Arosa | |
|---|---|
 Arosa in June 2009 | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Location of Arosa | |
  Arosa  Arosa | |
| Coordinates:46°47′N9°41′E / 46.783°N 9.683°E /46.783; 9.683 | |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Canton | Grisons |
| District | Plessur |
| Government | |
| • Executive | Gemeindevorstand with 5 members |
| • Mayor | Gemeindepräsident Lorenzo Schmid CVP/PDC (as of 2017) |
| • Parliament | Gemeindeparlament with 14 members |
| Area | |
• Total | 154.79 km2 (59.76 sq mi) |
| Elevation (Bahnhof Arosa) | 1,775 m (5,823 ft) |
| Highest elevation | 2,980 m (9,780 ft) |
| Lowest elevation (Plessur (river) near Calfreisen) | 710 m (2,330 ft) |
| Population (December 2015) | |
• Total | 3,205 |
| • Density | 20.71/km2 (53.63/sq mi) |
| Demonym | German:Aroser(in) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Postal codes | 7050 Arosa, 7027 Calfreisen, 7027 Castiel, 7027 Lüen, 7028 Pagig, 7028 St. Peter, 7029 Peist, 7056 Molinis, 7057 Langwies, 7058 Litzirüti |
| SFOS number | 3921 |
| ISO 3166 code | CH-GR |
| Localities | Innerarosa, Maran, Prätschli, Tschuggen |
| Surrounded by | Alvaneu,Davos,Langwies,Lantsch/Lenz,Molinis,Peist,Schmitten,Tschiertschen,Vaz/Obervaz,Wiesen |
| Twin towns | Fukumitsu (Japan) |
| Website | gemeindearosa.ch |
Arosa is atown and amunicipality in thePlessur Region in thecanton of the Grisons inSwitzerland. It is both a summer and a winter tourist resort.
On 1 January 2013, the former municipalities ofCalfreisen,Castiel,Langwies,Lüen,Molinis,Peist andSt. Peter-Pagig merged into the municipality of Arosa.[2]
At the end of 2013 the Arosa ski resort was linked withLenzerheide by cable-car, creating the new ski resort ofArosa Lenzerheide; since that change, transport passes have been valid in both resorts.
The official language of Arosa is (the Swiss variety of Standard)German, but the main spoken language is the local variant of theAlemannicSwiss German dialect.
The resort is known throughout Switzerland for its famous ice hockey team, theEHC Arosa which used to be one of the most successful teams in the country.
Arosa is first mentioned about 1330 asAraus. In 1383 it was mentioned asOrossen and in 1428 it was first mentioned asArosa.[3]
The first known settlements are from the 13th century. After 1300 Arosa German-speakingWalser settlers came from Davos and replaced the originalRomansh-speaking inhabitants. During the following centuries, the village had a subsistence alpine pasture economy. Until 1851 it was politically a part of the Davos municipality. Arosa was established as a health resort by a German doctor in 1883, and the first sanatorium was opened in 1888. From 1900 on it gradually developed as a winter resort. In 1938 the first ski lifts were built, and in 1956 the Weisshorn cable car was opened and further rope and chair lifts followed.
In 1851 Arosa separated from the municipality ofDavos.[4]
Skiing in Switzerland received a big boost from SirArthur Conan Doyle, author of theSherlock Holmes series. Conan Doyle, an avid sportsman, was wintering inDavos. For entertainment, he ordered some skiing "boards" from Norway and hiked up the mountain with two local guides. They then skied down into Arosa, ending their journey with a luncheon at a local inn, the Seehof, the first hotel in Arosa. Conan Doyle wrote of his pioneering Davos/Arosa ski adventure in a British magazine,The Strand, in 1894, and the story attracted British skiers to Switzerland.
Erwin Schrödinger was vacationing in Arosa at Christmas 1925 when he made his breakthrough discovery ofwave mechanics.
In 1933,Thomas Mann stayed in Arosa during the first week of his Swiss exile.
The 1939 filmOver the Moon (shot 1937–9) has brief Technicolor exterior shots of the train station and ski resort areas.
