Balgach

Balgach
Coat of arms
Balgach Show map of Switzerland Balgach Show map of Canton of St. Gallen
Location of Balgach
Coordinates: 47°24′N 9°36′E / 47.400°N 9.600°E / 47.400; 9.600Coordinates: 47°24′N 9°36′E / 47.400°N 9.600°E / 47.400; 9.600
Country	Switzerland
Canton	St. Gallen
District	Rheintal
Government
• Mayor	Ernst Metzler
Area
• Total	6.5 km2 (2.5 sq mi)
Elevation	404 m (1,325 ft)
Population (Dec 2015)
• Total	4,498
• Density	690/km2 (1,800/sq mi)
Postal code	9436
SFOS number	3232
Surrounded by	Au, Berneck, Diepoldsau, Oberegg (AI), Oberriet, Rebstein, Reute (AR), Widnau
Website	www.balgach.ch SFSO statistics

Balgach is a municipality in the Wahlkreis (constituency) of Rheintal in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.

Balgach is first mentioned about 890-91 as Palgaa.

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Per fess Or a Semi Lion rampant issuant Gules and Vert two Bars Argent.

Balgach has an area, as of 2006^[update], of 6.5 km² (2.5 sq mi). Of this area, 56.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 19.7% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 23.2% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.9%) is non-productive (rivers or lakes).

The municipality was part of the former Unterrheintal district before the creation of the Rheintal Wahlkreis. It is located at the base of the Appenzell hill country and along the main road between St. Margrethen and Altstätten. It consists of the village of Balgach and a portion of the village of Heerbrugg.

Balgach has a population (as of 31 December 2015) of 4,498. As of 2007^[update], about 21.8% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Of the foreign population, (as of 2000^[update]), 77 are from Germany, 96 are from Italy, 374 are from ex-Yugoslavia, 104 are from Austria, 102 are from Turkey, and 130 are from another country. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 3.7%. Most of the population (as of 2000^[update]) speaks German (89.1%), with Serbo-Croatian being second most common ( 2.9%) and Albanian being third ( 1.8%). Of the Swiss national languages (as of 2000^[update]) 3,584 speak German, 15 people speak French, 65 people speak Italian, and 4 people speak Romansh.