Collombey-Muraz

Collombey-Muraz
Municipality
Aerial view of central Collombey
Coat of arms
Location of Collombey-Muraz
Collombey-Muraz Collombey-Muraz
Coordinates: 46°16′N 6°57′E
Country	Switzerland
Canton	Valais
District	Monthey
Government
• Mayor	Président Olivier Turin SPS/PSS
Area
• Total	29.8 km2 (11.5 sq mi)
Elevation	392 m (1,286 ft)
Population  (31 December 2018)
• Total	9,256
• Density	310/km2 (800/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (Central European Time)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (Central European Summer Time)
Postal code(s)	1868
SFOS number	6152
ISO 3166 code	CH-VS
Surrounded by	Aigle (VD), Châtel (FR-74), Monthey, Ollon (VD), Troistorrents, Vionnaz, Vouvry
Website	www.collombey-muraz.ch SFSO statistics

Collombey-Muraz is a municipality in the district of Monthey in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.

Geography

Heading north after the town of Saint-Maurice, the plain of the Rhône river widens to form, on its left bank, an area called the Chablais valaisan, which stretches all the way to Lake Geneva and includes the district of Monthey. Collombey-Muraz is one of the nine municipalities of this district.

Collombey-Muraz includes the villages of Collombey, Muraz, Collombey-le-Grand, Illarsaz, and Les Neyres, covers 3,080 hectares, of which 1,350 are arable and 1,300 forest. Due to its high proportion of flat ground, it is one of the largest municipalities in the Valais.

The territory of Collombey-Muraz extends over 29.81 km2. During the 2013-2018 survey, housing and infrastructure represented 14.1% of its area, agricultural areas 36.5%, wooded areas 40.0%, and unproductive areas 9.3%.

Seven alpine pastures, Chalet-Neuf, Conches, Chemeneau, Grand-Crau, Dreveneuse d’en Bas, Chermeux and Onnaz, extend over the heights bordering France. They are owned by the bourgeoisie, who rent them to farmers for the summer season.

The highest point of the municipality, La Pointe de Bellevue at 2,042 metres, offers a view stretching from Lake Geneva to the Dents du Midi. Since 2013, it has given its name to a popular foot race.

The villages

Collombey

Collombey is the largest of the municipality's five villages, with nearly 4,600 inhabitants at the end of 2016. It has experienced unprecedented growth since the 1990s with the construction of shopping centers and many residential buildings.

Muraz

On a hillside, Muraz has long suffered from the whims of the two streams bordering it, which have destroyed crops and flooded homes. The village extends on either side of the cantonal road, between a mountain flank and the plain. Like other localities, Muraz has grown considerably and presently has some 2,700 inhabitants.

Collombey-le-Grand

If the "grand" in Collombey-le-Grand ever indicated that that the village was bigger or grander than neighbouring Collombey, then that was only true before the 12th century (according to Maurice Parvex, Collombey-Muraz). Today the village still deserves this qualifier if it includes the vast industrial area bordering it. With some 500 inhabitants, the village was originally huddled around the Chapel of Our Lady of the Seven Joys (chapelle Notre Dame des Sept-Joies) before experiencing considerable growth and extending into the plain.

Illarsaz

Illarsaz is a quintessential valley floor village, on the road connecting Vionnaz to Aigle. It was once surrounded by marshes, which have now given way to agriculture. The locality consists mainly of individual villas for a population of about 700 inhabitants.

Les Neyres

On a hillside, nestled between Monthey and Troistorrents, Les Neyres is the fifth and smallest village of the municipality. You have to take the Val d’Illiez road (route du Val d'Illiez) to discover Les Neyres, a scattered habitat of some 400 inhabitants. Like the other villages, Les Neyres has experienced strong growth in recent years, even prompting the municipality to reopen an infant school.

Transport

The village of Collombey is served by two railway lines: the CFF Tonkin line (Saint-Maurice – Saint-Gingolph) and the AOMC regional train (Aigle – Ollon – Monthey - Champéry). In addition, a city bus travels hourly to Monthey. The five villages of the municipality are also connected to the surrounding localities by a bus service run by the Public Transport of Chablais (TPC).

