Grenchen (french: Granges) is 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
Lebern in the
canton of
Solothurn
Solothurn ( , ; french: Soleure ; it, Soletta ; rm, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the Capital (political), capital of the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. It is located in the n ...
in Switzerland.
It is located at the foot of the
Jura mountains
The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Frenc ...
between
Solothurn
Solothurn ( , ; french: Soleure ; it, Soletta ; rm, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the Capital (political), capital of the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. It is located in the n ...
and
Biel/Bienne
Biel/Bienne (official bilingual wording; , ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town and a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Biel/Bienne (administrative district), Biel/Bienne administrative district in the canton of Bern in Swi ...
, approximately north of
Bern
german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese
, neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen
, website ...
. With over 16,000 inhabitants, it is one of the larger towns of the canton of Solothurn. The city is well known for its
watch
A watch is a portable timepiece intended to be carried or worn by a person. It is designed to keep a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is designed to be worn around the wrist, attached by ...
industry, that has been present for more than 150 years.
Grenchen is the 2008 winner of the
Wakker Prize
The Wakker Prize (German: ''Wakkerpreis'', French: ''Prix Wakker'', Italian: ''Premio Wakker'') is awarded annually by the Swiss Heritage Society to a Municipality of Switzerland for the development and preservation of its architectural herita ...
for architectural heritage.
Jura-Sternwarte Grenchen is located at Grenchen.
History
Around 1000 AD, the local barons built a castle on the local cliff that was inhabited for three centuries. The name Grenchen was first documented in 1131 as ''Granechun''.
[ The name comes from the gallo-romanic ''graneca'', meaning ''by the granary''.
* 1851: Clock manufacture begins
* 1918: ]General strike
A general strike refers to a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large co ...
Geography
Grenchen has an area, , of . Of this area, or 37.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 40.1% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 20.7% is settled (buildings or roads), or 1.3% is either rivers or lakes and or 0.2% is unproductive land.[Swiss Federal Statistical Office-Land Use Statistics]
2009 data accessed 25 March 2010
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 2.2% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 9.7% and transportation infrastructure made up 6.8%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 1.4%. Out of the forested land, 38.5% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.5% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 25.8% is used for growing crops and 6.0% is pastures and 5.3% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.[
The municipality is the capital of the Lebern District. It is the second largest city in the Canton of Solothurn. The municipality stretches from the ]hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
of Staad along the Aare
The Aare () or Aar () is a tributary of the High Rhine and the longest river that both rises and ends entirely within Switzerland.
Its total length from its source to its junction with the Rhine comprises about , during which distance it descend ...
river, (at an elevation of ) to the first mountain range of the Jura Mountains
The Jura Mountains ( , , , ; french: Massif du Jura; german: Juragebirge; it, Massiccio del Giura, rm, Montagnas da Jura) are a sub-alpine mountain range a short distance north of the Western Alps and mainly demarcate a long part of the Frenc ...
(the Oberer Grenchenberg is ).
Coat of arms
The blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The vis ...
of the municipal coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...
is ''Gules a Ploughshare Argent.''
Demographics
Grenchen has a population () of . , 28.7% of the population are resident foreign nationals.[Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Superweb database - Gemeinde Statistics 1981-2008]
accessed 19 June 2010 Over the last 10 years (1999–2009 ) the population has changed at a rate of -1.3%.
accessed 30-March-2011
Most of the population () speaks German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
(13,033 or 81.8%), with Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
being second most common (1,022 or 6.4%) and French being third (460 or 2.9%). There are 16 people who speak Romansh.[
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.2% male and 50.8% female. The population was made up of 5,328 Swiss men (33.3% of the population) and 2,547 (15.9%) non-Swiss men. There were 5,845 Swiss women (36.5%) and 2,289 (14.3%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality 5,606 or about 35.2% were born in Grenchen and lived there in 2000. There were 2,017 or 12.7% who were born in the same canton, while 4,258 or 26.7% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 3,433 or 21.5% were born outside of Switzerland.][
In there were 75 live births to Swiss citizens and 47 births to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 167 deaths of Swiss citizens and 10 non-Swiss citizen deaths. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens decreased by 92 while the foreign population increased by 37. There were 21 Swiss men and 16 Swiss women who immigrated back to Switzerland. At the same time, there were 103 non-Swiss men and 59 non-Swiss women who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was a decrease of 20 and the non-Swiss population increased by 190 people. This represents a ]population growth rate
Population growth is the increase in the number of people in a population or dispersed group. Actual global human population growth amounts to around 83 million annually, or 1.1% per year. The global population has grown from 1 billion in 1800 to ...
