Gonten

Geschichte

Gonten District is a district of the canton of Appenzell Innerrhoden in Switzerland.HistoryGonten is first mentioned in 1200 as Gumbton. This refers to a pool of water, which points at the nearby peat-bog.GeographyGonten has an area, of 24.7km2. Of this area, 61.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 32.0% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 4.9% is settled (buildings or roads) and 1.4% is unproductive land.The district is located in the inner portion of the half canton. It consists of the linear village of Gonten and the hamlets of Gontenbad and Jakobsbad.The municipality was formally established in 1872 when Gonten was joined with the rhodes Stechlenegg and RinkenbachCoat of armsThe blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Per pale Or and Gules two Pilgrim Sticks counterchanged and overall a Base Vert.The bottom of the coat of arms is green. The background of the coat of arms is divided into red and gold. There are two pilgrim staffs, one each on the red and golden area respectively. A red staff is placed on the golden background, a golden one on the red background. The pilgirm staffs symbolize the apostle Jacob the elder. There is a chapel on the Kronberg mountain dedicated to Jacob the elder.DemographicsGonten has a population of., 3.8% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1999-2009 ) the population has changed at a rate of 0.1%. It has changed at a rate of 5.2% due to migration and at a rate of -0.1% due to births and deaths.