Osogna Parish, Ticino, Switzerland Genealogy

Description: Guide to Osogna Parish, Ticino, Switzerland, ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, parish census, civil census, family history, area history, and military records.



Geography
As of 1997, Osogna has an area of 18.99 square kilometers (7.33 sq mi).

The land use is divided up as follows:
 * 2.1% - agricultural purposes
 * 60.6% - forested
 * 4.5% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 1.1% - rivers or lakes
 * 30.0% - unproductive land

History
The first mention of Osogna was in 1210–1258 as Usonia.

The following municipalities merged on On 2 April 2017 into the new municipality of Riviera:
 * Cresciano
 * Iragna
 * Lodrino
 * Osogna

The population history of Osogna is: 1850 - 262 inhabitants 1900 - 656 inhabitants 1950 - 489 inhabitants 2000 - 941 inhabitants 2010 - 1038 inhabitants 2016 - 1069 inhabitants

In the Middle Ages, Osogna was under the spiritual and and temporal authority of the Milan Cathedral Chapter. During the Visconti reign in the 14th century, Osogna was placed with Claro and Cresciano under the authority of a vicar. The communal statutes were confirmed in 1400. From 1573 to 1798, Osogna was the capital of the common bailiwick of Riviera and place of residence of the bailiff, then the capital of the district of Riviera. The parish church of Santi Felino e Gratiniano has been attested since the 13th century and was restored in 1979-1984. Also in Osogna is the 16th-century church of Santa Pietà and the 18th-century church of Santa Maria del Castello.

Census
(See here for information regarding Ticino census records.)

The 1808 Ticino census for Osogna can be accessed here.

Surnames
The following surnames held citizenship in Osogna prior to 1875, along with any known soprannomi. For more information about soprannomi, click here.

Related sources
The town's website (in Italian) can be found here.

Libraries and archives
State Archives of Ticino

Societies
Società Genealogica della Svizzera Italiana (SGSI)