Sursés () 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

Albula Region Albula Region is one of the eleven administrative districts in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It has an area of and a population of (as of ). It was created on 1 January 2017 as part of a reorganization of the Canton. Mergers * ...

of the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2016 the former municipalities of

Bivio Bivio (, ) is a village and former municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula of the Swiss canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2016 the former municipalities of Bivio, Cunter, Marmorera, Mulegns, Riom-Parsonz, Salouf, Savognin, ...

Cunter Cunter (Romansh language, Romansh, in German language, German: Conters im Oberhalbstein) is a village and former municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula (district), Albula in the Cantons of Switzerland, ...

Marmorera Marmorera () is a village and former municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. On 1 January 2016 the former municipalities of Bivio, Cunter, Marmorera, Mulegns, Riom-Parsonz, Salouf, Sav ...

Mulegns Mulegns is a village and a former municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. On 1 January 2016 the former municipalities of Bivio, Cunter, Marmorera, Mulegns, Riom-Parsonz, Salouf, Sav ...

Riom-Parsonz Riom-Parsonz is a former municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It was created from the 1979 union of the villages of ''Riom'' and ''Parsonz''. On 1 January 2016 the former municipaliti ...

Salouf Salouf (until 1943 officially called Salux) is a village and former municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. On 1 January 2016 the former municipalities of Bivio, Cunter, Marmorera, Mul ...

Savognin Savognin (in local Romansh dialect ''Suagnign''; ; , official name until 1890) is a village and former municipality in the Sursés in the district of Albula in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. On 1 January 2016 the former municipalities of ...

, Sur and

Tinizong-Rona Tinizong-Rona is a former municipality in the district of Albula in the Sursés in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. It was formed in 1998 from the villages of ''Tinizong'' and '' Rona''. The local administration is situated in Tinizong ...

merged to form the new municipality of Sursés.Amtliches Gemeindeverzeichnis der Schweiz
published by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 27 April 2016.

History

Bivio

Bivio is first mentioned about 840 as ''de stabulo Bivio''. At one time it was known, in German, as ''Stallen'' and until 1895/1903 by its Italian name ''Stalla''.

Cunter

Cunter is first mentioned in 1370 as ''Contra''.

Marmorera

Marmorera is first mentioned about 840 as ''ad Marmoraria''. The old village was destroyed and flooded when the Marmorera dam was constructed. The current village was built above Lai da Marmorera.

Mulegns

Near Mulegns, around 600-500 BC, a

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

mine and

smelter Smelting is a process of applying heat and a chemical reducing agent to an ore to extract a desired base metal product. It is a form of extractive metallurgy that is used to obtain many metals such as iron, copper, silver, tin, lead and zin ...

were built in the Val Faller (Faller valley). The village was founded by a

Walser The Walser people are the speakers of the Walser German dialects, a variety of Highest Alemannic. They inhabit the region of the Alps of Swiss Alps, Switzerland and Liechtenstein, as well as the fringes of Italy and Austria. The Walser peopl ...

group during the 15th Century. It was first mentioned in 1521.

Riom-Parsonz

Riom-Parsonz was created from the 1979 union of the municipalities of Parsonz and Riom. Riom is first mentioned in 841 as ''villa Riamio'' and in

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 ...

it was known as ''Reams''. The other half, Parsonz is first mentioned in 1156 as ''Presan'' and in German it was known as ''Präsanz''. Riom was inhabited during the

Roman era In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

, from the 1st century through the 4th. During this time, it was a

mansio In the Roman Empire, a ''mansio'' (from the Latin word ''mansus,'' the perfect passive participle of ''manere'' "to remain" or "to stay") was an official stopping place on a Roman road, or ''via'', maintained by the central government for the use ...

or way-station along the

Julier Pass The Julier Pass ( Romansh: ''Pass dal Güglia'', German: ''Julierpass'', Italian ''Passo del Giulia'') (elev. 2284 m) is a mountain pass in the Albula Alps of Switzerland. It connects the Engadin valley with central Graubünden. At its summit, ...

road. After the

Fall of the Western Roman Empire The fall of the Western Roman Empire, also called the fall of the Roman Empire or the fall of Rome, was the loss of central political control in the Western Roman Empire, a process in which the Empire failed to enforce its rule, and its vast ...

