Bürchen

Bürchen (Walliser German: Birchu) is a municipality in the district of Raron in the German-speaking part of the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

History

Bürchen is first mentioned in 1307 as ze Birke. In 1363 it was mentioned as Birkonberg, in 1441 as Birchen and in 1755 as Betula.

Geography

Bürchen has an area, as of 2011, of 13.4 square kilometers (5.2 sq mi). Of this area, 25.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 55.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 5.4% is settled (buildings or roads) and 13.6% is unproductive land.

The municipality is located in the Westlich Raron district. It consists several hamlets on a high terrace above the southern side of the Rhone valley.

The proposed merger of the municipalities of Eggerberg, Ausserberg, Bürchen, Baltschieder, Visp and Visperterminen was rejected by the residents.

Coat of arms

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Azure, three Mullets [of Six] Or.

Demographics

Bürchen has a population (as of December 2014) of 758.As of 2008, 3.2% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (2000–2010 ) the population has changed at a rate of 0.8%. It has changed at a rate of 1.5% due to migration and at a rate of 1.3% due to births and deaths.