Affoltern am Albis (abbreviated as ''Affoltern a.A.'';

Swiss German Swiss German (Standard German: , gsw, Schwiizerdütsch, Schwyzerdütsch, Schwiizertüütsch, Schwizertitsch Mundart,Because of the many different dialects, and because there is no defined orthography for any of them, many different spelling ...

: ''Affoltere'') is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

in the district of Affoltern in the canton of

Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

History

Affoltern is first mentioned in 1190 as ''Afiltre''.

Geography

Affoltern has an area of . Of this area, 45.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 28.9% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 25% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.5%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers, or mountains). The municipality is located west of the

Albis The Albis is a chain of hills in the Canton of Zürich, Switzerland, stretching for some 19 km from Sihlbrugg in the south to Waldegg near Zürich in the north. The chain forms, among others, the border between the Affoltern and Horgen di ...

hills in the

moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice shee ...

landscape around the

Reuss Reuss may refer to: *Reuss (surname) *Reuss (river) in Switzerland *Reuss (state) or Reuß, several former states or countries in present-day Germany, and the Republic of Reuss *Reuss Elder Line and Reuss Younger Line (House of Reuss), members incl ...

. It was created in the 19th century through the merger of Ober- and Unteraffoltern, Zwillikon, and Loo-Fehrenbach.

Demographics

Affoltern has a population (as of ) of . , 25.5% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 9.8%. Most of the population () speaks German (82.5%), with Italian being second most common (5.0%) and Serbo-Croatian being third (3.7%). In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 37.5% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the

SPS SPS may refer to: Law and government * Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures of the WTO * NATO Science for Peace and Security * Single Payment Scheme, an EU agricultural subsidy * The Standard Procurement System, fo ...

(17.3%), the FDP (11.4%), and the CSP (11.3%). The age distribution of the population () is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 25.2% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 62.4% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 12.3%. In Affoltern about 71% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a ''

Fachhochschule A ''Fachhochschule'' (; plural ''Fachhochschulen''), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied arts ...

''). Affoltern has an unemployment rate of 2.8%. , there were 85 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 33 businesses involved in this sector. 1238 people are employed in the

secondary sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in construction. ...

and there are 126 businesses in this sector. 3533 people are employed in the

tertiary sector The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the second ...

, with 441 businesses in this sector.Swiss Federal Statistical Office
accessed 22-Jul-2009 The historical population is given in the following table:

Transport

Affoltern am Albis railway station Affoltern am Albis is a railway station in the Swiss canton of Zürich, situated in the municipality of Affoltern am Albis. The station is located on the Zürich to Zug via Affoltern am Albis railway line. Affoltern am Albis station is less than ...

is a stop and a terminal station of the

Zürich S-Bahn The Zürich S-Bahn (german: S-Bahn Zürich) system is a network of rail lines that has been incrementally expanded to cover the ZVV area, which comprises the entire canton of Zürich and portions of neighbouring cantons (Aargau, Glarus, ...

on the lines S5 and S14 respectively. Its train station is a 28-minute ride from

Zürich Hauptbahnhof Zürich Hauptbahnhof (often shortened to Zürich HB, or just HB; ''Zürich Main Station'' or ''Zürich Central Station'') is the largest railway station in Switzerland. Zürich is a major railway hub, with services to and from across Switzerland a ...

Notable people

Esther Fischer-Homberger Esther Fischer-Homberger (15 May 1940 – 21 March 2019) was a Swiss psychiatrist and medical historian. Her research focused on the history of psychiatry, psychosomatics and forensic medicine as well as the medical history of women. Biography ...

(1940–2019), Swiss psychiatrist and medical historian * Idy Hegnauer (1909–2006 in Affoltern), Swiss nurse and peace activist *

Ernst Nievergelt Ernst Nievergelt (23 March 1910 – 1 July 1999) was a cyclist from Switzerland. He was born in Affoltern, Zurich, Switzerland, and died in Kappel am Albis. In 1935 Nievergelt won the amateur standings in the Championship of Zurich. He ...

(1910 in Affoltern – 1999), Swiss racing cyclist who competed in the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (German: ''Olympische Sommerspiele 1936''), officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad (German: ''Spiele der XI. Olympiade'') and commonly known as Berlin 1936 or the Nazi Olympics, were an international multi-sp ...

René Strehler René Strehler (born 13 April 1934 in Affoltern am Albis) is a Swiss former professional racing cyclist. He was the Swiss National Road Race champion in 1960. Major results ; 1953 : 1st, National Track Championship, Amateur Pursuit : 1st, Nat ...

(born 1934 in Affoltern), Swiss former professional racing cyclist * Giuseppe Reichmuth (born 1944 in Affoltern), Swiss painter and artist

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Affoltern Am Albis Cities in Switzerland Municipalities of the canton of Zürich