Winterthur
Winterthur (German pronunciation: [ˈvɪntɐtuːɐ̯] ⓘ; French: Winterthour) is a city in the canton of Zürich in northern Switzerland. With over 110,000 residents, it is the country's sixth-largest city by population, as well as its ninth-largest agglomeration with about 140,000 inhabitants. Located about 20 kilometres (12 mi) northeast of Zürich, Winterthur is a service and high-tech industrial satellite city within Greater Zürich.
Winterthur | |
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View of the old town | |
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Flag Coat of arms | |
Location of Winterthur | |
Winterthur Winterthur | |
| Coordinates: 47°29′56″N 8°43′43″E | |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Canton | Zürich |
| District | Winterthur |
| Government | |
| • Executive | Stadtrat with 7 members |
| • Mayor | Stadtpräsident (list) Michael Künzle CVP/PDC (as of 2012) |
| • Parliament | Grosser Gemeinderat with 60 members |
| Area | |
| • Total | 68.07 km2 (26.28 sq mi) |
| Elevation (Bahnhofplatz) | 439 m (1,440 ft) |
| Highest elevation (Hulmen) | 687 m (2,254 ft) |
| Lowest elevation (Kläranlage Hard) | 393 m (1,289 ft) |
| Population (31 December 2018) | |
| • Total | 111,840 |
| • Density | 1,600/km2 (4,300/sq mi) |
| Demonym | German: Winterthurer(in) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (Central European Time) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (Central European Summer Time) |
| Postal code(s) | 8400, 8404, 8405, 8406, 8408, 8409, 8404 Stadel (Winterthur), 8404 Reutlingen (Winterthur), 8310 Kempthal, 8352 Ricketwil (Winterthur), 8482 Sennhof (Winterthur), 8542 Wiesendangen, 8545 Rickenbach Sulz |
| SFOS number | 0230 |
| Localities | Stadt (city), Dättnau, Deutweg, Ganzenbühl, Grüze, Hegi, Heiligberg, Mattenbach, Oberseen, Oberwinterthur, Rosenberg, Schlosstal, Seen, Töss, Veltheim, Wülflingen, Zinzikon |
| Surrounded by | Brütten, Dinhard, Elsau, Hettlingen, Illnau-Effretikon, Kyburg, Lindau, Neftenbach, Oberembrach, Pfungen, Rickenbach, Schlatt, Seuzach, Wiesendangen, Zell |
| Twin towns | Hall in Tirol (Austria), La Chaux-de-Fonds (Switzerland), Pilsen (Czech Republic), Yverdon-les-Bains (Switzerland) |
| Website | stadt SFSO statistics |
The official language of Winterthur is German, but the main spoken language is the local variant of the Alemannic Swiss German dialect, Zürich German. Winterthur is usually abbreviated as Winti in the local dialect and by its inhabitants.
Winterthur is connected to Germany by direct trains and has links to Zurich Airport. It is also a regional transport hub: the A1 motorway from Geneva through to St. Margrethen connects in Winterthur with the A4 motorway heading north toward Schaffhausen and the A7 motorway heading close to the Swiss-German border at Kreuzlingen. There are also roads leading to other places such as Turbenthal. The railway station is the fourth busiest railway station in Switzerland, and is 20 minutes away by train from Zürich.