The Danish National Archives () is the

national archive National archives are the archives of a country. The concept evolved in various nations at the dawn of modernity based on the impact of nationalism upon bureaucratic processes of paperwork retention. Conceptual development From the Middle Ages i ...

system of

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. Its primary purpose is to collect, preserve and archive historically valuable records from central authorities, such as ministries, agencies and national organisations and make them available to the public. The archive is part of the

Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: * Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) * Ministry of Culture (Argentina) * Minister for the Arts (Australia) * Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)Ministry o ...

. Previously the term Danish State Archives () was used as the collective name for the archive system. In 2014 the archives were reorganised, and the name Rigsarkivet (which had previously only applied to the Danish National Archives in Copenhagen) became the new collective name for the entire archive system.

History

In the early Middle ages, the majority of records keep by Danish monarchs were packed into chests which accompanied them on their travels around the kingdom. The first evidence of permanent government archives comes from the 14th century, when an archive was established at Vordingborg Castle. Soon after, Queen

Margaret I Margaret I may refer to: * Margaret I, Countess of Flanders (died 1194) * Margaret I of Scotland (1283–1290), usually known as the Maid of Norway * Margaret I, Countess of Holland (1311–1356), Countess of Hainaut and Countess of Holland * Ma ...

established an archive at Kalundborg Castle (). As Copenhagen had become the seat of the crown, King Christopher III established an administrative archive at

Copenhagen Castle Copenhagen Castle () was a castle on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It was built in the late 14th century and was located at the site of the current Christiansborg Palace. History In 1167, Bishop Absalon (c. 112 ...

, and in 1582 all of the Royal Archives () were gathered in the vault at Copenhagen Castle. By 1684, the Royal Archives had been relocated to the newly constructed

Rosenborg Castle Rosenborg Castle () is a renaissance castle in Copenhagen, Denmark. The castle was originally built as a country summerhouse in 1606 and is an example of Christian IV's many architectural projects. It was built in the Dutch Renaissance style, t ...

. In 1720, the Royal Archives were again relocated near the former chancery building, to be housed at the same location as the Gehejmearkivet (). In 1883, the two archival institutions were overseen by the same director, and in 1889 they were officially merged by law. The resulting merger formed the National Archives (). The same law which established the National Archives also called for the formation of several provincial archives, which would be responsible for the curation of local administrative documents within the same archival system. In the 20th century two independent archives were established in Denmark: the Data Archives () and the National Business Archives (). The business archives were established in 1948 in Aarhus as an independent institution. It was acquired by the state in 1962. The data archives were established in 1973; it was initially located in Copenhagen, but relocated to Odense in 1978 when it became part of

Odense University Odense University was a university in Odense, Denmark. It was established in 1966. In 1998, the university was merged with two other institutions to form the University of Southern Denmark. Its campus is now known as University of Southern Denmar ...

Danish State Archives

The archival law of 1992 restructured the national archival system, so that the entire system was overseen by the Danish State Archives. Initially, the term ''Danish State Archives'' referred collectively to these archives: * ''Danish National Archives'' (

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

) * ''Danish Data Archives'' (

Odense Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (after Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2025, the city proper had a population of 185,480 while Odense Municipality had a population of 210, ...

) * ''Danish National Business Archives'' (

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus municipality, Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and app ...

) * ''Provincial Archives of Zealand, Lolland-Falster and Bornholm'' (Copenhagen) * ''Provincial Archives of Southern Jutland'' (

Aabenraa Aabenraa (; , ; South Jutlandic: ''Affenråe'', also known as Åbenrå) is a town in Southern Denmark, at the head of the Aabenraa Fjord, an arm of the Little Belt, north of the Denmark–Germany border and north of German town of Flensburg. It ...

) * ''Provincial Archives of Funen'' (Odense) * ''Provincial Archives of Northern Jutland'' ( Viborg) The four provincial archives held records transferred from regional authorities, like courts of law, the county authorities, the police and many other

local authorities Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of a higher-level political or administrative unit, such a ...

