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75-414: As the southernmost of Switzerland's municipalities, Chiasso is on the border with Italy , in front of Ponte Chiasso (a frazione of Como , Italy). The municipality of Chiasso includes the villages of Boffalora, Pedrinate and Seseglio. In 2007, the three mayors of Chiasso, Vacallo and Morbio Inferiore decided to unite into one commune. The new united commune with a population of ~15,300 people over

150-768: A border region again after the Crisis of the Third Century . Roman control weakened after 401 AD, but did not entirely disappear until the mid-5th century after which the area began to be occupied by Germanic peoples . The Swiss plateau , within the natural borders of the Alps to the South and East, Lake Geneva and the Rhône to the west and the Rhine to the north, was recognized as a contiguous territory by Julius Caesar . This area had been dominated by

225-622: A castle was built in Chiasso as part of the extended fortifications of the city of Como. It was a suburb of Como, until 1416 when it was incorporated into the Pieve of Balerna and given to the Rusca family to manage. The houses in the village centre were owned by the Albrici family and were granted imperial privileges. Chiasso had become an independent community sometime before 1552. In the contemporary documents, it

300-540: A chain of watchtowers along the Rhine from Lake Constance to Basel , with each tower no more than 2 kilometers (1.2 mi) away from the next one. But even these efforts could not restore peace and order in Switzerland, and numerous settlements were abandoned as their inhabitants fled to more defensible places or to the South. Urban culture faded away as the cities of Nyon and Augusta Raurica were permanently abandoned during

375-470: A direct route to Germania and all of Central Europe. The last obstacle in this path were the Raetians. After a first expedition against them by Publius Silius Nerva in 16 BC, a more thorough campaign by Drusus and the later emperor Tiberius brought Raetia – and thereby all of Switzerland – firmly under Roman control. The tropaeum alpium , built by Augustus in 7 BC to celebrate his conquest of

450-590: A favor of Vespasian for the city in which he had lived for a time, or a measure to better control the Helvetii after the events of 69 by implanting a colony of veterans in their midst. The Alps were first administered by a legatus pro praetore in Augusta Vindelicorum ( Augsburg ), then by the procurator of the new province of Raetia . The Valais was split from Raetia by Claudius in AD ;43 and merged with

525-443: A one-room apartment was 491.07 CHF (US$ 390, £220, €310), a two-room apartment was about 646.96 CHF (US$ 520, £290, €410), a three-room apartment was about 806.94 CHF (US$ 650, £360, €520) and a six or more room apartment cost an average of 1544.67 CHF (US$ 1240, £700, €990). The average apartment price in Chiasso was 78.3% of the national average of 1116 CHF. The historical population is given in this chart: The entire village of Chiasso

600-462: A part-time student). There were 57 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 98 who attend part-time. The professional program lasts three years and prepares a student for a job in engineering, nursing, computer science, business, tourism and similar fields. There were 14 students in the professional program. As of 2000, there were 265 students in Chiasso who came from another municipality, while 318 residents attended schools outside

675-586: A territory of 9.2 km (3.6 sq mi), was rejected by the population in November 2007. Chiasso is first mentioned in 1140 as Claso . Historically, Chiasso and Boffalora were two distinct agricultural villages. Due to the nearby Italian border and customs office, and later as part of an access route to the St. Gotthard's Tunnel , the two villages merged and grew. Chiasso's history and development were strongly influenced by its unique location. In its early history,

750-507: A total of 3,763 apartments (83.7% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 181 apartments (4.0%) were seasonally occupied and 554 apartments (12.3%) were empty. The vacancy rate for the municipality, in 2008, was 3.5%. As of 2007, the construction rate of new housing units was 2.4 new units per 1000 residents. As of 2003 the average price to rent an average apartment in Chiasso was 873.89 Swiss francs (CHF) per month (US$ 700, £390, €560 approx. exchange rate from 2003). The average rate for

