Langenthal

Geschichte

Langenthal is a town and a municipality in the district of Oberaargau in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. On 1 January 2010 the municipality of Untersteckholz merged into the Langenthal.Langenthal is an educational, cultural, and economic center for the region of Oberaargau.HistoryArcheological evidence suggests that early settlements existed around 4000 B.C. in the Langenthal area. A Hallstatt necropolis with twelve grave mounds has been found at Unterhard. Remnants of two Roman villae have also been identified.Langenthal is first mentioned in 861, as marcha in Langatun, referring to farming estates scattered along the Langete (a tributary of the Murg). The Old High German name Langatun is presumably composed of a hydronym langa- and the Gaulish element dunum "fort" (which had become productive as a suffix in toponyms). The re-interpretation of the name as including the element -tal "valley" dates to c. the 15th century, during which the name is on record as either Langaten or Langental (the same process can be observed in the case of Murgenthal, earlier Murgatun).