. Records from central authorities, such as ministries, agencies and national organisations, were held at the ''Danish National Archives''. The ''Danish National Business Archives'' kept registers,

document A document is a writing, written, drawing, drawn, presented, or memorialized representation of thought, often the manifestation of nonfiction, non-fictional, as well as fictional, content. The word originates from the Latin ', which denotes ...

s, etc. from companies and organisations in the

business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or Trade, buying and selling Product (business), products (such as goods and Service (economics), services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for ...

sector. The ''Danish Data Archives'', the newest of the seven archive holding bodies, kept historical and social science studies such as registers, databases and other electronically stored information. In 2012, the Provincial Archives of Zealand, Lolland-Falster and Bornholm were disestablished and its collections were merged with the ''Danish National Archives'' in Copenhagen.

Current structure

In 2014, the State Archives were again restructured; the entire organization was centralized under one name and governing body. On 1 October 2014, the name ''Danish State Archives'' (Danish: Statens Arkiver) was replaced with the name ''Danish National Archives'' (Danish: Rigsarkivet). Today the name ''Danish National Archives'' refers to all archives within the national system, not just the organization's headquarters in Copenhagen. Under the new structure, the separate archives became reading rooms in a larger archive system. The new Danish National Archives were initially organised as: *''Danish National Archives, Copenhagen'' (formerly the Danish National Archives in Copenhagen) *''Danish National Archives, Aarhus'' (formerly the Danish National Business Archives) *''Danish National Archives, Aabenraa'' (formerly the Provincial Archives of Southern Jutland) *''Danish National Archives, Odense'' (formerly the Provincial Archives of Funen) *''Danish National Archives, Viborg'' (formerly the Provincial Archives of Northern Jutland)

Reading Rooms

Today, the Danish National Archives includes four reading rooms: the National Archives in Copenhagen, Aabenraa, Odense, and Viborg. Until 2015, the archives also had a reading room in Aarhus; its collections have since been moved to Viborg. (''In Danish'')

Danish National Archives, Copenhagen

The archive was founded in 1889 out of two older national

archives An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials, in any medium, or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or organ ...

, ''Gehejmearkivet'' (1296–1883) and ''Kongerigets arkiv'' (1861–1884). In 2012 the collections of the Provincial Archives of Zealand, Lolland-Falster and Bornholm were merged into the Danish National Archives. In 2014, the ''Danish National Archives'' was renamed ''Danish National Archives, Copenhagen'' and the term ''Danish National Archives'' came to represent all of the former Danish State Archives collectively. Today, the headquarters of the Danish National Archives, Copenhagen are located at

Proviantgården Proviantgården or Provianthuset is a historic building on Slotsholmen in Copenhagen, Denmark. The building was originally constructed in the early 1600s as part of a Christian IV of Denmark, Christian IV's naval harbor project. Its name, ''Provia ...

, next to

Christiansborg Palace Christiansborg Palace (, ) is a palace and government building on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen, Denmark. It is the seat of the Danish Parliament (), the Danish Prime Minister's Office, and the Supreme Court of Denmark. Also ...

Slotsholmen Slotsholmen (English language, English: The Castle Islet) is an island in the harbour of Copenhagen, Denmark, and part of Copenhagen Indre By, Inner City. The name is taken from the successive castles and palaces located on the island since Absal ...

. Copenhagen reading room is also located at Proviantgården and is open to the public. A new purpose-built storage building was opened in 2009 at

Kalvebod Brygge Kalvebod Brygge () is a waterfront area in the Vesterbro, Copenhagen, Vesterbro district of Copenhagen, Denmark. The name also refers to a section of the Ring 2 (Copenhagen), Ring 2 ring road which follows the waterfront from Langebro in the north ...

. It was designed by

PLH Arkitekter PLH Architects is an architectural firm based in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was founded in 1977 by Palle Leif Hansen. Location PLH Arkitekter is based in a former industrial complex situated in the Haraldsgade neighbourhood on the border between oute ...

