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Odense

[oh-thuhn-suh]

Odense, city (1992 pop. 140,886), capital of Fyn co., S central Denmark, a seaport linked by canal with the Odense Fjord (an arm of the Kattegat). Denmark's third largest city, it is an important commercial, industrial, and cultural center and a rail junction. There are large shipyards and plants manufacturing metal goods, motor vehicles, machinery, textiles, and processed food. Founded in the 10th cent., Odense is one of the oldest cities of N Europe. It has been an episcopal see since 1020. Of note in the city are a 12th-century church and the 13th-century Cathedral of St. Knud, one of the finest examples of Danish Gothic architecture. Odense has several colleges and a university (1964). The house of the writer Hans Christian Andersen, who was born in Odense in 1805, is now a museum.

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Odense

City and municipality (2000 est.: 183,912), north-central Funen Island, Denmark. Sacred in pagan times as the sanctuary of Odin, the Norse god of war, it first appears in records circa AD 1000. A bishop's seat from the 10th century, it became a centre of pilgrimage to the shrine of Canute IV. It was burned in 1247, but many medieval structures remain. It grew after its port and harbour were built and the Odense Canal was opened in 1804. Denmark's third largest city, it is a shipbuilding and manufacturing centre. The home of Hans Christian Andersen, who was born there, is now a museum.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.

Odense

The city of Odense (Danish, ) is the fourth largest city in Denmark. The name Odense comes from the Norse god Odin.

Odense city has 158,163 inhabitants, as of January 1 2008 and is the main city of the island of Funen. It is the seat of Odense Municipality and was the seat of Odense County until 1970, and Funen County from 1970 until January 1, 2007 when the county became part of Region Syddanmark.

History

For the Catholic ecclesiastical history, see Roman Catholic bishopric of Odense

Odense (from Odins Vi, i.e. "Odin's Sanctuary", referring to Odin of Denmark's indigenous Norse mythology), is one of the oldest cities of Denmark and had its 1000th anniversary in 1988. To celebrate this, a forest named "the Thousand Year Forest" (Danish: Tusindårsskoven) was cultivated. The shrine of Saint Canute (Sankt Knud / Knud den Hellige) in Saint Canute's Cathedral held great attraction for pilgrims throughout the Middle Ages.

In the 16th century the town was the meeting-place of several parliaments, and down to 1805 it was the seat of the provincial assembly of Funen.

Odense's most famous landmark was Odinstårnet (The Odin Tower) constructed in 1935, as the second-tallest tower in Europe, only surpassed by the Eiffel Tower. Odinstårnet was blown up by a Danish Nazi group in 1944 and has never been rebuilt. However, a miniature model of it now stands in the residential area Odinsparken in the area where the original tower was.

Until the beginning of the Danish industrial revolution, Odense was also the 2nd largest city in modern Denmark, but has in recent times been overtaken by Aarhus.

Famous residents of Odense

author and poet Hans Christian Andersen
Classical composer Carl Nielsen was also born near Odense.
King Canute IV, (ca. 1043 - July 17, 1086), also known as Canute the Saint and Canute the Holy
Industrialist, banker and philanthropist Carl Frederik Tietgen
Inventor and industrialist Thomas B. Thrige
Handball player, Anja Andersen
Her Royal Highness Birgitte, The Duchess of Gloucester was born and raised in Odense.

Business

Several large industries are located in or near Odense. Denmark's biggest shipyard, Odense Steel Shipyard owned by the A.P. Møller-Mærsk Group is situated in the neighbouring town Munkebo. The biggest sales auction of vegetables, fruits and flowers (GASA) in Denmark is situated here. The Albani Brewery brews the local Odense Pilsner amongst others.

The commercial national television company TV 2 is based in Odense.

In the South-eastern part of Odense the Rosengårdscentret shopping mall is located. The mall is one of the oldest and biggest in Denmark with 98,000 m2 of commercially used area.

The cities central location in Denmark makes it one of the nationwide convention and congress centers.

Education

The main campus of the University of Southern Denmark is located in Odense.

Sports

Odense is the home of a number of football clubs, the most important are OB, FC FYN, B1909, B1913 and Dalum IF.

Tourist attractions

Saint Canute's Cathedral (Sankt Knuds Kirke) was formerly connected with the great Benedictine monastery of the same name, and is one of the largest and finest buildings of its kind in Denmark. It is constructed of brick in a pure Gothic style. Originally dating from 1081–1093, it was rebuilt in the 13th century. Under the altar lies Canute (Danish: Knud), the patron saint of Denmark, who had planned to conquer England from William of Normandy. He was slain in an insurrection at Odense in 1086. Odense is also the see of the bishop of Funen. * The cathedral has the skeletons of both the Saint/King and his brother on public display, it also boasts of one of Denmark's finest altarpieces, a magnificent triptych by Claus Berg. A large fragment of Byzantine cloth is displayed next to the two skeletons.

Kings John (Hans) and Christian II are buried in the city.

Our Lady's Church, built in the 13th century and restored in 1851–1852 and again in 1864, contains a carved 16th century altarpiece by Claus Berg of Lübeck.

Odense Palace was erected by King Frederick IV, who died there in 1730.

There is a theatre as well as a symphony orchestra, a zoo, and the Funen Village (Den Fynske Landsby) which is an open air museum with old houses typical for Funen.

The City Hall has a small scar from a battle between Germans and members of the Danish Resistance on 5 May 1945. The city's coat of arms - located above the main entrance to City Hall - is damaged. On close inspection, the kneecap of Saint Canute is penetrated by a bullet.

The 4 most visited attractions in 2007 were:

1. Odense Zoo - 420,254 visitors
2. The Funen Village - 105,040 visitors
3. Danish Railway museum - 97,759 visitors
4. H.C Andersens House - 80,622 visitors

Other attractions:

Odense City Museums

Odense Zoo
Odense Central Library
Odense Sportspark
University of Southern Denmark previously known as Odense University
Odense Symphony Orchestra
Odense Music School
Danish Railway Museum
Nonnebakken

Transport

The city lies close to Odense Fjord on the Odense River (Odense Å). Its railway station lies on the route between Copenhagen and Jutland, the peninsular mainland. A 7.5 metre (25 ft) deep canal, dug from 1796 to 1806 , gives access to the town from the fjord.

Accessibility to Odense was greatly increased when the ferry service between the two main Danish islands, Zealand and Funen, was replaced by the Great Belt Bridge - opened in 1997 for rail traffic, 1998 for road traffic. When the bridge opened, it was the second longest suspension bridge in the world. Its construction greatly cut transportation time between Odense and the Danish capital, Copenhagen. Copenhagen can now be reached by trains from Odense in 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Odense is served by Odense Airport.

Population

The land area of Odense is 304 km², with a population density of 611 per km² (2005 figures from Helsingin Seudun Aluesarjat). The population of Odense city, per January 1 of a given year, according to Danmarks Statistik.

Year	Population	Year	Population
1976	138,348	1999	144,940
1981	136,646	2000	145,062
1986	137,286	2001	144,849
1989	138,339	2002	144,636
1990	138,986	2003	145,374
1992	140,886	2004	145,554
1994	143,029	2006	152,060
1996	144,518	2007	158,453
1997	145,354	2008	158,163
1998	145,296	2009	-