Toponymy

Collombey derives from the Latin noun cŏlumbārium, which refers either to a dovecote, or to a tomb or to a burial vault. It is not possible to know which applies, even though the municipality’s coat of arms includes doves.

Muraz derives from the Latin noun murum (plural: mura). It refers to a place consisting of remains of walls and constructions. The final z is silent, indicating that the accent is on the u and that the a is atonic.

In Valaisan patois, Collombey is pronounced Collambâ.

History

The geographical and political configuration as an autonomous municipality dates back to the division of the castellany of Monthey in 1787.

Geological evolution has left erratic blocks such as the Pierre à Dzo (300 m³), the Pierre à Muguet (1,000 m³), and the Bloc Studer (500 m³). The archaeological site of Châble-Croix, dating back to between 6880 and 6330 BC, could be the oldest in the Valais. From 1900 the exploitation of granite from the ancient glacial moraine uncovered Neolithic necropolises on the heights of Barmaz, dating back to the Neolithic age, around 3000 to 1800 BC.

Historic aerial photograph by Werner Friedli from 1949

The history of Collombey-Muraz was essentially agricultural until the 1960s.

Key historical events in Collombey-Muraz

1216: Start of the construction of the Arbignon castle by the family of the same name, which will become the Monastery of the Bernardines.

1283: First mention of the parish of Muraz, after its separation from that of Collombey. Ancient foundations under the current church.

1630: Construction of the Châtillon castle, which will become the Manor of Fay de Lavallaz and whose first foundations date from the beginning of the 14th century.

1643: Reconstruction by the Bernardines of the Arbignon castle with a view to setting up their monastery.

1647: Foundation of the Monastery of the Bernardines.

1723: Official separation of Collombey and Monthey. Collombey becomes a parish again following the consecration of the old church in 1723.

1787: Division of the castellany of Monthey. On September 22, 1787, Governor Jean-Joseph Jost invites representatives of Troistorrents, Collombey, and Muraz to appear before him on October 2, 1787, on the subject of the division of communal property.

1798: Population census: Collombey 209 inhabitants, Collombey-le-Grand 70, Muraz 202, Illarsaz 53, Les Neyres 57.

1811: Fire in the church of Collombey.

1826: Construction of the Collombey presbytery.

1847: Closure of the gates of the bridge over the Rhône between Collombey and Saint-Triphon and establishment of permanently guarded fortifications along the Rhône

1855: Reconstruction of the chapel of Collombey-le-Grand dedicated to Our Lady of the Seven Joys.

1859: Crossing of the municipal territory by the first locomotive of the Tonkin line.

1873: Inauguration of the new church in Collombey.

1876: Foundation of the music society “La Collombeyrienne”.

1881: Charles de Lavallaz founds a tobacco and cigar factory in Monthey.

1894: Construction of the Illarsaz bridge by G. Schmiedt of Geneva.

1897: Foundation in Muraz of the music society “La Villageoise”.

1898: Inauguration of the new church in Muraz (bell tower from 1657) and of the town hall in Collombey.

1906: Construction of the bridge over the Rhône between Collombey and Saint-Triphon. Length 72 m, weight 170.3 tons.

1907: Opening of the Aigle-Ollon-Monthey train line.

1909: Foundation in Collombey of the music society “L’Avenir”.

1941: Establishment of a camp for Polish internees in Illarsaz, Russians and Germans will also be interned later.

1946: Electrification of the Tonkin line from Saint-Maurice to Collombey.

1970-1971: Construction of a school complex on the “Route de Collombey-le-Grand”.

1976: Construction of the bridge over the CFF track in Vionnaz (entirely on Collombey-Muraz territory), as well as the bridge over the Rhône leading to the highway.

1976: Inauguration of SATOM.

1981: Visit of Mr. Kurt Fürgler, President of the Confederation, to the Convent of the Bernardines in Collombey.

1986: Construction of a new bridge over the Rhône between Collombey and Saint-Triphon, downstream from the previous one.

1988: Celebration of the bicentenary of the municipality of Collombey-Muraz.

Demonyms and nicknames

The inhabitants of Collombey are called Collombeyrouds or Collomberous. They are nicknamed lou Bérou, which means rams in Valaisan patois.

The inhabitants of Muraz are called Muriands. They are nicknamed Fascines, in reference to the making of twig bundles to be used as firewood.

