What the bear has to do with Berlin is a bit of a mystery that dates back centuries. There are no bears in the city or surrounding area other than the colorful ‘Buddy Bear’ sculptures in the streets and in souvenir shops and the bears in the zoo.

The bear first appears in Berlin’s history in 1280 on a seal. The seal is adorned with hearts and in the center flies the Brandenburg eagle. On either side of the eagle stands an armed bear with one paw raised.

Scholars and heraldists have different descriptions of these bears. Some believe they are two black bears. Others describe them as a black bear and a brown bear.

Why a bear?

This is where the mystery sets in. After all, 1280 is more than 700 years ago. There are no records or documents from that time that describe the bear’s origins. We only have some speculations.

The count who founded the Brandenburg Marches and expanded Brandenburg was named Albrecht the First. He also went by the name Albrecht the Bear, and that’s one explanation.

But seals and coats of arms are designed by a heraldist, who often has symbols in the coat of arms reflect the name and meaning of the city.

A big mistake

This leads us to believe that the bear is a centuries-old mistake. There is a certain probability that the heraldist understood that the word Berlin originated from the Middle High German word Bärlein.

Bärlein means little bear. And this is where the mistake occurs.

Berlin is a Slavic-derived word, just like so many other cities in the eastern part of Germany have Slavic names. Schwerin, Prenzlau, Bernau, Rathenow for example.

And the word Berlin means swamp, because Berlin is located in the middle of the Brandenburg marshes. Berlin is built on a wet and sandy soil.

Buddy Bear

But Berlin has kept the bear both in its coat of arms and as its mascot. After all, bear sounds more charming than swamp.

The colorful statues of bears around the city are called Buddy Bear. They came to Berlin in 2002 at the idea of Eva and Klaus Herlitz, who wanted art in the metropolis. And they started with Berlin.

There are more than 100 Buddy Bears around Berlin made by different sculptors. The first one was created by Roman Strobl, and the bears were so successful that they are now also available in small, numerous variants in souvenir shops.

Do you have a favorite? Let us know in the comments.