Editing Ribe

{{About|the Danish town}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2020}}
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name          = Ribe
| other_name             =
| native_name            =
| nickname               =
| settlement_type        = Town
| motto                  =
| image_skyline          = RibeVue.jpg
| imagesize              =
| image_caption          = Ribe seen from Riberhus
| image_flag             =
| flag_size              =
| image_shield           = Coat of arms of Ribe.svg
| shield_alt             = 
| image_seal             = 
| seal_size              =
| image_map              =
| mapsize                =
| map_caption            =
| pushpin_map            = Denmark#Denmark Region of Southern Denmark
| pushpin_label_position = bottom
| pushpin_map_caption    = Location in Denmark
| subdivision_type       = Country
| subdivision_name       = [[Denmark]]
| subdivision_type1      = [[Regions of Denmark|Region]]
| subdivision_name1      = [[Region of Southern Denmark|Southern Denmark (''Syddanmark'')]]
| subdivision_type2      = [[Municipalities of Denmark|Municipality]]
| subdivision_name2      = [[Esbjerg Municipality|Esbjerg]]
| government_footnotes   =
| government_type        =
| leader_title           =
| leader_name            =
| established_title      =
| established_date       =
| area_magnitude         =
| unit_pref              = 
| area_footnotes         =
| area_urban_km2         = 7.3
| area_land_km2          =
| population_as_of       = 2024
| population_footnotes   =
| population_note        =
| population_urban       = 8,295
| population_density_urban_km2 = auto
| population_blank1_title      =
Gender <ref>[https://m.statbank.dk/TableInfo/BY1?lang=en BY1: Population 1. January by urban areas, age and sex] The Mobile Statbank from [[Statistics Denmark]]</ref>
| population_blank1      =
3952 males and 4343 females
| population_demonym     = Ripenser
| timezone1              = [[Central European Time|CET]]
| utc_offset1            = +1
| timezone1_DST          = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]]
| utc_offset1_DST        = +2
| coordinates            = {{coord|55|19|42|N|08|45|44|E|region:DK|display=inline,title}}
| elevation_footnotes    =
| elevation_m            =
| elevation_ft           =
| postal_code_type       = Postal code
| postal_code            = DK-6760 Ribe
| area_code              =
| blank_name             =
| blank_info             =
| website                = {{URL|www.ribe.dk}}
| footnotes              =
}}

'''Ribe''' ({{IPA|da|ˈʁiːpə}}) is a town in south-west [[Jutland]], Denmark, with a population of 8,295 (2024).<ref>[https://m.statbank.dk/TableInfo/BY3?lang=en BY3: Population 1. January by urban areas, area and population density] The Mobile Statbank from [[Statistics Denmark]]</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Statistikbanken |url=https://www.statbank.dk/BY1 |publisher=statbank.dk}}</ref> It is the seat of the [[Diocese of Ribe]]. Until 1 January 2007, Ribe was the seat of both a surrounding [[Ribe Municipality|municipality]] and [[Ribe County|county]]. It is now part of the enlarged [[Esbjerg Municipality]] in the [[Region of Southern Denmark]]. It is the oldest town in Denmark.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.visitnordic.com/en/attraction/ribe | title=Ribe is the oldest town in the Nordic countries |publisher=visitnordic.com}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Ribe, the Fiskergade.jpg|thumb|Street in Ribe]]
The town was a center of commercial activity in the early 8th century, and this may have originated with royal influence. Coins may have been struck there in 720. Whichever king was involved in the digging of the [[Kanhave Canal]] may have been involved in the establishment of Ribe also. Trade contacts were mostly with [[Frisia]] and England.<ref name=cambridge>{{cite book |title=The New Cambridge Medieval History |editor1-first=Rosamond |editor1-last=McKitterick |editor2-first=Timothy |editor2-last=Reuter |year=1995 |page=205 |publisher=Cambridge UP |isbn=9780521362924 }}</ref> Of the over 300 [[sceat]]as found in Denmark, 216 come from in or around Ribe, most of them were of the Frisian Wodan type, and these were likely minted in Ribe in the early eighth century.<ref name=feveile>{{cite book|chapter=Series X and Coin Circulation in Ribe |pages=53–68 |first=Claus |last=Feveile |editor1-first=Tony |editor1-last=Abramson |title=Two Decades of Discovery |series=Studies in Early Medieval Coinage: Two Decades of Discovery |volume=1 |publisher=Boydell Press |year=2008 |isbn=9781843833710}}</ref> The [[Ancient Diocese of Ribe]] was established in 948 with the consecration of [[Leofdag of Ribe]] as its first bishop.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Taylor |first=Arthur |url=https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/16070b.htm |title=The Catholic Encyclopedia |publisher=The Encyclopedia Press |year=1914 |volume=16 |location=New York |chapter=Ancient See of Ribe in Denmark (Jutland) }}</ref>