Demographics

Collombey rail station

Trends

In early 2023 Collombey-Muraz had a population of 9,739, with a density of 327 inhabitants per square kilometre. Between 2010 and 2019, its population increased by 30.1% (canton: 10.5%; Switzerland: 9.4%).

Age spread

In 2020, the proportion of people under 30 in Collombey-Muraz was 37.4%, which was above the cantonal level (31.7%). The proportion of people over 60 was 18.5%, compared to the cantonal level (26.6%).

In the same year, 4,767 men and 4,831 women made up the municipality's population, resulting in a male rate of 48.9%, which was higher than the cantonal rate of 48.4%.

Education

Collombey-Muraz provides kindergarten, primary schools and a secondary school ("cycle d'orientation" on the Perraires site) for the children of the municipality. Responding to local demographic expansion, a new school opened in the village of Muraz at the start of the 2014 school year.

Demographics

Collombey rail station

Trends

Collombey-Muraz has a population (as of December 2020) of 9,598. As of 2008, 22.9% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (2000–2010 ) the population has changed at a rate of 30.1%. It has changed at a rate of 21.6% due to migration and at a rate of 7.5% due to births and deaths.

Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks French (5,123 or 90.0%) as their first language, German is the second most common (144 or 2.5%) and Italian is the third (140 or 2.5%). There are 3 people who speak Romansh.

As of 2008, the population was 49.8% male and 50.2% female. The population was made up of 2,613 Swiss men (37.4% of the population) and 872 (12.5%) non-Swiss men. There were 2,763 Swiss women (39.5%) and 743 (10.6%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality, 1,585 or about 27.8% were born in Collombey-Muraz and lived there in 2000. There were 1,517 or 26.6% who were born in the same canton, while 1,383 or 24.3% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 1,068 or 18.8% were born outside of Switzerland.

As of 2000, children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 28.8% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 62.8% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 8.3%.

As of 2000, there were 2,437 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 2,782 married individuals, 209 widows or widowers and 267 individuals who are divorced.

As of 2000, there were 2,117 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.6 persons per household. There were 522 households that consist of only one person and 191 households with five or more people. In 2000, a total of 2,031 apartments (91.8% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 128 apartments (5.8%) were seasonally occupied and 54 apartments (2.4%) were empty. As of 2009, the construction rate of new housing units was 14.2 new units per 1000 residents. The vacancy rate for the municipality, in 2010, was 2%.

The historical population is given in the following chart:

Politics

The municipal council is the executive authority of the commune. Since 1 January 2013, the number of council members decreased from nine to seven. Municipal elections take place every four years. Each counselor heads up an administrative department (dicastery). These function through committees made up of citizens from the commune and/or delegacies composed of municipal counselors. Both the committees and delegacies are presided by the counselor responsible for that dicastery.

Since 2013 the commune has a Conseil général, a general council, which acts as the body of legislative authority. 45 representatives were elected for the first time on 11 November 2012. Elections for the general council also take place every four years. Mr Yannick Butter has been the president of the commune since 2013.

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the CVP which received 38.08% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP (21.86%), the SP (16.26%) and the FDP (15.14%). In the federal election, a total of 1,858 votes were cast, and the voter turnout was 47.9%.

In the 2009 Conseil d'État/Staatsrat election a total of 1,370 votes were cast, of which 126 or about 9.2% were invalid. The voter participation was 34.7%, which is much less than the cantonal average of 54.67%. In the 2007 Swiss Council of States election a total of 1,805 votes were cast, of which 169 or about 9.4% were invalid. The voter participation was 47.1%, which is much less than the cantonal average of 59.88%.

Presidents (1912–present)

2021-2024 Olivier Turin

2013–2020 Yannick Buttet (2 terms)

2006-2012 Josiane Granger (1.5 terms)

2001-2006 Laurent Métrailler (1.5 terms)

1985-2000  Antoine Lattion (4 terms)

1977-1984  Arthur Zimmermann

1967-1977  Jacques Berrut (2.5 terms)

1956-1967  Sylvain Chervaz (3 terms)

1933-1955  Bernard De Lavallaz (6 terms)

1921-1932  Maurice Parvex (3 terms)

1916-1919  Hubert Riondet

1912-1915  Hubert Burdevet

Economy

Tamoil's oil refinery in Collombey

Over the past 30 years, many companies have chosen to establish themselves in Collombey-Muraz. As of  2010, Collombey-Muraz had an unemployment rate of 4.7%. As of 2008, there were 110 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 27 businesses involved in this sector. 1,128 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 107 businesses in this sector. 1,342 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 210 businesses in this sector. There were 2,892 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 39.2% of the workforce.

