Bürglen is a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
in the district of
Weinfelden
Weinfelden is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. It is the capital of the district of the same name.
Weinfelden is an old town, which was known during Ancient Rome, Roma ...
in the
canton
Canton may refer to:
Administrative divisions
* Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries
* Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French
Arts and entertainment
* Canton (band), an It ...
of
Thurgau
Thurgau (; ; ; ), anglicized as Thurgovia, and formally as the Canton of Thurgau, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of five districts. Its capital is Frauenfeld.
Thurgau is part of Eastern Switzerland. I ...
in
Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
.
History

Bürglen is first mentioned in 1282-84 as ''Burgelon''.
[ A ]Freiherr
(; male, abbreviated as ), (; his wife, abbreviated as , ) and (, his unmarried daughters and maiden aunts) are designations used as titles of nobility in the German-speaking areas of the Holy Roman Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Empire and in ...
of Bürglen is first mentioned in 1176. By 1350, the land around the village had all been brought under a single noble and became the ''Herrschaft
The German term ''Herrschaft'' (plural: ''Herrschaften'') covers a broad semantic field and only the context will tell whether it means, "rule", "power", "dominion", "authority", "territory" or "lordship". In its most abstract sense, it refers ...
'' of Bürglen. Then, in 1408, the ''Herrschaft'' was acquired by the Lords of Klingenberg. The land transferred in 1443 to Marquart Brisacher from Constance
Constance may refer to:
Places
* Constance, Kentucky, United States, an unincorporated community
* Constance, Minnesota, United States, an unincorporated community
* Mount Constance, Washington State, United States
* Lake Constance (disambiguat ...
and then in 1447, it went to the Baron of Sax-Hohensax. That family had owned in property in Bürglen since 1360. By 1500 they had built it up to become the center of their power. However, in 1550 they had to sell it to the Breitenlandenberg family, who, in turn, ceded it in 1579 to the city of St. Gallen. The village was managed, until 1798, by a St. Gallen appointed Vogt
An , sometimes simply advocate, (German, ), or (French, ), was a type of medieval office holder, particularly important in the Holy Roman Empire, who was delegated some of the powers and functions of a major feudal lord, or for an institutio ...
. The ''Vogt'' ruled over the low court of Bürglen, Uerenbohl, Guntershausen (now Guntershausen bei Berg), Heldswil, Mettlen and Istighofen and parts of Hüttenschwil and Sulgen. In addition, after 1580 it included Mühlebach (now Mühlebach bei Amriswil), followed in 1647 by Bleiken, in 1664, Hessenreuti and finally in 1665, Amriswil.[
Even though the village was fortified around 1300, it was never considered a city. This was due to the decline of the Baron and competition from other neighboring villages. After the disastrous fire in 1528, the villagers went into debt to the ''Herrschaft'' for the reconstruction of the village. To help pay off the debt, in 1540 they granted the ''Herrschaft'' rights to the ]common land
Common land is collective land (sometimes only open to those whose nation governs the land) in which all persons have certain common rights, such as to allow their livestock to graze upon it, to collect wood, or to cut turf for fuel.
A person ...
. Under St. Gallen, the village lost most of their autonomy. St. Gallen appointed the '' Ammann'' and the chairman of the Lower Court, promoted the settlement of its citizens to form a local elite, and changed the succession order in inheritances. However, the local farmers enjoyed a certain independence, and in the 17th century they promoted the expansion of the castle as well as the creation of new businesses. This relative prosperity was followed in the 18th century, by a government practice that hindered the formation of viable village government and led to general impoverishment.[
The village belonged to the ]parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...
of Sulgen. By 1274, a village priest was mentioned and in 1346 the castle chapel was finished. The St. Leonhard chapel was first mentioned in 1504, but is of an earlier origin. The ''Hell'' Chapel was first mentioned in 1585 and burned down in 1695. Presumably both chapels were in use until the late 17th century. After the Protestant Reformation
The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...
of 1529 the court returned to the Catholic faith, while the village remained Reformed. After St. Gallen acquired the rights to appoint a priest and collect tithe
A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Modern tithes are normally voluntary and paid in money, cash, cheques or v ...
s in 1585 from the Convent of St. Pelagius in Bischofszell, the village church was supported by Sulgen's church. This changed in 1617 when Neukirch an der Thur began providing a priest, and then in 1676, the priest was appointed by the castle. In 1809 an independent Reformed parish of Bürglen-Andwil was formed.
Geography
Bürglen has an area, , of . Of this area, or 62.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 17.5% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 17.3% is settled (buildings or roads), or 2.6% is either rivers or lakes and or 0.5% 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 5.7% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 2.5% and transportation infrastructure made up 3.8%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 5.2%. Out of the forested land, 16.2% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.3% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 55.7% is used for growing crops, while 6.4% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.[
The municipality is located in the Weinfelden district. It was created in 1995 from the former '' Ortsgemeinden'' of Bürglen, Leimbach and Opfershofen of the former ''Munizipalgemeinde'' of Bürglen as well as Istighofen, which used to be part of Bussnang. The ''Ortsgemeinden'' of Donzhausen, Hessenreuti and Uerenbohl, which used to belong to the ''Munizipalgemeinde'' of Bürglen, became part of Sulgen in 1995.][
]
Demographics
Bürglen has a population () of . , 25.2% of the population are foreign nationals.[Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Superweb database - Gemeinde Statistics 1981-2008]
accessed 19 June 2010 Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of -8.7%. Most of the population () speaks German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
(84.1%), with Albanian
Albanian may refer to:
*Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular:
**Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans
**Albanian language
**Albanian culture
**Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...
being second most common ( 5.9%) and Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
* Something related to Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire
* The w ...
