Emmen, Switzerland facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Emmen
Coat of arms
Emmen Location in Switzerland Show map of Switzerland Emmen Location in Canton of Lucerne Show map of Canton of Lucerne
Country	Switzerland
Canton	Lucerne
District	Hochdorf
Area
• Total	20.37 km2 (7.86 sq mi)
Elevation	427 m (1,401 ft)
Population  (Dec 2020 )
• Total	31,039
• Density	1,523.8/km2 (3,946.5/sq mi)
Postal code	6032, 6020
Localities	Emmen, Emmenbrücke, Rottertswil, Gerliswil, Emmenweid, Waldibrücke, Waltwil, Neuhüsern,
Surrounded by	Buchrain, Ebikon, Eschenbach, Littau, Lucerne, Neuenkirch, Rothenburg

Emmen is a village and a municipality in Switzerland. It is located in the Hochdorf district, within the canton of Lucerne. The municipality of Emmen includes the main village of Emmen, the town of Emmenbrücke, and several smaller settlements.

History of Emmen

Emmen was first mentioned in a document way back in 840. This document was from King Lothair I of Bavaria, who was a powerful ruler at the time. For many centuries, the area was controlled by the Murbach Abbey, a monastery located in the Vosges mountains.

In 1291, Emmen came under the rule of the House of Habsburg, a very important royal family. However, after the Battle of Sempach in 1386, the Habsburgs lost control of Emmen. It then became part of the Canton of Lucerne. Emmen also played a part in the Swiss peasant war of 1653, a big uprising by farmers.

Since 1803, Emmen has been part of the Hochdorf District. It is the district's largest municipality by population.

Talks about Merging with Lucerne

In 2008, Emmen and some nearby towns like Adligenswil, Ebikon, Horw, and Kriens joined a project. It was called "Starke Stadtregion Luzern," which means "Strong City Region Lucerne." The goal was to see if these towns should merge with the city of Lucerne.

In 2011, the project leaders suggested that merging would be the best way for the region to grow. However, in 2012, the people of Emmen voted against this idea. Voters in Adligenswil, Ebikon, and Kriens also said no. This meant Emmen stayed an independent municipality. Because of this decision, Thomas Willi, who was the mayor and strongly supported the merger, resigned from his position.

Geography of Emmen

An aerial view of Emmen in 1963

Emmen covers an area of about 20.3 square kilometers (about 7.8 square miles). A large part of this land, 46.6%, is used for farming. Forests cover 18.2% of the area.

About 33.3% of Emmen's land is developed with buildings or roads. The remaining 1.9% includes natural features like rivers. Emmen is part of the larger metropolitan area around Lucerne. It is located where two rivers meet: the Kleine Emme flows into the Reuss.

Rules for Becoming a Citizen

Emmen gained international attention in 2001 because of its new rules for becoming a Swiss citizen. While Switzerland has some basic rules for citizenship, like living and working there for 12 years and speaking the local language, each canton and community can add more rules.

Before 2001, a special committee decided on citizenship applications. But Emmen changed this so that citizens themselves would vote on applications. People applying for citizenship had to pass tests and have public interviews. This process made it harder for many people, especially those from former Yugoslavia, to become citizens. Emmen has one of the largest communities of people from former Yugoslavia in Switzerland.

Groups that protect human rights said that the public interviews and voting were unfair and embarrassing. In July 2003, Switzerland's highest court, the Supreme Court, ruled that this process was discriminatory and against the country's laws. After this, Emmen went back to using the old system with naturalization committees.

People in Emmen

As of 2007, Emmen had a population of 27,205 people. About 30.7% of these residents were from other countries. Over the past 10 years, the population has grown by 2.7%.

Most people in Emmen speak German (81.6%). The next most common languages are Serbo-Croatian (5.0%) and Italian (3.9%).

Population by Nationality (2000 Census)

Education and Households

Most people in Switzerland are well educated. In Emmen, about 61.4% of adults aged 25–64 have finished high school or gone on to higher education, like university.

As of 2000, there were 11,165 households in Emmen. About one-third of these (3,720 households) had only one person living in them. About 801 households were large, with five or more members.

Most homes in Emmen are either two or three stories tall. There are also some single-story buildings and taller buildings with four or more stories.

Religious Groups

In the 2000 census, the main religious groups in Emmen were:

• Roman Catholic: 17,253 people (64.2%)
• Protestant: 3,416 people (12.7%)
• Other Christian faiths: 1,327 people (4.94%)
• Muslim: 1,848 people (6.87%)

Some people belonged to other religions, and some did not belong to any organized religion.

Historical Population

The population of Emmen has grown a lot over the centuries:

Industry in Emmen

Emmen has several important industries. These include making steel, processing milk, and producing weapons. The biggest companies in these areas are Schmolz + Bickenbach (steel), Emmi AG (milk), and Ruag (arms).

There's also what people call the "golden triangle" of important facilities: a sewage treatment plant, an air force base, and a waste incinerating plant. Many people in Emmen work for the Swiss Air Force because of the Emmen Air Base and the Emmen Anti Aircraft Unit.

As of 2005, Emmen's unemployment rate was 3.62%. Many people work in different sectors:

• Primary sector (like farming): 257 people
• Secondary sector (like manufacturing): 5,260 people
• Tertiary sector (like services): 8,139 people

In 2000, about 51.6% of the people in Emmen were employed. Women made up 42.8% of the working population.

Transportation in Emmen

Emmen has a good public transportation system. It is served by Lucerne's city transit system, VBL. This system is part of the "passepartout" fare network.

Two railway lines, S1, RE, S9, and S99, run through Emmen. They stop at four train stations: Emmenbrücke, Emmenbrücke Gersag, Emmenbrücke Kapf, and Waldibrücke. All these stops are in the same main zone as Lucerne.

The military airbase Emmen Air Base (airport codes: EML, LSME) is also located within the municipality.

Sports in Emmen

Emmen is home to two football (soccer) clubs:

• FC Emmenbrücke
• SC Emmen

Notable People from Emmen

• Xaver Kurmann (born 1948): A retired Swiss amateur cyclist.
• Raphael Koch (born 1990): A footballer who plays as a defender for FC Solothurn.
• Mario Bühler (born 1992): A football defender playing for FC Vaduz.
• Kurt Koch (born 1950): A cardinal in the Catholic Church. He was the bishop of Basel from 1996 to 2010.
• Loredana (born 1995): A famous rapper.

See also

In Spanish: Emmen (Lucerna) para niños