In 2008 the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 2,219. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 92, of which 66 were in agriculture and 26 were in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 1,061 of which 488 or (46.0%) were in manufacturing and 548 (51.6%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 1,066. In the tertiary sector; 544 or 51.0% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 48 or 4.5% were in the movement and storage of goods, 99 or 9.3% were in a hotel or restaurant, 11 or 1.0% were in the information industry, 12 or 1.1% were the insurance or financial industry, 69 or 6.5% were technical professionals or scientists, 70 or 6.6% were in education and 111 or 10.4% were in health care. In 2015, the Tamoil oil refinery supplied form the Rhône Pipeline ceased operations, putting some 250 employees out of work.

In 2000, there were 991 workers who commuted into the municipality and 2,114 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 2.1 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. About 3.1% of the workforce coming into Collombey-Muraz are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.0% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 9% used public transportation to get to work, and 74.6% used a private car.

Agriculture and the environment

The major landscape and drainage works carried out on the valley floor during the Second World War made it possible to intensify crops and modernize the means of production.

Environmental protection and land use planning are ongoing concerns to the authorities. The first development plan with its specific regulations dates back to 1964 and the public facilities related to environment issues are in constant realization.

Religion

From the 2000 census, 4,033 or 70.8% were Roman Catholic, while 772 or 13.6% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there were 26 members of an Orthodox church (or about 0.46% of the population), there were 8 individuals (or about 0.14% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church, and there were 147 individuals (or about 2.58% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 6 individuals (or about 0.11% of the population) who were Jewish, and 148 (or about 2.60% of the population) who were Islamic. There were 11 individuals who were Buddhist, 3 individuals who were Hindu and 5 individuals who belonged to another church. 362 (or about 6.36% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic or atheist, and 240 individuals (or about 4.21% of the population) did not answer the question.

Culture

The municipality benefits from its proximity to Monthey with its rich and diverse cultural life. Within the commune, the musical groups Les Colombes and le Chœur mixte form the pillars of the culture backbone. An amateur theater group the Théâtre du Rovra offers the local public annual shows, something it has managed to do since 1946.

The socio-cultural faculties have developed greatly in recent years. Le Centre des Perraires is at the heart of this with a sports center with multipurpose rooms, swimming pool, primary schools, secondary school, a municipal library, three football fields, tennis courts, a network of walking and hiking trails, playgrounds, and a covered 200 seated-area to host events for clubs and families. The commune hosts its Swiss day celebrations on 1 August every year at Le Centre des Perraires.

In sporting and cultural terms, 23 local clubs and societies allow for nearly 2,400 people to indulge in their favorites pastimes.

Sports

Football

The Collombey-Muraz Sporting Union (L'Union sportive Collombey-Muraz, USCM) was founded in 1970 as a result of the merger of FC Collombey and FC Muraz. In 2014 the club counted about 220 members distributed across fourteen teams, including a team playing in each the 2nd and 3rd regional leagues, one in senior league and 11 in junior leagues. The USCM also offers its youth a football academy that brings together 20 to 25 children per season.

Basketball

The BBC Collombey-Muraz, created in 1982, is one of the many clubs active in Collombey-Muraz. It has an average of one hundred members. The club's principal goal stems from its statutes: to encourage the development of basketball and its practice, especially for the youth. The current committee is focusing on this last point and concentrating its efforts on the grouping of young people, in collaboration with the Chablais Valais (Monthey, Troistorrents) and Vaud (Aigle) clubs. The 1st team, present in the Swiss league championship since 1992 without interruption, sees itself as an ideal first step for a young person in their basketball career. Each season, young people from Chablais basketball come to join the team. For many years the club has been collaborating with the BBC Monthey as part of a partnership signed between the two clubs under the aegis of the National Basketball League. For more than 20 years, the club has been proud of having never paid a single player, playing in the 1st national league. The members come together simply because of their passion for the sport. The club strives to keep a family identity where everyone can find their place. It also offers adults, young and old, the opportunity to practice basketball in the 2nd cantonal league. Finally, the many youth teams (M19, M16, M14, M12, M10 and M8) crisscross Switzerland through their participation in the cantonal, Romands (COBB) and Swiss championships.

