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Neuchâtel

Neuchâtel (UK: /ˌnɜːʃæˈtɛl/, US: /-ʃɑːˈ-, ˌnjʃəˈ-, ˌnʊʃɑːˈ-/,[3][4][5] French: [nøʃɑtɛl] ; German: Neuenburg) is a town, a municipality, and the capital of the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel on Lake Neuchâtel. Since the fusion in 2021 of the municipalities of Neuchâtel, Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Peseux, and Valangin,[6] the city has approximately 33,000 inhabitants (80,000 in the metropolitan area).[7][8] The city is sometimes referred to historically by the German name Neuenburg; both the French and German names mean "New Castle". It was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy, then part of the Holy Roman Empire and later under Prussian control from 1707 until 1848, with an interruption during the Napoleonic Wars from 1806 to 1814. In 1848, Neuchâtel became a republic and a canton of Switzerland.

Neuchâtel
Location of Neuchâtel
Neuchâtel
Neuchâtel
Coordinates: 47°0′N 6°56′E / 47.000°N 6.933°E / 47.000; 6.933
CountrySwitzerland
CantonNeuchâtel
Government
 • ExecutiveConseil communal
with 5 members
 • MayorLe Président du Conseil communal (list)
Fabio Bongiovanni FDP/PRD/PLR
(as of January 2017)
 • ParliamentConseil général
with 41 members
Area
 • Total18.05 km2 (6.97 sq mi)
Elevation
(railway station)
479 m (1,572 ft)
Highest elevation
(Grand Chaumont)
1,177 m (3,862 ft)
Lowest elevation
(Port)
434 m (1,424 ft)
Population
 (31 December 2018)[2]
 • Total33,475
 • Density1,900/km2 (4,800/sq mi)
DemonymFrench: Neuchâtelois(e)
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (Central European Time)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (Central European Summer Time)
Postal code(s)
2000
SFOS number6458
LocalitiesLa Coudre, Serrières, Pierre-à-Bot, Gorges du Seyon, Chaumont, Petit Chaumont, Grand Chaumont, Peseux, Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Valangin
Surrounded byAuvernier, Boudry, Chabrey (VD), Colombier, Cressier, Cudrefin (VD), Delley-Portalban (FR), Enges, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Hauterive, Saint-Blaise, Savagnier
Twin townsAarau (Switzerland), Besançon (France), Sansepolcro (Italy)
Websiteneuchatelville.ch
SFSO statistics

Neuchâtel is a centre of the Swiss watch industry, the site of micro-technology and high-tech industries, and home to research centres and organizations such as the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology (CSEM), and Philip Morris International's Cube. The apparel company heidi.com established its headquarters in the city.

The official language of Neuchâtel is French. Neuchâtel is a pilot of the Council of Europe and the European Commission Intercultural Cities programme.

Names and etymology edit

Neuchâtel is a medieval toponym derived from the Old French: neu "new" (Modern French neuf) and châtel "castle" (now château) in reference to the 10th century Neuchâtel Castle.[a] In French, most adjectives, when used attributively, appear after their nouns; however, the leading position of the adjective is a phenomenon widely attested in the north and east of France, as well as in Belgium and in French-speaking Switzerland (Romandy). As with the various other places named Neuchâtel, Neufchâtel, Neufchâteau of northern France and Belgium, this reflects the Germanic influence on Gallo-Romance languages retained in the toponymy today.[11][12] This contrasts with the Occitan Castelnaus (and the Frenchified Châteauneufs) in the south of France.

Of the other three national languages of Switzerland, the German name for the town is Neuenburg [ˈnɔʏənˌbʊrɡ] , which also translates roughly as "new castle". The longer form Neuenburg am See ("Newcastle by the lake") is sometimes used to disambiguate it from the numerous other Neuenburgs, especially Neuenburg am Rhein. The Romansh language uses the French Neuchâtel, and occasionanally Neuschatel[13] and Neufchâtel; contemporary Italian largely uses the French name as well, but occasionally the historic Neocastello is seen.[14]

Regionally, the Romand (Arpitan) name for the town is Nôchâtél in the broad Orthographe de référence B[15] and is pronounced N'tchati [n̩.t͡ʃa.ˈti] locally,[16][17] N'tchatai [n̩.t͡ʃa.ˈtai] in La Sagne,[18] N'tchaté [n̩.t͡ʃa.ˈte] in Les Planchettes[18] and Nchaté [n̩.ʃa.ˈte] or Ntchaté in Les Éplatures [fr].[18]

Historic names edit

 
Neuchâtel in 1645, showing the spires of Neuchâtel Castle; n.b. that the picture is labelled Neocomum (Latin) and Neuenburg am See (German)

The Neo-Latin name for Neuchâtel is the Greek-derived Neocomum,[19][9] and this gives the adjective neocomensis which appears on the seal of the University of Neuchâtel[9] (in Universitas Neocomensis Helvetiorum) and the English adjective Neocomian, a term for a former stratigraphic stage of the Early Cretaceous.[20] Other Latin names seen historically include Novum castellum in 1011[21] (upon the presentation of Neuchâtel Castle by Rudolph III of Burgundy to his wife Ermengarde[21]) and Novum Castrum in 1143.[21]

Historic French names included Nuefchastel (attested in 1251),[21] Neufchastel (1338),[21] and Neufchatel,[9] with modern Neuchâtel in use by 1750.[21] In the Franche-Comté, the city was also called Neuchâtel-outre-Joux ("Neuchâtel beyond Joux") to distinguish it from another Neuchâtel in that region, now called Neuchâtel-Urtière.

German names of the town included Nienburg,[9] Nuvenburch (attested in 1033)[21] Nüwenburg,[9] Welschen Nüwenburg,[13][b] Newenburg am See[13] ("Newcastle by the lake") and Welschneuburg,[13] with modern Neuenburg established by 1725.[21]

Italian names included Neocastello[22] (which is occasionally seen in contemporary contexts[14]) and Nuovo Castello.[23]

History edit

Prehistory edit

 
Venus of Monruz, dating to the end of the Magdalenian

The oldest traces of humans in the municipal area are the remains of a Magdalenian hunting camp, which was dated to 13,000 BC. It was discovered in 1990 during construction of the A5 motorway at Monruz (La Coudre). The site was about 5 m (16 ft) below the main road. Around the fire pits carved flints and bones were found. In addition to the flint and bone artifacts three tiny earrings from lignite were found. The earrings may have served as symbols of fertility and represent the oldest known art in Switzerland. This first camp was used by Cro-Magnons to hunt horse and reindeer in the area. Azilian hunters had a camp at the same site at about 11,000 BC. Since the climate had changed, their prey was now deer and wild boar.

During the 19th century, traces of some stilt houses were found in Le Cret near the red church. However, their location was not well documented and the site was lost. In 1999, during construction of the lower station of the funicular railway, which connects the railway station and university, the settlement was rediscovered. It was later determined to be a Cortaillod culture (middle Neolithic) village. According to dendrochronological studies, some of the piles were from 3571 BC.[24]

A Hallstatt grave (early Iron Age) was found in the forest of Les Cadolles.

Antiquity edit

 
Rudolph and his sister Bertha in the pedigree of the Ottonian dynasty, Chronica sancti Pantaleonis, Cologne (13th century)

At Les Favarger a Gallo-Roman and at André Fontaine a small coin depot were discovered. In 1908, an excavation at the mouth of the Serrière [fr] discovered Gallo-Roman baths from the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD.

Middle Ages edit

One of the most important Merovingian cemeteries in the canton was discovered at Les Battieux in Serrières [fr]. In 1982, 38 graves dating from the 7th century were excavated many of which contained silver-inlaid or silver-plated belt buckles. Also in Serrières at the church of Saint-Jean, the remains of a 7th-century shrine were excavated.[24]

In 1011, Rudolph III of Burgundy presented a Novum castellum or new castle on the lake shore to his wife, Ermengarde. It was long assumed that this new castle replaced an older one, but nothing about its location or design is known. At the time of this gift Neuchâtel was probably the center of a newly created royal court, which was recently developed to complement the other royal estates which managed western estates of the kings of Burgundy.[24]

The first counts of Neuchâtel were named shortly afterwards, and in 1214 their domain was officially dubbed a city.

Early modern era edit

For three centuries, the County of Neuchâtel flourished, and in 1530, the people of Neuchâtel accepted the Reformation, and their city and territory were proclaimed to be indivisible from then on. Future rulers were required to seek investiture from the citizens.

With increasing power and prestige, Neuchâtel was raised to the level of a principality at the beginning of the 17th century. On the death in 1707 of Marie d'Orleans-Longueville, duchess de Nemours and Princess of Neuchâtel, the people had to choose her successor from among fifteen claimants. They wanted their new prince first and foremost to be a Protestant, and also to be strong enough to protect their territory but based far enough away to leave them to their own devices. Louis XIV actively promoted the many French pretenders to the title, but the Neuchâtelois people passed them over in favour of King Frederick I of Prussia, who claimed his entitlement in a rather complicated fashion through the Houses of Orange and Nassau. With the requisite stability assured, Neuchâtel entered its golden age, with commerce and industry (including watchmaking and lace) and banking undergoing steady expansion.

Modern Neuchâtel edit

 
Aerial view (1949)

At the beginning of the 19th century, Prussia sought to obtain Hanover whilst still maintaining neutrality and abstaining from the wars waged by Napoleon. Frederick William III had hoped that Prussia could receive the Electorate of Hanover from France only after the event of a British defeat and a resulting treaty, lest Prussia be forced to enter war alongside France against Britain over the territory, with which Britain had been in personal union since 1714. To achieve these aims of receiving Hanover with a simultaneous preservation of neutrality, Prussia offered to give up certain exclaves to the French, however, Napoleon exploited Prussia's politically isolated position and forced Prussia to give up more than had been hoped, partake in the Continental Blockade, and to officially annex Hanover in the Treaty of Paris on 15 February 1806, resulting in the cession of the principality of Neuchâtel to Napoleon. Napoleon's field marshal, Berthier, became Prince of Neuchâtel, building roads and restoring infrastructure, but never actually setting foot in his domain. After the fall of Napoleon, Frederick William III of Prussia reasserted his rights by proposing that Neuchâtel be linked with the other Swiss cantons (to exert better influence over all of them). On 12 September 1814, Neuchâtel became the capital of the 21st canton, but also remained a Prussian principality. It took a bloodless revolution in the decades following for Neuchâtel to shake off its princely past and declare itself, on 1 March 1848, a republic within the Swiss Confederation. Prussia yielded its claim to the canton following the 1856–1857 Neuchâtel Crisis.