Early in the ninth century a 2-meter wide ditch (a demarcation rather than a fortification) was dug around the town, enclosing a 12-hectare area. Later that century the ditch was replaced by a moat, 6 to 7 meters wide. Archeological evidence shows Ribe was "an active and impressive market place" in the eighth and ninth centuries, and again at the end of the eleventh century, but there is little evidence from the period in between; the town may have dwindled or even disappeared.<ref name=feveile/>

When archbishop [[Ansgar]] set out to christianize Scandinavia, he requested (in about 860) of King [[Horik II]] of Denmark that the first Scandinavian church be built in Ribe, which at the time was one of the most important trade cities in Scandinavia. However, the presence in Ribe of a bishop, and thus a cathedral, can only be confirmed from the year 948. Recent archaeological excavations in Ribe, however, have led to the discovery of between 2,000 and 3,000 Christian graves. They have been dated to the ninth century, indicating that a large Christian community was already living peacefully together with the Vikings at the time.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.b.dk/viden/danskere-var-kristne-laenge-foer-harald-blaatand|title=Danskere var kristne længe før Harald Blåtand´|author=Lisbeth Quass|newspaper=Berlingske|date=24 July 2014|language=da}}</ref> Excavations conducted between 2008 and 2012 have also revealed more details of the original church built by Ansgar.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.kristeligt-dagblad.dk/danmark/2014-07-23/danskere-var-kristne-l%C3%A6nge-f%C3%B8r-harald-bl%C3%A5tand|title=Danskere var kristne længe før Harald Blåtand|newspaper=Kristeligt Dagblad|date=23 July 2014|access-date=26 July 2014 |language=da}}</ref>

Construction on the [[Ribe Cathedral]] started in 1150, on top of an earlier church, most probably [[Ansgar]]'s church, built in 860.<ref>{{cite book |title=Rimbert: Life of Anskar, the Apostle of the North, 801–865, translated from the Vita Anskarii by Bishop Rimbert his fellow missionary and successor |url=http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/anskar.asp |accessdate=26 September 2022 |first=Charles H. |last=Robinson |publisher=Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge|year=1921}}</ref> The [[Treaty of Ribe]] was proclaimed in 1460. Being located in a large region of low-lying marshland, Ribe has repeatedly been hit by storm floods, the most devastating being the [[Burchardi flood]] of 1634. The marks after this flood can still be seen on the cathedral's walls and is also marked as the top point on a flood pillar in the town.<ref>{{cite web| title=De 5 største stormfloder i Vadehavet | url=https://naturstyrelsen.dk/naturoplevelser/naturguider/vadehavet/stormfloderne/ | publisher=Naturstyrelsen (Denmark's Ministry of Environment) | access-date=18 October 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web| title=Historiske stormfloder i Nordsøen og Danmark | url=https://www.dmi.dk/hav-og-is/temaforside-stormflod/historiske-stormfloder-i-nordsoen-og-danmark/ | date=3 July 2018 | publisher=Danish Meteorological Institute | access-date=18 October 2023 }}</ref>

The Catholic diocese was dissolved in 1536 during the [[Reformation]]; it was succeeded by the [[Diocese of Ribe]], governed by the newly established protestant [[Church of Denmark]].

On 1 January 2007, the [[Ribe Municipality|Municipality of Ribe]] ceased to exist as it merged with the municipalities of [[Esbjerg Municipality|Esbjerg]] and [[Bramming Municipality|Bramming]], now forming the new municipality of Esbjerg.

==Demographics==
The following table shows the population of Ribe. Data from before the 18th century are estimates, the rest are taken from the official census.

