Had Opfikon always been a bustling town? No. Opfikon, nestled in the Glatt Valley near Zurich, began as two distinct settlements. One, Opfikon itself, lay on one side of the river Glatt. The other, Oberhausen, resided on the opposite bank. Glattbrugg, meaning “bridge over the Glatt,” started as a crucial river crossing, not a town. Later, a smithy and mill built near the bridge became the heart of a new settlement. Opfikon’s journey through history is marked by political shifts. During the Helvetic Republic (1798-1803), Opfikon became part of Kloten. Oberhausen, however, was assigned to Seebach. Napoleon’s Act of Mediation in 1803 reunited Opfikon and Oberhausen under the name Opfikon, within the newly formed district of Bülach. The two communities, Opfikon and Oberhausen (including Glattbrugg), formally merged in 1918. Today, Glattbrugg’s growth has overshadowed Oberhausen. The municipality is often called Opfikon-Glattbrugg to distinguish it from the original village of Opfikon. As of 2020, Opfikon boasts a population of 20,954. The town is easily accessible by train, with two stations, Opfikon and Glattbrugg. These stations, serving different lines, are conveniently located just 250 meters apart. Opfikon is a mere 11-minute train ride from Zurich’s main station. The name “Opfikon” itself has intriguing roots. The suffix “-ikon” or “-iken” is common in Zurich, Aargau, and Lucerne. It originates from “-ing,” meaning “followers of,” and “hof,” meaning “estate,” in its dative plural form used as a locative. This is similar to place names ending in “-ikofen” found in Bern, Solothurn, and Thurgau. The first part, “Opf,” likely comes from a person’s name, perhaps a shortened form of Otfried or a name derived from the West Germanic stem “*upp-“. The earliest recorded mention of the name appears as “Obtinchofa” or “Obfinchoven” in 1153. Opfikon, a town born from separate villages, shaped by political changes, and named after ancient linguistic roots, stands as a testament to the passage of time and the evolution of communities.
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