Country Switzerland Time zone CET (UTC+1) Municipalities 40 | Capital Courtelary Area 541 km² Canton Canton of Bern | |
 | ||
Weather 3°C, Wind SW at 21 km/h, 82% Humidity | ||
Bernese Jura (French: Jura Bernois) is the name for the French-speaking area of the Swiss canton of Bern, and from 2010 one of ten administrative divisions of the canton.
Contents
Comprising the three French-speaking districts in the northern part of the canton, it contains 40 municipalities with an area of 541.71 km2 (209.16 sq mi) and a population (as of December 2015) of 53,543. More than 90% of the population of the three districts speak French.
The Bernese Jura of today comprises only three out of a total of seven districts which were known as the Bernese Jura during the period of 1815–1979. Of the remaining four, three seceded as the canton of Jura in 1979, while the fourth, the Laufen district, joined the canton of Basel-Landschaft in 1994.
History
Most of the territory of the Bernese Jura was passed from the County of Burgundy to the Bishopric of Basel in AD 999.
It was annexed by France during the Napoleonic period, 1798-1814. In 1814, the Congress of Vienna accorded it to the canton of Bern to compensate for the loss of the new canton of Vaud.
From 1815 to 1979, the term Bernese Jura also included the territory now forming the canton of Jura, which seceded following a national popular vote on 24 September 1978.
Its administrative capital was Biel/Bienne from 1815 to 2009. Since 2010, Biel/Bienne has been made the administrative capital of a separate district, and the administrative capital of the remaining Bernese Jura is now Courtelary.
Representation
According to the canton's constitution, one of the seven members of the Executive Council of Bern has to be a French-speaking citizen of this area. Of the 160 seats in the Grand Council of Bern, 12 seats are reserved for the Bernese Jura and an additional three seats are guaranteed for the French-speaking population of the bilingual district of Biel/Bienne.
Administrative divisions
Historically, the region was divided into three districts (2004 population estimates):
In 2010 the three districts were dissolved and merged to form the Arrondissement administratif Jura bernois.