Villars-Mendraz facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Villars-Mendraz
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 Villars-Mendraz
Location in Switzerland
Villars-Mendraz
Location in Canton of Vaud
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| Country | Switzerland | |
| Canton | Vaud | |
| District | Gros-de-Vaud | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 1.55 km2 (0.60 sq mi) | |
| Elevation | 774 m (2,539 ft) | |
| Population | ||
| • Total | 183 | |
| • Density | 118.1/km2 (305.8/sq mi) | |
| Postal code |
1061
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| Surrounded by | Montaubion-Chardonney, Peney-le-Jorat, Sottens | |
Villars-Mendraz was once a small town, also known as a municipality, located in the Gros-de-Vaud area. This district is part of Vaud, which is one of the many cantons (like states or provinces) in Switzerland.
On July 1, 2011, Villars-Mendraz joined forces with several other nearby towns. These towns included Villars-Tiercelin, Montaubion-Chardonney, Sottens, and Peney-le-Jorat. Together, they formed a brand new, larger municipality called Jorat-Menthue.
Contents
Exploring Villars-Mendraz: Its Land and Location
Villars-Mendraz covered an area of about 1.6 square kilometers (or 0.6 square miles) in 2009. Imagine a square with sides just over 1.2 kilometers long!
How the Land Was Used
Most of the land, about 72.4%, was used for farming. This means people grew crops or raised animals there. Forests covered about 19.9% of the area. The remaining 6.4% was developed with buildings and roads.
In the built-up areas, about 3.8% was for homes and other buildings. Roads and other transportation paths made up 1.9%. The forests were mostly dense woods (17.3%). Some smaller areas (2.6%) had orchards or small groups of trees.
For farming, 44.2% of the land was used for growing crops. The other 27.6% was used as pastures for animals.
Changes in Districts
Before August 31, 2006, Villars-Mendraz was part of the Moudon District. After that date, it became part of the newer Gros-de-Vaud District.
Understanding the Villars-Mendraz Coat of Arms
A coat of arms is like a special symbol for a town or family. The one for Villars-Mendraz is described as Per pale Gules, a Band wavy Argent and Vert, a Bend sinister wavy of the second, overall in chief a Pine tree eradicated Or.
This fancy description means the shield is split down the middle. One side is red (Gules) with a wavy silver (Argent) stripe. The other side is green (Vert) with a wavy silver stripe going the other way. At the very top, there's a golden (Or) pine tree with its roots showing.
Who Lived in Villars-Mendraz? Population Facts
In December 2009, Villars-Mendraz had 188 people living there. About 7.4% of these people were from other countries in 2008.
Population Changes Over Time
From 1999 to 2009, the town's population grew by about 2.2%. This growth happened because more babies were born than people died (a 4.3% increase). However, some people moved away, causing a small decrease of 1.6% due to migration.
Languages Spoken
In 2000, most people (94.7%) in Villars-Mendraz spoke French. German was the second most common language (3.2%), followed by Portuguese (1.1%).
Where People Were Born
About 34.2% of the people living in Villars-Mendraz in 2000 were also born there. Another 46.3% were born in the same canton (Vaud). About 11.1% were born elsewhere in Switzerland, and 7.4% were born outside of Switzerland.
Age Groups in Villars-Mendraz (2009)
The population had a mix of ages:
- 8.0% were children aged 0 to 9 years old.
- 13.3% were teenagers aged 10 to 19.
- 12.8% were young adults aged 20 to 29.
- 12.2% were adults aged 30 to 39.
- 18.6% were adults aged 40 to 49.
- 15.4% were adults aged 50 to 59.
- 11.2% were seniors aged 60 to 69.
- 4.3% were seniors aged 70 to 79.
- 4.3% were seniors aged 80 to 89.
Family Life and Homes
In 2000, 84 people in the village were single and had never been married. There were 90 married people, 8 widows or widowers, and 8 divorced people.
The average number of people per living room was 0.58 in 2000. This was similar to the average for the whole canton. About half of the homes were owned by the people living in them.
There were 76 private homes in the village in 2000, with an average of 2.4 people per home. About 28.2% of homes had only one person. There were 19 married couples without children and 30 married couples with children. Two homes had single parents with children.
Types of Buildings and Apartments
In 2000, out of 46 inhabited buildings:
- 19 were single-family homes (41.3%).
- 15 were multi-family buildings (32.6%).
- 11 were multi-purpose buildings, mostly used for housing (23.9%).
- 1 building was for other uses, like businesses, but also had some housing (2.2%).
Most single-family homes (9) were built before 1919. Most multi-family homes (6) were also built before 1919.
There were 75 apartments in the village in 2000. The most common size was 3 rooms (19 apartments). Most apartments (88%) were lived in all the time. A few (8%) were used only during certain seasons, and 4% were empty.
In 2009, new homes were being built at a rate of 10.6 new units for every 1000 residents. In 2010, there were no empty homes in the village.
Historical Population Chart
This chart shows how the number of people living in Villars-Mendraz changed over many years:
Working Life in Villars-Mendraz
In 2010, the unemployment rate in Villars-Mendraz was 2.2%. This means only a small number of people who wanted to work couldn't find a job.
Jobs and Businesses
In 2008, there were 16 people working in the primary economic sector. This sector includes jobs like farming and forestry. There were 7 businesses in this area.
The secondary sector had 6 workers and 3 businesses. This sector includes jobs like manufacturing and construction.
The tertiary sector had 13 workers and 5 businesses. This sector is all about services, like shops, restaurants, and education.
Overall, 119 people in the village had jobs. Almost half of these workers (47.9%) were women.
Full-Time Jobs in 2008
In 2008, there were 30 full-time equivalent jobs. This means if you add up all the hours worked by everyone, it would be like 30 people working full-time.
- 12 jobs were in agriculture.
- 6 jobs were in the secondary sector. One was in manufacturing, and 5 were in construction.
- 12 jobs were in the tertiary sector. Most of these (8) were in selling or repairing cars. Two jobs were in hotels or restaurants, and two were in education.
Commuting for Work
In 2000, 5 workers traveled into Villars-Mendraz for their jobs. However, 88 workers left the village to work elsewhere. This means many more people left the village for work than came in.
About 4.2% of working people used public transportation to get to work. Most people (74.8%) used a private car.
Religion in the Community
Based on the 2000 census:
- 15.3% of the people were Roman Catholic.
- 70.5% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church.
- One person was Buddhist.
- About 12.11% of the population did not belong to any church. These people might be agnostic (not sure about God) or atheist (don't believe in God).
- A small number of people (1.58%) did not answer the question about their religion.
Learning and Education in Villars-Mendraz
Education is very important in Switzerland. In Villars-Mendraz, about 46.3% of the people had finished high school (non-mandatory upper secondary education). About 10.5% had gone on to higher education, like university. Of those with higher education, half were Swiss men and 40% were Swiss women.
School System in 2009/2010
In the 2009/2010 school year, 21 students were in the Villars-Mendraz school district.
- The Vaud canton offers two years of optional pre-school. In that year, 296 children received pre-school care, and 96 of them received financial help for it.
- The primary school program lasts for four years. There were 12 students in the local primary school.
- The required lower secondary school program lasts for six years. There were 9 students in these schools.
In 2000, 12 students who lived in other villages came to Villars-Mendraz for school. At the same time, 25 students from Villars-Mendraz went to schools outside the village.