Judo

The Collombey-Muraz judo school (l’école de judo de Collombey-Muraz, EJCM) was founded in November 1977. Since that time members of the EJCM have won more than 200 competitions in the Valais and Swiss championships. The EJCM counts many black belts in its membership.

Table tennis

The Collombey-Muraz table tennis club (Le club de tennis de table de Collombey-Muraz, (CTTCM) was founded in June 1974 and remains the principal table tennis club in the Chablais. CTTCM has played for over 40 years in the AVVF association of table tennis which groups the clubs of the cantons of Vaud, Valais and Friborg. At its foundation, the club had about ten members and played in the 4th league. It lost its first ever match to the Vouvry club (which has since disbanded). And yet from these humble beginnings the 1st team now evolves in the national "C" league.  The 2nd team plays in league one with the other four teams, formed of young and not so young, fight it out in the 3rd, 4th and 5th leagues. The committee in place puts a special emphasis on the table tennis academy (from 8 years) preparing what it hopes will be future champions or members of the club of tomorrow. This strategy is designed to ensure that the club retains its place as an active member of communal societies, hopefully even increasing its current level of activity. The club currently has 50 members (25 adults, 25 young people). CTT Collombey-Muraz is very active in its association with the AVVF. On the cantonal level, it organized the Valais championships in 1977/1986/1994/2000/2004/2012/2014 and 2017. This last event took place the Corbier school gym from 4–5 February 2017. At the Swiss Romande level, CCTTCM organizes final matches, promotion and ranking tournaments. And on a national level, it organizes pools for promotion from league B to national league A, and the Swiss cup finals. In 2009, CTTCM organized an international match between Switzerland and Greece. The match took place in a packed house (more than 350 people); it was a great success and a showcase for table tennis.

website: www.cttcollombey-muraz.ch

Running race

The first edition of The "Bellevue Trail" took place on 29 June 2013. It offers two routes of 10 and 32 km respectively, as well as a children's course.

Archery Club

The Arc-Club Collombey-Muraz brings together archers from all over Valais and the Chablais-vaudois. The association has been  based in the commune since 1973. It is affiliated to the national federation SwissArchery and supported by Jeunesse + Sport. The archery club is active in competitive sport (on target as well as in the forest) and as a leisure activity. Many members have already distinguished themselves at the national level, and some even at the European level. It is open to Olympic arches (classical), compound arches, bare-bows, and more traditional arches (bowhunters and longbows). In summer, training takes place at the Bochet field and in the winter at the gym behind the Muraz church. Beginner classes are open to young people from the age of ten, as well as adults of all ages.

Badminton

The Badminton Club Collombey-Muraz was established in the summer of 2003.

Wrestling Club

The wrestling club of Illarsaz-Haut-Lac celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2012. Founded in 1942 by a group of wrestling friends from the region, training began outdoors. Despite the very basic means available to the club, very quickly a small group of about ten members was formed. Today, the wrestling club of Illarsaz-Haut-Lac trains more than 30 young people from the age of five. Indeed, the club has known in the past great moments of glory with many very good results in both Swiss wrestling and freestyle wrestling. These include many medals at the Swiss Free and Greco-Roman Wrestling Championships as well as several participations in various international championships. Our fighters have also been active in Swiss wrestling with many laurels and even a Federal crown for Alain Bifrare in 1986 in Sion. In recent years, the committee decided to revitalize the club - after seeing the numbers decline - with the arrival of new sports with a more "fun" element. The club put all its energy into promoting training and wrestling fixtures of young wrestlers. Wrestling requires many qualities such as agility, flexibility, coordination, intelligence, strength and fair play, which makes this sport one of the most complete packages. Our goal is to promote wrestling, in a fun and pleasant way while respecting the rules dictated by the "Youth and Sport" organisation. For the most motivated and eager, the club offers them the opportunity to participate in tournaments throughout the year. In recent years, the club has tried to organize a maximum amount of competitions within the municipality. In 2009, it hosted the Swiss Free Wrestling Championship with Florian Vieux finishing 3rd. In 2011 the championship Romand took place in the commune and during the summer of 2012, the Valaisan Cantonal Feast of Wrestling Switzerland took place at Les Perraires where Sylvain Vieux was crowned champion.