, farmers and herders continued to live here during the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages (historiography), Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th to the 10th century. They marked the start o ...

. In 840 it was personally owned by the king of

Raetia Curiensis Raetia Curiensis (in Latin; , ) was an early medieval province in Central Europe, named after the preceding Roman province of '' Raetia prima'' which retained its Romansh culture during the Migration Period, while the adjacent territories in the ...

and a local administrative center.

Salouf

Salouf is first mentioned in 1160 as ''Salugo''.

Savognin

Savognin is first mentioned in 1154 as ''Sueningin''. An important

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

settlement is located on the Padnal hill to the south of town. In multiple excavations, many discoveries have been made, mostly from the period between 1800 and 1000 B.C. At least since the time of the

Romans 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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

, important travel routes have passed through the Julier and Septimer passes. Savognin came into the possession of the Bishops of

Chur '' Chur (locally) or ; ; ; ; ; ; or ; , and . is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, town of the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of the Grisons and lies in the Alpine Rhine, Grisonian Rhine Valley, where ...

in the 13th century. As part of the court of Oberhalbstein, for which Savognin acted as principal town and rural area, the town became a member of the

League of God's House The League of God's House ( German: ''Gotteshausbund'', Italian: ''Lega Caddea'', ) was formed in what is now Switzerland on 29 January 1367, to resist the rising power of the Bishopric of Chur and the House of Habsburg. The League allied with ...

. After its sale in 1552, the valley attained full sovereignty as part of the Free State of the

Three Leagues The Three Leagues, sometimes referred to as Raetia, was the 1471 alliance between the League of God's House, the League of the Ten Jurisdictions, and the Grey League. Its members were all Swiss Associates, associates of the Old Swiss Confederacy, ...

. The cattle industry and traffic through the passes formed the economic framework of the community since the Middle Ages. Periods of increase, for example, after Mount ''Crap Ses'' was blown up in 1777, or when the Julier Road was improved between 1820 and 1840, were always followed by periods of decrease, most recently from too much competition after the opening of the Gotthardbahn in 1882. At this stage Savognin was thrown back to being a peasants' village, and missed the next connection to the development of tourism. Jenische families were granted citizenship in the middle of the 19th century, as part of the ''Law for the fight against Homelessness''. The ascent to foreign vacation destination began only in the 1960s, with the construction of hotels, vacation apartments and aerial ropeways (

Piz Martegnas Piz Martegnas is a mountain of the Oberhalbstein Alps, overlooking Savognin in Graubünden, Switzerland. Piz Martegnas is part of a ski area, a chair lift station lies 11 metres below the summit. See also *List of mountains of Switzerland acc ...

); the village was changing.

Sur

The nearby

Spliatsch Castle Spliatsch Castle () is a ruined castle in the municipality of Surses in the Albula Region in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland. History Very little is known about the early history of this castle. It was built along the important trad ...

was built around the beginning of the 13th Century by the Marmels family. In 1663 the

Capuchin friars The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; Post-nominal letters, postnominal abbr. OFMCap) is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of Franciscans, Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of three "Religious institute#Nomenclature, F ...

built the

baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

church of S. Catregna (Katharina) on the ruined foundations of the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

church of St. Bartholomäus. Today this church, together with the villages of

and

form a

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 ...

. Until 1850 Sur was part of the municipality of Oberhalbstein in the

. Before the construction of the

Rhaetian Railway The Rhaetian Railway (; ; ), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the RhB operates all the railway lines of the Cantons of Switzerland, ...

Sur was a cluster of farm houses and a major side industry was providing guides to travellers.

Tinizong-Rona

Tinizong is mentioned during the Nervan–Antonine dynasty (96 to 192) of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

as ''Tinetione'', a station on the Roman

Septimer Pass Septimer Pass (German: ''Septimerpass'', Italian: ''Passo del Settimo'', Romansh: ''Pass da Sett''; elevation ) is a high mountain pass in the canton of Graubünden in the Swiss Alps between the valleys of Bregaglia (Bergell) and Surses (Oberh ...

route. Rona is first mentioned in 1330 as ''Rouenam''. In 1377 it was mentioned as ''Rouvena'', and in 1412 as ''Rofna''.

