# Schmitten, Graubünden

Schmitten (Romansh: Ferrera) is a municipality in the Albula Region in the canton of Graubünden in Switzerland.

## History

Schmitten is first mentioned in 1447 as Schmiten.

## Geography

Schmitten has an area, as of 2006, of 11.3 km$^2$ (4.4 sq mi). Of this area, 25.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 57.1% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.7% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (16.2%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).
Before 2017, the municipality was located in the Belfort sub-district of the Albula District, after 2017 it was part of the Albula Region. It consists of the linear village of Schmitten which is located at an elevation of 1,280 m (4,200 ft) on the right side of the Albula valley.

## Demographics

Schmitten has a population (as of 31 December 2020) of 222. As of 2008, 10.5% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 1.6%.
As of 2000, the gender distribution of the population was 50.7% male and 49.3% female. The age distribution, as of 2000, in Schmitten is; 66 people or 10.6% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old. 46 people or 7.4% are 10 to 14, and 46 people or 7.4% are 15 to 19. Of the adult population, 74 people or 11.9% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 119 people or 19.2% are 30 to 39, 82 people or 13.2% are 40 to 49, and 73 people or 11.8% are 50 to 59. The senior population distribution is 43 people or 6.9% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 47 people or 7.6% are 70 to 79, there are 21 people or 3.4% who are 80 to 89, and there are 3 people or 0.5% who are 90 to 99.
In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 41.1% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the CVP (33.8%), the FDP (16.6%) and the SPS (7.6%).
In Schmitten about 75.9% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).
Schmitten has an unemployment rate of 0.63%. As of 2005, there were 4 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 2 businesses involved in this sector. 42 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 3 businesses in this sector. 25 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 4 businesses in this sector.
The historical population is given in the following table:
| year | population |
| 1623 | 170 |
| 1850 | 205 |
| 1900 | 249 |
| 1950 | 329 |
| 1960 | 248 |
| 1970 | 233 |
| 1980 | 208 |
| 1990 | 252 |
| 2000 | 244 |

## Heritage sites of national significance

The Schmittentobel and Landwasser Viaducts of the Rhaetian Railway are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance.

## Languages

In the 14th and 15th centuries, the area was settled from Davos. Therefore, the municipality is traditionally German-speaking. Despite the neighboring Romansh-speaking villages, the percentage of Romansch speakers in Schmitten has always been well under 10%. (as of 2000), most of the population speaks German (94.2%), with Portuguese being second most common ( 2.1%) and Romansh being third ( 1.2%).
Languages in Schmitten GR :
| Language | Census of 1980 | Census of 1980 | Census of 1990 | Census of 1990 | Census of 2000 | Census of 2000 |
| Language | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage | Number | Percentage |
| German | 195 | 93.75% | 243 | 96.43% | 229 | 94.24% |
| Romansh | 11 | 5.29% | 3 | 1.19% | 3 | 1.23% |
| Italian | 2 | 0.96% | 0 | 0.00% | 2 | 0.82% |
| Population | 208 | 100% | 252 | 100% | 243 | 100% |