On 1 January 2021 the former municipalities of Corcelles-Cormondrèche, Peseux and Valangin merged into the municipality of Neuchâtel.[6] Corcelles-Cormondrèche was first mentioned in the historical record in 1092 as Curcellis. Around 1220 it was mentioned as Cormundreschi.[25] Peseux was first mentioned in 1195 as apud Pusoz though this comes from a 15th-century copy of an earlier document. In 1278 it was mentioned as de Posoys.[26] Valangin was first mentioned in 1241 as de Valengiz.[27]

Geography edit

 
Map of town centre showing the evolution of the shoreline

Before the 2021 merger of municipalities, Neuchâtel had an area, as of 2009, of 18.1 square kilometers (7.0 sq mi). Of this area, 1.84 km2 (0.71 sq mi) or 10.2% was used for agricultural purposes, while 9.74 km2 (3.76 sq mi) or 53.8% was forested. Of the rest of the land, 6.42 km2 (2.48 sq mi) or 35.5% was settled (buildings or roads), 0.03 km2 (7.4 acres) or 0.2% was either rivers or lakes and 0.02 km2 (4.9 acres) or 0.1% was unproductive land.[28]

Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 2.2% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 18.0% and transportation infrastructure made up 10.1%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 4.3%. Out of the forested land, 51.8% of the total land area was heavily forested and 2.0% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 1.4% was used for growing crops and 8.0% was pastures. All the water in the municipality is in lakes.[28]

The city is located on the northwestern shore of Lake Neuchâtel, a few kilometers east of Peseux and west of Saint-Blaise. Above Neuchâtel, roads and train tracks rise steeply into the folds and ridges of the Jura range—known within the canton as the Montagnes neuchâteloises. Like the continuation of the mountains on either side, this is wild and hilly country, not exactly mountainous compared with the high Alps further south but still characterized by remote, windswept settlements and deep, rugged valleys. It is also the heartland of the celebrated Swiss watchmaking industry, centered on the once-famous towns of La Chaux-de-Fonds and Le Locle, which both rely heavily on their horological past to draw in visitors. The river Doubs marks for a part the border with France, set down in a gorge and forming along its path a waterfall, the Saut du Doubs [fr], and lake, the Lac des Brenets.

The municipality was the capital of Neuchâtel District, until the district level of administration was eliminated on 1 January 2018.[29]

Climate edit

Climate data for Neuchâtel (1991–2020)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 3.9
(39.0)
5.6
(42.1)
10.6
(51.1)
15.0
(59.0)
18.9
(66.0)
22.9
(73.2)
25.3
(77.5)
24.7
(76.5)
19.8
(67.6)
14.1
(57.4)
8.1
(46.6)
4.6
(40.3)
14.5
(58.1)
Daily mean °C (°F) 1.8
(35.2)
2.6
(36.7)
6.5
(43.7)
10.3
(50.5)
14.2
(57.6)
18.0
(64.4)
20.1
(68.2)
19.6
(67.3)
15.5
(59.9)
10.8
(51.4)
5.8
(42.4)
2.6
(36.7)
10.7
(51.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) −0.3
(31.5)
−0.1
(31.8)
2.9
(37.2)
6.0
(42.8)
9.9
(49.8)
13.5
(56.3)
15.4
(59.7)
15.2
(59.4)
11.7
(53.1)
8.0
(46.4)
3.5
(38.3)
0.6
(33.1)
7.2
(45.0)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 69
(2.7)
58
(2.3)
63
(2.5)
67
(2.6)
87
(3.4)
87
(3.4)
92
(3.6)
99
(3.9)
77
(3.0)
88
(3.5)
76
(3.0)
92
(3.6)
956
(37.6)
Average snowfall cm (inches) 10
(3.9)
8
(3.1)
4
(1.6)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
0
(0)
2
(0.8)
9
(3.5)
33
(13)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 9.9 8.9 9.0 9.2 11.4 10.4 10.3 10.2 8.5 10.4 9.6 10.5 118.3
Average snowy days (≥ 1.0 cm) 3.4 2.7 1.1 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 2.6 11.1
Average relative humidity (%) 82 76 68 65 67 67 64 68 73 80 82 83 73
Mean monthly sunshine hours 52 92 157 188 208 232 254 234 179 108 56 40 1,800
Percent possible sunshine 20 34 45 49 48 54 58 57 50 34 22 16 43
Source: MeteoSwiss[30]

Politics edit

Coat of arms edit

 
Neuchâtel's coat of arms

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Or, an Eagle displayed Sable beaked, langued and membered Gules, escutcheon Or, on a pale Gules three Chevrons Argent.[31]

Administrative divisions edit

Government edit

The Municipal Council (Conseil communal, CC) constitutes the executive government of the City of Neuchâtel and operates as a collegiate authority. It is composed of five councillors (French: Conseiller communal/ Conseillère communale), each presiding over administrational sections and services comprising the related commissions. The president of the executive department acts as mayor (président(e)) and is nominated annually in a tournus by the collegiate itself. In the mandate period January 2021 – June 2022 (l'année administrative) the Municipal Council is presided by Madame la présidente Violaine Blétry-de Montmollin. Departmental tasks, coordination measures and implementation of laws decreed by the General Council (parliament) are carried by the Municipal Council. The regular election of the Municipal Council by any inhabitant valid to vote is held every four years. Any resident of Neuchâtel allowed to vote can be elected as a member of the Municipal Council. Due to the constitution by canton of Neuchâtel not only Swiss citizens have the right to vote and elect and being elected on communal and cantonal level, but also foreigners with a residence in the canton of Neuchâtel and being resident in the canton of Neuchâtel for at least one year for communal elections and votes, and at least five years of residence in the canton for cantonal elections and votes.[32] The current mandate period is from 2021 to 2024. The delegates are selected by means of a system of proportional representation.[33]

As of 2017, Neuchâtel's Municipal Council is made up of two representatives of the PS/SP (Social Democratic Party), two representatives of the PLR/FDP (Les Libéraux-Radicaux), and one member of the PES/GPS (Green Party). The last regular election was held on 25 October 2020.[34]

Le Conseil communal (CC) of Neuchâtel[35]
Municipal Councilor
(Conseiller communal/ Conseillère communale)
Party Head of section (Directeur/Directrice de, since) of Elected since
Violaine Blétry-de Montmollin[CC 1]   PLR Territorial Development, Economy, Tourism, and Built Heritage (Dicastère du développement territorial, de l'économie, du tourisme et du patrimoine bâti, 2021) 2016
Thomas Facchinetti[CC 2]   PS Culture, Integration, and Social Cohesion (Dicastère de la culture, de l'intégration et de la cohésion sociale, 2021) 2012
Didier Boillat   PLR Technological Development, Agglomeration, Security, and Finances (Dicastère du développement technologique, de l'agglomération, de la sécurité et des finances, 2021) 2020
Nicole Baur   Les Verts Family, Education, Health, and Sport (Dicastère de la famille, de la formation, de la santé et des sports, 2021) 2020
Mauro Moruzzi   pvl Sustainable Development, Mobility, Infrastructure, and Energy (Dicastère du développement durable, de la mobilité, des infrastructures et de l'énergie, 2021) 2020
  1. ^ Mayor (présidente) for one administrative year
  2. ^ Vice-Mayor (vice-président) for one administrative year

Daniel Veuve is Town Chancellor (chancelier) since 2021 for the City Council.

Parliament edit

The Conseil général (CG) of Neuchâtel for the mandate period of 2020–24

  POP/PdA (2.4%)
  solidaritéS (4.9%)
  PS (24.4%)
  Les Verts, Ecologie et Liberté (26.8%)
  pvl (12.2%)
  PLR (29.3%)

The General Council (Conseil général, CG), the city parliament, holds legislative power. It is made up of 41 members, with elections held every four years. The General Council decrees regulations and by-laws that are executed by the Municipal Council and the administration. The delegates are selected by means of a system of proportional representation.

The sessions of the General Council are public. Unlike members of the Municipal Council, members of the General Council are not politicians by profession, and they are paid a fee based on their attendance. Any resident of Neuchâtel allowed to vote can be elected as a member of the General Council. Due to the constitution of the canton of Neuchâtel not only Swiss citizen have the right to vote and elect and be elected on the communal level, but also foreigners in the canton of Neuchâtel having been resident in the canton of Neuchâtel for at least one year for communal elections and votes, and at least five years of residence in the canton for cantonal elections and votes.[32] The CG holds its meetings in the Town Hall (L'Hôtel de Ville), in the old city on Rue de l'Hôtel de Ville.[36]

The last regular election of the General Council was held on 25 October 2020 for the mandate period (la législature) from 2020 to 2024. Currently the General Council consist of 12 members of The Liberals (PLR/FDP), 11 Les Verts, Ecologie et Liberté members (an alliance of the Green Party (PES/GPS) and others), 10 Social Democratic Party (PS/SP), 5 members of the Green Liberals (pvl/glp), 2 members of the left party solidaritéS, and one of the Swiss Party of Labour (PST-POP/PdA) (Parti Suisse du Travail – Parti Ouvrier et Populaire).[34]

Elections edit

National Council edit

In the 2015 federal election the most popular party was the PS which received 29.3% of the vote. The next four most popular parties were the PLR (22.8%), the UDC (13.6%), the Green Party (12.1%), and the Swiss Party of Labour (10.1%). In the federal election, a total of 8,136 voters were cast, and the voter turnout was 41.4%.[37]

International relations edit

  • Neuchâtel is a pilot city of the Council of Europe and the European Commission Intercultural cities programme.[38]

Twin towns – Sister cities edit

Neuchâtel is twinned with:[39]

Namesakes edit

Neuchâtel was part of the 1998 summit of worldwide cities named "New Castle" with:[40]

Demographics edit

Population edit

Neuchâtel has a population (as of December 2020) of 33,455.[41] As of 2008, 32.1% of the population are resident foreign nationals.[42] Over the last 10 years (2000–2010) the population has changed at a rate of 3.9%. It has changed at a rate of 2.4% due to migration and at a rate of 1% due to births and deaths.[43]

As of 2008, the population was 47.7% male and 52.3% female. The population was made up of 10,371 Swiss men (31.5% of the population) and 5,344 (16.2%) non-Swiss men. There were 12,366 Swiss women (37.5%) and 4,892 (14.8%) non-Swiss women.[44] Of the population in the municipality, 8,558 or about 26.0% were born in Neuchâtel and lived there in 2000. There were 5,134 or 15.6% who were born in the same canton, while 7,744 or 23.5% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 10,349 or 31.4% were born outside of Switzerland.[45]

As of 2000, children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 19.3% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 63.1% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 17.6%.[43]

