Canton of Berne

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Bern
Berne
Coat of arms of the Canton of Berne
Map of Switzerland highlighting the Canton of Berne
Capital Berne
Area 5959 km² (Ranked 2nd)
Highest point Finsteraarhorn 4274 m
Population (2003) 947,100 (Ranked 2nd)
158 /km²
Joined 1353
Abbreviation BE
Languages German , French
Executive Regierungsrat, Conseil exécutif (7)
Legislative Grosser Rat, Grand conseil (160)
Municipalities 399 municipalities
Districts 26 Amtsbezirke, Districts
Website www.BE.ch
Map of the Canton of Berne


The Swiss Canton of Berne is bilingual (German: Kanton Bern (help·info); French Canton de Berne) and has a population of about 947,000. The canton is located in west-central Switzerland and the city of Berne is its capital.

The Jungfrau massif.
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The Jungfrau massif.

Contents

[edit] Geography

The canton of Berne is the second largest of all Swiss cantons. It borders the Canton of Jura and the Canton of Solothurn to the north. To the west lie the Canton of Neuchâtel, the Canton of Fribourg and Vaud, to the south lies the Valais. East of the canton of Berne lie the cantons of Uri, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Lucerne and Aargau.

The canton of Berne is mainly drained by the River Aar and its tributaries. The area of the canton is commonly divided into three areas. The Bernese Oberland (Berner Oberland) lies in the south of the canton and is part of the Alps. The highest elevation in the Bernese Oberland is the Finsteraarhorn with 4,274 m. The famous resorts around Interlaken and the Jungfrau (4,158 m) are located within this area. Other resorts in the Bernese Oberland are Thun, Meiringen and Aareschlucht, Grindelwald, Mürren and Kandersteg. The whole area is very mountainous and renowned for its scenic beauty. As a result of this tourism is one of the main sources of income in the Bernese Oberland.

Mountains in Berne include:

The Bernese Midlands (Berner Mittelland) is made up of the valley of the rivers Aare, the river Emme, some of the foothills of the Bernese Alps, as well as the plain around the capital Berne. In the north of the canton of Berne lies the third region: the Lake Region (Seenland) concentrated around Lake Biel.

The canton of Berne at around 1790.
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The canton of Berne at around 1790.

The area of the canton is 5959 km².

[edit] History

See also: History of Berne, Heraldry of Berne, Swiss peasant war of 1653

The area of the canton of Berne consists of lands acquired by its capital, mostly between the 14th and the 16th century, both by conquest and purchase. Acquired districts include (with dates of acquisition):

  • Laupen (1324)
  • Hasli and Meiringen (1334)
  • Thun and Burgdorf (1384)
  • Unterseen and the Upper Simme valley (1386)
  • Frutigen, etc. (1400)
  • Lower Simme valley (1439 - 1449)
  • Interlaken, with Grindelwald, Lauterbrunnen and Brienz (1528, all the suppression of the Austin Canons of Interlaken)
  • Saanen or Gessenay (1555)
  • Köniz (1729)
  • the Bernese Jura with Biel/Bienne (1815, from the bishopric of Basel).

Some regions previously left the canton: Aargau (1415), Aigle and Grandson (1475), Vaud (1536), and the Pays d'En-Haut including Château-d'Œx (1555). From 1798 to 1802 the Oberland formed a separate canton of the Helvetic Republic called canton of Thun with Thun as its capital. Certain French-speaking portions of the canton of Berne broke away from the canton only in the late 20th century and since 1979 comprise the Canton of Jura.

Berne joined the Swiss Confederation in 1353 and was between 1803 and 1814 one of the six direcorial cantons of the Swiss Confederation.

[edit] Politics

The Grand Council, the cantonal parliament.
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The Grand Council, the cantonal parliament.
The Rathaus (town hall) has been the seat of the government and parliament of Berne since medieval times.
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The Rathaus (town hall) has been the seat of the government and parliament of Berne since medieval times.

[edit] Legislative Branch

Main article: Grand Council of Bern

The Grand Council (German: Grosser Rat / French: Grand conseil) is the parliament of the canton of Berne. It consists of 160 representatives elected by proportional representation for a four-year term of office. The French-speaking part of the canton, the Bernese Jura, has 12 seats guaranteed and 3 seats are guaranteed for the French-speaking minority of the bilingual district of Biel/Bienne.

[edit] Executive Branch

Main article: Executive Council of Bern

The Executive Council (German: Regierungsrat / French: Conseil-éxecutif) is the government of the canton of Berne. This seven-member collegial body is elected by the people for a period of four years. The cantonal constitution reserves one seat in the Executive Council for a French-speaking citizen from the Bernese Jura.

[edit] Judicial Branch

The canton has a two-tiered court system, consisting of district courts and a cantonal Supreme Court (Obergericht/Cour suprême). There is also an administrative court (Verwaltungsgericht/Tribunal administratif) as well as other specialised courts and judicial boards. See [1] for details.

[edit] Economy

Tourism is the main source of income in the Bernese Oberland. Other important sectors are agriculture (especially cattle breeding), cheese making, and hydroelectric power generation. The Bernese cheese Emmental cheese is known around the world.

In the Bernese Midlands the lands are more fertile. Agriculture is of great importance, but this part of the canton is also the most industrialized. Small and middle-sized businesses are important employers in this part of the canton of Berne. There is a nuclear power plant at Mühleberg.

The area around the Lake Biel is renowned for its wine production.

The 3 French-speaking districts of the Bernese Jura and the bilingual district of Biel/Bienne are renowned for their worldwide well known watch industry and its mechanical industry (high precision machine tools, automation and machining).

[edit] Language

The canton of Berne is bilingual: Both German (22 districts, with 84% of the population) and French (three districts, 8.2%) are spoken. The German-speaking majority speaks Bernese German, a Swiss German dialect. French-speakers live in the northern part of the canton, in the Bernese Jura. Both German and French are spoken in the bilingual city of Biel/Bienne. In the government and administration, both languages are official languages of equal standing.

[edit] Religion

[edit] Protestantism

Most Bernese are Protestant, and most Protestants belong to the Swiss Reformed Church, which is officially recognised as a state church (Landeskirche), although it is autonomous in its governance and is organised along democratic principles.

The canton is also home to a great number of small evangelical Christian denominations unaffiliated with the state church. Bernese evangelical groups are mostly found in the Emmental and Berner Oberland, where they have a long tradition; several contemporary U.S religious groups such as the Amish and the Mennonites were founded or co-founded by Bernese emigrants to the U.S. Two small Evangelical political parties are represented in the Bernese cantonal parliament.

[edit] Other faiths

Berne features substantial Roman Catholic and Christian Catholic minorities. These churches also have state church status, and the small Jewish community is similarly recognised by law.

As everywhere in Switzerland, there are also significant religious communities of immigrants, including Sikhs (who have a prominent Gurdwara, or temple, in Langenthal), Mormons (who worship at the Bern Switzerland Temple) and Muslims. As of 2006, the plans to expand a backyard mosque in Langenthal with a symbolical minaret have, as elsewhere in Switzerland, caused a public stir due to vocal opposition from local conservative and evangelical leaders.[1]

[edit] Districts and municipalities

As of April 2004, there are 398 municipalities of the canton of Berne within the following 26 administrative districts:

Districts of Canton Berne
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Districts of Canton Berne


[edit] References

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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