Hospental facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hospental
Coat of arms
Hospental Location in Switzerland Show map of Switzerland Hospental Location in Canton of Uri Show map of Canton of Uri
Country	Switzerland
Canton	Uri
District	n.a.
Area
• Total	35.17 km2 (13.58 sq mi)
Elevation	1,493 m (4,898 ft)
Population  (Dec 2020 )
• Total	182
• Density	5.175/km2 (13.40/sq mi)
Postal code	6493
Surrounded by	Airolo (TI), Andermatt, Göschenen, Realp

Hospental (pronounced Oschpidall by local people) is a small town in the canton of Uri in Switzerland. It's a special place because it sits in a valley where important mountain roads meet.

History of Hospental

Hospental was first mentioned in old writings in the year 1285. Back then, it was called Hospenthal. Later, in 1499, it was known by its Latin name, Hospicium. By 1616, people called it Spithal. These names show that it was a place where travelers could find a "hospitality" or a "guesthouse" along their journey.

Geography and Landscape

Tower and Hotel Burg

Village of Hospental

Hospental covers an area of about 35 square kilometers (13.5 square miles). A big part of this land, about 32%, is used for farming. Forests cover almost 10% of the area. Only a small part, about 1.4%, has buildings or roads. The rest of the land, more than half, is made up of rivers, glaciers, or mountains.

The town is located in a valley called Urseren. This valley is important because it's where the roads over the Furka Pass and the Gotthard Pass meet. Hospental is a linear village, which means its buildings are mostly spread out along a road. It also includes a tiny village called Zumdorf.

People of Hospental

Hospental has a population of about 189 people (as of 2008). Over the last ten years, the number of people living here has gone down a bit. Most people in Hospental speak German, which is about 97.6% of the population. A smaller number of people speak Rhaeto-Romance or Italian.

Many adults in Hospental (aged 25-64) have finished high school or even gone on to higher education like university. This shows that education is important here.

Hospental has a very low unemployment rate, which means most people who want to work can find jobs. About 19 people work in farming, which is the primary economic sector. A few people work in manufacturing, which is the secondary sector. The largest number of people, about 30, work in the tertiary sector, which includes jobs like tourism, shops, and services.

Here's how the population of Hospental has changed over time:

Hospental Tower

Hospental tower ruins

A tall tower stands over Hospental. It was built in the 13th century for the Hospental family. This tower shows how important the Urserntal valley was for travel and communication for hundreds of years. The tower no longer has its original floors. It was used as a watch tower to keep an eye on the area.

Church of Maria Himmelfahrt

The Catholic Church of Maria Himmelfahrt was built between 1705 and 1711. It was designed by an architect named Bartholomaus Schmid. This church is built in the Baroque style, which means it has lots of fancy details and decorations.

Historic Müller-Lombardi House

One of the most important old houses in Hospental is the Müller-Lombardi house. It was built in 1687. This house belonged to the Müller family, who were very important in the area. The house has been carefully restored to look like it did originally, with a red outside and green-painted windows. Inside, you can find old paintings of the Müller family members.

Skiing Fun

Hospental has a mountain called Winterhorn. There used to be a ski area here, but it has not been used since 2007. The old chairlift and T-bar lifts are still there. This ski area was once part of a larger ski region called Skiarena Andermatt-Sedrun.

Getting Around

Hospental has its own Hospental railway station. This makes it easy for people to travel to and from the town by train.

Images for kids

• 

  Aerial view (1963)

See also

In Spanish: Hospental para niños