of 1.1%.[
The age distribution, , in Grenchen is; 942 children or 5.9% of the population are between 0 and 6 years old and 2,291 teenagers or 14.4% are between 7 and 19. Of the adult population, 838 people or 5.3% of the population are between 20 and 24 years old. 4,463 people or 28.0% are between 25 and 44, and 4,000 people or 25.1% are between 45 and 64. The senior population distribution is 2,551 people or 16.0% of the population are between 65 and 79 years old and there are 853 people or 5.4% who are over 80.
, there were 5,771 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 7,679 married individuals, 1,264 widows or widowers and 1,224 individuals who are divorced.][STAT-TAB Datenwürfel für Thema 40.3 - 2000]
accessed 2 February 2011
, there were 7,409 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.1 persons per household.[ There were 2,910 households that consist of only one person and 352 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 7,532 households that answered this question, 38.6% were households made up of just one person and there were 55 adults who lived with their parents. Of the rest of the households, there are 2,275 married couples without children, 1,741 married couples with children There were 355 single parents with a child or children. There were 73 households that were made up of unrelated people and 123 households that were made up of some sort of institution or another collective housing.][
there were 1,336 single family homes (or 48.4% of the total) out of a total of 2,763 inhabited buildings. There were 940 multi-family buildings (34.0%), along with 310 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (11.2%) and 177 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (6.4%). Of the single family homes 67 were built before 1919, while 187 were built between 1990 and 2000. The greatest number of single family homes (388) were built between 1946 and 1960.][Federal Statistical Office STAT-TAB - Datenwürfel für Thema 09.2 - Gebäude und Wohnungen]
accessed 28 January 2011
there were 8,639 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was 3 rooms of which there were 2,925. There were 429 single room apartments and 1,631 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 7,267 apartments (84.1% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 584 apartments (6.8%) were seasonally occupied and 788 apartments (9.1%) were empty.[ , the construction rate of new housing units was 0.9 new units per 1000 residents.][
the average price to rent an average apartment in Grenchen was 862.63 ]Swiss franc
The Swiss franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) issues banknotes and the f ...
s (CHF) per month (US$690, £390, €550 approx. exchange rate from 2003). The average rate for a one-room apartment was 571.19 CHF (US$460, £260, €370), a two-room apartment was about 637.30 CHF (US$510, £290, €410), a three-room apartment was about 776.90 CHF (US$620, £350, €500) and a six or more room apartment cost an average of 1477.07 CHF (US$1180, £660, €950). The average apartment price in Grenchen was 77.3% of the national average of 1116 CHF.[Swiss Federal Statistical Office-Rental prices]
2003 data accessed 26 May 2010 The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 2.38%.[
The historical population is given in the following chart:]
Colors=
id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9)
id:darkgrey value:gray(0.8)
ImageSize = width:1020 height:210
PlotArea = height:150 left:100 bottom:50 right:100
AlignBars = justify
DateFormat = x.y
Period = from:0 till:21000
TimeAxis = orientation:vertical
AlignBars = justify
ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:4000 start:0
ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:800 start:0
PlotData=
color:yellowgreen width:40 mark:(line,white) align:center
bar:1796 from:start till:754 text:"754"
bar:1850 from:start till:1581 text:"1,581"
bar:1860 from:start till:1811 text:"1,811"
bar:1870 from:start till:2537 text:"2,537"
bar:1880 from:start till:3788 text:"3,788"
bar:1888 from:start till:4505 text:"4,505"
bar:1900 from:start till:5202 text:"5,202"
bar:1910 from:start till:7073 text:"7,073"
bar:1920 from:start till:9101 text:"9,101"
bar:1930 from:start till:10397 text:"10,397"
bar:1941 from:start till:10939 text:"10,939"
bar:1950 from:start till:12650 text:"12,650"
bar:1960 from:start till:18000 text:"18,000"
bar:1970 from:start till:20051 text:"20,051"
bar:1980 from:start till:16800 text:"16,800"
bar:1990 from:start till:16241 text:"16,241"
bar:2000 from:start till:15938 text:"15,938"
Sights
The entire village of Grenchen is part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
The Federal Inventory of Heritage Sites (ISOS) is part of a 1981 Ordinance of the Swiss Federal Council implementing the Federal Law on the Protection of Nature and Cultural Heritage.