825-713: A total of 4,447 registered voters in Chiasso, of which 2,623 or 59.0% voted. 41 blank ballots and 14 null ballots were cast, leaving 2,568 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 698 or 27.2% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PS (with 486 or 18.9%), the SSI (with 456 or 17.8%) and the LEGA (with 406 or 15.8%). In the 2007 Consiglio di Stato election, 30 blank ballots and 21 null ballots were cast, leaving 2,572 valid ballots. The most popular party

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900-408: A total of 999 students (as of 2009). The Ticino education system provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten and in Chiasso there were 173 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years and includes both a standard school and a special school. In the municipality, 300 students attended the standard primary schools and 20 students attended the special school. In

975-580: Is 996 people or 12.8% of the population are 60–69 years old, 841 people or 10.8% are 70–79, there are 642 people or 8.3% who are over 80. As of 2000, there were 3,774 private households in the municipality and an average of 2. persons per household. In 2000 there were 313 single-family homes (or 33.3% of the total) of a total of 940 inhabited buildings. There were 336 multi-family buildings (35.7%), along with 193 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (20.5%) and 98 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (10.4%). Of

1050-417: Is also a sizeable customs area for traffic passing by road and motorway (both commercial and non-commercial vehicles). Chiasso offers also a lot of customs-related services. A considerable source of revenue for the town is Italians crossing the border to buy certain goods more cheaply in Switzerland, particularly cigarettes and petrol. It is also a banking centre for Italian clients wishing to keep money within

1125-667: Is designated as part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites . In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the FDP which got 29.77% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP (20.42%), the Ticino League (18.12%) and the CVP (16.54%). In the federal election, a total of 2,050 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 45.6%. In the 2007 Gran Consiglio election, there were

1200-510: Is mentioned as Clasio tabernarum (Chiasso of taverns) referring to its function as a transit point. Boffalora is mentioned in 1536 as a municipality and kept its independence until the second half of the 17th century. They became a single parish in either 1657 or 1677. Chiasso's church belonged to the Pieve of Zezio (in Como), from which it withdrew in the 16th century. In 1888, Boffalora separated from

1275-610: Is not certain) or Theodorus , bishop of Octodurus , in 381 or earlier. The first Christian religious buildings date to the 4th century; they are found in Geneva , Chur and Saint-Maurice , known for the legend of the Theban Legion . The order and prosperity that the Pax Romana had brought to Switzerland ended, as elsewhere in the Empire, with the Crisis of the Third Century . In 260, when

1350-546: Is used for agricultural purposes, while 2.65 km (1.02 sq mi) or 49.7% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.94 km (0.75 sq mi) or 36.4% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.02 km (4.9 acres) or 0.4% is either rivers or lakes and 0.04 km (9.9 acres) or 0.8% is unproductive land. Of the built-up area, industrial buildings made up 1.7% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 18.4% and transportation infrastructure made up 14.4%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 1.7%. Of

1425-663: The Alamanni , a move not opposed by either absent or weakened Roman forces. These settlements established the most important cultural and linguistic division in modern Switzerland: the Burgundian areas eventually became the French-speaking Romandie , while the people in the larger Eastern half – called la suisse alémanique in French – still speak variants of Alemannic German . Raetia maintained its Roman traditions longer than

1500-558: The Colonia Julia Equestris (now Nyon ) on the shores of Lake Geneva and the other through Lucius Munatius Plancus in northwestern Switzerland, preceding the larger Augusta Raurica founded by Augustus in around 6 AD. Caesar's attempt to open the Great St Bernard Pass for Roman traffic failed in 57 BC due to strong opposition by the local Veragri . Concerted and successful efforts to gain control over

1575-659: The Fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. The mostly Celtic tribes of the area were subjugated by successive Roman campaigns aimed at control of the strategic routes from Italy across the Alps to the Rhine and into Gaul , most importantly by Julius Caesar 's defeat of the largest tribal group, the Helvetii , in the Gallic Wars in 58 BC. Under the Pax Romana ,

