities are in Trogen....

*Basel-City: Einwohnergemeinden

Basel-City

Basel-City is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. The city of Basel and the municipalities of Bettingen and Riehen form its territory....

*Basel-Country: Einwohnergemeinden

Basel-Country

Basel-Country is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. The capital is Liestal. It shares borders with the cantons of Basel-Stadt, Solothurn , Canton of Jura and Aargau, and with the France r?gion of Alsace and the Germany state of Baden-W?rttemberg....

*Berne: Einwohnergemeinden or communes municipales

Municipalities of the canton of Berne

There are 396 municipalities in the canton of Berne, Switzerland . Canton of Berne is the Canton with the most Municipalities of Switzerland....

*Fribourg: communes or Gemeinden

Municipalities of the canton of Fribourg

There are 168 Municipalities of Switzerland in the canton of Fribourg, Switzerland, . The municipalities are located in 7 districts....

*Geneva: communes

Municipalities of the Canton of Geneva

This is a list of municipalities of the Canton of Geneva, Switzerland.See also: Municipalities of SwitzerlandSource:...

*Glarus: Ortsgemeinden

Canton of Glarus

The Canton of Glarus is a cantons of Switzerland in east central Switzerland. The capital is Glarus. There are 25 municipalities in the canton ....

*Grisons: politische Gemeinden,
Vischnancas politicas or comuni politici

Municipalities of the canton of Graubünden

There are 203 municipalities in the canton of Graub?nden, Switzerland .See also: Municipalities of Switzerland...

*Jura: communes

Municipalities of the canton of Jura

This is a list of the canton's 83 municipalities of Switzerland by district.MergersFor January 1, 2009, the following mergers are planned:...

*Lucerne: Einwohnergemeinden

Canton of Lucerne

Lucerne is a Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. It is located in the centre of Switzerland. The population is 363,475 of which 57,268 are foreigners....

*Neuchâtel: communes

Canton of Neuchâtel

Neuch?tel is a Cantons of Switzerland of western Switzerland. In 2007, its population was 169,782 of which 39,654 are foreigners. The Capital is Neuch?tel....

*Nidwalden: Gemeinden

Nidwalden

Nidwalden is a Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. It is located in the centre of Switzerland. The population is 40,287 of which 4,046 are foreigners....

*Obwalden: Einwohnergemeinden

Obwalden

Obwalden is a Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. It is located in the centre of Switzerland. The population is 33,997 of which 4,043 are foreigners....

*Schaffhausen: Einwohnergemeinden

Canton of Schaffhausen

The Canton of is a canton of Switzerland. The principal city and capital of the canton is Schaffhausen....

*Schwyz: Gemeinden

Canton of Schwyz

Schwyz is a canton of Switzerland in central Switzerland between the Swiss Alps in the south, Lake Lucerne in the east and Lake Zurich in the north, centered around and named after the town of Schwyz....

*Solothurn: Einwohnergemeinden

Canton of Solothurn

Solothurn is a Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. It is located in the northwest of Switzerland. The capital is Solothurn....

*St. Gallen: Politische Gemeinden

Municipalities of the canton of St. Gallen

there are 90 municipalities of the Canton of St. Gallen .See also: Municipalities of Switzerland, for a list sorted by constituency : Canton of St. Gallen...

*Thurgau: politische Gemeinden

Thurgau

Thurgau is a northeast Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. The population is 238,316 of which 47,390 are foreigners. The capital is Frauenfeld....

*Ticino: comuni

Municipalities of the canton of Ticino

There are 195 municipalities in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland, .Municipalities are grouped in circles which are part of districts .See also: Municipalities of Switzerland....

*Uri: Einwohnergemeinde

Canton of Uri

Uri is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. It is located in Central Switzerland. The canton's territory covers the valley of the Reuss River between Lake Lucerne and the St....

*Valais: communes municipales or
Einwohnergemeinden

Valais

Municipalities of the canton of Vaud

This is a list of municipalities of the canton of Vaud in Switzerland.There are 376 municipalities in the canton of Vaud right now, but all together there have been 400 municipalities including the Municipalities of the canton of Vaud#Mergers and the communes that they have merged into....

*Zug: Einwohnergemeinde

Canton of Zug

The Canton of Zug is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. It is located in central Switzerland and its Capital is Zug. With 239 km? the canton is one of the smallest of the cantons in terms of area....

*Zürich: Politische Gemeinden

Canton of Zürich

The Canton of Z?rich has a population of about 1.3 million. The Cantons of Switzerland is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Z?rich is its capital....

