Wohlen, Aargau facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Wohlen
Coat of arms
Wohlen Location in Switzerland Show map of Switzerland Wohlen Location in Canton of Aargau Show map of Canton of Aargau
Country	Switzerland
Canton	Aargau
District	Bremgarten
Area
• Total	12.48 km2 (4.82 sq mi)
Elevation	421 m (1,381 ft)
Population  (Dec 2020 )
• Total	16,881
• Density	1,352.6/km2 (3,503.3/sq mi)
Postal code	5610
Surrounded by	Bremgarten, Büttikon, Dottikon, Fischbach-Göslikon, Hägglingen, Niederwil, Villmergen, Waltenschwil
Twin towns	Lermoos (Austria)

Wohlen is a town in Switzerland. It is located in the canton of Aargau, within the Bremgarten district. It is a municipality, which means it is a local government area.

History of Wohlen

Wohlen from above in 1953

The first people lived in Wohlen a very long time ago, around 600-500 BC. They were part of the Hallstatt culture. We know this because two groups of burial mounds (ancient graves covered by earth) were found. These graves were explored in the 1920s. We still don't know exactly where their village was.

Later, around 50 AD, during the Roman era, two large farms were built in Wohlen. These farms grew grain, likely to feed the Roman soldiers at a nearby military camp called Vindonissa. Today, only small pieces of these Roman farms remain, like parts of walls, tiles, and old coins.

From Gauls to Alemanni

In the 5th century, a Germanic tribe called the Alemanni moved into the area. They built their own settlements near the Bünz river. Over time, the local people, called Gauls, slowly mixed with the Alemanni.

The name "Wohlen" comes from this time. It was first written down in 1178/79 as Vuolon or Volen. This name comes from an old German word, Walh, which meant "Roman" or "foreigner." So, the Alemanni named the place after the Romanized people who lived there before them.

Early Churches and Landowners

For a long time, Wohlen did not have its own main church. People had to go to churches in nearby villages. But after 1100, a local family, the Lords of Volen, gave land for a small church. This church was used until 1518.

The Lords of Volen (from 1185 to 1425) owned a lot of land in the village. They were the only local family who became part of the Habsburg military nobility. Even among the regular villagers, some were richer with more land and animals, while others were poorer and worked for their neighbors.

Population Changes

Around 1350, the Black Plague (a terrible disease) caused many deaths. People from other areas moved into empty farmhouses in Wohlen. This helped different groups of people in the village to mix together.

After 1500, Wohlen's population started to grow again. The number of homes increased from 48 to 60 between 1540 and 1570. This meant about 240 to 300 people lived there. In 1635, another big plague hit, killing about a quarter of the people.

The population grew slowly until about 1800. At that time, Wohlen had more people than the nearby towns of Bremgarten or Villmergen. After 1800, with new ways to earn money, Wohlen's population grew much faster.

The Freiämtersturm

In 1830, an important meeting happened in Wohlen. People wanted to change the canton's constitution (its main set of rules). After some disagreement, a man named Johann Heinrich Fischer left Wohlen to gather a group of rebels.

Two days later, this group marched to Aarau, the capital. This event is known as the Freiämtersturm. There was no fighting, and the government agreed to all the rebels' demands.

Geography

Wohlen covers an area of about 12.5 square kilometers (about 4.8 square miles).

• Around 39.5% of the land is used for farming.
• About 27.9% is covered by forests.
• About 32.1% has buildings or roads.
• A small part (0.6%) is made up of rivers or lakes.

Coat of Arms

The blazon (description) of Wohlen's coat of arms is: Argent a Pile inverted Sable and a Chief Gules. This means it has a silver background with a black triangle pointing down from the top, and a red band across the very top.

Demographics

Wohlen has a population of 16,881 people (as of 31 December 2020). About 33.3% of the people living in Wohlen are from other countries. Over the past 10 years, the population has grown by about 9.4%.

Most people in Wohlen (79.8%) speak German. Italian is the second most common language (8.1%), and Albanian is third (3.1%).