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1650-506: The Gallic Empire briefly seceded from Rome, the emperor Gallienus withdrew the legions from the Rhine to fight the usurper Ingenuus , allowing the warlike Alemanni to enter the Swiss plateau. There, cities, villages and most villae were raided or sacked by marauding bands. The numerous caches of coins recovered from the period between 250 and 280 attest to the severity of the crisis. Only

1725-657: The Grisons as well as large areas around it. The first part of what is now Switzerland to fall to Rome was the southern Ticino , annexed after the Roman victory over the Insubres in 222 BC. The territory of the Allobroges around Geneva came under Roman sway by 121 BC and was incorporated into the province of Gallia Narbonensis before the Gallic Wars (58–51 BC). In around 110 BC, two Helvetic tribes under Divico –

1800-503: The Helvetii was similar to that of the Celtic tribes of the Valais , which were merged into a single civitas Vallensis probably around 40 AD, and given Forum Claudii Vallensium ( Martigny ) as their capital. Parts of the modern Ticino belonged to the colony of Comum ( Como ), founded in the 1st century AD. On the local level, the basic administrative units were the vici , replacing

1875-717: The La Tène culture since the 5th century BC, settled by a mostly Celtic population ( Gauls ), of which the Helvetii were the most numerous, but which also included the Rauraci in north-west Switzerland centered on Basel , and the Allobroges around Geneva . South of the Swiss plateau were the Nantuates , Seduni and Veragri in the Valais , the Lepontii in the Ticino , and the Raetians controlled

1950-587: The Mendrisio electric tramway opened, linking a northern terminus in Riva San Vitale with Capolago , Mendrisio , Balerna and Chiasso. The section of the line in Chiasso closed in 1950 and was replaced by a bus service. Today, a large part of the town is devoted to Chiasso's international railway station and related customs (though some of the border-control responsibilities have been moved to Como, in Italy). There

2025-540: The Swiss banking system. Starting in 1950, Chiasso became an important financial centre and the economic centre of the Mendrisio region; hence rapid population growth. Since the 1980s, however, population and jobs, especially in the service sector, have shifted into neighbouring communities. From 2001 to 2005 a new pedestrian zone was created, from customs to the municipality building. An enlargement of this zone has been put on

2100-888: The Tigurini and the Tougeni , sometimes identified with the Teutons – joined the wandering Germanic Cimbri on a march to the West. In the course of the Cimbrian War they defeated a Roman force under Lucius Cassius Longinus at the Battle of Burdigala in 107 BC, but after the Roman victory over the Teutons at Aquae Sextiae in 102 BC, the Tigurini returned to settle in the Swiss Plateau. In 61 BC,

2175-502: The Valais , shielded by mountains, escaped these predations. As the Empire's frontiers receded to the Rhine, Switzerland once again became a border area. Its defenses were strengthened, especially under Diocletian and Constantine , who rebuilt the roads and built castles ( castra ) alongside. Numerous fortifications were built along the Rhine border and further south, providing for a defense in depth . The border fortifications were completed by Valentinian I in 371, who established

2250-460: The secondary sector and there were 69 businesses in this sector. 5,549 people were employed in the tertiary sector , with 779 businesses in this sector. There were 3,410 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 42.3% of the workforce. In 2008 the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 6,265. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 15, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in

2325-519: The 17th century. Pedrinate municipality was aggregated in the Chiasso municipality in 1975, along with Seseglio. It is located above Chiasso, on the Penz hill. Pedrinate is the most southern village in Switzerland. Around Pedrinate there are some vineyards . Seseglio is on the northern boundary of Chiasso municipality. Chiasso has an area, as of 1997, of 5.33 square kilometers (2.06 sq mi). Of this area, 1.63 km (0.63 sq mi) or 30.6%

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2400-584: The 1st to 3rd century AD, as well as hundreds of villas of varying sizes built in the western and central part of the Swiss Plateau . The known vici include: The colonies of Nyon and Augusta Raurica at first had little cultural influence beyond their immediate surroundings. After Roman military defeats in Germania in 12–9 BC and 6–9 AD, the frontier was moved back to the Rhine and guarded by eight legions, of which one, originally Legio XIII Gemina ,

