Sierre

Sierre is the capital municipality of the district of Sierre, located in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. It has a population of 16,332. Sierre is nicknamed City of the Sun for its average of 300 days of sunshine a year. It is the last official French-speaking city in Valais before the French–German language border of the canton located at the forêt de Finges, a few kilometres after the town. A German-speaking minority lives in Sierre, counting for around 8% of the population. History Sierre was first mentioned around 800 as Sidrium, though a 12th-century document refers to the village being founded in 515. In 1179 it was mentioned as Sirro and in 1393 as Syder.