Welcome to Mutzopotamien...
The bear river valley
Bern was founded in 1191 by Duke Berchtold V of Zähringen. The story goes he named the city after the first animal he encountered on a hunting expedition there, a bear (in German: sing. Bär, pl. Bären). Bears are the emblem of Bern and because a family of real bears lives on the riverside the city is known to locals as "Mutzopotamien" (Mutz = "bear" in Bernese dialect). If you find the time to go to Zürich you may like to know its nickname is Persepolis...
The University of Bern was founded in 1834. It is a constitutive part of the city of Bern and very consciously follows an organic planning principle (university and city are entwined). With more than 17'000 students, it is the third largest university in Switzerland. The BAF organising committee is based at the departement of Near Eastern Archaeology of the Institut für Archäologische Wissenschaften (I.A.W.) which will be located on 43 Mittelstrasse as of May 2018. You are most welcome to visit.