2475-486: The 4th century, the stones of their ruins serving to fortify Geneva and Basel . Aventicum never recovered from its pillages: Ammianus Marcellinus noted in around 360 that "the city was once very illustrious, as its half-ruined buildings attest." The Roman era of Switzerland is traditionally held to have ended in 401 AD, when Stilicho withdrew all troops from the Rhine and the Danube. However, it has been argued that

2550-611: The Alpine region were undertaken by his successor, Augustus , as the rapid development of Lugdunum (Lyon) made the establishment of a safe and direct route from Gaul to Italy a priority. In 25 BC, an army under Aulus Terentius Varro Murena wiped out the Salassi in the Aosta Valley . At some time between 25 and 7 BC – either following the Aosta campaign or, more likely, in the course of

2625-645: The Alps, lists among the defeated peoples the tribes of Raetia and of the Valais, but not the Helvetii. It appears that they were absorbed peacefully into the Empire during the first century AD, except for their part in the conflicts of the Year of the Four Emperors , AD 69. The history of Switzerland under Roman rule was, from the Augustan period up until 260 AD, a time of exceptional peace and prosperity. The Pax Romana

2700-493: The Helvetic pagi , or tribes, which were dissolved at the time of colonization. These villages enjoyed a certain autonomy and were governed by popularly elected magistrates ( magistri or curatores ). While the governmental system in the central and western part of Switzerland, as described above, is well documented, nothing of substance is known about the political and administrative system in eastern Raetia . However, records of

2775-511: The Helvetii, led by Orgetorix , decided to leave their lands and move to the West, burning their settlements behind them – twelve oppida , according to Caesar, and some 400 villages. They were decisively beaten by Caesar in the Battle of Bibracte in 58 BC. After their surrender, Caesar sent the Helvetii home, according them the status of foederati or Roman allies, but not yet (as has previously been believed) fully subjugating them to Roman sovereignty. Caesar's policy aimed at controlling

2850-511: The Mendrisiotto valley. The village survived through its role as a border town (providing warehouses and inns) along with income from agriculture and paper mills. In the 19th century, tobacco and silk factories moved into the town. The construction of the railway along with income from customs induced an economic and demographic recovery in Chiasso. In 1874 the railway line Lugano -Chiasso opened, followed in 1876 by one running to Como. In 1910,

2925-464: The agenda by the local administration, but a referendum on this issue is scheduled on 24 September 2006. Pedrinate was first mentioned in 1291 as Pedrenate , but Roman ruins near the village church indicate a much longer history. It was mentioned in 1335 as part of the village cooperative of Seseglio. The village church of S. Stefano is first mentioned in 1545 and was part of the Balerna parish until

3000-529: The area was smoothly integrated into the prospering Empire, and its population assimilated into the wider Gallo-Roman culture by the 2nd century AD, as the Romans enlisted the native aristocracy to engage in local government, built a network of roads connecting their newly established colonial cities and divided up the area among the Roman provinces . Roman civilization began to retreat from Swiss territory when it became

3075-616: The center of the forum of Nyon. The first clear testaments to Christian communities in Switzerland date after 313, when the religion was officially tolerated with the Edict of Milan . It is however certain that, as in Gaul, the Christian faith had already had adherents for some time before 313. The first bishop in Switzerland was either Justinianus , bishop of the Rauricans, in 340 (his historicity

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3150-530: The city council or ordo decurionum . The 100 members of this council, which corresponded to the Roman Senate , were selected by the duomviri among former officials or priests according to their wealth, and held office for life. Augusta Raurica and Aventicum were also the civitates , or capitals, of the non-Roman tribes of the Rauraci and Helvetii , respectively. In that capacity, the magistrates of Aventicum, as duoviri coloniae Helvetiorum , also governed