As of 2000, there were 14,143 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 14,137 married individuals, 2,186 widows or widowers and 2,448 individuals who are divorced.[45]

As of 2000, there were 15,937 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2. persons per household.[43] There were 7,348 households that consist of only one person and 547 households with five or more people. In 2000, a total of 15,447 apartments (89.9% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 1,429 apartments (8.3%) were seasonally occupied and 311 apartments (1.8%) were empty.[46] As of 2009, the construction rate of new housing units was 2.5 new units per 1000 residents.[43]

As of 2003 the average price to rent an average apartment in Neuchâtel was 921.35 Swiss francs (CHF) per month (US$740, £410, €590 approx. exchange rate from 2003). The average rate for a one-room apartment was 451.40 CHF (US$360, £200, €290), a two-room apartment was about 675.66 CHF (US$540, £300, €430), a three-room apartment was about 825.15 CHF (US$660, £370, €530) and a six or more room apartment cost an average of 1647.88 CHF (US$1320, £740, €1050). The average apartment price in Neuchâtel was 82.6% of the national average of 1116 CHF.[47] The vacancy rate for the municipality, in 2010, was 0.53%.[43]

Historical population edit

The historical population is given in the following chart:[24]

Language edit

Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks French (25,881 or 78.6%) as their first language, German is the second most common (1,845 or 5.6%) and Italian is the third (1,421 or 4.3%). There are about six people who speak Romansh.[45]

Religion edit

Neuchâtel was historically Protestant, but Catholics have since formed a plurality due to immigration. From the 2000 census, 10,809 or 32.8% were Roman Catholic, while 9,443 or 28.7% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there were 374 members of an Orthodox church (or about 1.14% of the population), there were 80 individuals (or about 0.24% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church, and there were 1,756 individuals (or about 5.34% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 58 individuals (or about 0.18% of the population) who were Jewish, and 1,723 (or about 5.23% of the population) who were Muslim. There were 99 individuals who were Buddhist, 100 individuals who were Hindu and 59 individuals who belonged to another church. 7,549 (or about 22.94% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic or atheist, and 1,717 individuals (or about 5.22% of the population) did not answer the question.[45]

Crime edit

In 2014 the crime rate, of crimes listed in the Swiss Criminal Code, in Neuchâtel was 140.4 per thousand residents. During the same period, the rate of drug crimes was 16.3 per thousand residents. The rate of violations of immigration, visa and work permit laws was 5.7 per thousand residents.[48]

Economy edit

Neuchâtel is a centre of the watch industry, and is also the site of micro-technology and high-tech industries. It is home to research centres and organizations such as the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology (CSEM),[49] Microcity innovation pole,[50] University of applied Sciences HE-Arc in Engineering[51] and also Philip Morris International's Cube.[52] The apparel company heidi.com also established its headquarters in the city.

As of  2010, Neuchâtel had an unemployment rate of 7.5%. As of 2008, there were 46 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 14 businesses involved in this sector. 5,658 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 261 businesses in this sector. 20,472 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 1,955 businesses in this sector.[43] There were 16,353 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which women made up 45.4% of the workforce.

In 2008 the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 21,624. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 38, of which 20 were in agriculture and 18 were in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 5,433 of which 4,234 or (77.9%) were in manufacturing, 9 or (0.2%) were in mining and 1,022 (18.8%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 16,153. In the tertiary sector; 2,397 or 14.8% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 796 or 4.9% were in the movement and storage of goods, 919 or 5.7% were in a hotel or restaurant, 766 or 4.7% were in the information industry, 1,077 or 6.7% were the insurance or financial industry, 1,897 or 11.7% were technical professionals or scientists, 1,981 or 12.3% were in education and 2,633 or 16.3% were in health care.[53]

In 2000, there were 15,535 workers who commuted into the municipality and 6,056 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 2.6 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving.[54] Of the working population, 33.7% used public transportation to get to work, and 43.4% used a private car.[43]

Education edit

 
University of Neuchâtel

Neuchâtel is home to the French-speaking University of Neuchâtel. The university has five faculties and more than a dozen institutes, including arts and human sciences, natural sciences, law, economics and theology. For the 2005–2006 academic year, 3,595 students (1,987 women and 1,608 men) were enrolled. The Faculty of Arts and Human Sciences is the largest school of those that comprise the university of Neuchâtel with 1,500 students. Some courses at the university are taught in English.[citation needed]

Neuchâtel is home to the Éditions Alphil, which is a university press founded in 1996.

Neuchâtel is home to eight libraries: the Bibliothèque de la Faculté des Lettres, the Bibliothèque de l'Institut d'ethnologie et du Musée d'ethnographie, the Bibliothèque de la Faculté des Sciences, the Bibliothèque de droit, the Bibliothèque des sciences économiques, the Bibliothèque de la Faculté de théologie, the Service de coordination des bibliothèques and the Haute école Arc – Santé. There was a combined total (as of 2008) of 736,773 books or other media in the libraries, and in the same year a total of 58,427 items were loaned out.[55]

In Neuchâtel about 11,076 or (33.7%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 5,948 or (18.1%) have completed additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule). Of the 5,948 who completed tertiary schooling, 43.6% were Swiss men, 28.4% were Swiss women, 16.4% were non-Swiss men and 11.6% were non-Swiss women.[45]

In the canton of Neuchâtel most municipalities provide two years of non-mandatory kindergarten, followed by five years of mandatory primary education. The next four years of mandatory secondary education is provided at thirteen larger secondary schools, which many students travel out of their home municipality to attend.[56] During the 2010–11 school year, there were 27 kindergarten classes with a total of 527 students in Neuchâtel. In the same year, there were 78 primary classes with a total of 1,424 students.[57] Secondary schools include the Lycée Jean-Piaget.

Apart from one International Montessori school for kids up to age 11 offering an English and a French class there is no international school in Neuchâtel. Neuchâtel Junior College was founded in 1956 as a non-profit foundation of the Ville de Neuchâtel to provide a unique international education. Neuchâtel Junior College is a one-year school annually welcoming over 100 students in their final pre-university year to study the Ontario Grade 12 curriculum as well as Advanced Placement.

As of 2000, there were 3,859 students in Neuchâtel who came from another municipality, while 346 residents attended schools outside the municipality.[54]

Transport edit

 
Trolleybus of the Les Transports Publics du Littoral Neuchâtelois

Neuchâtel has local public transport provided by Les Transports Publics du Littoral Neuchâtelois (TN), which operates the Neuchâtel trolleybus system, a funicular, and an interurban light rail line to Boudry. The total length of the TN network is 81.2 km (50.5 mi). It serves 78,400 people (more than half using it on a daily basis) and in 2007 transported 17,670,000 travelers.[58]

Neuchâtel railway station forms part of one of Switzerland's most important railway lines, the Jura foot railway (Olten–Genève-Aéroport), which is operated by the Swiss Federal Railways. The station is also a junction for several other lines, including a cross-border line served by the TGV (High Speed Train), with direct trains linking Neuchâtel to Paris in four hours.

Neuchâtel's airport is about 6 km (3.7 mi) away from the center of the city and it takes 9 minutes to get into town with the direct tramway. It is a small airport that does not offer commercial flights. Neuchâtel is also linked to four international airports: Bern, Geneva, Basel and Zürich which are respectively 58 km (36 mi), 122 km (76 mi), 131 km (81 mi) and 153 km (95 mi) away by car. Geneva and Zürich airports both have direct trains to Neuchâtel, connecting the cities respectively in 1h 17min and 1h 49min.[59] Three funiculars serve the city:

The Société de Navigation sur les Lacs de Neuchâtel et Morat SA is the boat company which serves 17 towns on Lake Neuchâtel, 6 towns on Lake Murten and 7 towns on Lake Bienne from 6:30am to 9pm. Some boats offer free wireless internet connections.[62]

Sights edit

Heritage sites of national significance edit

There are 34 sites in Neuchâtel that are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance. The entire old city of Neuchâtel, the urban village of Corcelles the small city of Valangin, the Bussy/Le Sorgereux region and the La Borcarderie region are part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites.[63]

Architecture edit

 
Some of the statues in the Cenotaph of the Counts of Neuchâtel

Neuchâtel's Old Town has about 140 street fountains, a handful of which date from the 16th century. The Place des Halles is overlooked by Louis XIV architecture – shuttered façades and the turreted orioles of the 16th-century Maison des Halles. To the east, on Rue de l’Hôpital, is the grand 1790 Hôtel de Ville (Town Hall), designed by Louis XVI's chief architect Pierre-Adrien Paris.

The center of the Old Town is located at the top of the hill, accessed by the steeply winding Rue du Château. The Collégiale church, begun in 1185 and consecrated in 1276, is an example of early Gothic. The east end of the church has three Norman apses. The main entrance, to the west, is crowned by a giant rose window of stained glass. Within the vaulted interior, the transept is lit by a lantern tower. The Cenotaph of the Counts of Neuchâtel is located on the north wall of the choir. Begun in 1372, and the only artwork of its kind to survive north of the Alps, the monument comprises fifteen near-life-size painted statues of various knights and ladies from Neuchâtel's past, framed by 15th-century arches and gables.[citation needed] Beside the church is the Castle, begun in the 12th century and still in use as the offices of the cantonal government. The nearby turreted Prison Tower, which is the remains of a medieval bastion, has panoramic views over the town, along with models of Neuchâtel in different eras.[citation needed]

Museums edit

 
Park and Museum of the Laténium museum
 
Jaquet-Droz mechanical figurine at the musée d'Art et d'Histoire

Neuchâtel has several museums, including the Laténium, an archeology museum focusing on the prehistorical times in the region of Neuchâtel and Hauterive, particularly the La Tène culture, with the eponym site being a few kilometers away; the Musée d'ethnographie de Neuchâtel (MEN), an ethnography museum; and the Musée d'Art et d'Histoire, which houses the Automates Jaquet-Droz (Jaquet-Droz Mechanical Figurines).

Culture edit

 
National Exposition of 2002

During the summer of 2002, Neuchâtel was one of five sites which held Expo.02, the sixth Swiss national exhibition, which was subject to financial controversy.[clarification needed] The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival is held every year to celebrate fantastic cinema from around the world. The festival of the Fête des Vendanges, representing the wine harvest, is held traditionally in late September.[64]

Sport edit

 
Stade de la Maladière

Neuchâtel Xamax is the most important football club based in Neuchâtel. It was created in 1970 through a merger between FC Cantonal (1906) and FC Xamax (1916). The club plays in Swiss Super League, the highest Swiss football league. The club plays its home matches at the Stade de la Maladière.

