Ribe
| Ribe | ||
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| Town | ||
The main street of Ribe
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 Ribe
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| Coordinates: 55°19′42″N 08°45′44″E / 55.32833°N 8.76222°ECoordinates: 55°19′42″N 08°45′44″E / 55.32833°N 8.76222°E | ||
| Country | Denmark | |
| Region | Southern Denmark (Syddanmark) | |
| Municipality | Esbjerg | |
| Population (2014) | ||
| • Total | 8,168 | |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
| Postal code | 6760 | |
| Website | www |
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Ribe (Danish pronunciation: [ˈʁiːb̥ə]; German: Ripen) is a Danish town in south-west Jutland and has a population of 8,168 (1 January 2014). It is the seat of the Diocese of Ribe covering southwestern Jutland.
Until 1 January 2007, Ribe was the seat of both a surrounding municipality, and county. It is now part of the enlarged Esbjerg Municipality in the Region of Southern Denmark.
Ribe is the oldest extant town in Denmark, established in the early eighth century in the Germanic Iron Age.
Established in the first decade of the eighth century and first attested in a document dated 854; Ribe is the oldest extant town in Denmark (and in Scandinavia). The town celebrated its 1300th anniversary in 2010.
When Ansgar the Archbishop of Hamburg-Bremen, set out on the "Mission to bring Christianity to the North", he made a request in about 860, to King Horik II of Denmark, that the first Scandinavian church be built in Ribe. This was not coincidental, since Ribe already at that point was one of the most important trade cities in Scandinavia. However the presence of a bishop, and thus a cathedral, in Ribe can only be confirmed from the year 948. Recent archaeological excavations in Ribe have however 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. Excavations conducted between 2008 and 2012 have also revealed more details of the original church built by Ansgar.
The town has many well-preserved old buildings, Ribe Cathedral, and about 110 houses are under Heritage Protection. Denmark's oldest town hall is found on the town's Von Støckens Plads. The building was erected in 1496, and was purchased by the city for use as a town hall in 1709.
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