Geography

Sursés has an area of . The lake Lai Lung is within its boundaries.

Demographics

Sursés has a population (as of ) of .

Historic Population

The historical population is given in the following chart: Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.8) ImageSize = width:1100 height:800 PlotArea = height:610 left:100 bottom:90 right:100 Legend = columns:3 left:220 top:70 columnwidth:160 AlignBars = justify DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:2800 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical AlignBars = justify ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:500 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:100 start:0 Colors= id:BI value:yellowgreen legend:Bivio id:CU value:green legend:Cunter id:MA value:blue legend:Marmorera id:MU value:red legend:Mulegns id:RI value:yellow legend:Riom-Parsonz id:SA value:orange legend:Salouf id:SAV value:coral legend:Savognin id:SU value:powderblue legend:Sur id:TI value:pink legend:Tinizong-Rona PlotData= color:yellowgreen width:30 mark:(line,white) align:center bar:1850 from: 0 till:211 text:"211" color:BI bar:1860 from: 0 till:212 text:"212" color:BI bar:1870 from: 0 till:208 text:"208" color:BI bar:1880 from: 0 till:163 text:"163" color:BI bar:1888 from: 0 till:158 text:"158" color:BI bar:1900 from: 0 till:141 text:"141" color:BI bar:1910 from: 0 till:129 text:"129" color:BI bar:1920 from: 0 till:121 text:"121" color:BI bar:1930 from: 0 till:135 text:"135" color:BI bar:1941 from: 0 till:172 text:"172" color:BI bar:1950 from: 0 till:224 text:"224" color:BI bar:1960 from: 0 till:188 text:"188" color:BI bar:1970 from: 0 till:230 text:"230" color:BI bar:1980 from: 0 till:238 text:"238" color:BI bar:1990 from: 0 till:223 text:"223" color:BI bar:2000 from: 0 till:204 text:"204" color:BI bar:1850 from: 211 till:393 text:"182" color:CU bar:1860 from: 212 till:377 text:"165" color:CU bar:1870 from: 208 till:374 text:"166" color:CU bar:1880 from: 163 till:327 text:"164" color:CU bar:1888 from: 158 till:314 text:"156" color:CU bar:1900 from: 141 till:293 text:"152" color:CU bar:1910 from: 129 till:281 text:"152" color:CU bar:1920 from: 121 till:271 text:"150" color:CU bar:1930 from: 135 till:279 text:"144" color:CU bar:1941 from: 172 till:333 text:"161" color:CU bar:1950 from: 224 till:376 text:"152" color:CU bar:1960 from: 188 till:304 text:"116" color:CU bar:1970 from: 230 till:346 text:"116" color:CU bar:1980 from: 238 till:379 text:"141" color:CU bar:1990 from: 223 till:398 text:"175" color:CU bar:2000 from: 204 till:402 text:"198" color:CU bar:1850 from: 393 till:549 text:"156" color:MA bar:1860 from: 377 till:536 text:"159" color:MA bar:1870 from: 374 till:530 text:"156" color:MA bar:1880 from: 327 till:478 text:"151" color:MA bar:1888 from: 314 till:465 text:"151" color:MA bar:1900 from: 293 till:436 text:"143" color:MA bar:1910 from: 281 till:419 text:"138" color:MA bar:1920 from: 271 till:371 text:"100" color:MA bar:1930 from: 279 till:374 text:"95" color:MA bar:1941 from: 333 till:427 text:"94" color:MA bar:1950 from: 376 till:516 text:"140" color:MA bar:1960 from: 304 till:332 text:"28" color:MA bar:1970 from: 346 till:373 text:"27" color:MA bar:1980 from: 379 till:406 text:"27" color:MA bar:1990 from: 398 till:436 text:"38" color:MA bar:2000 from: 402 till:451 text:"49" color:MA bar:1850 from: 549 till:669 text:"120" color:MU bar:1860 from: 536 till:670 text:"134" color:MU bar:1870 from: 530 till:652 text:"122" color:MU bar:1880 from: 478 till:601 text:"123" color:MU bar:1888 from: 465 till:595 text:"130" color:MU bar:1900 from: 436 till:582 text:"146" color:MU bar:1910 from: 419 till:525 text:"106" color:MU bar:1920 from: 371 till:471 text:"100" color:MU bar:1930 from: 374 till:473 text:"99" color:MU bar:1941 from: 427 till:531 text:"104" color:MU bar:1950 from: 516 till:625 text:"109" color:MU bar:1960 from: 332 till:389 text:"57" color:MU bar:1970 from: 373 till:439 text:"66" color:MU bar:1980 from: 406 till:456 text:"50" color:MU bar:1990 from: 436 till:473 