HC Uni Neuchâtel plays in the MySports League, the third tier of the Swiss hockey league system. Their home games are held in the 7,000-seat Littoral.

Union Neuchâtel Basket is the city's top basketball team, which plays in the Championnat LNA, Switzerland's only professional basketball league.

Notable people edit

William Ritter, Jean Piaget, Marcel Junod, Robert Miles and Yves Larock were all born in Neuchâtel. Friedrich Dürrenmatt lived in Neuchâtel the last 30 years of his life. Prens Sabahaddin, was an Ottoman sociologist and thinker of the Ottoman dynasty, lived in Neuchâtel the last 25 years of his life.

The Hungarian exile-writer Ágota Kristóf lived most of her life in Neuchâtel, where she learned and wrote her books in French.

Canadian illustrator John Howe, well known for his illustrations of J. R. R. Tolkien's work and his participation in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy as chief conceptual designer, also lives in the Swiss city. It was also the site of a secret first meeting between French novelist Honoré de Balzac and the married woman who later became his wife, Eveline Hanska.[65]Roger Schutz, founder of the Taizé Community in France, was born on 12 May 1915 at the village of Provence near Neuchâtel. He was stabbed to death on 16 August 2005 by a mentally deranged woman during a prayer meeting in Taizé's Church of Reconciliation.

The de Pury family, a Prussian noble family, is from Neuchâtel. Swiss merchant and philanthropist David de Pury, a native of Neuchâtel, left a large fortune to the city for public works and charities. His relative, James-Ferdinand de Pury, also a merchant and philanthropist, bequest his villa to house the town's ethnography museum. Other members of the family who were born or resided in the town include explorer and colonist Jean-Pierre Pury, winemaker and diplomat Frédéric Guillaume de Pury, painter Edmond Jean de Pury, and biblical scholar Albert de Pury.

The de Castello family, a French noble family, including winemakers Hubert de Castella and Paul de Castella, is from Neuchâtel. The de Montmollin family, including the Protestant minister David-François de Montmollin, are also from the town. Frédéric Louis Godet (1812–1900) was another Swiss Protestant theologian who was born and died in Neuchâtel;[66] as was Jean-Frédéric Osterwald (1663–1747), a further Protestant pastor.[67]

French counter-revolutionary Louis Fauche-Borel was born and died in Neuchâtel, and François Bigot, the last Intendant of New France, relocated to there after being exiled from France.

Abraham Louis Breguet, the founder of the Breguet watch company and an esteemed inventor, often regarded as the father of modern horology, was born in Neuchâtel. The company still maintains its headquarters at L'Abbaye, about 40 km southwest of Neuchâtel.

The psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Silvio Fanti was born in Neuchâtel in 1919. He founded and developed Micropsychoanalysis, a new school of psychoanalysis. Another important psychiatrist, Gottlieb Burckhardt, practiced in Neuchâtel. Alexander Agassiz (1835–1910), was an American scientist and engineer from the town.[68]

Didier Burkhalter, 94th President of the Swiss Confederation was born in Neuchâtel, as was Logitech founder Daniel Borel.

Footballers Max Abegglen,[69] Jayson Leutwiler, and Yann Kasaï, as well as Swiss Olympic field hockey player Albert Piaget were all born in Neuchâtel. It is also the current residence of French tennis players Richard Gasquet, Gilles Simon and Florent Serra, as well as the Mexican Formula 1 driver Sergio Pérez, and the artist and designer Ini Archibong.[70][71] Anthropologist, artist, and filmmaker Véréna Paravel was also born in Neuchâtel.[72] It is the birthplace of explorer and lecturer Raphaël Domjan.[73]

Gallery edit

See also edit

Explanatory notes edit

  1. ^ The city is one of the Newcastles of the World[9] and hosted the 2000 Newcastles of the World summit.[10]
  2. ^ German Welsch- refers to the inhabitants of Romandy (Welschschweiz or Welschland[13]) and is prefixed to several German-language placenames in Switzerland and beyond (e.g. Welschenrohr near the language border).

References edit

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  5. ^ "Neuchâtel". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
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  7. ^ "Bilanz der ständigen Wohnbevölkerung (Total) nach Bezirken und Gemeinden". Federal Statistical Office. 26 March 2021. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  8. ^ "FUSION NEUCHÂTEL". Neuchâtel. 2021. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
  9. ^ a b c d e f "Repères historiques: Le Nom". Site officiel de la Ville de Neuchâtel (in French). Centre électronique de gestion de la Ville de Neuchâtel. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
  10. ^ Newcastles of the World: About. Retrieved 1 October 2021.
  11. ^ Walter, Henriette. "Une germanique influence" in Le Français dans tous les sens. Robert Laffont: 1988. ISBN 2253140015
  12. ^ de Beaurepaire, François (1979). Les Noms des communes et anciennes paroisses de la Seine-Maritime (in French). Paris: A. and J. Picard. p. 8. ISBN 2-7084-0040-1. OCLC 6403150.
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  41. ^ "Ständige und nichtständige Wohnbevölkerung nach institutionellen Gliederungen, Geburtsort und Staatsangehörigkeit". bfs.admin.ch (in German). Swiss Federal Statistical Office - STAT-TAB. 31 December 2020. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
  42. ^ Swiss Federal Statistical Office – Superweb database – Gemeinde Statistics 1981–2008 (in German) accessed 19 June 2010
  43. ^ a b c d e f g Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 25-October-2011
  44. ^ Canton of Neuchâtel Statistics Archived 5 December 2012 at archive.today, République et canton de Neuchâtel – Recensement annuel de la population (in German) accessed 13 October 2011
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  46. ^ Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT-TAB – Datenwürfel für Thema 09.2 – Gebäude und Wohnungen 7 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine (in German) accessed 28 January 2011
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  52. ^ "Philip Morris International bets big on the future of smoking". Forbes. 28 May 2014.
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  56. ^ EDK/CDIP/IDES (2010). Kantonale Schulstrukturen in der Schweiz und im Fürstentum Liechtenstein / Structures Scolaires Cantonales en Suisse et Dans la Principauté du Liechtenstein (PDF) (Report). Retrieved 24 June 2010.
  57. ^ Statistical Department of the Canton of Neuchâtel 14 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine Mémento de l'année scolaire 2010/2011 (in French) accessed 17 October 2011
  58. ^ (in French). tnneuchatel.ch. Archived from the original on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 5 June 2009.
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  64. ^ . Fete-des-vendanges.ch. Retrieved on 2013-09-07.
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  66. ^ "Godet, Frédéric Louis" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 12 (11th ed.). 1911. pp. 171–172.
  67. ^ "Ostervald, Jean Frédéric" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 20 (11th ed.). 1911. p. 358.
  68. ^ "Agassiz, Alexander Emanuel" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 1 (11th ed.). 1911. pp. 366–367.
  69. ^ "Olympic Results – Max Abegglen". International Olympic Committee. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  70. ^ "Sergio Pérez a été séduit par Neuchâtel". Le Matin (in French). 20 June 2012. ISSN 1018-3736. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  71. ^ "Ini Archibong, designer extraordinaire". House of Switzerland. 30 October 2019. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
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  73. ^ "Bio | Raphaël Domjan".

Further reading edit

  • "Neuchâtel". Switzerland. Coblenz: Karl Baedeker. 1863.

