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Religious geography

A new dividing line

In this day and age in Switzerland it is obvious that religious frontiers have and are still continuing to change. Boundaries are moving, not only because people’s sentiment of belonging to a Christian community has dropped, but also due to the increased importance that non traditional religions have acquired. Not to mention, of course, the increased number of mixed marriages.

When observing the current religious landscape in Switzerland, it can be noticed that there is no longer a Church or religious community that clearly dominates the urban area from Lake Geneva, through the Arch of the Jura Mountains, along Lake Constance, until the St. Gall valley of the Rhine. The Protestant Church has only remained predominant in the canton of Berne and in certain municipalities in the cantons of Grischun and Schaffhouse. As for Roman Catholics, they are still predominant in the cantons of Freiberg, Jura, Wallis, Ticino, Appenzell Inner Rhodes and in central Switzerland.

In fact, a new dividing line as regards religious beliefs has developed in Switzerland. Indeed, French-speaking Switzerland has, on the one hand, a greater number of people who no longer feel they belong to a Church or religious community and, on the other hand, a small proportion of followers of new religious groups. The latter are, however, particularly well established in the Northwest and Northeast of the country, following the arrival of immigrating populations. In the region of Basle, generally thought of as a buffer zone, these two tendencies coexist. It should also be noted that Evangelists live primarily in cantons that are traditionally Protestant and that Jewish communities are mostly grouped together in Switzerland’s major cities.

D 8 October 2012    AJoëlle Sanchez AJörg Stolz

CNRS Unistra Dres Gsrl

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