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Monthey (; frp, Montê) is the
capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
of the district of Monthey in the
canton Canton may refer to: Administrative division terminology * Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries, notably Switzerland * Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French Arts and ent ...
of Valais in
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

The castle in the town center was built in 950 on a hill, the first houses of Monthey surrounded it. Monthey is first mentioned in 1215 as ''Montez''. At the 13th century, the counts of Savoy owned the village and its area. In 1352, the count Amédée VI gave more freedom to the inhabitants. During the first part of the 14th century, there were several industries including silk production and grinding mills.


Geography

Monthey has an area, , of . Of this area, or 27.5% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 45.1% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 19.1% is settled (buildings or roads), or 1.5% is either rivers or lakes and or 6.7% 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 3.9% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 8.4% and transportation infrastructure made up 4.3%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 1.6% of the area Out of the forested land, 40.7% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.8% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 5.6% is used for growing crops and 4.8% is pastures and 16.2% is used for alpine pastures. Of the water in the municipality, 0.5% is in lakes and 1.0% is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 5.1% is unproductive vegetation and 1.6% is too rocky for vegetation. The municipality is the capital of the Monthey District. This urban center of the Chablais region is located on an alluvial fan of the Vieze on the left bank of the Rhône, at the entrance to Val d'Illiez and the Pas de Morgins which leads to Val d'Abondance. It consists of the town of Monthey, the villages of Outrevièze and Choëx and
exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...
s in Collombey-Muraz. Monthey is located on the west side of the Rhône valley, south to the Leman Lake.


Coat of arms

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is ''Or, issuant from coupeaux Vert an Oak tree proper leaved and fructed of the second.''


Demographics

Monthey has a population () of . , 29.0% 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 (2000–2010 ) the population has changed at a rate of 17.5%. It has changed at a rate of 16.2% due to migration and at a rate of 3.4% due to births and deaths.
accessed 19-September-2011
Most of the population () speaks
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
(11,856 or 85.1%) as their first language, Italian is the second most common (520 or 3.7%) and Portuguese is the third (430 or 3.1%). There are 295 people who speak
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 ...
and 7 people who speak Romansh. , the population was 49.0% male and 51.0% female. The population was made up of 5,515 Swiss men (33.6% of the population) and 2,539 (15.4%) non-Swiss men. There were 6,171 Swiss women (37.5%) and 2,212 (13.5%) non-Swiss women.Ständige Wohnbevolkerung nach Geschlecht und Heimat am 31.12.2009.xls
accessed 24 August 2011
Of the population in the municipality, 4,611 or about 33.1% were born in Monthey and lived there in 2000. There were 2,769 or 19.9% who were born in the same canton, while 2,508 or 18.0% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 3,586 or 25.7% were born outside of Switzerland. , children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 24.1% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 62.3% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 13.6%. , there were 5,724 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 6,463 married individuals, 836 widows or widowers and 910 individuals who are divorced.STAT-TAB Datenwürfel für Thema 40.3 – 2000
accessed 2 February 2011
, there were 5,949 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.3 persons per household. There were 2,161 households that consist of only one person and 340 households with five or more people. , a total of 5,697 apartments (80.3% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 1,058 apartments (14.9%) were seasonally occupied and 339 apartments (4.8%) were empty.Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT-TAB – Datenwürfel für Thema 09.2 – Gebäude und Wohnungen
accessed 28 January 2011
, the construction rate of new housing units was 3.6 new units per 1000 residents. The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0.24%.


Sport and culture

In winter 2005, Monthey was chosen to be the host of the EYOF ( European Youth Olympic Festival). Monthey is home to the BBC Monthey, 1996 and 2005 Champion of the
Swiss Basketball League The Swiss Basketball League, also known as SB League or SBL, is the top-tier professional club basketball league in Switzerland. It is organized by Swiss Basketball. The winners of the SBL are crowned Swiss national basketball champions. Current ...
. The team plays its home games at the ''Reposieux''. FC Monthey is the town's football club, founded in 1910. Every winter Monthey hosts a very well known Carnaval in the entire region. In 2018 the Carnaval will be called "Carnaval Bestial" in French. It will occur from 8 to 13 February 2018.