See cantons of Switzerland

Cantons of Switzerland

List of municipalities by population

Largest municipalities
City	C. Cantons of Switzerland File:Karte 13 Alte Orte.pngThe 26 cantons of Switzerland are the State s of the federation of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereignty state with its own borders, army and currency until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848....	Pop. Population File:Population density.pngIn biology, a population is the collection of inter-breeding organisms of a particular species; in sociology, a collection of human beings....
Zürich Zürich Z?rich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Z?rich. The city is Switzerland's main commercial and cultural centre and sometimes called the Cultural Capital of Switzerland, the political capital of Switzerland being Berne....	ZH Canton of Zürich The Canton of Z?rich has a population of about 1.3 million. The Cantons of Switzerland is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Z?rich is its capital....	376,815
Geneva Geneva Geneva is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie . Situated where the Rh?ne River exits Lake Geneva , it is the capital of the Canton of Geneva....	GE Canton of Geneva The Canton of Geneva is the westernmost cantons of Switzerland or state of Switzerland, surrounded on almost all sides by France. The official name of this canton in French language is R?publique et Canton de Gen?ve....	185,726
Basel Basel Basel is Switzerland's third most populous city . With 731,000 inhabitants in the tri-national metropolitan area , Basel is Switzerland's third-largest urban area....	BS Basel-City Basel-City is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. The city of Basel and the municipalities of Bettingen and Riehen form its territory....	167,365
Berne Berne The city of Berne or Bern is the Bundesstadt of Switzerland and, with 128,041 people , the fifth most populous city in Switzerland ....	BE Canton of Berne The canton of Berne is the second largest of all Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland. It borders the Canton of Jura and the Canton of Solothurn to the north....	128,041
Lausanne Lausanne Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French language-speaking part of Switzerland, situated on the shores of Lake Geneva , and facing ?vian-les-Bains and with the Jura mountains to its north-west....	VD Vaud The cantons of Switzerland of Vaud is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland and is located in Romandy, the southwestern part of the country. The capital is Lausanne....	129,273
Winterthur Winterthur Winterthur is a city in the Cantons of Switzerland of Zurich in northern Switzerland. It has the country's List of cities in Switzerland#Major agglomerations by population with an estimate of more than 100,000 people....	ZH Canton of Zürich The Canton of Z?rich has a population of about 1.3 million. The Cantons of Switzerland is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Z?rich is its capital....	100,000
St. Gallen St. Gallen St. Gallen is the capital of the Cantons of Switzerland of St. Gallen in Switzerland. It evolved from the hermitage of Saint Gall, founded in the 7th century....	SG Canton of St. Gallen The Canton of St. Gallen is a Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. St. Gallen is located in the north east of Switzerland. It covers an area of 2,026 km?, and has a population of 465,937 of which 97,461 are foreigners....	74,538
Lucerne Lucerne Lucerne is a city in Switzerland. It is the capital of the Canton of Lucerne and seat of the Lucerne with the same name. With a population of 57,890, Lucerne is the most populous city in Central Switzerland and focal point of the region....	LU Canton of Lucerne Lucerne is a Cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. It is located in the centre of Switzerland. The population is 363,475 of which 57,268 are foreigners....	57,890
Lugano Lugano Lugano is a town in the south of Switzerland, in the Linguistic geography of Switzerland cantons of Switzerland of Ticino, which borders Italy....	TI Ticino Canton Ticino or Ticino is the southernmost cantons of Switzerland of Switzerland. The written language is Italian language in almost the entire cantons of Switzerland ....	56,719
Biel/Bienne Biel/Bienne Biel/Bienne is a city in the district of Biel , Cantons of Switzerland of Canton of Berne in Switzerland.It is located on the language boundary and is throughout bilingual....	BE Canton of Berne The canton of Berne is the second largest of all Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland. It borders the Canton of Jura and the Canton of Solothurn to the north....	50,852
Thun Thun Thun is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Thun in the Cantons of Switzerland of Berne in Switzerland with about 42,136 inhabitants ....	BE Canton of Berne The canton of Berne is the second largest of all Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland. It borders the Canton of Jura and the Canton of Solothurn to the north....	42,319
Köniz Köniz K?niz is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Berne in the Cantons of Switzerland of Berne in Switzerland. With a population of 38,098 inhabitants, the municipality is one of the List of cities in Switzerland....	BE	38,098
La Chaux-de-Fonds La Chaux-de-Fonds La Chaux-de-Fonds is the capital city of the district of La Chaux-de-Fonds in the Cantons of Switzerland of Neuch?tel in Switzerland.It is located in the Jura mountains at an altitude of 1000 m, a few kilometers from the French border....	NE	37,023
Schaffhausen Schaffhausen Schaffhausen is a city in northern Switzerland and the capital of the Canton of Schaffhausen; it has an estimated population of 33,527 March 31, 2005....	SH	33,527
Fribourg Fribourg Fribourg , is the capital of the Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland of Fribourg and the district of Sarine . It is located on both sides of the river Saane/Sarine, on the Swiss plateau, and is an important economic, administrative and educational center on the cultural border between German speaking part of Switzerland and French Switzerla...	FR	33,008
Chur Chur Chur ; ; Latin: Curia, Curia Rhaetorum and Curia Raetorum) is the capital of the Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland of Graub?nden and lies in the northern part of the canton....	GR	34,915
Neuchâtel Neuchâtel Neuch?tel is the Capital of the Swiss Cantons of Switzerland of Neuch?tel on Lake Neuch?tel.The city has approximately 31,500 inhabitants , by and large French-speaking, although the city is sometimes referred to historically by the German language name , which has the same meaning, since Prussia ruled the area until 1848....	NE	32,389
Vernier	GE	32,038
Uster Uster Uster is a city and capital of the district Uster in the Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland of Z?rich .It is the third largest city in the Canton of Z?rich, with over 30,000 inhabitants, and is one of the twenty largest cities in Switzerland....	ZH	28,770
Sion Sion, Switzerland Sion is the capital of the Swiss Cantons of Switzerland of Valais. In 2002, its population was 27,700.Landmarks include the Basilique de Val?re and Ch?teau de Tourbillon....	VS	27,697
Emmen Emmen, Switzerland Emmen is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Hochdorf in the Cantons of Switzerland of Lucerne in Switzerland.It is part of the metropolitan area of Lucerne....	LU	27,274

