Bubikon

Bubikon

Coat of arms
Bubikon
Coordinates: 47°16′N 8°49′E / 47.267°N 8.817°E / 47.267; 8.817Coordinates: 47°16′N 8°49′E / 47.267°N 8.817°E / 47.267; 8.817
Country Switzerland
Canton Zurich
District Hinwil
Area[1]
 • Total 11.6 km2 (4.5 sq mi)
Elevation 509 m (1,670 ft)
Population (Dec 2014[2])
 • Total 6,979
 • Density 600/km2 (1,600/sq mi)
Postal code 8608
SFOS number 0112
Surrounded by Dürnten, Gossau, Grüningen, Hinwil, Hombrechtikon, Jona (SG), Rüti
Website www.bubikon.ch
SFSO statistics

Bubikon is a municipality in the district of Hinwil in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.

History

Bubikon as seen from the east
Ritterhaus Bubikon, a former Knights Hospitaller commandry
Bubikon commandry in 1742, drawing by David Herrliberger
Egelsee lake, Bachtel in the background

Some names of localities have Celtic (Mürg) origins, others (Tafleten, Kammern, Zell) may have Roman origins. Fiefs of the St. Gallen Abbey are first mentioned around 744 in Berlikon (Perolvinchova), Bubikon is first mentioned in 811 as Puapinchova.[3] The Ritterhaus Bubikon, a Knights Hospitaller abbey and commandry, was given by the Counts of Toggenburg and Counts of Rapperswil between 1191 and 1198; it was secularized in 1528 (convent) respectively 1798 (commandry).

Geography

Bubikon has an area of 11.6 km2 (4.5 sq mi). Of this area, 62.4% is used for agricultural purposes, while 13.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 19.2% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (5.2%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).[4] In 1996 housing and buildings made up 12.4% of the total area, while transportation infrastructure made up the rest (6.6%).[5] Of the total unproductive area, water (streams and lakes) made up 0.8% of the area. As of 2007 17.2% of the total municipal area was undergoing some type of construction.[5]

The municipality is located in the upper Glatt Valley on the water divide between the Glatt river and Lake Zurich. It includes the villages of Bubikon and Wolfhausen as well as the hamlets of Barenberg, Berlikon, Bürg and Wändhüslen.

Egelsee is located in the municipality.

Demographics

Bubikon has a population (as of 31 December 2014) of 6,979.[2] As of 2007, 8.7% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. As of 2008 the gender distribution of the population was 49.5% male and 50.5% female. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 17.7%. Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (93.6%), with Italian being second most common ( 2.1%) and Albanian being third ( 0.9%).

In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 37.7% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (15.6%), the CSP (12%) and the Green Party (10%).

The age distribution of the population (as of 2000) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 25% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 62.6% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 12.4%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Bubikon about 80.7% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule). There are 2125 households in Bubikon.[5]

Bubikon has an unemployment rate of 1.15%. As of 2005, there were 145 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 50 businesses involved in this sector. 1,031 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 84 businesses in this sector. 1,274 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 203 businesses in this sector.[4] As of 2007 46.1% of the working population were employed full-time, and 53.9% were employed part-time.[5]

As of 2008 there were 1,666 Catholics and 3,044 Protestants in Bubikon. In the 2000 census, religion was broken down into several smaller categories. From the 2000 census, 57% were some type of Protestant, with 50.3% belonging to the Swiss Reformed Church and 6.7% belonging to other Protestant churches. 26.3% of the population were Catholic. Of the rest of the population, 0% were Muslim, 3.1% belonged to another religion (not listed), 2.7% did not give a religion, and 10.5% were atheist or agnostic.[5]

The historical population is given in the following table:[3]

year population
1634 262
1850 1,591
1870 1,489
1900 1,555
1920 1,809
1950 2,265
1970 3,244
2000 5,424

Transport

Bubikon railway station is a stop of the Zürich S-Bahn on the lines S15 and S5. Its train station is a 25 minute (S5) ride from Zürich Hauptbahnhof.

Gallery

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bubikon.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ritterhaus Bubikon.
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