Kappelen facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kappelen
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Kappelen village church and town hall
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 Kappelen
Location in Switzerland
Kappelen
Location in Canton of Bern
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| Country | Switzerland | |
| Canton | Bern | |
| District | Seeland | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 10.97 km2 (4.24 sq mi) | |
| Elevation | 437 m (1,434 ft) | |
| Population
(Dec 2020 )
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| • Total | 1,420 | |
| • Density | 129.4/km2 (335.3/sq mi) | |
| Postal code |
3273
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| Surrounded by | Aarberg, Bargen, Bühl, Hermrigen, Jens, Lyss, Merzligen, Walperswil, Worben | |
Kappelen (also called Chapelle in French) is a small town, known as a municipality, in Switzerland. It is located in the Seeland area within the canton of Bern.
Contents
A Look Back: Kappelen's History
Kappelen was first mentioned in official records way back in 1228. It was called Capella then.
A very old Roman road used to run along what is now the edge of Kappelen. This road connected two important Roman towns, Aventicum and Petinesca.
During the Middle Ages, powerful families like the Counts of Neuchâtel-Nidau owned much of the land here. They gave land to monasteries, which were religious communities. For example, Frienisberg Abbey received land in 1225 and 1267. Another monastery, Gottstatt Monastery, was given control over the village church in 1247. This lasted until 1528, when the city of Bern took over.
Even after giving land away, the counts still collected a tithe. A tithe was a part of the crops or income that villagers had to give to the landowners or church. The Counts of Neuchâtel-Aarberg also had the right to run the "low court." This meant they could make decisions about smaller local disputes. This right later went to Nidau in 1367, and then to Bern in 1377-79. After that, Kappelen became part of the bailiwick of Aarberg, which was a local administrative area.
The village church, St. Martin, was first mentioned in 1228. It was damaged in 1290 but quickly rebuilt. It was made bigger and improved in 1682.
The Aare river used to flood the village often, causing damage. But this stopped after the Hagneck Canal was built between 1868 and 1878. The canal helped drain the swampy land around Kappelen, creating more space for farming.
In the mid-1800s, farming in Kappelen changed. Farmers started focusing on raising animals and making dairy products instead of growing crops and breeding horses. The first cheese factory opened in Kappelen in 1868. Around 1900, many farms began growing sugar beets for a sugar factory in Aarberg. Farming is still important in Kappelen today.
Although Kappelen doesn't have a train station, it has had a bus service connecting it to Biel and Aarberg since 1967. It also has a small private airport called Biel-Kappelen Airport.
Kappelen's Geography
Kappelen covers an area of about 10.98 square kilometers (4.24 square miles). Most of this land, about 73.4%, is used for farming. Forests cover about 14.2% of the area.
About 10.9% of the land is built up with buildings and roads. A small part, 0.4%, is covered by rivers or lakes. The remaining 0.5% is land that isn't used for anything.
The town of Kappelen is located on what used to be the left side of the Aare river. The municipality includes the main village of Kappelen and a smaller area called Werdthof.
Kappelen's Coat of Arms
The coat of arms for Kappelen shows a silver chapel on a blue background. The word "chapel" in German is "Kappelle," which sounds like "Kappelen." This is an example of "canting arms," where the picture on the coat of arms sounds like the name of the place.
People of Kappelen: Demographics
Kappelen has a population of about 1,259 people (as of 2022). About 4.2% of the people living in Kappelen are foreign nationals. Over the last ten years, the population has grown by about 31.3%. Most of this growth (29.5%) is from people moving into the area.
Most people in Kappelen (87.2%) speak German as their main language. Other languages spoken include Arabic (1.6%) and Albanian (1.5%).
In 2008, about 49.5% of the population was male and 50.5% was female. Most people in Kappelen are Swiss citizens.
About 26% of the population are children and teenagers (0–19 years old). Adults (20–64 years old) make up 60.5%, and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 13.5%.
Many people in Kappelen are married (517 individuals in 2000). There were also 467 single people, 87 widows or widowers, and 41 divorced individuals.
In 2000, there were 405 homes in Kappelen, with an average of 2.4 people living in each. About 91.7% of the apartments were lived in all the time.
The chart below shows how Kappelen's population has changed over time:
Kappelen's Economy
In 2010, the unemployment rate in Kappelen was very low, at 1.4%. This means most people who wanted jobs had them.
In 2008, there were 113 people working in the primary sector. This sector includes jobs like farming and fishing. There were 31 businesses in this area.
The secondary sector employed 293 people. This includes jobs in manufacturing (making things) and construction (building things). There were 26 businesses in this sector.
The tertiary sector had 153 people working in it. This sector includes jobs that provide services, like retail, hotels, and healthcare. There were 29 businesses in this sector.
Many people who live in Kappelen travel to other towns for work. In 2000, 389 people left Kappelen for work, while 153 people came into Kappelen to work. About 54.6% of working people used a private car to get to work, and 9% used public transportation.
Religion in Kappelen
Based on the 2000 census, most people in Kappelen (73.9%) belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church, which is a Protestant church. About 6.0% were Roman Catholic.
There were also people who belonged to other Christian churches (3.06%) or the Islamic faith (8.09%). A small number of people belonged to no church or did not state their religion.
Education in Kappelen
In Kappelen, about 38.1% of the population has finished upper secondary education. This is schooling after primary school. About 10.4% have gone on to higher education, like university.
The school system in the Canton of Bern starts with one year of non-required Kindergarten. After that, students go to six years of Primary school. Then, they have three years of lower Secondary school, where students are grouped by their abilities. After lower Secondary, students can continue their education or start an apprenticeship (training for a job).
During the 2009–10 school year, 131 students attended schools in Kappelen. There was one kindergarten class with 17 students. The town had four primary classes with 89 students and two lower secondary classes with 25 students.
Transportation in Kappelen
Kappelen is home to Biel-Kappelen Airport, a small airport. The town is also served by a bus line that connects it to nearby cities like Biel and Aarberg.
