Bern
English
Pronunciation
Etymology 1
Alemannic German Bärn, of uncertain further origin.
A popular folk etymology says it was named by its founder, Berthold V, Duke of Zähringen, after the first animal he saw in the area, a Bär(in) (“bear”) (compare Berlin, subject to a similar folk etymology).
The name is now thought to be connected to a Celtic word, Proto-Celtic *berna (“cleft”) (from Proto-Indo-European *bʰerH- (“to carve out, cut”))[1][2] and *branos (“raven”) (compare the name ΒΡΕΝΟΔΩΡ (BRENODŌR), on the Bern zinc tablet, which has also been connected with the Gaulish name Brennus). More at Bern.
Alternative forms
Proper noun
Bern (countable and uncountable, plural Berns)
- A placename
- The capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton.
- A canton of Switzerland.
- A surname
Translations
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See also
- (cantons of Switzerland) Appenzell Inner Rhodes, Appenzell Outer Rhodes, Aargau, Basel-Landschaft, Basel-Stadt, Bern, Fribourg, Geneva, Glarus, Grisons, Jura, Lucerne, Neuchâtel, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schaffhausen, Schwyz, Solothurn, St. Gallen, Thurgau, Ticino, Uri, Vaud, Valais, Zug, Zurich (Category: en:Cantons of Switzerland)
References
- Andres Kristol (ed.), 2005: Lexikon der schweizerischen Gemeindenamen, Huber, Frauenfeld, p. 143. →ISBN
- Müller, Wulf; Tremp, Ernst (13 November 2013). "Üchtland". Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
- Andres Kristol (ed.): Lexikon der schweizerischen Gemeindenamen. Huber, Frauenfeld 2005, p. 143.
Proper noun
Bern (plural Berns)
- A unisex given name, variant of Bernie
- A diminutive of the male given name Bernard, variant of Bernie
- A diminutive of the female given names Bernadette or Bernice, variant of Bernie
Afrikaans
Proper noun
Bern
- Bern (the capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton)
- Bern (a canton of Switzerland).
Czech
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [ˈbɛrn]
Proper noun
Bern m inan (related adjective bernský)
- Bern (the capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton)
- Bern (a canton of Switzerland)
Declension
Further reading
- Bern in Internetová jazyková příručka
Danish
Proper noun
Bern
- Bern (the capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton)
- Bern (a canton of Switzerland)
Dutch
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /bɛrn/
Audio (file) - Hyphenation: Bern
- Rhymes: -ɛrn
Proper noun
Bern n
- Bern (the capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton)
- Bern (a canton of Switzerland)
Etymology 2
First attested as birni in 709. Derived from Proto-Germanic *birnu- (“muck, manure, mud that looks like manure”) with collectivising suffix *-ja-.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /bɛrn/
Audio (file) - Hyphenation: Bern
- Rhymes: -ɛrn
References
- van Berkel, Gerard, Samplonius, Kees (2018) Nederlandse plaatsnamen verklaard (in Dutch), Mijnbestseller.nl, →ISBN
Estonian
Proper noun
Bern
- Bern (the capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton)
- Bern (a canton of Switzerland)
Faroese
German
Alternative forms
- BE (canton; ISO 3166-2:CH)
Etymology
Borrowed from Alemannic German Bärn.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [bɛʁn]
Audio (file) Audio (Switzerland) (file) - Rhymes: -ɛʁn
Proper noun
Bern n (proper noun, genitive Berns or (optionally with an article) Bern)
- Bern (the capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton)
- Bern (a canton of Switzerland)
- Synonym: Kanton Bern
See also
- (cantons of Switzerland) Schweizer Kantone; Aargau, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Appenzell Innerrhoden, Basel-Landschaft, Basel-Stadt, Bern, Freiburg, Genf, Glarus, Graubünden, Jura, Luzern, Neuenburg, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schaffhausen, Schwyz, Solothurn, St. Gallen, Tessin, Thurgau, Uri, Waadt, Wallis, Zug, Zürich (Category: de:Cantons of Switzerland)
Icelandic
Serbo-Croatian
Etymology
From Alemannic German Bärn.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /bêːrn/
Proper noun
Bȇrn m (Cyrillic spelling Бе̑рн)
- Bern (the capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton)
- Bern (a canton of Switzerland)
Declension
References
- “Bern” in Hrvatski jezični portal
Slovak
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): [bern]
Proper noun
Bern m inan (genitive singular Bernu, declension pattern of dub)
- Bern (the capital of Switzerland)
References
- “Bern”, in Slovníkový portál Jazykovedného ústavu Ľ. Štúra SAV [Dictionary portal of the Ľ. Štúr Institute of Linguistics, Slovak Academy of Science] (in Slovak), https://slovnik.juls.savba.sk, 2024
Swedish
Etymology
From Alemannic German Bärn.
Proper noun
Bern n (genitive Berns)
- Bern (the capital city of Switzerland; capital city of Bern canton)
- Bern (a canton of Switzerland)