Aabenraa
| Aabenraa (Åbenrå/Aabenraa) | |
| Apenrade | |
| Town | |
 Aabenraa in mid-July 2006
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| Country | Denmark |
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| Region | Southern Denmark (Syddanmark) |
| Municipality | Aabenraa |
| Coordinates | 55°2′N 9°26′E / 55.033°N 9.433°ECoordinates: 55°2′N 9°26′E / 55.033°N 9.433°E |
| Population | 15,814 (2014) |
| Timezone | CET (UTC+1) |
| - summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) |
| Postal code | 6200 |
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Website: www |
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The city of Aabenraa or Åbenrå (Danish pronunciation: [ɔːb̥ənˈʁɔːˀ]; German: Apenrade, pronounced [aːpənˈʁaːdə]; Sønderjysk: Affenråe), with a population of 15,814 (1 January 2014), is at the head of the Aabenraa Fjord, an arm of the Little Belt, in Denmark, 61 kilometres (38 mi) north of the town of Schleswig. It was the seat of Sønderjyllands Amt (South Jutland County) until 1 January 2007, when the Region of Southern Denmark was created as part of the 2007 Danish Municipal Reform. Aabenraa is in Aabenraa Municipality.
The name Aabenraa originally meant "open beach" (Danish: åben strand).
Aabenraa was first mentioned in historic accounts in the 12th century, when it was attacked by the Wends.
Aabenraa started growing in the early Middle Ages around Opnør Hus, the bishop's castle, and received status as a merchant town in 1240, and in 1335 it received a charter. During the Middle Ages the town was known for its fishing industry and for its production of hops.
Between 1560 and 1721 the town was under the rule of the Dukes of Holstein-Gottorp.
The town's glory days were during the period of the 1750s to c. 1864, when ship traffic was at a high growth rate with trade to the Mediterranean Sea, China, South America, and Australia. It possessed a good harbour, which afforded shelter for a large carrying trade, Aabenraa having the Danish monarchy's third-largest trade fleet, after Copenhagen and Flensborg. The city had a number of well-known shipbuilding yards, which were known for their fine ships. The most famous of these was the clipper Cimber, which in 1857 sailed from Liverpool to San Francisco in 106 days. Fishing and various small factories also provided occupations for the population.
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Wikipedia