Brig, Valais
| Brig-Glis | ||
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 Brig-Glis
Brig-Glis
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Location of Brig-Glis
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| Coordinates: 46°19′N 7°58′E / 46.317°N 7.967°ECoordinates: 46°19′N 7°58′E / 46.317°N 7.967°E | ||
| Country | Switzerland | |
| Canton | Valais | |
| District | Brig | |
| Government | ||
| • Executive |
Stadtrat with 7 members |
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| • Mayor |
Stadtpräsident (list) Louis Ursprung SVP/UDC (as of March 2013) |
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| • Parliament | none (Urversammlung) | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 38.08 km2 (14.70 sq mi) | |
| Elevation | 691 m (2,267 ft) | |
| Population (Dec 2015) | ||
| • Total | 13,088 | |
| • Density | 340/km2 (890/sq mi) | |
| Demonym(s) | German: Briger(in) | |
| Postal code | 3900 | |
| SFOS number | 6002 | |
| Localities | Brig, Glis, Gamsen, Brigerbad | |
| Surrounded by | Lalden, Mund, Naters, Ried-Brig, Simplon, Termen, Visp, Visperterminen | |
| Twin towns | Langenthal (Switzerland), Domodossola (Italy) | |
| Website |
www SFSO statistics |
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Brig, officially Brig-Glis (French: Brigue-Glis, Italian: Briga-Glis) is a historic town and a municipality in the district of Brig in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.
The current municipality was formed in 1972 through the merger of Brig (city), Brigerbad and Glis.
Together with other Alpine towns Brig-Glis engages in the Alpine Town of the Year Association for the implementation of the Alpine Convention to achieve sustainable development in the Alpine Arc.
Brig-Glis was awarded Alpine Town of the Year 2008.
The official language of Brig is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the main spoken language is the local variant of the Alemannic Swiss German dialect.
The name Brig is derived from Briva, or "bridge." Its older houses are very Italian in appearance, while its most prominent buildings (, former Jesuits' college and Ursuline convent) all date from the 17th century, and are due to the generosity of a single member of the local Stockalper family, the baron Kaspar Stockalper.
The prosperity of Brig is bound up with the Simplon Pass, so that it gradually supplanted the more ancient village of Naters opposite, becoming a separate parish (the church is at Glis, a few minutes from the town) in 1517. Its medieval name was Briga dives. The opening of the carriage road across the Simplon (1807) and of the tunnel beneath the pass (1906), as well as the fact that above Brig is the steeper and less fertile portion of the Upper Valais (then much frequented by tourists), greatly increased the importance and size of the town.
Brig is first mentioned in 1215 as Briga. The first evidence of human habitation near Brig comes from a few Bronze Age objects, a bracelet and a dagger. The area remained inhabited through the Latène era with scattered Walser settlements. During the Roman era the Roman influence was strongest along the Roman road on the valley floor. The area remained settled during the Iron Age, Migration Period and Early Middle Ages.
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Wikipedia