On 20 February 1940, Germany's Hassall met with British J. Lonsdale Bryant in Arosa, to make a plan to overthrow the ruling German Nazi Adolf Hitler.[5]
TheCinema Museum in London holds film of the resort from 1959.[6]
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The municipality of Arosa has an area of 42.6 km2 (16.4 sq mi). Of this, 42% is used for agriculture, and 15.2% is forested. 3.1% is settled (buildings and roads) and the remainder (39.7%) includes the rivers, glaciers and mountains which attract tourists which constitute the primary industry.[7]
Before 2017, the municipality was in the Schanfigg sub-district of the Plessur district, after that date it was part of the Plessur Region. Located on the south-east slope of theWeisshorn chain, the town of Arosa is at the top of the Schanfigg valley at the foot of theAroser Weisshorn (2,653 m (8,704 ft)). Adjoining are the areas of Innerarosa, Dorf-Obersee, Untersee and Maran-Prätschli at an elevation of 1,690 and 1,950 meters (5,540 and 6,400 ft).
The two lakes in the centre of Arosa are theObersee (upper lake) andUntersee [de]. The town'srailway station is at the end of abranch line fromChur.
Arosa has a well-known and safe skiing area and boasts over 60 kilometers (37 mi) of slopes.
The main industry is tourism: there are 4287 guest beds. Arosa has an unemployment rate of 1.32%. As of 2005[update], there were only 4 people employed in theprimary economic sector and about 2 businesses involved in this sector. 308 people are employed in thesecondary sector and there are 30 businesses in this sector. 1,202 people are employed in thetertiary sector, with 185 businesses in this sector.[7]
Arosa has a year-round population (as of December 2020) of 3,162.[8] As of 2008[update], 22.0% of the population was made up of foreign nationals.[9] Over the last 10 years the population has decreased by 9.8%, but fluctuates seasonally from about 4600 in January to about 2500 in May. Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speak German (79.8%), with Portuguese being second most common language (7.3%) and Italian third (4.1%).[7]
As of 2000[update], there were 51.1% males and 48.9% females.[10] The age distribution, as of 2000[update], in Arosa is: 7.0% between 0 and 9 years old; 3.2% are 10 to 14; 4.5% are 15 to 19. 26.2% are between 20 and 29 years old. 18.0% are 30 to 39, 14.5% are 40 to 49, 11.6% are 50 to 59. 7.0% are between 60 and 69 years old, 4.9% are 70 to 79, 2.3% are 80 to 89, and 0.6% are 90 to 99.[9]
In the2007 federal election the most popular party was theSVP which received 45% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were theFDP (24.7%), theSP (17%) and theCVP (12%).[7]
In Arosa about 70.3% of the population between age 25-64 have completed either non-mandatoryupper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or aFachhochschule).[7]
From the 2000 census[update], 1,140 or 41.1% areRoman Catholic, while 1,150 or 41.5% belonged to theSwiss Reformed Church. 109 individuals (or about 3.9% of the population) belong to the Orthodox Church, and 17 individuals (about 0.6% of the population) who belong to another Christian church. The remainder belong to other religions or did not specify a religion.[9]
The historical population is given in the following table:[3]
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1550–1750 | c. 125 |
| 1850 | 52 |
| 1900 | 1,071 |
| 1930 | 3,466 |
| 1941 | 1,980 |
| 2000 | 2,771 |