3225-606: The conquest of Raetia in 15 BC – a campaign also subjugated the Celtic tribes of the Valais and opened the Great St Bernard Pass. That conquest was a consequence of the Augustan imperative of securing the Imperial borders. To effectively control the Alps as the shield of northern Italy, Rome needed to control both flanks of the mountain range. Thus it had to extend its power to the Rhine and Danube , thereby also opening

3300-402: The crucial North-South connection had to be kept open, the Swiss plateau was not really Romanized until decades after the conquest. The principal Roman settlements in Switzerland were the cities of Iulia Equestris ( Nyon ), Aventicum ( Avenches ), Augusta Raurica ( Augst ) and Vindonissa ( Windisch ). Evidence has also been found of almost twenty Roman villages ( vici ) established in

3375-415: The end of the upper secondary program, a student will be prepared to enter a trade or to continue on to a university or college. In Ticino, vocational students may either attend school while working on their internship or apprenticeship (which takes three or four years) or may attend school followed by an internship or apprenticeship (which takes one year as a full-time student or one and a half to two years as

3450-588: The entire Helvetic population, which had the legal status of incolae (inhabitants) invested with the Latin Right . The rights of the Roman coloni , or colonists, were represented by a special authority, the curatores colonorum Aventicensum ("Heads of the colonists of Aventicum"). Moreover, the Roman citizens of the entire territory established the cives Romani conventus Helvetici ("Association of Roman citizens in Helvetia"). The civitas (tribal community) of

3525-505: The existence of a trade in slaves . In the course of Romanization, the Celtic polytheism of the local tribes was merged – syncretized – with the Roman religion . The Celtic deities came to be worshiped under the names of their Roman counterparts. Thus Lugus was replaced by Mercury , Belenus by Apollo , Taranis by Jupiter and so forth, in a practice called interpretatio romana by Caesar , who pioneered it. Roman gods also acquired

3600-422: The existence of a wealthy and cultured upper class of landowners. Many villae belonged not to Roman immigrants, but to members of the Celtic aristocracy who continued to hold their lands and their rank after the Roman conquest. Of the lower classes, much less is known, although there are inscriptions attesting to the existence of guilds ( collegia ) of boat skippers, doctors, teachers and traders, as well as to

3675-448: The forested land, 47.5% of the total land area is heavily forested and 2.3% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 7.9% is used for growing crops, 4.3% is used for orchards or vine crops, and 18.4% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water. The municipality is in the Mendrisio district, on the Italian border. Since Pedrinate merged into Chiasso in 1976, it has been

3750-480: The gender distribution of the population was 47.0% male and 53.0% female. The population was made up of 2,226 Swiss men (28.7% of the population), and 1,420 (18.3%) non-Swiss men. There were 2,774 Swiss women (35.7%), and 1,343 (17.3%) non-Swiss women. In 2008 there were 42 live births to Swiss citizens and 26 births to non-Swiss citizens, and in the same time span, there were 63 deaths of Swiss citizens and 27 non-Swiss citizen deaths. Ignoring immigration and emigration,

3825-481: The insurance or financial industry, 684 or 12.9% were technical professionals or scientists, 132 or 2.5% were in education and 365 or 6.9% were in health care. In 2000, there were 6,532 workers who commuted into the municipality and 1,667 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with ~3.9 workers entering the municipality for everyone leaving. About 21.4% of the workforce coming into Chiasso are coming from outside Switzerland, while 4.0% of

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3900-426: The locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 9.9% used public transportation to get to work, and 47.8% used a private car. As of 2009, there were 4 hotels in Chiasso with a total of 128 rooms and 281 beds. Companies based in Chiasso include Lastminute.com Group . The fortune of Chiasso is mostly linked to its location on the A2 ; the main route to St. Gotthard's Tunnel, which connects

3975-402: The lower secondary school system, students either attend a two-year middle school followed by a two-year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four-year program to prepare for higher education. There were 249 students in the two-year middle school and 10 in their pre-apprenticeship, while 78 students were in the four-year advanced program. The upper secondary school includes several options, but at