Sites of national importance
Types
The types are based on t ...
. The ruins of Burg Grenchen
The Burg Grenchen, also known as Bettleschloss, was a hill castle located above the present-day municipalities of Grenchen and Bettlach, Switzerland, Bettlach in the Canton of Solothurn, Switzerland. It is one of the early clearing (geography), cle ...
, also known as ''Bettleschloss'', a former hill castle
A hill castle or mountain castle is a castle built on a natural feature that stands above the surrounding terrain. It is a term derived from the German ''Höhenburg'' used in categorising castle sites by their topographical location. Hill castles ...
, are located above this village.
Politics
In the 2015 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 32.9% of the vote. The other parties were the SP (22.6%), the FDP (19.5%) and the CVP (9.1%), BDP 5.4%, glp 4.8%, Greens 2.9%, DPS 1.0%.
Transport
Although Grenchen is a small city, it has its own airport with facilities for the transport of goods. It is mostly used by private pilots and parachutists, but also for business travel. The freeway A5 and a connection to Grenchen lie in the vicinity of the airport.
Two railway stations ( on the Basel-Biel line and on the Geneva-Zürich line) provide for an excellent connection of the city on the rail network. The Grenchen Tunnel, an 8.5 km long railroad tunnel that was built between 1911 and 1915, offers a connection between the Swiss plateau
The Swiss Plateau or Central Plateau (german: Schweizer Mittelland; french: plateau suisse; it, altopiano svizzero) is one of the three major landscapes in Switzerland, lying between the Jura Mountains and the Swiss Alps. It covers about 30% of ...
and Delémont
Delémont (; fc, D'lémont; german: Delsberg, ) is the capital of the Swiss canton of Jura. The city has approximately 12,000 inhabitants .
History
The area of the municipality was already settled in the middle Bronze Age. Fifteen urn buria ...
/Basel
, french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese
, neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
. Construction of the tunnel attracted many foreign workers to Grenchen, coming mostly from Italy.
Grenchen has an own bus company "BGU". The bus lines connect Grenchen with Bettlach, Lengnau, Büren, Rüti and Selzach
Selzach is a municipality in the district of Lebern in the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland.
History
Selzach is first mentioned in 1181 as ''Selsacho''.
Geography
Selzach has an area, , of . Of this area, or 50.3% is used for agricultur ...
.
Economy
, Grenchen had an unemployment rate of 5.7%. , there were 122 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 36 businesses involved in this sector. 5,906 people were 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 were 217 businesses in this sector. 4,197 people were 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 544 businesses in this sector.[ There were 7,988 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 43.8% of the workforce.
the total number of ]full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent (FTE), or whole time equivalent (WTE), is a unit that indicates the workload of an employee, employed person (or student) in a way that makes workloads or class loads comparable across various contexts. FTE is often used to me ...
jobs was 9,004. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 85, of which 77 were in agriculture and 8 were in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 5,635 of which 5,189 or (92.1%) were in manufacturing and 367 (6.5%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 3,284. In the tertiary sector; 742 or 22.6% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 188 or 5.7% were in the movement and storage of goods, 236 or 7.2% were in a hotel or restaurant, 61 or 1.9% were in the information industry, 119 or 3.6% were the insurance or financial industry, 211 or 6.4% were technical professionals or scientists, 371 or 11.3% were in education and 910 or 27.7% were in health care.
, there were 5,261 workers who commuted into the municipality and 3,273 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.6 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving.[Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Statweb]
accessed 24 June 2010 Of the working population, 13.8% used public transportation to get to work, and 52.8% used a private car.[
]
Watch industry
Grenchen has a large traditional watch industry and several famous manufacturers are based in the city:
* Atlantic Watch Production Ltd
* Breitling SA
* Epos
The point of sale (POS) or point of purchase (POP) is the time and place at which a retail transaction is completed. At the point of sale, the merchant calculates the amount owed by the customer, indicates that amount, may prepare an invoice ...