External links edit

neuchâtel, other, uses, disambiguation, this, article, lead, section, short, adequately, summarize, points, please, consider, expanding, lead, provide, accessible, overview, important, aspects, article, december, 2021, ɜː, ɑː, ɑː, french, nøʃɑtɛl, german, neue. For other uses see Neuchatel disambiguation This article s lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points Please consider expanding the lead to provide an accessible overview of all important aspects of the article December 2021 Neuchatel UK ˌ n ɜː ʃ ae ˈ t ɛ l US ʃ ɑː ˈ ˌ nj uː ʃ e ˈ ˌ n ʊ ʃ ɑː ˈ 3 4 5 French noʃɑtɛl German Neuenburg is a town a municipality and the capital of the Swiss canton of Neuchatel on Lake Neuchatel Since the fusion in 2021 of the municipalities of Neuchatel Corcelles Cormondreche Peseux and Valangin 6 the city has approximately 33 000 inhabitants 80 000 in the metropolitan area 7 8 The city is sometimes referred to historically by the German name Neuenburg both the French and German names mean New Castle It was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy then part of the Holy Roman Empire and later under Prussian control from 1707 until 1848 with an interruption during the Napoleonic Wars from 1806 to 1814 In 1848 Neuchatel became a republic and a canton of Switzerland NeuchatelMunicipalityFlagCoat of armsLocation of NeuchatelNeuchatelShow map of SwitzerlandNeuchatelShow map of Canton of NeuchatelCoordinates 47 0 N 6 56 E 47 000 N 6 933 E 47 000 6 933CountrySwitzerlandCantonNeuchatelGovernment ExecutiveConseil communal with 5 members MayorLe President du Conseil communal list Fabio Bongiovanni FDP PRD PLR as of January 2017 ParliamentConseil general with 41 membersArea 1 Total18 05 km2 6 97 sq mi Elevation railway station 479 m 1 572 ft Highest elevation Grand Chaumont 1 177 m 3 862 ft Lowest elevation Port 434 m 1 424 ft Population 31 December 2018 2 Total33 475 Density1 900 km2 4 800 sq mi DemonymFrench Neuchatelois e Time zoneUTC 01 00 Central European Time Summer DST UTC 02 00 Central European Summer Time Postal code s 2000SFOS number6458LocalitiesLa Coudre Serrieres Pierre a Bot Gorges du Seyon Chaumont Petit Chaumont Grand Chaumont Peseux Corcelles Cormondreche ValanginSurrounded byAuvernier Boudry Chabrey VD Colombier Cressier Cudrefin VD Delley Portalban FR Enges Fenin Vilars Saules Hauterive Saint Blaise SavagnierTwin townsAarau Switzerland Besancon France Sansepolcro Italy Websiteneuchatelville wbr ch SFSO statisticsNeuchatel is a centre of the Swiss watch industry the site of micro technology and high tech industries and home to research centres and organizations such as the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology CSEM and Philip Morris International s Cube The apparel company heidi com established its headquarters in the city The official language of Neuchatel is French Neuchatel is a pilot of the Council of Europe and the European Commission Intercultural Cities programme Contents 1 Names and etymology 1 1 Historic names 2 History 2 1 Prehistory 2 2 Antiquity 2 3 Middle Ages 2 4 Early modern era 2 5 Modern Neuchatel 3 Geography 3 1 Climate 4 Politics 4 1 Coat of arms 4 2 Administrative divisions 4 3 Government 4 4 Parliament 4 5 Elections 4 5 1 National Council 4 6 International relations 4 6 1 Twin towns Sister cities 4 6 2 Namesakes 5 Demographics 5 1 Population 5 1 1 Historical population 5 2 Language 5 3 Religion 5 4 Crime 6 Economy 7 Education 8 Transport 9 Sights 9 1 Heritage sites of national significance 9 2 Architecture 9 3 Museums 9 4 Culture 10 Sport 11 Notable people 12 Gallery 13 See also 14 Explanatory notes 15 References 16 Further reading 17 External linksNames and etymology editSee also Names of Neuchatel in different languages Neuchatel is a medieval toponym derived from the Old French neu new Modern French neuf and chatel castle now chateau in reference to the 10th century Neuchatel Castle a In French most adjectives when used attributively appear after their nouns however the leading position of the adjective is a phenomenon widely attested in the north and east of France as well as in Belgium and in French speaking Switzerland Romandy As with the various other places named Neuchatel Neufchatel Neufchateau of northern France and Belgium this reflects the Germanic influence on Gallo Romance languages retained in the toponymy today 11 12 This contrasts with the Occitan Castelnaus and the Frenchified Chateauneufs in the south of France Of the other three national languages of Switzerland the German name for the town is Neuenburg ˈnɔʏenˌbʊrɡ which also translates roughly as new castle The longer form Neuenburg am See Newcastle by the lake is sometimes used to disambiguate it from the numerous other Neuenburgs especially Neuenburg am Rhein The Romansh language uses the French Neuchatel and occasionanally Neuschatel 13 and Neufchatel contemporary Italian largely uses the French name as well but occasionally the historic Neocastello is seen 14 Regionally the Romand Arpitan name for the town is Nochatel in the broad Orthographe de reference B 15 and is pronounced N tchati n t ʃa ˈti locally 16 17 N tchatai n t ʃa ˈtai in La Sagne 18 N tchate n t ʃa ˈte in Les Planchettes 18 and Nchate n ʃa ˈte or Ntchate in Les Eplatures fr 18 Historic names edit nbsp Neuchatel in 1645 showing the spires of Neuchatel Castle n b that the picture is labelled Neocomum Latin and Neuenburg am See German The Neo Latin name for Neuchatel is the Greek derived Neocomum 19 9 and this gives the adjective neocomensis which appears on the seal of the University of Neuchatel 9 in Universitas Neocomensis Helvetiorum and the English adjective Neocomian a term for a former stratigraphic stage of the Early Cretaceous 20 Other Latin names seen historically include Novum castellum in 1011 21 upon the presentation of Neuchatel Castle by Rudolph III of Burgundy to his wife Ermengarde 21 and Novum Castrum in 1143 21 Historic French names included Nuefchastel attested in 1251 21 Neufchastel 1338 21 and Neufchatel 9 with modern Neuchatel in use by 1750 21 In the Franche Comte the city was also called Neuchatel outre Joux Neuchatel beyond Joux to distinguish it from another Neuchatel in that region now called Neuchatel Urtiere German names of the town included Nienburg 9 Nuvenburch attested in 1033 21 Nuwenburg 9 Welschen Nuwenburg 13 b Newenburg am See 13 Newcastle by the lake and Welschneuburg 13 with modern Neuenburg established by 1725 21 Italian names included Neocastello 22 which is occasionally seen in contemporary contexts 14 and Nuovo Castello 23 History editSee also History of the canton of Neuchatel Prehistory edit nbsp Venus of Monruz dating to the end of the MagdalenianThe oldest traces of humans in the municipal area are the remains of a Magdalenian hunting camp which was dated to 13 000 BC It was discovered in 1990 during construction of the A5 motorway at Monruz La Coudre The site was about 5 m 16 ft below the main road Around the fire pits carved flints and bones were found In addition to the flint and bone artifacts three tiny earrings from lignite were found The earrings may have served as symbols of fertility and represent the oldest known art in Switzerland This first camp was used by Cro Magnons to hunt horse and reindeer in the area Azilian hunters had a camp at the same site at about 11 000 BC Since the climate had changed their prey was now deer and wild boar During the 19th century traces of some stilt houses were found in Le Cret near the red church However their location was not well documented and the site was lost In 1999 during construction of the lower station of the funicular railway which connects the railway station and university the settlement was rediscovered It was later determined to be a Cortaillod culture middle Neolithic village According to dendrochronological studies some of the piles were from 3571 BC 24 A Hallstatt grave early Iron Age was found in the forest of Les Cadolles Antiquity edit nbsp Rudolph and his sister Bertha in the pedigree of the Ottonian dynasty Chronica sancti Pantaleonis Cologne 13th century At Les Favarger a Gallo Roman and at Andre Fontaine a small coin depot were discovered In 1908 an excavation at the mouth of the Serriere fr discovered Gallo Roman baths from the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD Middle Ages edit One of the most important Merovingian cemeteries in the canton was discovered at Les Battieux in Serrieres fr In 1982 38 graves dating from the 7th century were excavated many of which contained silver inlaid or silver plated belt buckles Also in Serrieres at the church of Saint Jean the remains of a 7th century shrine were excavated 24 In 1011 Rudolph III of Burgundy presented a Novum castellum or new castle on the lake shore to his wife Ermengarde It was long assumed that this new castle replaced an older one but nothing about its location or design is known At the time of this gift Neuchatel was probably the center of a newly created royal court which was recently developed to complement the other royal estates which managed western estates of the kings of Burgundy 24 The first counts of Neuchatel were named shortly afterwards and in 1214 their domain was officially dubbed a city Early modern era edit For three centuries the County of Neuchatel flourished and in 1530 the people of Neuchatel accepted the Reformation and their city and territory were proclaimed to be indivisible from then on Future rulers were required to seek investiture from the citizens With increasing power and prestige Neuchatel was raised to the level of a principality at the beginning of the 17th century On the death in 1707 of Marie d Orleans Longueville duchess de Nemours and Princess of Neuchatel the people had to choose her successor from among fifteen claimants They wanted their new prince first and foremost to be a Protestant and also to be strong enough to protect their territory but based far enough away to leave them to their own devices Louis XIV actively promoted the many French pretenders to the title but the Neuchatelois people passed them over in favour of King Frederick I of Prussia who claimed his entitlement in a rather complicated fashion through the Houses of Orange and Nassau With the requisite stability assured Neuchatel entered its golden age with commerce and industry including watchmaking and lace and banking undergoing steady expansion Modern Neuchatel edit nbsp Aerial view 1949 At the beginning of the 19th century Prussia sought to obtain Hanover whilst still maintaining neutrality and abstaining from the wars waged by Napoleon Frederick William III had hoped that Prussia could receive the Electorate of Hanover from France only after the event of a British defeat and a resulting treaty lest Prussia be forced to enter war alongside France against Britain over the territory with which Britain had been in personal union since 1714 To achieve these aims of receiving Hanover with a simultaneous preservation of neutrality Prussia offered to give up certain exclaves to the French however Napoleon exploited Prussia s politically isolated position and forced Prussia to give up more than had been hoped partake in the Continental Blockade and to officially annex Hanover in the Treaty of Paris on 15 February 1806 resulting in the cession of the principality of Neuchatel to Napoleon Napoleon s field marshal Berthier became Prince of Neuchatel building roads and restoring infrastructure but never actually setting foot in his domain After the fall of Napoleon Frederick William III of Prussia reasserted his rights by proposing that Neuchatel be linked with the other Swiss cantons to exert better influence over all of them On 12 September 1814 Neuchatel became the capital of the 21st canton but also remained a Prussian principality It took a bloodless revolution in the decades following for Neuchatel to shake off its princely past and declare itself on 1 March 1848 a republic within the Swiss Confederation Prussia yielded its claim to the canton following the 1856 1857 Neuchatel Crisis On 1 January 2021 the former municipalities of Corcelles Cormondreche Peseux and Valangin merged into the municipality of Neuchatel 6 Corcelles Cormondreche was first mentioned in the historical record in 1092 as Curcellis Around 1220 it was mentioned as Cormundreschi 25 Peseux was first mentioned in 1195 as apud Pusoz though this comes from a 15th century copy of an earlier document In 1278 it was mentioned as de Posoys 26 