Age Groups

Here's how the population was divided by age in 2008:

• Children (0-9 years old): 10.0%
• Teenagers (10-19 years old): 12.7%
• Young adults (20-29 years old): 13.2%
• Adults (30-39 years old): 12.3%
• Adults (40-49 years old): 16.8%
• Adults (50-59 years old): 13.1%
• Seniors (60-69 years old): 10.7%
• Seniors (70-79 years old): 7.4%
• Seniors (80-89 years old): 3.4%
• Seniors (90 and older): 0.5%

Homes and Families

In 2000, there were:

• 662 homes with 1 or 2 people.
• 2,822 homes with 3 or 4 people.
• 1,849 homes with 5 or more people.

On average, there were 2.36 people in each home.

In 2008, about 32.6% of all homes were single-family houses. There were also 114 empty apartments, meaning 1.8% of apartments were available.

Politics

In the 2007 Swiss federal election, the most popular political party was the SVP, which received 37.9% of the votes. Other popular parties included the SP (16.9%), the CVP (16.8%), and the FDP (12.4%).

Education

Cantonal School in Wohlen

Many adults in Wohlen (about 59.5% of those aged 25 to 64) have completed higher education, like university or special colleges.

In the 2008/2009 school year:

• 1,116 students attended primary school.
• 531 students attended secondary school.
• 413 students attended university or college.
• 30 students were looking for a job after finishing school.

Historical Population

The table below shows how Wohlen's population has changed over time:

Important Heritage Sites

Parish church of Wohlen

Wohlen has some very important historical sites. These are called Swiss heritage sites of national significance. They include:

• The Häslerhau and Hohbüehl burial mounds. These are two separate groups of ancient graves from the Iron Age.
• The Catholic Church of St. Leonhard.

At the burial mounds, archaeologists found graves of men, women, and children. Men were buried with spears. Women were buried with beautiful jewelry and many bronze pots. The large number of valuable items shows that the people buried here were quite wealthy.

Economy

In 2007, Wohlen had an unemployment rate of 3.7%. This means 3.7% of people who wanted to work could not find a job.

In 2005, people worked in different types of jobs:

• Primary sector: 94 people worked in farming, fishing, or forestry. There were 27 businesses in this area.
• Secondary sector: 1,801 people worked in manufacturing or construction. There were 148 businesses in this area.
• Tertiary sector: 3,846 people worked in services, like shops, banks, or healthcare. There were 559 businesses in this area.

Many people who live in Wohlen travel to other towns for work. In 2000, about 61.9% of Wohlen residents worked outside the municipality. However, 3,375 people came into Wohlen to work. Most people (51.3%) used a private car to get to work, while 12.1% used public transportation.

Transportation

Wohlen has three railway stations. The main station is Wohlen railway station. It is on a railway line that connects Lenzburg and Rotkreuz. It is also the end point for the Bremgarten–Dietikon line, which comes from Bremgarten and Dietikon.

Two train services run through Wohlen:

• Service S26 of the Aargau S-Bahn.
• Service S17 of the Zurich S-Bahn.

Both services have two trains per hour. The other two stations, Wohlen Oberdorf and Erdmannlistein, are smaller stops on the S17 line.

Religion

Based on the 2000 census:

• 7,531 people (56.5%) were Roman Catholic.
• 2,626 people (19.7%) belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church.
• A small number (14 people) belonged to the Christian Catholic faith.

Sport

• Wohlen has hosted the Swiss Sidecarcross Grand Prix eleven times. This is a motocross race where a driver and a passenger ride a special motorcycle with a sidecar. The last time it was held here was in 2009.
• The local football (soccer) club is FC Wohlen. They play in the Swiss Promotion League. Their home stadium is called Stadion Niedermatten.

Notable People

Ciriaco Sforza

Many interesting people have connections to Wohlen:

• Philippe Bruggisser (born 1948), a manager in the airline industry.
• Peter J. Huber (born 1934), a statistician (someone who works with data and numbers).
• Andy Hug (1964–2000), a famous karateka and kickboxer who grew up in Wohlen.
• Viktor Korchnoi (1931–2016), a Soviet-Swiss chess grandmaster (a very high-level chess player) who died here.
• Cesar Lüthi (1930–2002), a businessman known for sports marketing.
• Seven (born 1978), an R&B and soul musician and singer.
• Ciriaco Sforza (born 1970), a well-known footballer.
• Kurt Strebel (1921–2013), a mathematician (someone who studies math).

Images for kids

• 

  A view of Wohlen

• 

  The coat of arms of Wohlen

See also

In Spanish: Wohlen (Argovia) para niños