* ETA SA
ETA SA Manufacture Horlogère Suisse (ETA SA Swiss Watch Manufacturer) designs and manufactures quartz watches and both hand-wound and automatic-winding mechanical and movements. Commonly referred to as ETA, the company is headquartered in Gren ...
* Fortis
* Eterna
Eterna is a Swiss luxury watch company founded in Grenchen, Canton Solothurn, on 7 November 1856 by Josef Girard and Urs Schild. The company is now owned by Hong Kong-based Citychamp Watch & Jewellery Group Limited, an investment holding co ...
SA
* Nivada
* Titoni Ltd.
Sport
FC Grenchen
FC Grenchen is a Swiss football club, based in Grenchen. They currently play in the 2. Liga, and play their matches at the Brühl Stadium.
History
FC Grenchen was founded in 1906. In 1937 they gained promotion to the top league of Swiss ...
is the municipality's football club.
Grenchen has a velodrome, Velodrome Suisse
The Velodrome Suisse is an indoor velodrome in Grenchen, Switzerland.
The hall covers an area of 8000 square meters and has a capacity for 1800 spectators. The velodrome itself is meters long, made of Siberian spruce wood and is applied accordin ...
. It hosted the 2015 UEC European Track Championships
The 2015 UEC European Track Championships was the sixth edition of the elite UEC European Track Championships in track cycling and took place at the Velodrome Suisse in Grenchen, Switzerland, between 14 and 18 October. The Event was organised by ...
., during which a new world record was set in the Ladies' 500m Time Trials by Anastasiia Voinova, Russia.
Religion
From the , 5,654 or 35.5% were Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
, while 5,754 or 36.1% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church
The Protestant Church in Switzerland (PCS), (EKS); french: Église évangélique réformée de Suisse (EERS); it, Chiesa evangelica riformata in Svizzera (CERiS); rm, Baselgia evangelica refurmada da la Svizra (BRRS) formerly named Federation o ...
. Of the rest of the population, there were 154 members of an Orthodox church (or about 0.97% of the population), there were 171 individuals (or about 1.07% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church, and there were 284 individuals (or about 1.78% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 3 individuals (or about 0.02% of the population) who were Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
, and 1,145 (or about 7.18% of the population) who were Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
ic. There were 70 individuals who were Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
, 90 individuals who were Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
and 17 individuals who belonged to another church. 2,019 (or about 12.67% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic
Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, of the divine or the supernatural is unknown or unknowable. (page 56 in 1967 edition) Another definition provided is the view that "human reason is incapable of providing sufficient ...
or atheist
Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
, and 577 individuals (or about 3.62% of the population) did not answer the question.[
]
Education
In Grenchen about 5,773 or (36.2%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 1,457 or (9.1%) have completed additional higher education (either university
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
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 ...
''). Of the 1,457 who completed tertiary schooling, 64.2% were Swiss men, 20.9% were Swiss women, 10.1% were non-Swiss men and 4.9% were non-Swiss women.[
During the 2010–2011 school year there were a total of 1,309 students in the Grenchen school system. The ]education system
The educational system generally refers to the structure of all institutions and the opportunities for obtaining education within a country. It includes all pre-school institutions, starting from family education, and/or early childhood education ...
in the Canton of Solothurn allows young children to attend two years of non-obligatory Kindergarten
Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cent ...
. During that school year, there were 276 children in kindergarten. The canton's school system requires students to attend six years of primary school
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...
, with some of the children attending smaller, specialized classes. In the municipality there were 699 students in primary school and 108 students in the special, smaller classes. The secondary school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' secondary education, lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) ...
program consists of three lower, obligatory years of schooling, followed by three to five years of optional, advanced schools. 226 lower secondary students attend school in Grenchen.
, there were 171 students in Grenchen who came from another municipality, while 267 residents attended schools outside the municipality.[
Grenchen is home to the ''Stadtbibliothek Grenchen'' library. The library has () 36,000 books or other media, and loaned out 57,000 items in the same year. It was open a total of 258 days with average of 19 hours per week during that year.