text:"37" color:MU bar:2000 from: 451 till:484 text:"33" color:MU bar:1850 from: 669 till:1086 text:"417" color:RI bar:1860 from: 670 till:1051 text:"381" color:RI bar:1870 from: 652 till:1008 text:"356" color:RI bar:1880 from: 601 till:1001 text:"400" color:RI bar:1888 from: 595 till:967 text:"372" color:RI bar:1900 from: 582 till:916 text:"334" color:RI bar:1910 from: 525 till:854 text:"329" color:RI bar:1920 from: 471 till:805 text:"334" color:RI bar:1930 from: 473 till:812 text:"339" color:RI bar:1941 from: 531 till:871 text:"340" color:RI bar:1950 from: 625 till:975 text:"350" color:RI bar:1960 from: 389 till:665 text:"276" color:RI bar:1970 from: 439 till:727 text:"288" color:RI bar:1980 from: 456 till:719 text:"263" color:RI bar:1990 from: 473 till:770 text:"297" color:RI bar:2000 from: 484 till:811 text:"327" color:RI bar:1850 from: 1086 till:1499 text:"413" color:SA bar:1860 from: 1051 till:1415 text:"364" color:SA bar:1870 from: 1008 till:1355 text:"347" color:SA bar:1880 from: 1001 till:1325 text:"324" color:SA bar:1888 from: 967 till:1277 text:"310" color:SA bar:1900 from: 916 till:1203 text:"287" color:SA bar:1910 from: 854 till:1134 text:"280" color:SA bar:1920 from: 805 till:1099 text:"294" color:SA bar:1930 from: 812 till:1072 text:"260" color:SA bar:1941 from: 871 till:1160 text:"289" color:SA bar:1950 from: 975 till:1264 text:"289" color:SA bar:1960 from: 665 till:898 text:"233" color:SA bar:1970 from: 727 till:933 text:"206" color:SA bar:1980 from: 719 till:876 text:"157" color:SA bar:1990 from: 770 till:955 text:"185" color:SA bar:2000 from: 811 till:1016 text:"205" color:SA bar:1850 from: 1499 till:1968 text:"469" color:SAV bar:1860 from: 1415 till:1924 text:"509" color:SAV bar:1870 from: 1355 till:1861 text:"506" color:SAV bar:1880 from: 1325 till:1829 text:"504" color:SAV bar:1888 from: 1277 till:1782 text:"505" color:SAV bar:1900 from: 1203 till:1647 text:"444" color:SAV bar:1910 from: 1134 till:1611 text:"477" color:SAV bar:1920 from: 1099 till:1616 text:"517" color:SAV bar:1930 from: 1072 till:1588 text:"516" color:SAV bar:1941 from: 1160 till:1736 text:"576" color:SAV bar:1950 from: 1264 till:2030 text:"766" color:SAV bar:1960 from: 898 till:1530 text:"632" color:SAV bar:1970 from: 933 till:1753 text:"820" color:SAV bar:1980 from: 876 till:1728 text:"852" color:SAV bar:1990 from: 955 till:1832 text:"877" color:SAV bar:2000 from: 1016 till:1898 text:"882" color:SAV bar:1850 from: 1968 till:2131 text:"163" color:SU bar:1860 from: 1924 till:2095 text:"171" color:SU bar:1870 from: 1861 till:2038 text:"177" color:SU bar:1880 from: 1829 till:1981 text:"152" color:SU bar:1888 from: 1782 till:1919 text:"137" color:SU bar:1900 from: 1647 till:1825 text:"178" color:SU bar:1910 from: 1611 till:1785 text:"174" color:SU bar:1920 from: 1616 till:1768 text:"152" color:SU bar:1930 from: 1588 till:1729 text:"141" color:SU bar:1941 from: 1736 till:1925 text:"189" color:SU bar:1950 from: 2030 till:2257 text:"227" color:SU bar:1960 from: 1530 till:1685 text:"155" color:SU bar:1970 from: 1753 till:1875 text:"122" color:SU bar:1980 from: 1728 till:1840 text:"112" color:SU bar:1990 from: 1832 till:1919 text:"87" color:SU bar:2000 from: 1898 till:1991 text:"93" color:SU bar:1850 from: 2131 till:2675 text:"544" color:TI bar:1860 from: 2095 till:2651 text:"556" color:TI bar:1870 from: 2038 till:2584 text:"546" color:TI bar:1880 from: 1981 till:2562 text:"581" color:TI bar:1888 from: 1919 till:2461 text:"542" color:TI bar:1900 from: 1825 till:2321 text:"496" color:TI bar:1910 from: 1785 till:2272 text:"487" color:TI bar:1920 from: 1768 till:2250 text:"482" color:TI bar:1930 from: 1729 till:2204 text:"475" color:TI bar:1941 from: 1925 till:2412 text:"487" color:TI bar:1950 from: 2257 till:2787 text:"530" color:TI bar:1960 from: 1685 till:2155 text:"470" color:TI bar:1970 from: 1875 till:2284 text:"409" color:TI bar:1980 from: 1840 till:2172 text:"332" color:TI bar:1990 from: 1919 till:2258 text:"339" color:TI bar:2000 from: 1991 till:2360 text:"369" color:TI

