Lanna
Origin of the name Lanna
Written « Lannaz » on the Siegfried map, the name may come from the late French « anel », itself derived from the Latin « annelus », a reference to the hamlet's ring shape.[1]
Founding of Lanna
Lanna is a hamlet in the municipality of Evolène, created in 1882 when the municipality of Hérens was divided. It sits on a shelf on the western side of the valley, bounded by the clefts of the Borgne and the Merdechon, and may have been occupied since prehistoric times. As a branch of Evolène, it shared its history. A narrow ring-shaped lane serves the houses, nearly all with their gables facing east towards the valley, around an area of meadows that forms a clearing in the forest. Another Lanna lies in the municipality of Lens.[1][3][5]
History of Lanna
15th-16th century. A masonry house of late medieval origin is built, with a gable door, a Gothic ogee arch and a drop-shaped loophole, almost opposite the chapel.[1]
1659. A granary is built in the northern part of the hamlet.[1]
1711. Date of the Baroque chapel dedicated to Saint Lawrence.[1]
1829. The census counts 59 inhabitants in Lanna.[2]
1850. The hamlet has only 42 inhabitants left.[2]
1872. A house in the north of the hamlet is extended, and the extension bears this date.[1]
1878. The first edition of the Siegfried map already shows practically the present layout and extent of the hamlet.[1]
1970. Lanna has only 17 inhabitants left.[2]
1980. On 30 January a decision of the Federal Forestry Office concerns the hamlet's land-use plan.[1]
Population of Lanna
Sources and references: [2]
| 1829 | 59 inhabitants |
| 1850 | 42 inhabitants |
| 1970 | 17 inhabitants |
Historic sites in Lanna
Chapel of Saint-Laurent. Baroque building with a porch and a small bell gable.[1]
Tower house. A four-storey house, raised in the 18th or 19th century, a time of strong population growth in the region. Most buildings date in their present form only from the 17th and 18th centuries.[1]
Sources
- Office fédéral de la culture, ISOS, « Lana » (2e version, 09.1996), copie publiée par Evolène Région
- Olivier Clottu, « Les familles d'Evolène », communication présentée à l'assemblée de la Société d'histoire du Valais romand à Evolène le 4.10.1970 (RERO DOC)
- Dictionnaire historique de la Suisse, « Evolène » (Bernard Monnet, version du 27.03.2006)
- Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS), STATPOP, chiffres provisoires au 31.12.2025, via citypopulation.de
- geo.admin.ch, recherche de lieux (coordonnées)
Other villages near Lanna
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