being third ( 3.1%).[Swiss Federal Statistical Office]
accessed 19-October-2010
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.9% male and 50.1% female. The population was made up of 1,160 Swiss men (36.5% of the population), and 426 (13.4%) non-Swiss men. There were 1,218 Swiss women (38.3%), and 374 (11.8%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 16 live births to Swiss citizens and 9 births to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 15 deaths of Swiss citizens and 2 non-Swiss citizen deaths. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens increased by 1 while the foreign population increased by 7. There were 3 Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland to another country, 28 non-Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland to another country and 21 non-Swiss women who emigrated from Switzerland to another country. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources) was an increase of 53 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 23 people. This represents a population growth rate
Population growth is the increase in the number of people in a population or dispersed group. The global population has grown from 1 billion in 1800 to 8.2 billion in 2025. Actual global human population growth amounts to around 70 million annu ...
of 2.5%.[
The age distribution, , in Bürglen is; 285 children or 8.9% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 411 teenagers or 12.8% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 515 people or 16.0% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 385 people or 12.0% are between 30 and 39, 537 people or 16.7% are between 40 and 49, and 477 people or 14.8% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 287 people or 8.9% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 189 people or 5.9% are between 70 and 79, there are 112 people or 3.5% who are between 80 and 89, and there are 15 people or 0.5% who are 90 and older.
, there were 1,233 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.6 persons per household.][ there were 406 single family homes (or 73.2% of the total) out of a total of 555 inhabited buildings. There were 48 two family buildings (8.6%), 27 three family buildings (4.9%) and 74 multi-family buildings (or 13.3%). There were 642 (or 20.1%) persons who were part of a couple without children, and 1,943 (or 60.8%) who were part of a couple with children. There were 109 (or 3.4%) people who lived in single parent home, while there are 23 persons who were adult children living with one or both parents, 20 persons who lived in a household made up of relatives, 25 who lived in a household made up of unrelated persons, and 52 who are either institutionalized or live in another type of collective housing.
The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 2.93%. , the construction rate of new housing units was 1 new units per 1000 residents.][ there were 1,436 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 4 room apartment of which there were 391. There were 45 single room apartments and 204 apartments with six or more rooms.][Statistical Office of Thurgau]
, MS Excel document - ''Wohnungen nach Anzahl Zimmer und Gemeinden, Jahr 2000'' accessed 24 June 2010
In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 39.9% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the CVP (21.15%), the FDP (13%) and the SP (9.27%). In the federal election, a total of 807 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
In political science, voter turnout is the participation rate (often defined as those who cast a ballot) of a given election. This is typically either the percentage of Voter registration, registered voters, Suffrage, eligible voters, or all Voti ...
was 41.6%.
The historical population is given in the following table:
Sights
The entire city of Bürglen is designated as 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 ...
.
Economy
, Bürglen had an unemployment rate of 1.89%. , there were 132 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 46 businesses involved in this sector. 483 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 constructi ...
and there are 50 businesses in this sector. 648 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 ...
, with 110 businesses in this sector.[
there were 2,291 workers who lived in the municipality. Of these, 1,194 or about 52.1% of the residents worked outside Bürglen while 718 people commuted into the municipality for work. There were a total of 1,815 jobs (of at least 6 hours per week) in the municipality. Of the working population, 10.7% used public transportation to get to work, and 51.1% used a private car.][
]
Religion
From the , 964 or 30.2% were Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
, while 1,320 or 41.3% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church
The Protestant Church in Switzerland (PCS), formerly named Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches until 31 December 2019, is a federation of 25 member churches – 24 cantonal churches and the Evangelical-Methodist Church of Switzerland. The P ...
. Of the rest of the population, there are 81 individuals (or about 2.53% of the population) who belong to the Orthodox Church, and there are 115 individuals (or about 3.60% of the population) who belong to another Christian church. There were 2 individuals (or about 0.06% of the population) who were Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
, and 446 (or about 13.95% of the population) who are Islam
Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
ic. There are 4 individuals (or about 0.13% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), 161 (or about 5.04% of the population) belong to no church, are agnostic
Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, the divine, or the supernatural is either unknowable in principle or unknown in fact. (page 56 in 1967 edition) It can also mean an apathy towards such religious belief and refer to ...
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 104 individuals (or about 3.25% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Bürglen about 61% of the population (between age 25–64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education
Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education.
Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...
or additional higher education (either university or a ''Fachhochschule
A (; plural ), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a Hochschule, German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied arts, such as engineering, te ...
'').[
Bürglen is home to the Bürglen primary and secondary school district. In the 2008/2009 school year there were 278 students. There were 56 children in the ]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 cen ...
, and the average class size was 18.67 kindergartners. Of the children in kindergarten, 29 or 51.8% were female, 25 or 44.6% were not Swiss citizens and 25 or 44.6% did not speak German natively. The lower and upper primary levels begin at about age 5-6 and last for 6 years. There were 96 children in who were at the lower primary level and 126 children in the upper primary level. The average class size in the primary school was 20.3 students. At the lower primary level, there were 52 children or 54.2% of the total population who were female, 38 or 39.6% were not Swiss citizens and 37 or 38.5% did not speak German natively. In the upper primary level, there were 61 or 48.4% who were female, 31 or 24.6% were not Swiss citizens and 33 or 26.2% did not speak German natively.
At the secondary level, students are divided according to performance. The secondary level begins at about age 12 and usually lasts 3 years. There were 183 teenagers who were in special or remedial classes, of which 69 or 37.7% were female, 56 or 30.6% were not Swiss citizens and 67 or 36.6% did not speak German natively.Canton Thurgau Schools
accessed 23 June 2010
See also
* Bürglen railway station
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burglen, Thurgau
Municipalities of Thurgau