The archeological site ofCarschlingg near Castiel, a prehistoric, late-Roman andEarly Middle Ages settlement, and theLangwieser Viaduct for theRhätische Bahn are listed as Swissheritage site of national significance. The hamlets of Medergen, Sapün and Strassberg are all part of theInventory of Swiss Heritage Sites.[11]
Arosa experiences asubarctic climate (Köppen: Dfc) similar to that ofValdez,Alaska, with short, cool summers, and long cold, but not severely cold winters. Precipitation is abundant year round, and so is snowfall, with annual totals averaging 285 inches (723 cm).[12]
Between 1961 and 1990 Arosa had an average of 147 days of rain per year and on average received 1,335 mm (52.6 in) ofprecipitation. The wettest month was August, with an average of 159 mm (6.3 in) of precipitation and an average of 14.5 days with rain. The month with the most days of precipitation was June, with 15.6, but with only 147 mm (5.8 in) of precipitation. The driest month of the year was February with 75 mm (3.0 in) of precipitation over 14.5 days.[13]
| Climate data for Arosa, elevation 1,878 m (6,161 ft), (1991–2020 normals, extremes 2016–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 9.8 (49.6) | 10.8 (51.4) | 12.0 (53.6) | 17.1 (62.8) | 20.9 (69.6) | 26.2 (79.2) | 25.1 (77.2) | 26.2 (79.2) | 21.7 (71.1) | 20.7 (69.3) | 14.6 (58.3) | 11.8 (53.2) | 26.2 (79.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | −0.5 (31.1) | −0.4 (31.3) | 2.1 (35.8) | 5.1 (41.2) | 9.7 (49.5) | 13.7 (56.7) | 15.7 (60.3) | 15.7 (60.3) | 11.7 (53.1) | 8.6 (47.5) | 3.4 (38.1) | 0.2 (32.4) | 7.1 (44.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −3.4 (25.9) | −3.8 (25.2) | −1.4 (29.5) | 1.8 (35.2) | 6.1 (43.0) | 9.9 (49.8) | 11.8 (53.2) | 11.9 (53.4) | 8.3 (46.9) | 5.3 (41.5) | 0.5 (32.9) | −2.5 (27.5) | 3.7 (38.7) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −6.7 (19.9) | −7.5 (18.5) | −5.0 (23.0) | −1.6 (29.1) | 2.5 (36.5) | 5.8 (42.4) | 7.8 (46.0) | 8.2 (46.8) | 4.6 (40.3) | 1.6 (34.9) | −2.8 (27.0) | −5.7 (21.7) | 0.1 (32.2) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −16.9 (1.6) | −24.7 (−12.5) | −14.2 (6.4) | −12.8 (9.0) | −7.6 (18.3) | −0.5 (31.1) | −0.1 (31.8) | 0.3 (32.5) | −4.1 (24.6) | −6.0 (21.2) | −11.1 (12.0) | −16.5 (2.3) | −24.7 (−12.5) |
| Averageprecipitation mm (inches) | 77.1 (3.04) | 64.7 (2.55) | 73.3 (2.89) | 77.0 (3.03) | 97.0 (3.82) | 132.3 (5.21) | 136.1 (5.36) | 157.8 (6.21) | 103.8 (4.09) | 89.7 (3.53) | 90.0 (3.54) | 80.3 (3.16) | 1,179.1 (46.42) |
| Average snowfall cm (inches) | 116.2 (45.7) | 105.3 (41.5) | 100.2 (39.4) | 78.0 (30.7) | 25.4 (10.0) | 5.6 (2.2) | 1.6 (0.6) | 2.4 (0.9) | 11.9 (4.7) | 42.5 (16.7) | 90.5 (35.6) | 113.9 (44.8) | 693.5 (273.0) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 10.6 | 9.5 | 11.2 | 10.9 | 13.0 | 14.2 | 14.0 | 13.9 | 10.7 | 9.4 | 10.6 | 11.0 | 139.0 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 1.0 cm) | 12.8 | 11.9 | 12.2 | 9.5 | 4.3 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 2.0 | 4.6 | 10.9 | 13.2 | 83.2 |
| Averagerelative humidity (%) | 64 | 66 | 68 | 69 | 71 | 72 | 72 | 73 | 73 | 67 | 68 | 66 | 69 |
| Mean monthlysunshine hours | 110.3 | 112.9 | 141.5 | 147.6 | 155.1 | 170.3 | 196.8 | 184.3 | 152.5 | 135.7 | 96.2 | 90.0 | 1,693.2 |
| Percentagepossible sunshine | 53 | 50 | 47 | 43 | 39 | 42 | 48 | 50 | 49 | 52 | 45 | 46 | 47 |
| Source 1:NOAA[14] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2:MeteoSwiss[15]Infoclimat (extremes)[16] | |||||||||||||
TheRhaetian Railway operates frequent train services on theChur–Arosa railway toChur.
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Media related toArosa at Wikimedia Commons
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