Politics

In the
2007 federal election This electoral calendar 2007 lists the national/federal direct elections held in 2007 in the de jure and de facto sovereign states and their dependent territories. Referendums are included, although they are not elections. By-elections are not i ...
the most popular party was the CVP which received 26.33% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the FDP (23.4%), the SVP (21.95%) and the SP (18.09%). In the federal election, a total of 4,267 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 47.5%. In the 2009 Conseil d'État/Staatsrat election a total of 3,342 votes were cast, of which 261 or about 7.8% were invalid. The voter participation was 37.0%, which is much less than the cantonal average of 54.67%. In the 2007 Swiss Council of States election a total of 4,131 votes were cast, of which 413 or about 10.0% were invalid. The voter participation was 46.8%, which is much less than the cantonal average of 59.88%.


Economy

Monthey is important to Swiss industry, with the former chemical company Ciba-Geigy (now Novartis,
Syngenta Syngenta AG is a provider of agricultural science and technology, in particular seeds and pesticides with its management headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. It is owned by ChemChina, a Chinese state-owned enterprise. Syngenta was founded in 2 ...
and Cimo) and the metallurgical company
Giovanola Giovanola Frères SA was a prominent steel manufacturing company based in Monthey, Switzerland. It was known for building electrical power stations, water storage tanks, pipelines, boilers, highway bridges, submarines, ski lifts and many other st ...
, there is an oil refinery in Collombey-Muraz, near Monthey. The city is close to the famous winter sports region, the
Portes du Soleil Les Portes du Soleil (literally "The Doors of the Sun") is a major skisports destination in the Alps, encompassing thirteen resorts between Mont Blanc in France and Lake Geneva in Switzerland. With more than 650 km of marked pistes (claimed ...
. This city is also home to
Bolliger & Mabillard Bolliger & Mabillard, officially Bolliger & Mabillard Consulting Engineers, Inc. and often abbreviated B&M, is a roller coaster design consultancy based in Monthey, Switzerland. The company was founded in 1988 by Walter Bolliger and Claude Mabil ...
, world-famous
roller coaster A roller coaster, or rollercoaster, is a type of amusement ride that employs a form of elevated railroad track designed with tight turns, steep slopes, and sometimes inversions. Passengers ride along the track in open cars, and the rides are o ...
designers. , Monthey had an unemployment rate of 6.7%. , there were 37 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 25 businesses involved in this sector. 3,420 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 146 businesses in this sector. 5,453 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 616 businesses in this sector. There were 6,788 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 jobs was 7,689. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 19, of which 15 were in agriculture and 3 were in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 3,330 of which 2,062 or (61.9%) were in manufacturing and 696 (20.9%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 4,340. In the tertiary sector; 1,087 or 25.0% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 125 or 2.9% were in the movement and storage of goods, 287 or 6.6% were in a hotel or restaurant, 69 or 1.6% were in the information industry, 156 or 3.6% were the insurance or financial industry, 405 or 9.3% were technical professionals or scientists, 203 or 4.7% were in education and 1,504 or 34.7% were in health care. , there were 5,264 workers who commuted into the municipality and 2,700 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.9 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 3.7% of the workforce coming into Monthey are coming from outside Switzerland.Swiss Federal Statistical Office – Statweb
accessed 24 June 2010
Of the working population, 7.7% used public transportation to get to work, and 61.7% used a private car.


Religion

From the , 9,790 or 70.3% were Roman Catholic, while 1,381 or 9.9% 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 163 members of an Orthodox church (or about 1.17% of the population), there were 5 individuals (or about 0.04% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church, and there were 335 individuals (or about 2.40% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 8 individuals (or about 0.06% of the population) who were Jewish, and 744 (or about 5.34% 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 28 individuals who were Buddhist, 10 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 15 individuals who belonged to another church. 888 (or about 6.37% 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 725 individuals (or about 5.20% of the population) did not answer the question.


Education

In Monthey about 4,644 or (33.3%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 1,361 or (9.8%) have completed 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 ...
''). Of the 1,361 who completed tertiary schooling, 53.6% were Swiss men, 28.7% were Swiss women, 11.1% were non-Swiss men and 6.6% were non-Swiss women. , there were 256 students in Monthey who came from another municipality, while 389 residents attended schools outside the municipality. Monthey is home to the ''Médiathèque de Monthey'' library. The library has () 41,818 books or other media, and loaned out 95,847 items in the same year. It was open a total of 265 days with average of 20 hours per week during that year. The Stained Glass Arts and Fine Arts College is located in Monthey.