Valangin was first mentioned in 1241 as de Valengiz 27 Geography edit nbsp Map of town centre showing the evolution of the shorelineBefore the 2021 merger of municipalities Neuchatel had an area as of 2009 update of 18 1 square kilometers 7 0 sq mi Of this area 1 84 km2 0 71 sq mi or 10 2 was used for agricultural purposes while 9 74 km2 3 76 sq mi or 53 8 was forested Of the rest of the land 6 42 km2 2 48 sq mi or 35 5 was settled buildings or roads 0 03 km2 7 4 acres or 0 2 was either rivers or lakes and 0 02 km2 4 9 acres or 0 1 was unproductive land 28 Of the built up area industrial buildings made up 2 2 of the total area while housing and buildings made up 18 0 and transportation infrastructure made up 10 1 while parks green belts and sports fields made up 4 3 Out of the forested land 51 8 of the total land area was heavily forested and 2 0 is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees Of the agricultural land 1 4 was used for growing crops and 8 0 was pastures All the water in the municipality is in lakes 28 The city is located on the northwestern shore of Lake Neuchatel a few kilometers east of Peseux and west of Saint Blaise Above Neuchatel roads and train tracks rise steeply into the folds and ridges of the Jura range known within the canton as the Montagnes neuchateloises Like the continuation of the mountains on either side this is wild and hilly country not exactly mountainous compared with the high Alps further south but still characterized by remote windswept settlements and deep rugged valleys It is also the heartland of the celebrated Swiss watchmaking industry centered on the once famous towns of La Chaux de Fonds and Le Locle which both rely heavily on their horological past to draw in visitors The river Doubs marks for a part the border with France set down in a gorge and forming along its path a waterfall the Saut du Doubs fr and lake the Lac des Brenets The municipality was the capital of Neuchatel District until the district level of administration was eliminated on 1 January 2018 29 Climate edit Climate data for Neuchatel 1991 2020 Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec YearMean daily maximum C F 3 9 39 0 5 6 42 1 10 6 51 1 15 0 59 0 18 9 66 0 22 9 73 2 25 3 77 5 24 7 76 5 19 8 67 6 14 1 57 4 8 1 46 6 4 6 40 3 14 5 58 1 Daily mean C F 1 8 35 2 2 6 36 7 6 5 43 7 10 3 50 5 14 2 57 6 18 0 64 4 20 1 68 2 19 6 67 3 15 5 59 9 10 8 51 4 5 8 42 4 2 6 36 7 10 7 51 3 Mean daily minimum C F 0 3 31 5 0 1 31 8 2 9 37 2 6 0 42 8 9 9 49 8 13 5 56 3 15 4 59 7 15 2 59 4 11 7 53 1 8 0 46 4 3 5 38 3 0 6 33 1 7 2 45 0 Average precipitation mm inches 69 2 7 58 2 3 63 2 5 67 2 6 87 3 4 87 3 4 92 3 6 99 3 9 77 3 0 88 3 5 76 3 0 92 3 6 956 37 6 Average snowfall cm inches 10 3 9 8 3 1 4 1 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 8 9 3 5 33 13 Average precipitation days 1 0 mm 9 9 8 9 9 0 9 2 11 4 10 4 10 3 10 2 8 5 10 4 9 6 10 5 118 3Average snowy days 1 0 cm 3 4 2 7 1 1 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 6 11 1Average relative humidity 82 76 68 65 67 67 64 68 73 80 82 83 73Mean monthly sunshine hours 52 92 157 188 208 232 254 234 179 108 56 40 1 800Percent possible sunshine 20 34 45 49 48 54 58 57 50 34 22 16 43Source MeteoSwiss 30 Politics editCoat of arms edit nbsp Neuchatel s coat of armsThe blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Or an Eagle displayed Sable beaked langued and membered Gules escutcheon Or on a pale Gules three Chevrons Argent 31 Administrative divisions edit Government edit The Municipal Council Conseil communal CC constitutes the executive government of the City of Neuchatel and operates as a collegiate authority It is composed of five councillors French Conseiller communal Conseillere communale each presiding over administrational sections and services comprising the related commissions The president of the executive department acts as mayor president e and is nominated annually in a tournus by the collegiate itself In the mandate period January 2021 June 2022 l annee administrative the Municipal Council is presided by Madame la presidente Violaine Bletry de Montmollin Departmental tasks coordination measures and implementation of laws decreed by the General Council parliament are carried by the Municipal Council The regular election of the Municipal Council by any inhabitant valid to vote is held every four years Any resident of Neuchatel allowed to vote can be elected as a member of the Municipal Council Due to the constitution by canton of Neuchatel not only Swiss citizens have the right to vote and elect and being elected on communal and cantonal level but also foreigners with a residence in the canton of Neuchatel and being resident in the canton of Neuchatel for at least one year for communal elections and votes and at least five years of residence in the canton for cantonal elections and votes 32 The current mandate period is from 2021 to 2024 The delegates are selected by means of a system of proportional representation 33 As of 2017 update Neuchatel s Municipal Council is made up of two representatives of the PS SP Social Democratic Party two representatives of the PLR FDP Les Liberaux Radicaux and one member of the PES GPS Green Party The last regular election was held on 25 October 2020 34 Le Conseil communal CC of Neuchatel 35 Municipal Councilor Conseiller communal Conseillere communale Party Head of section Directeur Directrice de since of Elected sinceViolaine Bletry de Montmollin CC 1 PLR Territorial Development Economy Tourism and Built Heritage Dicastere du developpement territorial de l economie du tourisme et du patrimoine bati 2021 2016Thomas Facchinetti CC 2 PS Culture Integration and Social Cohesion Dicastere de la culture de l integration et de la cohesion sociale 2021 2012Didier Boillat PLR Technological Development Agglomeration Security and Finances Dicastere du developpement technologique de l agglomeration de la securite et des finances 2021 2020Nicole Baur Les Verts Family Education Health and Sport Dicastere de la famille de la formation de la sante et des sports 2021 2020Mauro Moruzzi pvl Sustainable Development Mobility Infrastructure and Energy Dicastere du developpement durable de la mobilite des infrastructures et de l energie 2021 2020 Mayor presidente for one administrative year Vice Mayor vice president for one administrative year Daniel Veuve is Town Chancellor chancelier since 2021 for the City Council Parliament edit The Conseil general CG of Neuchatel for the mandate period of 2020 24 POP PdA 2 4 solidariteS 4 9 PS 24 4 Les Verts Ecologie et Liberte 26 8 pvl 12 2 PLR 29 3 The General Council Conseil general CG the city parliament holds legislative power It is made up of 41 members with elections held every four years The General Council decrees regulations and by laws that are executed by the Municipal Council and the administration The delegates are selected by means of a system of proportional representation The sessions of the General Council are public Unlike members of the Municipal Council members of the General Council are not politicians by profession and they are paid a fee based on their attendance Any resident of Neuchatel allowed to vote can be elected as a member of the General Council Due to the constitution of the canton of Neuchatel not only Swiss citizen have the right to vote and elect and be elected on the communal level but also foreigners in the canton of Neuchatel having been resident in the canton of Neuchatel for at least one year for communal elections and votes and at least five years of residence in the canton for cantonal elections and votes 32 The CG holds its meetings in the Town Hall L Hotel de Ville in the old city on Rue de l Hotel de Ville 36 The last regular election of the General Council was held on 25 October 2020 for the mandate period la legislature from 2020 to 2024 Currently the General Council consist of 12 members of The Liberals PLR FDP 11 Les Verts Ecologie et Liberte members an alliance of the Green Party PES GPS and others 10 Social Democratic Party PS SP 5 members of the Green Liberals pvl glp 2 members of the left party solidariteS and one of the Swiss Party of Labour PST POP PdA Parti Suisse du Travail Parti Ouvrier et Populaire 34 Elections edit National Council edit In the 2015 federal election the most popular party was the PS which received 29 3 of the vote The next four most popular parties were the PLR 22 8 the UDC 13 6 the Green Party 12 1 and the Swiss Party of Labour 10 1 In the federal election a total of 8 136 voters were cast and the voter turnout was 41 4 37 International relations edit Neuchatel is a pilot city of the Council of Europe and the European Commission Intercultural cities programme 38 Twin towns Sister cities edit See also List of twin towns and sister cities in Switzerland Neuchatel is twinned with 39 nbsp Aarau Switzerland 1997 nbsp Besancon France 1975 nbsp Sansepolcro Italy 1997Namesakes edit Neuchatel was part of the 1998 summit of worldwide cities named New Castle with 40 nbsp Neuburg an der Donau Germany nbsp Neuchatel Switzerland nbsp Neufchateau Vosges France nbsp New Castle Delaware USA nbsp New Castle Indiana USA nbsp New Castle Pennsylvania USA nbsp Newcastle under Lyme England nbsp Newcastle upon Tyne England nbsp Newcastle KwaZulu Natal South Africa nbsp Shinshiro JapanDemographics editPopulation edit Neuchatel has a population as of December 2020 update of 33 455 41 As of 2008 update 32 1 of the population are resident foreign nationals 42 Over the last 10 years 2000 2010 the population has changed at a rate of 3 9 It has changed at a rate of 2 4 due to migration and at a rate of 1 due to births and deaths 43 As of 2008 update the population was 47 7 male and 52 3 female The population was made up of 10 371 Swiss men 31 5 of the population and 5 344 16 2 non Swiss men There were 12 366 Swiss women 37 5 and 4 892 14 8 non Swiss women 44 Of the population in the municipality 8 558 or about 26 0 were born in Neuchatel and lived there in 2000 There were 5 134 or 15 6 who were born in the same canton while 7 744 or 23 5 were born somewhere else in Switzerland and 10 349 or 31 4 were born outside of Switzerland 45 As of 2000 update children and teenagers 0 19 years old make up 19 3 of the population while adults 20 64 years old make up 63 1 and seniors over 64 years old make up 17 6 43 As of 2000 update there were 14 143 people who were single and never married in the municipality There were 14 137 married individuals 2 186 widows or widowers and 2 448 individuals who are divorced 45 As of 2000 update there were 15 937 private households in the municipality and an average of 2 persons per household 43 There were 7 348 households that consist of only one person and 547 households with five or more people In 2000 update a total of 15 447 apartments 89 9 of the total were permanently occupied while 1 429 apartments 8 3 were seasonally occupied and 311 apartments 1 8 were empty 46 As of 2009 update the construction rate of new housing units was 2 5 new units per 1000 residents 43 As of 2003 update the average price to rent an average apartment in Neuchatel was 921 35 Swiss francs CHF per month US 740 410 590 approx exchange rate from 2003 The average rate for a one room apartment was 451 40 CHF US 360 200 290 a two room apartment was about 675 66 CHF US 540 300 430 a three room apartment was about 825 15 CHF US 660 370 530 and a six or more room apartment cost an average of 1647 88 CHF US 1320 740 1050 The average apartment price in Neuchatel was 82 6 of the national average of 1116 CHF 47 The vacancy rate for the municipality in 2010 update was 0 53 43 Historical population edit The historical population is given in the following chart 24 Historical Population Data 24 Year Total Population French Speaking German Speaking Protestant Catholic Other Jewish Islamic No religion given Swiss Non Swiss1850 7 901 7 098 789 7 068 8331870 12 934 11 012 2 327 11 306 2 2841888 16 565 11 511 4 651 13 973 2 387 143 94 14 447 2 1181900 21 195 15 566 4 596 17 548 3 500 232 80 18 108 3 0871910 24 171 17 543 5 161 19 750 3 944 476 111 20 625 3 5461930 22 668 17 027 4 612 18 615 3 638 306 63 20 640 2 0281950 27 998 21 897 4 784 21 439 5 891 308 58 26 307 1 6911970 38 784 26 200 5 117 21 882 15 262 2 352 59 76 791 30 012 8 7721990 33 579 24 579 2 467 13 198 13 305 4 462 55 481 5 634 24 250 9 3292000 32 914 25 881 1 845 10 296 10 809 3 767 58 1 723 7 549 22 801 10 113Language edit Most of the population as of 2000 update