Weather

The Bivio weather station has an average of 132.1 days of rain per year and on average receives of

precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls from clouds due to gravitational pull. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, rain and snow mixed ("sleet" in Commonwe ...

. The wettest month is August during which time Bivio receives an average of of precipitation. During this month there is precipitation for an average of 11.9 days. The month with the most days of precipitation is May, with an average of 13.1, but with only of precipitation. The driest month of the year is February with an average of of precipitation over 11.9 days., the weather station elevation is 1801 meters above sea level. The Savognin weather station has an average of 104.3 days of rain per year and on average receives of

. The wettest month is August during which time Savognin receives an average of of precipitation. During this month there is precipitation for an average of 11.8 days. The driest month of the year is February with an average of of precipitation over 11.8 days.

Heritage sites of national significance

The archeological discovery of a

Roman 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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

mountain shrine in the Julier pass near Bivio, Riom Castle in Riom-Parsonz, the Chasa Fontana No. 26 in Salouf, the ''Son Martegn Church'' and the ''Padnal/Mot la Cresta'' (a

settlement) in Savognin, the Church of ''S. Plasch'' (St. Blasius) and the ''Chasa Cresta Nr. 5'' in Tinizong-Rona are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance. The Church of ''Son Martegn'', built in 1677 in the Central Form style, with a cross-shaped base. It has a monumental fresco painted in 1681 by Carlo Nuvolone from

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

. The Church of ''S. Plasch'' was first mentioned in 1180. In 1512 the side altars were rebuilt. In 1663 it was rebuilt from the original gothic style by the

Notable residents

* The Italian painter

Giovanni Segantini Giovanni Segantini (15 January 1858 – 28 September 1899) was an Italian painter known for his large pastoral landscapes of the Alps. He was one of the most famous artists in Europe in the late 19th century, and his paintings were collected by ...

lived in Savognin between 1886 and 1894, and developed his style there. He is famous for his landscapes with Mounts ''Piz Curver'' and ''Piz Tiossa'' in the background. * The Romansh-language poet and priest Alexander Lozza, OFMCap was born here in 1880. * The Swiss theologian

Mauro Jöhri Mauro Jöhri (born 1 September 1947 in Bivio, Graubünden, Switzerland) is a Swiss Roman Catholic friar and theologian. He was the Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin, having served from 2006 to 2018 (following re-election in ...

, OFMCap was born here in 1947.

Trivia

The 2007 Swiss mystery film ''

'' was filmed in Marmorera and at the dam reservoir.

References

External links

* * * * * * * * * * * * * {{Authority control Municipalities of Graubünden Cultural property of national significance in Graubünden