Miglieglia (; ) is a former
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
Lugano
Lugano ( , , ; ) is a city and municipality within the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland. It is the largest city in both Ticino and the Italian-speaking region of southern Switzerland. Lugano has a population () of , and an u ...
in the
canton of
Ticino
Ticino ( ), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino, is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eight districts ...
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 ...
. On 6 April 2025, the former municipalities of
Astano
Astano is a former Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Lugano (district), Lugano in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Ticino in Switzerland. On 6 April 2025, the former municipalities of Astano, Bedigliora, Curio, ...
,
Bedigliora
Bedigliora is a former Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Lugano (district), Lugano in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Ticino in Switzerland. On 6 April 2025, the former municipalities of Astano, Bedigliora, Curio ...
,
Curio
Curio may refer to:
Objects
*Bric-à-brac, lesser objets d'art for display
*Cabinet of curiosities, a room-sized collection or exhibit of curios or curiosities
*Collectables
*Curio cabinet, a cabinet constructed for the display of curios
People
* ...
, Miglieglia and
Novaggio
Novaggio is a former Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the Lugano (district), district of Lugano, in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland. On 6 April 2025, the former municipalities of Astano, Bedigliora, Curio, Switzerland, Curio, Miglie ...
merged to form the new municipality of
Lema.
History
Numerous, but inconclusive archaeological findings indicate that there may have been a
Roman era
In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...
settlement near the current municipality. On a promontory overlooking the river Magliasina are the ruins known as ''Castello di Miglieglia''. These ruins were interpreted as remnants of an extensive fortification from the late Classical period. Although is in not confirmed archaeologically, it is likely that the ruins are the remains of a fortified refuge, which was destroyed by the
Milan
Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
ese in 1156 during the conquest of the
Diocese of Como
The Diocese of Como () is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church in northern Italy. It was established in the Fourth Century. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Arch ...
.
[
Miglieglia is first mentioned in 1214 as ''Mullielia''.][ In the ]Late Middle Ages
The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the Periodization, period of History of Europe, European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period ( ...
, Miglieglia, Iseo, Cimo and Aranno formed the ''Concilium'' (neighborhood) of S. Maria Giovena. In 1478 the village was destroyed in a fire.
On a hill above the village rises the romanesque-style church of S. Stefano. Probably the oldest part of the church is the bell tower. During the Gothic period
Gothic art was a style of medieval art that developed in Northern France out of Romanesque art in the 12th century, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. It spread to all of Western Europe, and much of Northern, Southern and ...
, the church was extended. The chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...
fresco
Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...
es are from 1511. The parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...
was formed in 1621 after the secession of Agno. The new, parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...
of St. Stefan is from the 17th century.[
Agriculture and livestock formerly dominated the village economy. In the 19th century it was partly depopulated because of emigration to German-speaking Switzerland, northern Italy and America. In the second half of the 19th century a mine operated for a short time. A chair lift opened in 1952 to Monte Lema () and expanded in 1997 with a cable car.][
]
Geography
Miglieglia has an area, , of . Of this area, or 3.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 76.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 2.1% is settled (buildings or roads), or 0.4% is either rivers or lakes and or 9.9% is unproductive land.
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 1.4% and transportation infrastructure made up 0.4%. Out of the forested land, 68.0% of the total land area is heavily forested and 2.9% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 2.5% is used for growing crops and 1.4% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water. Of the unproductive areas, 9.7% is unproductive vegetation.
The municipality is located in the Lugano district, on a terrace in the upper Malcantone valley at the foot of Monte Lema. It consists of the village of Miglieglia and the abandoned village of Tortoglio (first mentioned in 1335 as ''Tortolio''), that was abandoned in the 16th century after an epidemic. The division of Tortoglio's land led to a long running fight with Breno that was not resolved until 1890.[
]
Coat of arms
The blazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct an accurate image. The verb ''to blazon'' means to create such a description. The visual d ...
of the municipal coat of arms
A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...
is ''Gules an oak tree eradicated vert acorned or between a chestnut and a walnut both or.'' All the symbols (oak, chestnut, walnut) refer to the typical vegetation of the area.
Demographics
Miglieglia has a population () of . , 10.8% of the population are resident foreign nationals.[Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Superweb database - Gemeinde Statistics 1981-2008]
accessed 19 June 2010 Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 12.3%.
Most of the population () speaks Italian
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
(80.5%), with German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
being second most common (10.2%) and French
French may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France
** French people, a nation and ethnic group
** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices
Arts and media
* The French (band), ...
being third (4.2%).[Swiss Federal Statistical Office]
accessed 14-January-2011 Of the Swiss national languages (), 22 speak German, 9 people speak French, 173 people speak Italian. The remainder (11 people) speak another language.[Popolazione residente, secondo la lingua principale e la religione, nel 2000]
accessed 23 November 2010
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.1% male and 50.9% female. The population was made up of 117 Swiss men (42.9% of the population), and 17 (6.2%) non-Swiss men. There were 129 Swiss women (47.3%), and 10 (3.7%) non-Swiss women.[
In there were 6 live births to Swiss citizens and were 4 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens increased by 2 while the foreign population remained the same. There was 1 Swiss man and 4 Swiss women who emigrated from Switzerland. At the same time, there . The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was a decrease of 10 and the non-Swiss population change was a decrease of 5 people. This represents a ]population growth rate
Population growth is the increase in the number of people in a population or dispersed group. The global population has grown from 1 billion in 1800 to 8.2 billion in 2025. Actual global human population growth amounts to around 70 million annu ...
of -5.3%.[
The age distribution, , in Miglieglia is; 39 children or 14.3% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 19 teenagers or 7.0% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 16 people or 5.9% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 46 people or 16.8% are between 30 and 39, 52 people or 19.0% are between 40 and 49, and 32 people or 11.7% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 31 people or 11.4% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 30 people or 11.0% are between 70 and 79, there are 8 people or 2.9% who are over 80.][01.02.03 Popolazione residente permanente]
accessed 23 November 2010
, there were 100 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.1 persons per household.[ there were 105 single family homes (or 83.3% of the total) out of a total of 126 inhabited buildings. There were 14 two family buildings (11.1%) and 2 multi-family buildings (1.6%). There were also 5 buildings in the municipality that were multipurpose buildings (used for both housing and commercial or another purpose).