{| 
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
! style="background:#efefef;" | Year
! style="background:#efefef;" | Population
|-
| 1500 || align="right" | ~5,000
|-
| 1591 || align="right" | ~4,500
|-
| 1641 || align="right" | ~3,500
|-
| 1672 || align="right" | ~2,000
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
! style="background:#efefef;" | Year
! style="background:#efefef;" | Population
|-
| 1769 || align="right" | 1,827
|-
| 1801 || align="right" | 1,994
|-
| 1850 || align="right" | 2,984
|-
| 1901 || align="right" | 4,243
|-
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
! style="background:#efefef;" | Year
! style="background:#efefef;" | Population
|-
| 1976 || align="right" | 7,452
|-
| 1981 || align="right" | 7,646
|-
| 1986 || align="right" | 7,709
|-
| 1990 || align="right" | 7,636
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
! style="background:#efefef;" | Year
! style="background:#efefef;" | Population
|-
| 1996 || align="right" | 8,105
|-
| 2000 || align="right" | 7,984
|-
| 2001 || align="right" | 8,031
|-
| 2002 || align="right" | 8,033
|}
| valign="top" |
{| class="wikitable"
! style="background:#efefef;" | Year
! style="background:#efefef;" | Population
|-
| 2003 || align="right" | 8,006
|-
| 2004 || align="right" | 7,990
|-
| 2006 || align="right" | 8,081
|}
|}

==Notable sites==
*[[Ribe Cathedral]]
*[[Ribe Kunstmuseum]] - an art museum
*[[Riberhus]] - a castle (only some ruins remain, along with the water moat) likely built by [[Eric V of Denmark]] in the 1200s
*[[Wadden Sea Centre]] - a museum and visitors center for the [[Wadden Sea National Park, Denmark|Wadden Sea National Park]], located a few km outside Ribe

==Education==
[[File:Raadhuset i Ribe.jpg|thumb|140px|[[City hall|The old cityhall]].]]
The town of Ribe has a long history as a center of learning. The [[cathedral school]] ([[Ribe Katedralskole]]) has its roots in the Latin School of Ribe, dating back to at least 1145, when the bishop officially handed over the [[Chapter (religion)|chapter]]'s school.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www4.sa.dk/content/dk/daisy/arkivskaber_detaljer?ngid=536329|title=Ribe Katedralskole|language=da|publisher=The Danish National Archives|access-date=12 July 2015}}</ref>

===Schools===
* [[Ribe Katedralskole]]
* The State College of Education in Ribe (Teacher Training College), part of the University College of West Jutland
* Ribe Business College
* VUC (Adult Education Center)

==Transport==
[[File:Dagmarsgade 16, Ribe 2023 vest 1.jpg|thumb|[[Ribe railway station]] in 2023]]
Ribe is served by [[Ribe railway station]], located on the [[Bramming–Tønder railway line]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://arriva.dk/kundeservice/stationer/ribe-station|title=Ribe Station|publisher=Arriva|language=da|accessdate=23 January 2024}}</ref> The northern part of the town is also served by the [[railway halt]] [[Ribe Nørremark railway halt|Ribe Nørremark]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://arriva.dk/kundeservice/stationer/ribe-noerremark-station|title=Ribe Nørremark Station|publisher=Arriva|language=da|accessdate=23 January 2024}}</ref>

Ribe is located near the [[Wadden Sea]] coastline and within reach of the north sea port [[Esbjerg]].<ref>{{cite web| title=The Viking History Of Ribe, Denmark’s Oldest Town | url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidnikel/2025/03/31/the-viking-history-of-ribe-denmarks-oldest-town/ | author1=David Nikel | date=31 March 2025 | publisher=Forbes | access-date=8 May 2025 }}</ref>

==Notable people==
[[File:Anders Bording.jpg|thumb|140px|Anders Bording, 1645]]
[[File:Rued Langgaard.gif|thumb|140px|Rued Langgaard, 1917]]
[[File:Holger Kirkholm Nielsen.jpg|thumb|140px|HK Nielsen, 2012]]

