The Val d'Anniviers (old name in German ''Eifischtal'') is a
Swiss Alpine valley
A valley is an elongated low area often running between hills or mountains and typically containing a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers or streams over ...
, situated in the
district of Sierre in
Valais
Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion, Switzer ...
, which extends south of the
Rhône Valley, on the northern slopes of the
Pennine Alps
The Pennine Alps (, , , ), sometimes referred to as the Valais Alps (which are just the Northern Swiss part of the Pennine Alps), are a mountain range in the western part of the Alps. They are located in Italy (the Aosta Valley and Piedmont) an ...
. The valley was home to six
municipalities
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' ...
:
Ayer,
Chandolin,
Grimentz,
Saint-Jean,
Saint-Luc and
Vissoie. The citizens of those municipalities agreed on November 26, 2006, to merge into one, which was named
Anniviers
Anniviers is a municipality in the district of Sierre in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. It was formed through the merger of six municipalities in Val d'Anniviers: Ayer, Chandolin, Grimentz, Saint-Jean, Saint-Luc and Vissoie. The mer ...
. The merger took place in January 2009.
Toponymy
The name of the valley has changed little during its history: "''vallis Annivesii''" before 1052, then "''de Anivesio''" in 1193, "''Annivies''" in 1215, "''Anives''" in 1243 and "''Annevié''" in 1253.
The origin and meaning of the name "''Anniviers''" are uncertain and have been interpreted in different ways from
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
. According to the
sociologist Bernard Crettaz, it would find its origin in the seasonal migration of its inhabitants between the mountain and the plain: the etymology would refer to "''Anni viae''", meaning "year on the paths", "paths of the year" or "work of the year". The other possible interpretations are, among others, "''Ad nives''" ("towards the snows") or "''Anni visio''" ("visit of the year", in reference to the annual visit of the bishop).
In the local variety of
Arpitan, Anniviers is called "''Anivyè''". The German form "''Eifischtal''", still used in some publications, would have similar origins to that in French; however, it has no connection with fish (Fisch in German).
The inhabitants of the valley are called the Anniviards.
Geography
Situation
The Val d'Anniviers is located in the
canton of Valais
Valais ( , ; ), more formally, the Canton of Valais or Wallis, is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of thirteen districts and its capital and largest city is Sion, Switzer ...
and is one of the seven large valleys of the Swiss
Rhône Valley. It is located on the left bank of the
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Ròse''; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Rôno'') is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and Southeastern France before dischargi ...
, between the
Vallon de Réchy and the
Illgraben and opposite
Sierre. It begins at
Chippis, at an altitude of , in narrow gorges, and its highest point is at the top of the
Weisshorn
The Weisshorn (German language, German, lit. ''white peak/mountain'') is a major mountain, peak of Switzerland and the Alps, culminating at above sea level. It is part of the Pennine Alps and is located between the valleys of Anniviers and Mat ...
, at an altitude of .
Seismicity, landslides and avalanches
The Val d'Anniviers is located in
seismic risk
Seismic risk or earthquake risk is the potential impact on the built environment and on people's well-being due to future earthquakes. Seismic risk has been defined, for most management purposes, as the potential economic, social and environment ...
zone 3b, the category of the most exposed regions in Switzerland. The valley is also in a high
avalanche
An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a Grade (slope), slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be triggered spontaneously, by factors such as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, othe ...
risk zone.
The Val d'Anniviers has experienced a number of natural disasters. The oldest known dates back to the 6th century when, after heavy snowfalls during the winter followed by long storms and torrential rains in the spring, a section of the Tsirouc mountain collapsed on the village of Morasses. In 1817, the village of Mayoux was also destroyed, this time by an avalanche: three consecutive very cold winters created a basin of snow at , under the
Roc d'Orzival. By freeing itself due to spring warming and thunderstorms, the basin gave way to a second avalanche, two days later, coming from the face of the Roc d'Orzival and ending in the village.
References
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Notes
External links
Official web site
Bibliography
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Valleys of the Alps
Valleys of Switzerland
Landforms of Valais
Ski areas and resorts in Switzerland
Anniviers
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