Bernard

Bernard is from Bernhard, an ancient Germanic masculine name meaning “bold as a bear” from the Old High German “bero” (bear) and “hard” (hardy, bold, brave). The Olde English cognate, Beornheard, was replaced with Bernard after the arrival of the Normans. The name was most famously borne by an 11th century Alp-dwelling monk, Bernard of Menthon, who dedicated himself to converting the people of the Alps to Christianity (an isolated group still displaying practices of the old pagan traditions). He is best remembered for setting up “traveler safe houses” for French and German pilgrims going to Rome over the St. Bernard Pass (a very treacherous pass between Switzerland and Italy). The very large working-dog known as the St. Bernard was named after this saint; the breed was used to find and fetch people in perilous conditions. The pooch would mercifully show up donning a “brandy barrel” around his neck in order to keep the suffering warm while they awaited rescue. Sounds like a big “brave bear” to us! Further cementing Bernard’s “holiness” was another prominent 12th century theologian and Doctor of the Church, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux. It was common practice to name one’s children after important saints as a way of honoring them (as well as a protective measure for the so-named child). Bernard was a popular baby name among American boys in the 19th and early parts of the 20th centuries. Today, however, this old dog is napping.