Gordola (Italian pronunciation: [ˈɡordola]) is a municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.

During the Middle Ages, the village was on the hills as the valley floor was covered in swamps.

In the 11th–12th centuries, a castle was built on the shore of Lake Maggiore for the feudal lord appointed by the Bishop of Como.

Within the territory of Locarno, Gordola was the only Vicinanza, which could choose its own pastor.

Starting in the 14th century, many residents of the Verzasca valley traveled to Gordola to spend the winters at the lake.

Starting in 1695 Gordola was divided into two districts (squadre); those of the "original" and the "new" residents (Vicini).

The church of S. Antonio Abate had existed since the 16th century, but was destroyed in 1829 by a flood and then was subsequently rebuilt.

There was a mixed Humiliati order monastery (Santa Maria) in Gordola.

Gordola has an area, as of 1997[update], of 7.04 square kilometers (2.72 sq mi).

[4] The municipality is located in the Locarno district at the end of the Verzasca valley on the left bank of the river.

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Per saltire gules and azure overall a salire or.

[7] The age distribution, as of 2009[update], in Gordola is; 417 children or 9.5% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 490 teenagers or 11.1% are between 10 and 19.

[8] The historical population is given in the following table:[3] In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the FDP which received 26.74% of the vote.

[13] In the 2007[update] Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 2,790 registered voters in Gordola, of which 1,712 or 61.4% voted.

[8] There were 1,743 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 40.6% of the workforce.

[16] From the 2000 census[update], 3,210 or 82.8% were Roman Catholic, while 297 or 7.7% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church.

In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two-year middle school followed by a two-year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four-year program to prepare for higher education.

The professional program lasts three years and prepares a student for a job in engineering, nursing, computer science, business, tourism and similar fields.

[15] In 2014 the crime rate, of the over 200 crimes listed in the Swiss Criminal Code (running from murder, robbery and assault to accepting bribes and election fraud), in Gordola was 37.1 per thousand residents.

The rate of violations of immigration, visa and work permit laws was 0 per thousand residents.