Where does the name of the Saint Bernard dog come from? Why is it called that?

You know the origin of the name of the St. Bernard dog? This is the surprising origin of the tradition of these splendid mountain rescue dogs!

The Great St Bernard Pass

It was originally called Colle del Monte di Giove, the most famous Alpine pass in Italian history. The name change is due to the archdeacon Saint Bernard of Menton or Aosta. The Saint was famous for preaching him. Witness of the dangers of the passage and of the pilgrims who were overwhelmed by the storm or by small avalanches, he created, on top of the mountain, to facilitate transit, a hostel where he had some followers set up.

Thus were born the Augustinian canons of San Bernardo who, in the company of their mountain dogs, became the guardian angels of the pass. In fact, they have saved countless people.

The origin of the name of the Saint Bernard dog

The dogs that accompany them are now universally known as Saint Bernard dogs and owe their name to the Saint who, having experienced the kindness and strength of these animals, adopted them as rescuers, training them. The unmissable attribute for the Saint Bernard is undoubtedly the bottle with brandy. However, it appears that its use for rescue is a legendary fact. It was actually a kind of logo.

The famous Barry

Among the mountain dogs, the most famous is Barry, a Saint Bernard who saved about forty people from the freezing cold in the Napoleonic era and is now embalmed in Nussbaumer, Switzerland. In short, the hill of the Great Saint Bernard (like the hill of the little Saint Bernard), and the dog of Saint Bernard testify that the Christian roots of Europe are a fact and not a theory matured in the minds of a few eager to affirm their faith. .