4050-402: The most southerly municipality in Switzerland. The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Argent lion passant holding a letter C gules standing on a carriage entrance azure. The carriage entrance refers to Chiasso location of the ancient road coming from Como and giving access to several places from Chiasso." Chiasso has a population (as of December 2020) of 7,581. As of 2008, 36.4% of

4125-428: The municipality. Extreme points of Switzerland Download coordinates as: This is a list of the extreme points of Switzerland . Switzerland in the Roman era The territory of modern Switzerland was a part of the Roman Republic and Empire for a period of about six centuries, beginning with the step-by-step conquest of the area by Roman armies from the 2nd century BC and ending with

4200-511: The names of local gods as epithets ; thus Mars was venerated as Mars Caturix , Mercury as Mercurius Cissonius and Jupiter as Jupiter Poeninus after the god of the Pennine Alps . As oriental religions grew more popular in the later Empire – unlike the traditional Roman cults, they promised rewards in the afterlife – they also percolated into Gaul. Artifacts related to the cults of gods such as Isis , Osiris , Serapis , Kybele , Serapios , Dionysos or Mithras have been found at

4275-427: The parish. It became the seat of an archpriest in 1928. The Church of San Vitale, first mentioned in 1227, was rebuilt in 1934. In the 15th century, Chiasso was known for its horse market. But the market ended after the invasion of the Swiss Confederation and the march through Chiasso in the War of the League of Cambrai in 1510. In the late 16th century, Chiasso had a smaller population than other municipalities of

4350-476: The period exhibit influences of ornamental Celtic art , classical Greco-Roman art and even Oriental styles from the far reaches of the Empire. An important incentive for the local people to Romanize was the perspective of obtaining the various degrees of Roman citizenship and the rights conferred thereby, including the right to vote, to hold public office and to render military service. The hundreds of villae found in Switzerland, some very luxurious, attest to

4425-446: The population are resident foreign nationals. In 1997–2007 the population changed at a rate of -2.8%. Most of the people (as of 2000) speak Italian (91.3%); German is second most common (2.5%) and Albanian is third (1.2%). Of the Swiss national languages (as of 2000), 196 speak German , 71 people speak French , 7,048 people speak Italian, and 4 people speak Romansh . The remainder (401 people) speak another language. As of 2008,

4500-426: The population of Swiss citizens decreased by 21 while the foreign population decreased by 1. There was 1 Swiss man who immigrated back to Switzerland and 3 Swiss women who emigrated from Switzerland. At the same time, there were 104 non-Swiss men and 94 non-Swiss women who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders)

4575-440: The population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 501 individuals (or about 6.49% of the population) did not answer the question. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Chiasso about 58.1% of the population (between age 25–64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either University or a Fachhochschule ). In Chiasso there were

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4650-500: The province of Alpes Graiae to form a new province, Alpes Graiae et Poeninae . As for the Swiss plateau, its western and central part up to Ad Fines ( Pfyn ) was administratively part of the province of Belgica and for military purposes part of Germania Superior . Its eastern part belonged to Raetia. This division, established by Augustus in 22 BC, was accompanied by a redistribution of tribal settlement areas. It remained essentially unchanged until Diocletian 's reforms in

4725-432: The secondary sector was 931, of which 402 (43.2%) were in manufacturing and 473 (50.8%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 5,319. In the tertiary sector; 810 or 15.2% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 1,550 or 29.1% were in the movement and storage of goods, 208 or 3.9% were in a hotel or restaurant, 84 or 1.6% were in the information industry, 706 or 13.3% were

4800-410: The single-family homes, 11 were built before 1919, while 38 were built between 1990 and 2000. The greatest number of single-family homes (111) were built between 1919 and 1945. In 2000 there were 4,498 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was 3 rooms of which there were 1,692. There were 316 single-room apartments and 493 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments,

