Entlebuch is a municipality in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. It is the seat of the district of Entlebuch. The area has been designated a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 2001.
Entlebuch is first mentioned in 1157 as Entilibuoch or Entelinbuoch.
Entlebuch has an area of 57 km2 (22 sq mi). Of this area, 50.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 42.6% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 3.7% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (3.6%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).In the 1997 land survey, 42.61% of the total land area was forested. Of the agricultural land, 48.86% is used for farming or pastures, while 1.19% is used for orchards or vine crops. Of the settled areas, 1.86% is covered with buildings, 0.21% is industrial, 0.16% is classed as special developments, 0.02% is parks or greenbelts and 1.46% is transportation infrastructure. Of the unproductive areas, 0.84% is unproductive flowing water (rivers) and 2.79% is other unproductive land.
Entlebuch District was one of the five Ämtern, or districts, of the German-speaking Canton of Lucerne, Switzerland. Its capital is the village of Schüpfheim. In 2013 the name was changed from Amt Entlebuch to Wahlkreis Entlebuch as part of a reorganization of the Canton. A sixth Wahlkreis was created, but in Entlebuch everything else remained essentially unchanged.
The area of the district is equivalent to the historical region of Entlebuch. At a total area of 395 km² it is dominated by the main valley of the Kleine Emme. The valley had been acquired by the house of Habsburg in 1300. In the later 14th century, the Entlebuch was in conflict with Obwalden over the right to alpine pastures, culminating in the Battle of Sörenberg in 1380. As a result of the conflict, the Entlebuch sought an alliance with Lucerne and in 1385 became a subject territory of that city. The region was long known as the "poorhouse of Switzerland" (also as the "Wild West of Lucerne") and is struggling for economic independence even today. In 2001 UNESCO accepted the region of Entlebuch to become part of the World Network of Biosphere Reserves, in which conservation of the natural and cultural landscape is coupled with strengthening the local economy.