Gruyère District Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids

Gruyère District

District

Coat of arms

Capital

Area

• Total

489.4 km² (189.0 sq mi)

Population

(31 December 2020)

• Total

57,619

• Density

117.734/km² (304.93/sq mi)

Time zone

UTC+1 (CET)

• Summer (DST)

UTC+2 (CEST)

Municipalities

Website

Gruyère

Gruyère is one of the seven districts in the canton of Fribourg in Switzerland. It is also known as District de la Gruyère in French. As of 31 December 2020, about 57,619 people live here. The main town and capital of Gruyère is Bulle.

What is Gruyère?
Towns and Villages
District Symbols: The Coat of Arms
Who Lives in Gruyère?
- Population Changes Over Time
How Gruyère is Governed
Beliefs and Religions
Learning and Education
- The School System in Fribourg
Images for kids
See also

What is Gruyère?

The Gruyère District is a region in Switzerland. It is famous for its beautiful landscapes and, of course, for Gruyère cheese. The district covers an area of about 489.4 square kilometers.

Towns and Villages

The Gruyère District is made up of 25 different towns and villages, which are called municipalities. Each municipality has its own local government. The largest town in the district is Bulle, which is also its capital.

Here is a list of the municipalities in Gruyère:

Name	Population (31 December 2020)	Area (km²)
Bas-Intyamon	1,555	33.34
Botterens	670	4.27
Broc	2,662	10.03
Bulle	24,412	23.86
Châtel-sur-Montsalvens	317	2.03
Corbières	919	9.63
Crésuz	415	1.79
Echarlens	847	4.65
Grandvillard	845	24.32
Gruyères	2,205	28.44
Hauteville	678	10.54
Haut-Intyamon	1,588	60.27
Jaun-Bellegarde	633	55.21
La Roche	1,821	24.06
Le Pâquier	1,338	4.49
Marsens	2,034	7.85
Morlon	643	2.63
Pont-en-Ogoz	1,951	10.16
Pont-la-Ville	609	4.35
Riaz	2,815	7.76
Sâles	1,452	18.82
Sorens	1,105	8.71
Val-de-Charmey	2,548	112.07
Vaulruz	1,085	10.1
Vuadens	2,472	10.45
Total	57,619	489.4

District Symbols: The Coat of Arms

The blazon (description) of the district's coat of arms is simple and striking. It shows a Gules, a Crane rising Argent. This means it's a red shield with a silver crane bird flying upwards.

Who Lives in Gruyère?

As of as of December 2020^[update], the Gruyère District has a population of 57,619 people. Most people in Gruyère speak French. In 2000, about 88.2% of the population spoke French as their main language. German was the second most common language, spoken by about 5.1% of the people. Portuguese was third, spoken by 2.5%.

In 2008, the population was almost evenly split between males (49.5%) and females (50.5%). Most people living in Gruyère were Swiss citizens. About 33.2% of the people living in the district in 2000 were born there. Another 36.5% were born in the same canton (Fribourg). About 15.2% of the people were born outside of Switzerland.

Population Changes Over Time

The number of people living in Gruyère has changed a lot over the years. This chart shows how the population has grown:

How Gruyère is Governed

In the 2011 federal election, people in Gruyère voted for different political parties. The most popular party was the Social Democratic Party (SP). They received 27.5% of the votes. The next most popular parties were the Swiss People's Party (SVP) (22.0%), the Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP) (20.3%), and the FDP.The Liberals (FDP) (15.6%).

Beliefs and Religions

According to the 2000 census^[update], most people in Gruyère are Roman Catholic, making up about 80.8% of the population. About 5.4% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Other religions present in the district include Orthodox Christians, other Christian churches, Islamic, Buddhist, and Hindu faiths. Some people also reported having no religious affiliation.

Learning and Education

Education is very important in Gruyère. About 30.0% of the population has finished upper secondary education. This is like high school. Another 9.5% have gone on to higher education, such as university or a specialized college.

The School System in Fribourg

The school system in the Canton of Fribourg, where Gruyère is located, works like this:

Students attend eight years of Primary school.
After that, they go to three years of obligatory lower Secondary school. Here, students are grouped based on their abilities.
Then, students can choose to attend an optional three or four-year upper Secondary school. This can be a gymnasium (which prepares students for university) or a vocational program (which teaches job skills).
After upper Secondary, students can go to a Tertiary school (like a university) or continue with an apprenticeship to learn a trade.

In the 2010-2011 school year, there were over 9,000 students in Gruyère. This included students in kindergarten, primary school, lower secondary, and upper secondary schools.