Notable people

*
Eidé Norena Karoline "Kaja" Eide Hansen, known professionally as Eidé Norena (April 26, 1884 – November 13, 1968) was a Norwegian soprano. Born in Horten, Norena studied in Oslo, Weimar, London, and Paris; her teachers included Ellen Gulbranson and Raim ...
(1884 – 1968 in Monthey) a Norwegian soprano *
Pierre Mariétan Pierre Mariétan (born 23 September 1935) is a Switzerland, Swiss composer. Biography Born in Monthey, Mariétan studied first at the Geneva Conservatory in 1955–60 with Marescotti and later with, amongst others, Pierre Boulez, Bernd Alois Zi ...
(born 1935 in Monthey) a Swiss composer of serialist, electronic and radiophonic music *
Philippe Pottier Philippe Pottier (9 July 1938 in Monthey, Switzerland – 22 September 1985) was a Swiss footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are associ ...
(1938 in Monthey – 1985) a Swiss footballer *
Jean-Luc Benoziglio Jean-Luc Benoziglio (19 November 1941 – 5 December 2013) was a Swiss-French writer and publishing editor. Born in Monthey, Valais, Benoziglio studied at the University of Lausanne before dropping out. Among the features of Benoziglios works in ...
(1941 in Monthey – 2013) a Swiss writer and publishing editor *
Pierre-Yves Borgeaud Pierre-Yves Borgeaud (born August 25, 1963 in Monthey, Switzerland) is a Swiss film director. Borgeaud has a bachelor's degree in arts at the Lausanne University in 1990, with a thesis about the influence of jazz on French writers (Paul Morand, Bori ...
(born 1963 in Monthey) a Swiss film director * André Simonazzi (born 1968 in Monthey) a Swiss politician *
Emmanuel Vaudan Emmanuel Vaudan (born December 21, 1971) from Monthey is a Swiss ski mountaineer and long-distance runner. Selected results Ski mountaineering * 2001: ** 3rd, Swiss Cup, scratch (and 2nd seniors) * 2002: ** 2nd, ''Trophée de la Tête de Balm ...
(born 1971) from Monthey, a Swiss ski mountaineer and long-distance runner *
Andréa Zimmermann Andréa Ursina Zimmermann (born 18 August 1976) from Monthey is a female Swiss ski mountaineer and mountain runner. Zimmermann was born in Biel/Bienne. She competed first in the 2000 Trophée du Muveran race and has been member of the national te ...
(born 1976) from Monthey, a Swiss ski mountaineer and mountain runner *
Steve Morabito Steve Morabito (born 30 January 1983) is a Swiss former professional road bicycle racer, who competed professionally between 2006 and 2019 for the , , and teams. Major results ;2001 : 3rd Road race, National Junior Road Championships ;2004 ...
(born 1983 in Monthey) a Swiss professional road bicycle racer *
Demir Peco Demir Peco (born 31 July 1996) is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a right winger for Bosnian Premier League club FK Sloga Meridian. International career He also played for the Bosnia and Herzegovina U21 national team, making s ...
(born 1996 in Monthey) a Bosnian professional footballer * Ralph Boschung (born 1997 in Monthey) a Swiss racing driver *
Berkan Kutlu Berkan İsmail Kutlu (born 25 January 1998) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Turkish club Galatasaray. Born in Switzerland, he represents Turkey internationally. Club career After a couple successful amateur season w ...
(born 1998 in Monthey) a Turkish professional footballer


Gallery

Monthey-Place-Centrale-1.jpg, Place Centrale Monthey-Place-Centrale-2.jpg, Place Centrale et l'église Monthey-Gare-Ville.jpg, AOMC Station Monthey-Gare-SBB.jpg, CFF Station Monthey-Theatre.jpg, Theater of Crochetan Monthey-Hotel-de-Ville.jpg, Hotel de Ville


International relations


Twin towns – Sister cities

Monthey is twinned with: accessed 27 April 2011


References


External links

*
Monthey
{{Authority control Cities in Switzerland