Sils im Domleschg

Sils im Domleschg is first mentioned in 1149 as de Sillas.[3]

Hinterrhine river near Sils im Domleschg, with Hohen Rätien in the background

Aerial view (1947)

Sils im Domleschg has an area, (as of the 2004/09 survey) of 9.28 km² (3.58 sq mi).[4] Of this area, about 14.6% is used for agricultural purposes, while 70.4% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 8.2% is settled (buildings or roads) and 6.9% is unproductive land.

In the 2004/09 survey a total of 35 ha (86 acres) or about 3.8% of the total area was covered with buildings, an increase of 4 ha (9.9 acres) over the 1984/85 amount. Of the agricultural land, 5 ha (12 acres) is used for orchards and vineyards, 78 ha (190 acres) is fields and grasslands and 64 ha (160 acres) consists of alpine grazing areas. Since 1984/85 the amount of agricultural land has decreased by 7 ha (17 acres). Over the same time period the amount of forested land has increased by 11 ha (27 acres). Rivers and lakes cover 11 ha (27 acres) in the municipality.[5][6]

Before 2017, the municipality was located in the Domleschg sub-district, of the Hinterrhein district, after 2017 it was part of the Viamala Region.[7] It is a linear village between the Albula and Hinterrhein rivers. It consists of the village of Sils im Domleschg and the hamlets of Freihof, Campi and Albula.

Sils im Domleschg has a population (as of December 2020) of 971.[8] As of 2014, 16.3% of the population are resident foreign nationals. In 2015 a small minority (50 or 5.4% of the population) was born in Portugal.[9] Over the last 4 years (2010-2014) the population has changed at a rate of 5.60%. The birth rate in the municipality, in 2014, was 11.0, while the death rate was 5.5 per thousand residents.[6]

As of 2014, children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 21.5% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) are 58.1% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 20.3%.[6] In 2015 there were 365 single residents, 444 people who were married or in a civil partnership, 50 widows or widowers and 68 divorced residents.[10]

In 2014 there were 387 private households in Sils im Domleschg with an average household size of 2.36 persons. Of the 214 inhabited buildings in the municipality, in 2000, about 50.0% were single family homes and 32.7% were multiple family buildings. Additionally, about 28.0% of the buildings were built before 1919, while 15.9% were built between 1991 and 2000.[11] In 2013 the rate of construction of new housing units per 1000 residents was 7.82. The vacancy rate for the municipality, in 2015, was 2.37%.[6]

The historical population is given in the following table:[3][12]

Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (86.8%), with Serbo-Croatian being second most common (3.3%) and Italian being third (2.8%).[13]

Ehrenfels Castle, Carschenna (pre-historic petroglyphs), the ruins of Hohenrätien Castle and the ruins of Campell or Campi Castle are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance.[14]

• 
  Carschenna petroglyphs
• 
  Burg Ehrenfels
• 
  Ruins of Hohenrätien
• 
  Ruine Campi (or Campell)

In the 2015 federal election the most popular party was the SVP with 35.8% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the BDP (20.1%), the SP (15.1%) and the FDP (12.7%). In the federal election, a total of 287 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 45.9%. The 2015 election saw a large change in the voting when compared to 2011. The percentage of the vote received by the SVP increased from 27.8% in 2011 to 35.8% in 2015, while the percentage that the BDP dropped from 31.1% to 20.1%.[15]

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 43.4% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (27.4%), the FDP (19.7%) and the CVP (8.1%).[13]

In Sils im Domleschg about 73.3% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).[13]

Sils im Domleschg is an industrial-tertiary municipality, a municipality where agriculture and manufacturing play a minor role in the economy.[16]

As of  2014, there were a total of 287 people employed in the municipality. Of these, a total of 14 people worked in 6 businesses in the primary economic sector. The secondary sector employed 160 workers in 21 separate businesses. A minority (25.6%) of the secondary sector employees worked in very small businesses. There were 5 small businesses with a total of 119 employees. Finally, the tertiary sector provided 113 jobs in 42 businesses.[17] In 2014 a total of 7.8% of the population received social assistance.[6]

Church in Sils im Domleschg

From the 2000 census, 700 or 33.0% are Roman Catholic, while 1,176 or 55.4% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there are 43 individuals (or about 2.03% of the population) who belong to the Orthodox Church, and there are 13 individuals (or about 0.61% of the population) who belong to another Christian church. There are 21 (or about 0.99% of the population) who are Muslim. There was 1 individual (or about 0.05% of the population) who belonged to another church (not listed on the census), 97 (or about 4.57% of the population) who belong to no church, are agnostic or atheist, and 71 individuals (or about 3.35% of the population) who did not answer the question.[18]

• Official Web site