Gnosca is a former municipality in the district of Bellinzona in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.
On 2 April 2017 the former municipalities of Camorino, Claro, Giubiasco, Gorduno, Gudo, Moleno, Monte Carasso, Pianezzo, Preonzo, Sant'Antonio and Sementina merged into the municipality of Bellinzona.
History
Gnosca is first mentioned in 1198 as Niosca in the records of Como and the cathedral of Milan. While it is likely that there were earlier settlements, nothing is known about them. An arbitration document of 1202 granted the S. Giovanni church and the church of SS Maurizio e Carpoforo in Gnosca Castle to Como. The parish church of St. Peter Martyr is on a list of churches in the diocese of Milan in the 13th century. In 1335 Gnosca is mentioned as a village in the county of Bellinzona, although part of the population was assumed for some time by the cathedral of Milan. This led to a situation where the church was used for both the Ambrosian and Roman Rites at the same time. The village is now on the edge of the agglomeration of Bellinzona. With the construction of many new homes it has lost, in recent decades, its rural character.
Geography
Gnosca has an area, , of . Of this area, or 11.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 77.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 5.6% is settled (buildings or roads), or 1.9% is either rivers or lakes and or 3.1% is unproductive land.
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 2.0% and transportation infrastructure made up 3.1%. Out of the forested land, 72.3% of the total land area is heavily forested and 2.8% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 8.6% is used for growing crops, while 1.3% is used for orchards or vine crops and 2.0% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water. Of the unproductive areas, 2.4% is unproductive vegetation.
The municipality is located in the Bellinzona district, on the right bank of the Ticino river at the entrance to the Riviera.
Coat of arms
The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Per fess Argent an Eagle displayed Sable and Gules a Cross Argent.
Demographics
Gnosca has a population () of . , 12.9% of the population are foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 33.5%. Most of the population () speaks Italian(94.4%), with German being second most common ( 1.8%) and French being third ( 1.4%).
Of the Swiss national languages (), 9 speak German, 7 people speak French, 485 people speak Italian. The remainder (13 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.7% male and 50.3% female. The population was made up of 273 Swiss men (40.7% of the population), and 60 (9.0%) non-Swiss men. There were 306 Swiss women (45.7%), and 31 (4.6%) non-Swiss women. In there was 1 live birth to Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 7 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens decreased by 6 while the foreign population remained the same. There was 1 Swiss man and 1 non-Swiss man who emigrated from Switzerland to another country and 3 non-Swiss women who emigrated from Switzerland to another country. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources) was an increase of 4 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 7 people. This represents a population growth rate of 1.7%.
The age distribution, , in Gnosca is; 93 children or 13.9% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 66 teenagers or 9.9% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 39 people or 5.8% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 113 people or 16.9% are between 30 and 39, 126 people or 18.8% are between 40 and 49, and 80 people or 11.9% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 83 people or 12.4% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 42 people or 6.3% are between 70 and 79, there are 28 people or 4.2% who are over 80.