4875-418: The site of every Roman settlement in Switzerland. The great significance of religion in the culture of Roman Switzerland is illustrated by the imposing size and central location of the Roman temples in the cities, as well as by the great number of religious artifacts found by archaeologists. As everywhere in the Empire, the Imperial cult was practiced in Switzerland; it had a particularly prominent temple in

4950-418: The southern parts of the Alps and Italy with the northern part of Switzerland and Germany . The A2 Swiss motorway begins at Chiasso. Long traffic queues often occur on the motorway around the border where vehicles are being checked for contraband. From the 2000 census, 6,235 or 80.8% were Roman Catholic , while 230 or 3.0% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church . There are 754 individuals (or about 9.77% of

5025-413: The superimposition of Roman culture on the local population appears to have been unproblematic and thorough, the Celtic traditions did not disappear entirely, resulting in a fusion of Roman and local culture that characterized all aspects of society. Latin , the language of government and instruction, only gradually replaced the local Celtic dialects in everyday use. Local artworks and religious icons of

5100-407: The territory west of the Jura and Rhine , as well as at blocking the potential incursion routes from the East along the Jura. The Raetians, described as savage warriors by Strabo , continued to launch incursions into the Swiss Plateau and also had to be contained. To that end, Caesar charged the Helvetii and the Rauraci with defending their territory and established two colonies of veterans – one,

5175-444: The third century, when parts of Switzerland each belonged to the provinces of Sequania , Vienna , Raetia Prima , Liguria and Alpes Graiae et Poeninae . The colonies of Nyon, Aventicum and Augusta Raurica were governed under republican constitutions similar to that of Rome. Most governmental powers were exercised by a pair of magistrates, the duoviri , elected annually first by all citizens older than 25, and in later times by

5250-564: The time show that a great number of local nobles held political and religious offices in Raetia, indicating that the Romans successfully co-opted the local elite. Testaments of Roman culture such as baths, floor heating and imported goods (pottery, glass, religious icons and artworks) have been found in even the poorest Roman era dwellings, indicating that Romanization was effective at all levels of society. Roman public baths were found in all villages, temples with integrated theaters – showing animal or gladiatorial combat – in most. While

5325-415: The withdrawal was only temporary and partial, and that Roman control of these rivers was reestablished in 411–413 with the assistance of tribes moving south from Germania. In any case, the fifth century saw the apparently non-violent takeover of western Switzerland by the Burgundians (placed there by Flavius Aetius in 443 as a shield against the invading Huns ) and of Northern and Central Switzerland by

5400-553: Was a decrease of 47 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 108 people. This represents a population growth rate of 0.8%. The age distribution, as of 2009, in Chiasso is; 567 children or 7.3% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 586 teenagers or 7.5% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 790 people or 10.2% of the population are 20–29 years old. 1,118 people or 14.4% are between 30 and 39, 1,215 people or 15.7% are between 40 and 49, and 1,008 people or 13.0% are between 50 and 59. The senior population

5475-456: Was based in the permanent camp of Vindonissa ( Windisch ). Aventicum ( Avenches ) was likely the capital of the Helvetii since its founding at the beginning of the 1st century. In the 40s, it benefited from the traffic brought over the St Bernard pass over a street expanded by Claudius , and in 71 it acquired the status of a Roman colony and of an allied city. This is believed to have been

5550-413: Was made possible by the protection of well-defended and distant Imperial borders and a peaceful and smooth Romanization of the local population. The Romans urbanized the territory with numerous settlements and built a network of high-quality Roman roads connecting them, allowing for the integration of Helvetia into the imperial economy. While the Roman presence was always strong in the Alps, where

5625-539: Was the PLRT which received 668 or 26.0% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the PS (with 531 or 20.6%), the LEGA (with 530 or 20.6%) and the SSI (with 417 or 16.2%). As of  2007, Chiasso had an unemployment rate of 7.01%. As of 2005, there were 42 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 19 businesses involved in this sector. 880 people were employed in

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