Soglio, Switzerland facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Soglio
Former municipality of Switzerland
Coat of arms
Soglio Location in Switzerland Show map of Switzerland Soglio Location in Canton of Grisons Show map of Canton of Grisons
Country	Switzerland
Canton	Grisons
District	Maloja
Area
• Total	67.64 km2 (26.12 sq mi)
Elevation	1,090 m (3,580 ft)
Population
• Total	167
• Density	2.469/km2 (6.395/sq mi)
Postal code	7610
Surrounded by	Avers, Bivio, Bondo, Castasegna, Piuro (Italy-SO), Stampa, Vicosoprano, Villa di Chiavenna (Italy-SO)

Soglio is a beautiful village in Switzerland, located in the Grisons canton. It's very close to the border with Italy. Soglio used to be its own municipality, but now it's part of a larger area called Bregaglia.

A Look Back in Time

Soglio has a long history! The village was first written about in the year 1186. Back then, its name was recorded as de Solio.

On January 1, 2010, Soglio joined with four other nearby villages. These were Bondo, Castasegna, Stampa, and Vicosoprano. Together, they formed the new municipality of Bregaglia.

Where is Soglio?

Soglio from an old book called Stemmatographia Saliceorum

Soglio covers an area of about 67.6 square kilometers (26.1 square miles). A little over a quarter of this land is used for farming. About 8.6% is covered by forests. Only a tiny part, 0.5%, has buildings or roads. The rest, a large 65.6%, is made up of mountains, rivers, or glaciers.

The village sits on a high, flat area. This spot is at the start of two mountain passes. One pass, the Passo della Duana, leads into the Avers valley. The other, the Passo da la Prasignola, goes into the Val Madris. Soglio village itself is about 1,095 meters (3,593 feet) above sea level. There's also a part of Soglio called Spino.

Soglio is located on a ledge on the northern side of the Val Bregaglia valley. It's high above the Maira River. From Soglio, you can see amazing views across the valley. You can spot the Bondasca glacier and the tall peaks of the Sciora group. These include Piz Cengalo and Piz Badile in the Bregaglia Range.

A view of Soglio (in the front) with the Sciora peaks (left), Piz Cengalo (left center) and Piz Badile (center)

The village is about 17 kilometers (11 miles) from the Italian town of Chiavenna. It's also about 39 kilometers (24 miles) from Sankt Moritz in the Engadine valley. You can reach Sankt Moritz by going over the Maloja Pass. These two towns have the closest train stations to Soglio. The highest point in the Soglio area is the top of Piz Duan, which is 3,131 meters (10,272 feet) high.

People of Soglio

In 2008, Soglio had a population of 167 people. About 7.8% of these people were from other countries. Over the ten years before 2008, the number of people living in Soglio went down by 13.5%.

Most people in Soglio speak Italian. In 2000, about 80.2% of the population spoke Italian. German was the second most common language, spoken by 17.4% of people. A small number, 1.7%, spoke English. Many people in Soglio speak a local type of Lombard dialect.

Education and Jobs

About 73.6% of adults in Soglio (aged 25-64) have finished high school or gone on to higher education, like a university.

Soglio has a very low unemployment rate, which means almost everyone who wants a job has one. In 2005, 18 people worked in farming. There were 9 businesses related to farming. 34 people worked in manufacturing and construction, with 8 businesses in this area. The largest group, 140 people, worked in services like tourism or shops. There were 15 businesses in this sector.

Religion

The village church of Soglio

In 1552, the village changed its main religion during the Protestant Reformation. Most people in Soglio today are still members of the Swiss Reformed Church.

Famous Families and Buildings

Soglio is the original home of the De Salis family. This was one of the most powerful families in the Grisons region. They later became known as the Count de Salis-Soglio.

There are several large Salis family houses in the village:

• Casa Alta
• Casa Battista
• Casa di Mezzo
• Casa Antonio

The Casa Battista is now a hotel called Hotel Palazzo Salis. The other houses are now apartments. For many centuries, the Salis family had a big impact on the area. The design from their family's coat of arms is even on the municipality's coat of arms.

Important Buildings

Several buildings in Soglio are considered important historical sites:

• The Soglio Reformed Church was first mentioned in records in 1354.
• Cas' Alta is a medieval tower house that belonged to the De Salis family. It was made into a residential tower in 1524 and made bigger in 1680.
• Casa Battista, also known as the Hotel Palazzo Salis, was built in 1630. It's a very important historical building for the country.
• Casa Antonio, built between 1763 and 1766, is also a very important historical building.
• Casa di Mezzo was built in 1696 behind Cas' Alta and Casa Battista.
• Casa Gubert was built on the eastern edge of the village between 1554 and 1573.

• 

  Outside of the Hotel Palazzo Salis (Casa Battista)

• 

  Dining room inside Hotel Palazzo Salis

• 

  Casa Antonio & Casa di Mezzo, Soglio

Weather in Soglio

Soglio gets rain about 101.8 days each year. On average, it receives about 1,459 millimeters (57.4 inches) of rain. May is the wettest month, with about 179 millimeters (7.0 inches) of rain over 12.7 days. February is the driest month, with about 55 millimeters (2.2 inches) of rain over 12.7 days.

See also

In Spanish: Soglio (Grisones) para niños