speaks French 25 881 or 78 6 as their first language German is the second most common 1 845 or 5 6 and Italian is the third 1 421 or 4 3 There are about six people who speak Romansh 45 Religion edit Neuchatel was historically Protestant but Catholics have since formed a plurality due to immigration From the 2000 census update 10 809 or 32 8 were Roman Catholic while 9 443 or 28 7 belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church Of the rest of the population there were 374 members of an Orthodox church or about 1 14 of the population there were 80 individuals or about 0 24 of the population who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church and there were 1 756 individuals or about 5 34 of the population who belonged to another Christian church There were 58 individuals or about 0 18 of the population who were Jewish and 1 723 or about 5 23 of the population who were Muslim There were 99 individuals who were Buddhist 100 individuals who were Hindu and 59 individuals who belonged to another church 7 549 or about 22 94 of the population belonged to no church are agnostic or atheist and 1 717 individuals or about 5 22 of the population did not answer the question 45 Crime edit See also Crime in Switzerland In 2014 the crime rate of crimes listed in the Swiss Criminal Code in Neuchatel was 140 4 per thousand residents During the same period the rate of drug crimes was 16 3 per thousand residents The rate of violations of immigration visa and work permit laws was 5 7 per thousand residents 48 Economy editNeuchatel is a centre of the watch industry and is also the site of micro technology and high tech industries It is home to research centres and organizations such as the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology CSEM 49 Microcity innovation pole 50 University of applied Sciences HE Arc in Engineering 51 and also Philip Morris International s Cube 52 The apparel company heidi com also established its headquarters in the city As of 2010 update Neuchatel had an unemployment rate of 7 5 As of 2008 update there were 46 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 14 businesses involved in this sector 5 658 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 261 businesses in this sector 20 472 people were employed in the tertiary sector with 1 955 businesses in this sector 43 There were 16 353 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity of which women made up 45 4 of the workforce In 2008 update the total number of full time equivalent jobs was 21 624 The number of jobs in the primary sector was 38 of which 20 were in agriculture and 18 were in forestry or lumber production The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 5 433 of which 4 234 or 77 9 were in manufacturing 9 or 0 2 were in mining and 1 022 18 8 were in construction The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 16 153 In the tertiary sector 2 397 or 14 8 were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles 796 or 4 9 were in the movement and storage of goods 919 or 5 7 were in a hotel or restaurant 766 or 4 7 were in the information industry 1 077 or 6 7 were the insurance or financial industry 1 897 or 11 7 were technical professionals or scientists 1 981 or 12 3 were in education and 2 633 or 16 3 were in health care 53 In 2000 update there were 15 535 workers who commuted into the municipality and 6 056 workers who commuted away The municipality is a net importer of workers with about 2 6 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving 54 Of the working population 33 7 used public transportation to get to work and 43 4 used a private car 43 Education edit nbsp University of NeuchatelNeuchatel is home to the French speaking University of Neuchatel The university has five faculties and more than a dozen institutes including arts and human sciences natural sciences law economics and theology For the 2005 2006 academic year 3 595 students 1 987 women and 1 608 men were enrolled The Faculty of Arts and Human Sciences is the largest school of those that comprise the university of Neuchatel with 1 500 students Some courses at the university are taught in English citation needed Neuchatel is home to the Editions Alphil which is a university press founded in 1996 Neuchatel is home to eight libraries the Bibliotheque de la Faculte des Lettres the Bibliotheque de l Institut d ethnologie et du Musee d ethnographie the Bibliotheque de la Faculte des Sciences the Bibliotheque de droit the Bibliotheque des sciences economiques the Bibliotheque de la Faculte de theologie the Service de coordination des bibliotheques and the Haute ecole Arc Sante There was a combined total as of 2008 update of 736 773 books or other media in the libraries and in the same year a total of 58 427 items were loaned out 55 In Neuchatel about 11 076 or 33 7 of the population have completed non mandatory upper secondary education and 5 948 or 18 1 have completed additional higher education either university or a Fachhochschule Of the 5 948 who completed tertiary schooling 43 6 were Swiss men 28 4 were Swiss women 16 4 were non Swiss men and 11 6 were non Swiss women 45 In the canton of Neuchatel most municipalities provide two years of non mandatory kindergarten followed by five years of mandatory primary education The next four years of mandatory secondary education is provided at thirteen larger secondary schools which many students travel out of their home municipality to attend 56 During the 2010 11 school year there were 27 kindergarten classes with a total of 527 students in Neuchatel In the same year there were 78 primary classes with a total of 1 424 students 57 Secondary schools include the Lycee Jean Piaget Apart from one International Montessori school for kids up to age 11 offering an English and a French class there is no international school in Neuchatel Neuchatel Junior College was founded in 1956 as a non profit foundation of the Ville de Neuchatel to provide a unique international education Neuchatel Junior College is a one year school annually welcoming over 100 students in their final pre university year to study the Ontario Grade 12 curriculum as well as Advanced Placement As of 2000 update there were 3 859 students in Neuchatel who came from another municipality while 346 residents attended schools outside the municipality 54 Transport edit nbsp Trolleybus of the Les Transports Publics du Littoral NeuchateloisNeuchatel has local public transport provided by Les Transports Publics du Littoral Neuchatelois TN which operates the Neuchatel trolleybus system a funicular and an interurban light rail line to Boudry The total length of the TN network is 81 2 km 50 5 mi It serves 78 400 people more than half using it on a daily basis and in 2007 transported 17 670 000 travelers 58 Neuchatel railway station forms part of one of Switzerland s most important railway lines the Jura foot railway Olten Geneve Aeroport which is operated by the Swiss Federal Railways The station is also a junction for several other lines including a cross border line served by the TGV High Speed Train with direct trains linking Neuchatel to Paris in four hours Neuchatel s airport is about 6 km 3 7 mi away from the center of the city and it takes 9 minutes to get into town with the direct tramway It is a small airport that does not offer commercial flights Neuchatel is also linked to four international airports Bern Geneva Basel and Zurich which are respectively 58 km 36 mi 122 km 76 mi 131 km 81 mi and 153 km 95 mi away by car Geneva and Zurich airports both have direct trains to Neuchatel connecting the cities respectively in 1h 17min and 1h 49min 59 Three funiculars serve the city The Funambule linking the lower part of the town near the university to the railway station The Funiculaire Ecluse Plan 60 The Funiculaire La Coudre Chaumont 61 The Societe de Navigation sur les Lacs de Neuchatel et Morat SA is the boat company which serves 17 towns on Lake Neuchatel 6 towns on Lake Murten and 7 towns on Lake Bienne from 6 30am to 9pm Some boats offer free wireless internet connections 62 Sights editHeritage sites of national significance edit There are 34 sites in Neuchatel that are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significance The entire old city of Neuchatel the urban village of Corcelles the small city of Valangin the Bussy Le Sorgereux region and the La Borcarderie region are part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites 63 Architecture edit nbsp Some of the statues in the Cenotaph of the Counts of NeuchatelNeuchatel s Old Town has about 140 street fountains a handful of which date from the 16th century The Place des Halles is overlooked by Louis XIV architecture shuttered facades and the turreted orioles of the 16th century Maison des Halles To the east on Rue de l Hopital is the grand 1790 Hotel de Ville Town Hall designed by Louis XVI s chief architect Pierre Adrien Paris The center of the Old Town is located at the top of the hill accessed by the steeply winding Rue du Chateau The Collegiale church begun in 1185 and consecrated in 1276 is an example of early Gothic The east end of the church has three Norman apses The main entrance to the west is crowned by a giant rose window of stained glass Within the vaulted interior the transept is lit by a lantern tower The Cenotaph of the Counts of Neuchatel is located on the north wall of the choir Begun in 1372 and the only artwork of its kind to survive north of the Alps the monument comprises fifteen near life size painted statues of various knights and ladies from Neuchatel s past framed by 15th century arches and gables citation needed Beside the church is the Castle begun in the 12th century and still in use as the offices of the cantonal government The nearby turreted Prison Tower which is the remains of a medieval bastion has panoramic views over the town along with models of Neuchatel in different eras citation needed Museums edit nbsp Park and Museum of the Latenium museum nbsp Jaquet Droz mechanical figurine at the musee d Art et d HistoireNeuchatel has several museums including the Latenium an archeology museum focusing on the prehistorical times in the region of Neuchatel and Hauterive particularly the La Tene culture with the eponym site being a few kilometers away the Musee d ethnographie de Neuchatel MEN an ethnography museum and the Musee d Art et d Histoire which houses the Automates Jaquet Droz Jaquet Droz Mechanical Figurines Culture edit nbsp National Exposition of 2002During the summer of 2002 Neuchatel was one of five sites which held Expo 02 the sixth Swiss national exhibition which was subject to financial controversy clarification needed The Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival is held every year to celebrate fantastic cinema from around the world The festival of the Fete des Vendanges representing the wine harvest is held traditionally in late September 64 Sport edit nbsp Stade de la MaladiereNeuchatel Xamax is the most important football club based in Neuchatel It was created in 1970 through a merger between FC Cantonal 1906 and FC Xamax 1916 The club plays in Swiss Super League the highest Swiss football league The club plays its home matches at the Stade de la Maladiere HC Uni Neuchatel plays in the MySports League the third tier of the Swiss hockey league system Their home games are held in the 7 000 seat Littoral Union Neuchatel Basket is the city s top basketball team which plays in the Championnat LNA Switzerland s only professional basketball league Notable people editWilliam Ritter Jean Piaget Marcel Junod Robert Miles and Yves Larock were all born in Neuchatel Friedrich Durrenmatt lived in Neuchatel the last 30 years of his life Prens Sabahaddin was an Ottoman sociologist and thinker of the Ottoman dynasty lived in Neuchatel the last 25 years of his life The Hungarian exile writer Agota Kristof lived most of her life in Neuchatel where she learned and wrote her books in French Canadian illustrator John Howe well known for his illustrations of J R R Tolkien s work and his participation in Peter Jackson s The Lord of the Rings trilogy as chief conceptual designer also lives in the Swiss city It was also the site of a secret first meeting between French novelist Honore de Balzac and the married woman who later became his wife Eveline Hanska 65 Roger Schutz founder of the Taize Community in France was born on 12 May 1915 at the village of Provence near Neuchatel He was stabbed to