=== The arts ===
* [[Anders Bording]] (1619–1677), poet
* [[Christine Daugaard]] (1831–1917), Danish writer and poet
* [[Kristen Feilberg]] (1839 in Vester Vedsted – 1919), photographer of the peoples and landscapes of Sumatra and Singapore
* [[Jacob Riis]] (1849–1914), an American immigrant photographer, wrote ''[[How the Other Half Lives]]''
* [[Bodil Hauschildt]] (1861–1951), photographer
* [[J. Bodewalt Lampe]] (1869–1929), American composer, arranger, performer
* [[Jens Olsen]] (1872–1945), a clockmaker and locksmith
* [[Astrid Noack]] (1888–1954), a Danish sculptor 
* [[Rued Langgaard]] (1893–1952) a late-Romantic composer and organist at [[Ribe Cathedral]]
* [[Kjeld Abell]] (1901–1961), playwright, screenwriter and theatrical designer
* [[Børge Ring]] (1921–2018), animated short film writer, director and animator
* [[Annemette Kure Andersen]] (born 1969), poet and literary editor
*[[Per Vers]] (born 1976), rapper<ref>{{Cite web|last=Vers|first=Per|date=2016-01-13|title=En brobygger-bromance|url=https://vers.dk/bromance/|access-date=2021-09-21|website=Per Vers|language=da-DK}}</ref>

=== Politicians, clergy, and officials===
* [[Valdemar II of Denmark]] (1170–1241), King of Denmark<ref>{{Cite EB1911|wstitle= Valdemar II. | volume= 27 |last= Bain |first= Robert Nisbet |author-link= Robert Nisbet Bain| pages = 841&ndash;842 |short= 1}}</ref>
* [[Hans Tausen]] (1494–1561), leader of the [[Reformation in Denmark]],<ref>{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Tausen,_Hans  |volume= 26 |short=x}}</ref>  [[Bishop]] of Ribe 1542–1562.
* [[Peder Palladius]] (1503–1560), theologian, priest and bishop
* [[Maren Spliid]] (c.1600–1641), victim of the persecution of witches
* [[Hans Schack, 2nd Count of Schackenborg]] (1676 in Ribe – 1719), nobleman
* [[Hans Adolf Brorson]] (1694–1764), Danish [[Pietist]] clergyman and hymn writer
* [[Friderich Christian Hager]] (1756–1795), colonial commander and governor of the [[Danish Gold Coast]]
* [[Christian Nielsen Lund]] (1846–1921), Mormon pioneer and Utah Territorial Legislature member
* [[Elisabeth Dons Christensen]] (born 1944), theologian, bishop of the [[Diocese of Ribe]] 2003–2014
* [[Holger K. Nielsen]] (born 1950), former leader of the [[Socialist People's Party (Denmark)|Socialist People's Party]]

=== Science and business ===
* [[Vibeke Jensdatter]] (1638–1709), merchant
* [[Emil Christian Hansen]] (1842–1909), brewmaster and mycologist
* [[Cathrine Horsbøl]] (1872–1947), furniture designer
* [[Jens Rasmussen (human factors expert)|Jens Rasmussen]] (1926–2018), professor
* [[Erik Hansen (architect)|Erik Hansen]]  (1927–2016), architect

=== Sport ===
* [[John Lauridsen]] (born 1959), footballer 
* [[Martin Rauschenberg]] (born 1992), footballer
* [[Mikael Uhre]] (born 1994), footballer

==Twin cities and towns==

{|
|- valign="top"
|
* {{flagicon|FRA}} [[Balleroy]], [[Normandy]], France
* {{flagicon|UK}} [[Ely, Cambridgeshire]], United Kingdom.
* {{flagicon|GER}} [[Güstrow]], [[Mecklenburg-Vorpommern]], Germany.
* {{flagicon|AUT}} [[Krems an der Donau|Krems]], [[Lower Austria]], Austria
||
* {{flagicon|NOR}} [[Leikanger]], [[Sogn og Fjordane]], Norway.
* {{flagicon|GER}} [[Ratzeburg]], [[Schleswig-Holstein]], Germany.
* {{flagicon|SWE}} [[Strängnäs]],  [[Södermanland County|Södermanland]], Sweden.
|}

==See also==
* [[Dankirke]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
* ''The New Cambridge Medieval History''. Cambridge University Press, 1995. {{ISBN|0-521-36292-X}}.
* {{Catholic|wstitle=Ancient See of Ribe}} [[s:Catholic Encyclopedia (1913)/Ancient See of Ribe in Denmark (Jutland)]]

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [http://www.visitribe.com Official Tourism website]

{{Esbjerg Municipality}}
{{Baltic emporia}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Ribe| ]]
[[Category:700s establishments]]
[[Category:Populated places established in the 8th century]]
[[Category:Cities and towns in the Region of Southern Denmark]]
[[Category:Viking Age populated places]]
[[Category:Esbjerg Municipality]]
[[Category:8th-century establishments in Europe]]