Bern's Name Day

20th August

Bern, the name has a description or meaning which is from Old German, 'strong as a bear'

Bern has a Name day of 20th August, please check our history page to find out how this was derived

This description represents the Male usage of the name.

This name is a variant of the original name Bernard

There is also an alternative celebration date of 16th April for this Name day and represents different religious interpretations or different festival days for Saints

St Bernard is a patron saint of the following:

Symbols are often associated with Saints, it often helped in the middle ages when people were unable to read thus Bernard has the following symbols associated

Historically Famous Berns

Most people think of those splendid, long-haired mountain rescue dogs when they think of St Bernard, and these were named after St Bernard of Montjoux (996-1081); his feast day is on 28 May and he is - predictably enough - patron saint of skiers and mountaineers. He was known for his pastoral care of the people of the Alpine valleys of Aosta, Italy, and he set up two hospices for travellers on the passes which now bear his name. The more ecclesiastically distinguished St Bernard of Clairvaux was born about 10 years afterwards, and became a founder of 68 Cistercian monasteries, as well as playing a part in politics and Church councils. He wrote so beautifully that he became known as 'Doctor Mellifluous' or 'the honeysweet Doctor'.

There have been many other canonized Bernards and Barnardinos, but the best loved of their namesakes must be Bernardette Soubirous, the young shepherd girl who saw visions of Mary at Lourdes. Despite all the fuss which ensued, Bernadette never sought publicity for herself and lived out her short life in a convent at Nevers.