Böztal is a
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality' ...
in the district of
Laufenburg in the
canton
Canton may refer to:
Administrative divisions
* Canton (administrative division), territorial/administrative division in some countries
* Township (Canada), known as ''canton'' in Canadian French
Arts and entertainment
* Canton (band), an It ...
of
Aargau
Aargau ( ; ), more formally the Canton of Aargau (; ; ; ), is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capital is Aarau.
Aargau is one of the most nort ...
in
Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
. It was established on 1 January 2022 with the merger of the municipalities of
Bözen,
Effingen
Effingen is a former municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Brugg (district), Brugg in Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Aargau in Switzerland. On 1 January 2022 the former municipalities of Bözen, Effingen, Elfingen and ...
,
Elfingen
Elfingen is a former municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Laufenberg (district), Laufenberg in Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Aargau in Switzerland. On 1 January 2022 the former municipalities of Bözen, Effingen, El ...
and
Hornussen
Hornussen is an indigenous Swiss sport played by two teams of 16 to 20 players which alternate in striking a puck known as a "Hornuss" (hornet) or "Nouss" and attempting to deflect it. When hit, the Hornuss can fly at up to 300 km/h (186.4 mp ...
.
History
In November 2009, the municipal assemblies of the five municipalities Bözen, Effingen, Elfingen, Hornussen and
Zeihen
Zeihen () is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Laufenburg (district), Laufenburg in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Aargau in Switzerland.
Geography
Zeihen has an area, , of . Of this area, or 50.9% is used ...
west of
Bözberg Pass
Bözberg is a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Brugg (district), Brugg in Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Aargau in Switzerland. It ceased to exist in 1873, when it was split into the two new municipalities Oberböz ...
had to decide whether to cooperate and include a merger should be examined. While Effingen, Elfingen and Zeihen agreed with large majorities at the time, Bözen and Hornussen rejected the corresponding application. A merger of only the consenting communities was not pursued.
In early 2013, an interest group was formed in Bözen, which again sought to merge the municipalities. Zeihen announced in September 2014 that it would not participate in a potential merger. In June 2017, the municipal assemblies of Bözen, Effingen, Elfingen and Hornussen approved the start of official merger clarifications and the formation of working groups. These were active from January to September 2018.
In a consultative survey, the narrow majority of respondents opted for "Oberes Fricktal" as the future community name (other possible answers were "Rebthal", "Böztal" and "Unterberg"). After the results were presented in January 2019, there was criticism from several surrounding communities, as the intended name could lead to confusion with the region of the same name, which covers a much larger area.
Executive Councilor Urs Hofmann then recommended looking for possible alternatives for "Oberes Fricktal". In a second survey in April 2019, the three remaining proposals from the first round were up for selection, with "Böztal" being the most popular.
At that time, Hornussen already belonged to the district of Laufenburg, and the three other municipalities belonged to the district of
Brugg
Brugg (sometimes written as Brugg AG in order to distinguish it from other ''Brugg''s) is a Switzerland, Swiss Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality and a List of towns in Switzerland, town in the canton of Aargau and is the seat of the Bru ...
. According to the merger agreement and with the consent of the
Grand Council, the new municipality of Böztal would join the district of Laufenburg, which resulted in a change of district for three formerly independent municipalities. The seat of the municipal administration is Hornussen. On 27 June 2019, the municipal assemblies of Bözen, Effingen, Elfingen and Hornussen approved the merger agreement. In the referendum held on 24 November 2019, all four municipalities approved the merger. The results were as follows:
*Bözen: 236 yes to 83 no (turnout 55%)
*Effingen: 167 yes to 112 no (turnout 67%)
*Elfingen: 90 yes to 40 no (turnout 57%)
*Hornussen: 186 yes to 99 no (turnout 45%)
When designing the new coat of arms, 15 suggestions were made. Finally, a committee chose four coats of arms from this selection, which could then be voted on. The population decided with a vast majority for the new coat of arms.
References
External links
The website of Böztal
{{Authority control
Municipalities of Aargau
2022 establishments in Switzerland
States and territories established in 2022