. The Danish National Archives, Copenhagen holds the archives of the Danish overseas trading companies, including the archives of the

Danish East India Company The Danish East India Company () refers to two separate Danish-Norwegian chartered company, chartered companies. The first company operated between 1616 and 1650. The second company existed between 1670 and 1729, however, in 1730 it was re-founde ...

, the

Danish Asiatic Company Danish Asiatic Company (Danish language, Danish: Asiatisk Kompagni) was a Denmark-Norway, Danish trading company established in 1730 to revive Danish-Norwegian trade on the Danish East Indies and China following the closure of the Danish East Ind ...

, the Danish West India and Guinea Company, and the Danish West India Trading Company, a collection which reflects Denmark's relations with foreign countries such as the European States, Russia, Turkey, North African states and the American states. The archives of the Danish overseas trading companies were inscribed on

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

’s

Memory of the World Register UNESCO's Memory of the World (MoW) Programme is an international initiative to safeguard the documentary heritage of humanity against collective amnesia, neglect, decay over time and climatic conditions, as well as deliberate destruction. It ca ...

in 1997. The Sound Toll Records, which provide detailed information about every ship and cargo that entered the Baltic and departed from the Baltic through the Danish straits starting in the 15th century, are held at the Danish National Archives and in 2007, the collection was inscribed on the

. The documents are stored on electrically powered

mobile shelving Mobile shelving, mobile aisle shelving, compactus, roller racking, or rolling stack, are terms applied to shelving or storage units fitted with wheeled traction systems. Units can be closely packed when access is not required, but can be readil ...

– double-sided shelves, which are pushed together so that there is no aisle between them. A large handle on the end of each shelf allows them to be moved along tracks in the floor to create an aisle when needed. The units have a small AC or DC motor hidden in the base that automatically moves the units when a single button is pressed.

Danish National Archives, Aabenraa

Danish National Archives, Odense

The Provincial Archives of Funen () first opened in Odense on 1 November 1893. The first visitor came two weeks later. The archives in Odense were the second of the three provincial archives envisioned in the first Danish archive law of 30 March 1889. They accepted archival material from state authorities, local authorities and individuals within the geographical area of the former

Funen County Funen County () is a former county (Danish: '' amt'') in central Denmark, comprising the islands of Funen, Langeland, Tåsinge, Ærø, and approximately 90 other islands, of which only 25 are inhabited. The county was formed on 1 April 1970, com ...

. In 2014, the Provincial Archives were renamed as the ''Danish National Archives, Odense'' as part of the reorganisation of the Danish archival system. Prior to the system's reorganisation, the Provincial Archives of Funen received approximately 10,000 visitors annually, and it contained approximately 20 km of archival material in its collection.

Danish National Archives, Viborg

Danish National Archives, Aarhus

Prior to 2014, the archives in Aarhus were a separate branch of the Danish State Archives, known as the ''Danish National Business Archives'' . They collected source material about Danish business development through time. Private companies and organizations were not obligated to supply information so collection happened on a voluntary basis through negotiations and agreements for voluntary submissions. The oldest material is from the 1500s, while the majority from the period of 1850–1950. The collection consisted of about 7000 archives from companies from all sectors of the economy. The archival database ''Daisy'' continues to contain the registries over the former collections of the Business Archive, now a part of the Danish National Archives. The business archive was established as an independent institution in 1948. In 1968 it was taken over by the state with a special law and in 1992 it became part of the State Archives. Before the archives moved to the present building in 1962 the archives were kept in the basement under the

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or municipal hall (in the Philippines) is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses the city o ...

between 1948 and 1950, then under the

university A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

building until 1956 and then in the buildings of a former railway station of the defunct Aarhus- Hammel line. In September 2014, it was announced that the State Archives would move the Business Archives to Viborg and merge it with the Provincial Archives of Northern Jutland in 2015–2016.