The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0%. there were 141 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 4 room apartment of which there were 39. There were 10 single room apartments and 39 apartments with five or more rooms.][ 09.02.02 Abitazioni](_blank)
accessed 23 November 2010 Of these apartments, a total of 100 apartments (70.9% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 38 apartments (27.0%) were seasonally occupied and 3 apartments (2.1%) were empty.[
The historical population is given in the following chart:]
Heritage sites of national significance
The Church of S. Stefano Al Colle with ossuary
An ossuary is a chest, box, building, well, or site made to serve as the final resting place of human skeletal remains. They are frequently used where burial space is scarce. A body is first buried in a temporary grave, then after some years th ...
is listed as a Swiss heritage site of national significance.
Politics
In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SP which received 35.03% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the Ticino League
The Ticino League () is a regionalist, national-conservative political party in Switzerland active in the canton of Ticino.
The party was founded in 1991 by entrepreneur Giuliano Bignasca and journalist Flavio Maspoli. After some public camp ...
(17.6%), the FDP (15.79%) and the SVP (11.84%). In the federal election, a total of 77 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
In political science, voter turnout is the participation rate (often defined as those who cast a ballot) of a given election. This is typically either the percentage of Voter registration, registered voters, Suffrage, eligible voters, or all Voti ...
was 40.1%.
In the '' Gran Consiglio'' election, there were a total of 195 registered voters in Miglieglia, of which 122 or 62.6% voted. 3 blank ballots were cast, leaving 119 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PS which received 40 or 33.6% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PLRT (with 21 or 17.6%), the SSI (with 19 or 16.0%) and the LEGA (with 17 or 14.3%).[ Elezioni cantonali: Gran Consiglio, Consiglio di Stato]
accessed 23 November 2010
In the ''Consiglio di Stato'' election, 2 blank ballots were cast, leaving 119 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PS which received 37 or 31.1% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the LEGA (with 25 or 21.0%), the PLRT (with 20 or 16.8%) and the PLRT (with 20 or 16.8%).[
]
Economy
, Miglieglia had an unemployment rate of 3.66%. , there were 9 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 3 businesses involved in this sector. 2 people were employed in the secondary sector
In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in constructi ...
and there were 2 businesses in this sector. 20 people were employed in the tertiary sector
The tertiary sector of the economy, generally known as the service sector, is the third of the three economic sectors in the three-sector model (also known as the economic cycle). The others are the primary sector (raw materials) and the ...
, with 6 businesses in this sector.[ There were 91 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 40.7% of the workforce.
, there were 22 workers who commuted into the municipality and 66 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 3.0 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. About 22.7% of the workforce coming into Miglieglia are coming from outside Switzerland.][Swiss Federal Statistical Office - Statweb]
accessed 24 June 2010 Of the working population, 14.3% used public transportation to get to work, and 62.6% used a private car.[
, there was one hotel in Miglieglia.
]
Religion
From the , 145 or 67.4% were Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
, while 17 or 7.9% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church
The Protestant Church in Switzerland (PCS), formerly named Federation of Swiss Protestant Churches until 31 December 2019, is a federation of 25 member churches – 24 cantonal churches and the Evangelical-Methodist Church of Switzerland. The P ...
. There are 42 individuals (or about 19.53% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 11 individuals (or about 5.12% of the population) did not answer the question.[
]
Education
In Miglieglia about 69.5% of the population (between age 25 and 64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education
Secondary education is the education level following primary education and preceding tertiary education.
Level 2 or ''lower secondary education'' (less commonly ''junior secondary education'') is considered the second and final phase of basic e ...
or additional higher education (either university or a ''Fachhochschule
A (; plural ), abbreviated FH, is a university of applied sciences (UAS), in other words a Hochschule, German tertiary education institution that provides professional education in many applied sciences and applied arts, such as engineering, te ...
'').[
In Miglieglia there were a total of 39 students (). The Ticino ]education system
The educational system generally refers to the structure of all institutions and the opportunities for obtaining education within a country. It includes all pre-school institutions, starting from family education, and/or early childhood education ...
provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten
Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...
and in Miglieglia there were 12 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years. In the municipality, 11 students attended the standard primary schools. In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two-year middle school followed by a two-year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four-year program to prepare for higher education. There were 8 students in the two-year middle school, while 1 students were in the four-year advanced program.
The upper secondary school includes several options, but at the end of the upper secondary program, a student will be prepared to enter a trade or to continue on to a university or college. In Ticino, vocational students may either attend school while working on their internship or apprenticeship (which takes three or four years) or may attend school followed by an internship or apprenticeship (which takes one year as a full-time student or one and a half to two years as a part-time student). There were 3 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 3 who attend part-time.
The professional program lasts three years and prepares a student for a job in engineering, nursing, computer science, business, tourism and similar fields. There was 1 student in the professional program. Allievi e studenti, secondo il genere di scuola, anno scolastico 2009/2010
accessed 23 November 2010
, there were 25 students from Miglieglia who attended schools outside the municipality.[
]
References
{{Authority control
Former municipalities of Ticino
Cultural property of national significance in Ticino