Ski-Club Bellevue

On 11 December 1968, a team of friends met to form the SC Bellevue of Collombey-Muraz. Since then, the SC organizes every winter, ski-mountaineering, alpine skiing and hiking outings to. The handful of friends at the beginning has grown into a large active group. Indeed, today the SC has many members.

Since 1979, the members meet at the Chalet de Conches, a former alpine chalet now rented to the SC by the Bourgeoisie of Collombey-Muraz.

The flagship event, remains the traditional all-public competition, open to all members of the SC as well as to all the residents of the territory of the commune, it comprises:

   a giant slalom (route: customs of Culet - Chalet Neuf);

   a skinning race (route: Chalet-Neuf - Pointe de Bellevue).

Tennis club

The Collombey-Muraz Tennis Club (le tennis club de Collombey-Muraz, TCMC) founded in 1984, is one of the commune's largest sports clubs. Its competition groups include, five interclub teams including two men's (active and young seniors) in the 2nd League, two men's (young seniors) in the 3rd League and one women's (young senior ladies) in the 1st League groups.  The TCMC has more than a hundred Swisstennis licensees. In August each year, the club organizes a Grand Open tournament overseen by Swisstennis.

Châble-Croix Shooting club

In 2008, the Tir Sportive Châble-Croix sports shooting club came in to being through the merger of the Les Carabiniers de Collombey-Muraz, L'Avenir de Vionnaz and Le Petit Caliber de Châble-Croix . In 2014, the culb won the title of Swiss champion in the LNB section competition, and many of its representatives are known at both cantonal and national levels.

Combat sports

The commune of Collombey-Muraz has a Tai-jitsu club since 2008, a karate club and a martial arts school.

Acrobatic Rock / RCC Tequila Rock

The Tequila Rock club was founded in Collombey-Muraz in 1994. It participates in events such as weddings, demonstrations, entertainment evenings and competitions, etc.

Women's Gymnastics Society

Since its founding in 1957, the Companie Feminine de Gymnastique (SFG) "The doves" (les Colombes) of Collombey-Muraz has continued to develop gymnastics in the municipality. With 319 members from 2 to 78 years old and 41 instructors (as of June 2016), the SFG offers some 25 hours a week of gymnastics: Parents-Children gym, children's gym, Youth A and B (from 6 to 16 years), Juniors, Bodyfit, Ladies 35 + / 55 +, not to mention the specialized groups "Apparel Gymnastics", "Athletics" and a "Power Yoga" class.

Education

Collombey-Muraz offers to the children of the commune nursery and primary schools, as well as a secondary school on the site of Les Perraires in Collombey. In view of the municipality's demographic expansion, a new school in the village of Muraz opened its doors for the start of 2014-15 school year.

The Commune is also home to a communal day nursery Les Menoits and an out-of-school-hours activities/care center for pupils up to the age of 11, Le Coup de Pouce.

In Collombey-Muraz about 2,064 or (36.2%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 503 or (8.8%) have completed additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule). Of the 503 who completed tertiary schooling, 53.3% were Swiss men, 27.6% were Swiss women, 11.5% were non-Swiss men and 7.6% were non-Swiss women.

As of 2000, there were 22 students in Collombey-Muraz who came from another municipality, while 214 residents attended schools outside the municipality.

Collombey-Muraz is home to the Bibliothèque communale library. The library has (as of 2008) 13,019 books or other media, and loaned out 34,135 items in the same year. It was open a total of 121 days with average of 14 hours per week during that year.

Notable People

Gilbert Constantin, painter and sculptor (1947-2010).

Coat of arms

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Azure Walls embattled and towered Argent masoned and doored Sable between three Doves volant of the second. The doves and walls (Template:Lang-fr make this an example of canting.

External links

• Official website (in French)
• Collombey-Muraz in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.