Smallest municipalities
Rank	Municipality Municipality A municipality is an administrative entity composed of a clearly defined territory and its population and commonly denotes a city, town, or village, or a small grouping of them....	C. Cantons of Switzerland File:Karte 13 Alte Orte.pngThe 26 cantons of Switzerland are the State s of the federation of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereignty state with its own borders, army and currency until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848....	Pop. Population File:Population density.pngIn biology, a population is the collection of inter-breeding organisms of a particular species; in sociology, a collection of human beings....
1.	Portein Portein Portein is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Hinterrhein in the Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland of Graub?nden.It is located at the Heinzenberg mountains in the Domleschg region....	GR	22
2.	Corippo Corippo Corippo is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Locarno in the Cantons of Switzerland of Ticino in Switzerland.With a population of just 17 , it is the smallest municipality in Switzerland....	TI	23
3.	Mulegns Mulegns Mulegns is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Albula in the Cantons of Switzerland of Graub?nden in Switzerland....	GR	25
4.	Bister Bister, Switzerland Bister is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Raron in the Cantons of Switzerland of Valais in Switzerland.External links...	VS	26
5.	Martisberg Martisberg Martisberg is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Raron in the Cantons of Switzerland of Valais in Switzerland....	VS	28
6.	Goumoens-le-Jux Goumoens-le-Jux Goumoens-le-Jux is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Echallens in the Cantons of Switzerland of Vaud in Switzerland....	VD	30
6.	Largario Largario Largario is a village and former municipality in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland.It was first recorded in year 1207 as Largario.The municipality had 56 inhabitants in 1602, which peaked at 74 and 75 in 1808 and 1850 respectively before dropping again to 53 in 1900....	TI	30
8.	Clugin Clugin Clugin is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Hinterrhein in the Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland of Graub?nden....	GR	35
9.	Cauco Cauco Cauco is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Moesa in the Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland of Graub?nden.Its population is predominately Italian language-speaking....	GR	36
9.	Monible Monible Monible is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Moutier in the Cantons of Switzerland of Bern in Switzerland. It is located in the French-speaking Bernese Jura ....	BE	36
11.	St. Martin	GR	37
12.	Gresso Gresso Gresso is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Locarno in the Cantons of Switzerland of Ticino in Switzerland. The municipality was formed in 1882 by splitting from Vergeletto....	TI	38
12.	Montfavergier Montfavergier Montfavergier is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Franches-Montagnes in the Cantons of Switzerland of Jura in Switzerland....	JU	38
14.	Vaugondry Vaugondry Vaugondry is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Grandson in the Cantons of Switzerland of Vaud in Switzerland....	VD	39
15.	Arrissoules Arrissoules Arrissoules is village in the district of Yverdon of the Canton of Vaud, Switzerland.The village was an independent municipality until it was incorporated into Rovray on January 1, 2005....	VD	40
15.	Romairon Romairon Romairon is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Grandson in the Cantons of Switzerland of Vaud in Switzerland....	VD	40
15.	Selma Selma, Switzerland Selma is a municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Moesa in the Switzerland Cantons of Switzerland of Graub?nden.The local language is Italian language....	GR	40
18.	Ausserbinn Ausserbinn Ausserbinn is a former municipalities of Switzerland of the Canton of Valais, Switzerland, and now part of the municipality of Ernen. Prior to its incorporation within Ernen, it was one of Switzerland's smallest municipalities with a population of only 41....	VS	41
18.	Linescio Linescio Linescio is a Municipalities of Switzerland in the district of Vallemaggia in the Cantons of Switzerland of Ticino in Switzerland....	TI	41
18.	Mauraz Mauraz Mauraz is a Municipalities of Switzerland of the Cantons of Switzerland of Vaud in Switzerland, located in the district of Cossonay ....	VD	41
18.	Steinhaus	VS	41

nb. Corippo has now taken place as smallest city/municipality in Switzerland with only 17 inhabitants. (2004 Census)