death on 16 August 2005 by a mentally deranged woman during a prayer meeting in Taize s Church of Reconciliation The de Pury family a Prussian noble family is from Neuchatel Swiss merchant and philanthropist David de Pury a native of Neuchatel left a large fortune to the city for public works and charities His relative James Ferdinand de Pury also a merchant and philanthropist bequest his villa to house the town s ethnography museum Other members of the family who were born or resided in the town include explorer and colonist Jean Pierre Pury winemaker and diplomat Frederic Guillaume de Pury painter Edmond Jean de Pury and biblical scholar Albert de Pury The de Castello family a French noble family including winemakers Hubert de Castella and Paul de Castella is from Neuchatel The de Montmollin family including the Protestant minister David Francois de Montmollin are also from the town Frederic Louis Godet 1812 1900 was another Swiss Protestant theologian who was born and died in Neuchatel 66 as was Jean Frederic Osterwald 1663 1747 a further Protestant pastor 67 French counter revolutionary Louis Fauche Borel was born and died in Neuchatel and Francois Bigot the last Intendant of New France relocated to there after being exiled from France Abraham Louis Breguet the founder of the Breguet watch company and an esteemed inventor often regarded as the father of modern horology was born in Neuchatel The company still maintains its headquarters at L Abbaye about 40 km southwest of Neuchatel The psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Silvio Fanti was born in Neuchatel in 1919 He founded and developed Micropsychoanalysis a new school of psychoanalysis Another important psychiatrist Gottlieb Burckhardt practiced in Neuchatel Alexander Agassiz 1835 1910 was an American scientist and engineer from the town 68 Didier Burkhalter 94th President of the Swiss Confederation was born in Neuchatel as was Logitech founder Daniel Borel Footballers Max Abegglen 69 Jayson Leutwiler and Yann Kasai as well as Swiss Olympic field hockey player Albert Piaget were all born in Neuchatel It is also the current residence of French tennis players Richard Gasquet Gilles Simon and Florent Serra as well as the Mexican Formula 1 driver Sergio Perez and the artist and designer Ini Archibong 70 71 Anthropologist artist and filmmaker Verena Paravel was also born in Neuchatel 72 It is the birthplace of explorer and lecturer Raphael Domjan 73 Gallery edit nbsp Lake Neuchatel seen from the castle nbsp The statue of the justice fountain nbsp The collegiale by night nbsp The collegiale by night north view nbsp Bronze statue of David de Pury Baron de Pury in Neuchatel sculpted by David d Angers nbsp Littorail train at Neuchatel nbsp Aerial view of Neuchatel and Lake Neuchatel looking to the north east nbsp Ballot box used to elect members of the Grand Conseil of the city of Neuchatel Made during the 18th century used until 1848 Walnut and brass See also editL ExpressExplanatory notes edit The city is one of the Newcastles of the World 9 and hosted the 2000 Newcastles of the World summit 10 German Welsch refers to the inhabitants of Romandy WelschschweizorWelschland 13 and is prefixed to several German language placenames in Switzerland and beyond e g Welschenrohr near the language border References edit a b Arealstatistik Standard Gemeinden nach 4 Hauptbereichen Federal Statistical Office Retrieved 13 January 2019 Standige Wohnbevolkerung nach Staatsangehorigkeitskategorie Geschlecht und Gemeinde Provisorische Jahresergebnisse 2018 Federal Statistical Office 9 April 2019 Retrieved 11 April 2019 NEUCHATEL LAKE English Definition and Meaning Lexico com Lexico Dictionaries English Archived from the original on 25 July 2021 Neuchatel The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language 5th ed HarperCollins Retrieved 31 May 2019 Neuchatel Collins English Dictionary HarperCollins Retrieved 31 May 2019 a b Applikation der Schweizer Gemeinden bfs admin ch Swiss Federal Statistical Office 2021 Retrieved 21 January 2021 Bilanz der standigen Wohnbevolkerung Total nach Bezirken und Gemeinden Federal Statistical Office 26 March 2021 Retrieved 13 November 2021 FUSION NEUCHATEL Neuchatel 2021 Retrieved 13 November 2021 a b c d e f Reperes historiques Le Nom Site officiel de la Ville de Neuchatel in French Centre electronique de gestion de la Ville de Neuchatel Retrieved 1 October 2021 Newcastles of the World About Retrieved 1 October 2021 Walter Henriette Une germanique influence in Le Francais dans tous les sens Robert Laffont 1988 ISBN 2253140015 de Beaurepaire Francois 1979 Les Noms des communes et anciennes paroisses de la Seine Maritime in French Paris A and J Picard p 8 ISBN 2 7084 0040 1 OCLC 6403150 a b c d e Neuchatel Historische Lexikon der Schweiz in German French Italian and Romansh 2021 Retrieved 1 October 2021 a b La settimana del gusto Gastronomia per i giovani Gout ch in Italian 2020 Retrieved 1 October 2021 Stich Dominique 2003 Dictionnaire francoprovencal francais in French and Arpitan Thonon les Bains Editions Le Carre Le patois neuchatelois Neuchatel Imprimerie Wolfrath et Cie 1895 Kristol Andres 2005 Dictionnaire toponymique des communes suisses in French German and Italian Lausanne Editions Payot ISBN 2 601 03336 3 a b c Rilliot Joel Lexique francais patois PDF in French and Arpitan p 76 Retrieved 1 October 2021 Hofmann Johann Jacob 1698 Nomenclator Lexicon Universale in Latin Lugduni Batavorum Jacob Hackium et al nbsp Chisholm Hugh ed 1911 Neocomian Encyclopaedia Britannica 11th ed Cambridge University Press a b c d e f g h Jelmini Jean Pierre 8 September 2021 Neuchatel commune Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse in French German and Italian Academie suisse des sciences humaines et sociales Retrieved 1 October 2021 Umberto Tirelli 24 May 2010 Neuchatel valle verde tra Durrenmatt e cacao Corriere della Sera in Italian Retrieved 1 October 2021 De Jacobis Nicola 1845 Nuovo Castello Dizionario universale portatile di lingua italiana geografia storia sacra ecclesiastica e profana mitologia medicina chirurgia veterinaria farmaceutica fisica chimica zoologia botanica mineralogia scienze arti mestieri ecc vol 2 pag 571 1ª colonna in basso in Italian Retrieved 1 October 2021 a b c d e Neuchatel in German French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland Corcelles Cormondreche in German French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland Peseux in German French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland Valangin in German French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland a b Swiss Federal Statistical Office Land Use Statistics 2009 data in German accessed 25 March 2010 Amtliches Gemeindeverzeichnis der Schweiz in German accessed 15 February 2018 Climate Normals Neuchatel Reference period 1991 2020 PDF Swiss Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology MeteoSwiss Archived from the original PDF on 20 January 2022 Retrieved 20 January 2022 Flags of the World com accessed 25 October 2011 a b Voter Mode d emploi official site in French Neuchatel Switzerland Ville de Neuchatel 2016 Retrieved 27 March 2016 Reglementation official site in French Neuchatel Switzerland Ville de Neuchatel 2021 Retrieved 19 October 2021 a b Elections communales 2020 official site in French Neuchatel Switzerland Ville de Neuchatel 25 October 2020 Retrieved 4 October 2021 Conseil communal official site in French Neuchatel Switzerland Ville de Neuchatel 2021 Retrieved 19 October 2021 Conseil general official site in French Neuchatel Switzerland Secretariat du Conseil general 2020 Retrieved 19 October 2021 Nationalratswahlen 2015 Starke der Parteien und Wahlbeteiligung nach Gemeinden XLS official statistics in German and French Neuchatel Switzerland Swiss Federal Statistical Office FSO 9 March 2016 Retrieved 18 December 2017 Intercultural city Neuchatel Canton Switzerland Council of Europe 2011 Retrieved 22 May 2011 VILLES JUMELEES official site in French Neuchatel Switzerland Ville de Neuchatel 2021 Retrieved 19 October 2021 Website of the official convention of cities named new castle newcastlesoftheworld com Retrieved 24 May 2021 Standige und nichtstandige Wohnbevolkerung nach institutionellen Gliederungen Geburtsort und Staatsangehorigkeit bfs admin ch in German Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT TAB 31 December 2020 Retrieved 21 September 2021 Swiss Federal Statistical Office Superweb database Gemeinde Statistics 1981 2008 in German accessed 19 June 2010 a b c d e f g Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 25 October 2011 Canton of Neuchatel Statistics Archived 5 December 2012 at archive today Republique et canton de Neuchatel Recensement annuel de la population in German accessed 13 October 2011 a b c d e STAT TAB Datenwurfel fur Thema 40 3 2000 Archived 9 August 2013 at the Wayback Machine in German accessed 2 February 2011 Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT TAB Datenwurfel fur Thema 09 2 Gebaude und Wohnungen Archived 7 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine in German accessed 28 January 2011 Swiss Federal Statistical Office Rental prices 2003 data in German accessed 26 May 2010 Statistical Atlas of Switzerland accessed 5 April 2016 Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology csem ch IMT homepage epfl ch Engineering Haute Ecole Arc he arc ch 17 May 2023 Philip Morris International bets big on the future of smoking Forbes 28 May 2014 Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT TAB Betriebszahlung Arbeitsstatten nach Gemeinde und NOGA 2008 Abschnitte Sektoren 1 3 Archived 25 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine in German accessed 28 January 2011 a b Swiss Federal Statistical Office Statweb Archived 4 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine in German accessed 24 June 2010 Swiss Federal Statistical Office list of libraries in German accessed 14 May 2010 EDK CDIP IDES 2010 Kantonale Schulstrukturen in der Schweiz und im Furstentum Liechtenstein Structures Scolaires Cantonales en Suisse et Dans la Principaute du Liechtenstein PDF Report Retrieved 24 June 2010 Statistical Department of the Canton of Neuchatel Archived 14 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine Memento de l annee scolaire 2010 2011 in French accessed 17 October 2011 Statistiques donnees 2009 in French tnneuchatel ch Archived from the original on 24 February 2012 Retrieved 5 June 2009 Bienvenue sur l Aeroport de Neuchatel LSGN neuchatel airport ch TN Ecluse Plan Funimag Retrieved 13 October 2011 La Coudre Chaumont Funimag Retrieved 13 October 2011 Bienvenue a bord in French navig ch Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance A Objects Federal Office for Cultural Protection BABS 1 January 2017 Archived from the original on 2 September 2016 Retrieved 6 September 2017 Programme de la Fete des vendanges de Neuchatel Fete des vendanges ch Retrieved on 2013 09 07 Maurois Andre Prometheus The Life of Balzac New York Carroll amp Graf 1965 ISBN 0 88184 023 8 Page 228 Godet Frederic Louis Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 12 11th ed 1911 pp 171 172 Ostervald Jean Frederic Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 20 11th ed 1911 p 358 Agassiz Alexander Emanuel Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 1 11th ed 1911 pp 366 367 Olympic Results Max Abegglen International Olympic Committee Retrieved 17 October 2022 Sergio Perez a ete seduit par Neuchatel Le Matin in French 20 June 2012 ISSN 1018 3736 Retrieved 17 October 2022 Ini Archibong designer extraordinaire House of Switzerland 30 October 2019 Retrieved 17 October 2022 Verena Paravel and Lucien Castaing Taylor documenta14 de Retrieved 17 October 2022 Bio Raphael Domjan Further reading edit Neuchatel Switzerland Coblenz Karl Baedeker 1863 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Neuchatel nbsp Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Neuchatel Coolidge William Augustus Brevoort 1911 Neuchatel town Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 19 11th ed p 424 City of Neuchatel official website in French Transports Publics du Littoral Neuchatelois Museums Archeology museum Ethnography museum Art and history museum Museum of natural history Neuchatel Tourism Office Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Neuchatel amp oldid 1181856426, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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