]
Notable people
* Franz Joseph Hugi (1791-1855), Roman Catholic priest, geologist and alpinist, born in Grenchen
* Giuseppe Mazzini
Giuseppe Mazzini (, , ; 22 June 1805 – 10 March 1872) was an Italian politician, journalist, and activist for the unification of Italy (Risorgimento) and spearhead of the Italian revolutionary movement. His efforts helped bring about the in ...
(1805-1872), fighter for the independence of Italy, took refuge in Grenchen 1835-1836 The Encyclopedia Americana, Mazzini, Giuseppe
retrieved 18 January 2019
* Hermann Obrecht
Hermann Obrecht (26 March 1882 – 21 August 1940) was a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council (1935–1940).
He was elected to the Swiss Federal Council on 4 April 1935 and handed over office on 31 July 1940. He was affiliate ...
(1882-1940), Federal Councilor from 1935 to 1940
* Yehudi Menuhin
Yehudi or Jehudi (Hebrew: יהודי, endonym for Jew) is a common Hebrew name:
* Yehudi Menuhin (1916–1999), violinist and conductor
** Yehudi Menuhin School, a music school in Surrey, England
** Who's Yehoodi?, a catchphrase referring to the v ...
(1916-1999), conductor and violinist, honorary citizen of Grenchen
* Ernst Thomke
Ernst Thomke (born 21 April 1939) is a Swiss physician and watchmaker. Training first as a mechanic, he later acquired the Swiss federal maturity degree and pursued academic studies whilst in employment.
Early life and education
Thomke was born ...
(born 1939), inventor of the Swatch
Swatch is a Swiss watchmaker founded in 1983 by Ernst Thomke, Elmar Mock, and Jacques Müller. It is a subsidiary of The Swatch Group. The Swatch product line was developed as a response to the "quartz crisis" of the 1970s and 1980s, in which i ...
watch
* Boris Banga
Boris Banga (born 9 August 1949) is a Swiss politician and longtime mayor of Grenchen (1991–2013). Banga is a member of the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei d ...
(born 1949) Mayor of Grenchen 1991–2013, former national councilor
* Alain Auderset
Alain Auderset is a Swiss Christian author of bandes dessinées ( Franco-Belgian comics) and is best known for his comics albums ''Willy Grunch'', ''Marcel'', and ''ROBI.''
Biography
Born on 27 October 1968 in Grenchen, Switzerland, Auderset was ...
(born 1968) author of Christian comics albums
; Sport
* Serge Muhmenthaler
Serge Muhmenthaler (born 20 May 1953) is a Swiss former professional association football, football player and Referee (association football), referee. He played as a forward (association football), forward during the 1970s and 1980s. As referee ...
(born 1953) retired football player and referee
* Ronnie Durrenmatt
Ronnie may refer to:
* Ronnie (name), a unisex pet name and given name
* "Ronnie" (Four Seasons song), a song by Bob Gaudio and Bob Crewe
*"Ronnie," a song from the Metallica album '' Load''
*Ronnie Brunswijkstadion, an association football stadiu ...
(born 1979) slalom canoeist, competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics
The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...
* Silvan Aegerter (born 1980), footballer, 280 club caps
* Marco Wölfli
Marco Wölfli (born 22 August 1982) is a Swiss former professional football goalkeeper who played for Young Boys in the Swiss Super League.
Club career
Wölfli made his league debut for Young Boys during their 1999–2000 Nationalliga B campa ...
(born 1982), footballer, 360 club caps
* Vanessa Bürki
Vanessa Bürki (born 1 April 1986) is a Swiss football striker who plays for BSC YB. She has also been a member of the Swiss national team.
Club career
On 18 April 2016, she extended her contract with FC Bayern Munich until 2018. However ...
(born 1986), Swiss footballer of the year 2006, 79 games for the Switzerland women's national football team
The Switzerland women's national football team represents Switzerland in international women's football. The team played its first match in 1972.
Switzerland qualified for the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada by winning their qualifyin ...
* Haris Tabaković (born 1994) a Swiss footballer of Bosnian descent
References
External links
Grenchen
official website
*
*
*
{{Authority control
Cities in Switzerland
Municipalities of the canton of Solothurn