Today is Berchtold’s Day. This day is a public holiday in the following Swiss cantons: Aargau, Bern, Fribourg, Glarus, Jura, Lucerne, Neuchâtel, Obwalden, Schaffhausen, Solothurn, Thurgau, Vaud, Zug, and Zurich.
Berchtold’s Day commemorates Duke Berchtold V of Zähringen (d. 1218), who founded Bern, the capital of Switzerland, in the twelfth century. According to legend, he left on a hunt declaring he would name his fledgling city after the first animal he killed. The hunting trip was a success and the Duke managed to kill a bear, or bern in German.
Despite many references to the day as St. Berchtold’s day, he wasn’t a saint (certainly not to bears anyway). We are just so used to holidays in Europe being named after saints, that many people have automatically canonized the Duke.
Handily placed in the calendar, by the ever-practical Swiss, to give an extra day to enjoy or recover from the New Year’s celebrations, Berchtold’s Day is a light-hearted, family-oriented celebration.
Imagine going back in time and trying to explain this…
A perfect metaphor for the coming year…
NINJA CATS ARE WATCHING YOU!!!
Happy New Year to everyone – have fun!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_hlvRNgGOQ
