Odder is a town in

Jutland Jutland (; , ''Jyske Halvø'' or ''Cimbriske Halvø''; , ''Kimbrische Halbinsel'' or ''Jütische Halbinsel'') is a peninsula of Northern Europe that forms the continental portion of Denmark and part of northern Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). It ...

, Denmark. The town is the seat of

Odder municipality Odder Municipality () is a municipality (Danish language, Danish: ''Municipalities of Denmark, kommune'') in the Region Midtjylland, Central Denmark Region on the east coast of the Jutland peninsula in Central Denmark south of Aarhus. It is a part ...

, and is the biggest town in the municipality. It is located 20 km south of

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 ...

and 16 km south-east of

Skanderborg Skanderborg is a town in Skanderborg Municipality, Denmark. It is situated on the north and north eastern brinks of Skanderborg Lake and there are several smaller ponds and bodies of water within the city itself, like Lillesø, Sortesø, Døj S ...

. Odder is part of

Business Region Aarhus East Jutland metropolitan area () is a potential metropolitan area in Jutland and Funen, Denmark. Aarhus is the most populated city in the region. The National Planning Report of 2006, published by the Danish Environment Ministry, argued that ...

, and the

East Jutland metropolitan area East Jutland metropolitan area () is a potential metropolitan area in Jutland and Funen, Denmark. Aarhus is the most populated city in the region. The National Planning Report of 2006, published by the Danish Environment Ministry, argued that ...

, and is served by the Odder Line since 1884 before the line was rebuilt to be part of the

Aarhus Letbane The Aarhus Letbane (Aarhus light rail) is a light rail system in the city of Aarhus, Denmark. It is operated by the company Midttrafik. The first line opened in December 2017, but the system is under continuous development and expansion. Service ...

in 2016-2018.

History

Odder is first mentioned in 1363 as ''Oddræth''. The town was built up around Odder River (Danish: ''Odder Å''), which cross through the town. By 1850, the town had grown to the population of about 900 people, and was granted a license to hold a market twice a year. Around the same time, an unsuccessful application was made to dig a canal to the north-east coast. Odder became a

railway town A railway town, or railroad town, is a settlement that originated, or was expanded, as a result of a railway line being constructed there. North America During the construction of the First transcontinental railroad in the 1860s, temporary, ...

in 1884 when Hads-Ning Herreders Jernbane railway line was established, connecting the city to

Hou Hou or HOU may refer to: Places * Hou (Odder Municipality), a town in Denmark * Hellenic Open University, in Patras, Greece * Hounslow railway station (National Rail station code: HOU), London, England * A common abbreviation for the U.S. city ...

and Aarhus. In 2018, the railway stretch became a light rail stretch in the

Aarhus light rail The Aarhus Letbane (Aarhus light rail) is a light rail system in the city of Aarhus, Denmark. It is operated by the company Midttrafik. The first line opened in December 2017, but the system is under continuous development and expansion. Service ...

Arts and culture

Odder Museum

Odder Museum is located centrally in Odder, next to Odder Water- and Steam Mill (Danish: ''Odder Vand- og Dampmølle''), which is part of the museum. The museum was founded in 1928, and has 400 m² of exhibitions, mainly focussed on local history. The mill is from 1883 and stands as it did when production stopped in 1955.

Transport

Rail

The Odder railway line connects Odder with Aarhus and the rest of the Danish rail network. Odder railway station is the principal station of the town, and offers direct

local train Regional rail is a public rail transport service that operates between towns and cities. These trains operate with more stops than inter-city rail, and unlike commuter rail, operate beyond the limits of urban areas, connecting smaller cities a ...

services to Aarhus and as part of the

Aarhus Light Rail The Aarhus Letbane (Aarhus light rail) is a light rail system in the city of Aarhus, Denmark. It is operated by the company Midttrafik. The first line opened in December 2017, but the system is under continuous development and expansion. Service ...

system. The northern part of the town is also served by the

railway halt A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing such a ...

Rude Havvej.

Sports

* Odder RK (1996) * RK Tacklers (2002)

Churches

There are 2 lutheran churches in the town of Odder. One is part of the

Church of Denmark The Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Denmark or National Church ( , or unofficially ; ), sometimes called the Church of Denmark, is the established, state-supported church in Denmark. The supreme secular authority of the church is composed of ...

and the other is an independent church following Grundtvigtianism.

Parish Church

Odder Parish Church (Danish: ''Odder Sognekirke'') is located near the pedestrian street in the town, bordering Odder River to the north. It was built in the later half of the 1100s. The altarpiece is from 1640 and made by Peder Jensen Kolding. It portrays the

Last Supper Image:The Last Supper - Leonardo Da Vinci - High Resolution 32x16.jpg, 400px, alt=''The Last Supper'' by Leonardo da Vinci - Clickable Image, ''The Last Supper (Leonardo), The Last Supper'' (1495-1498). Mural, tempera on gesso, pitch and mastic ...

and in front of the two pillars are figures of the evangelists of

Luke Luke may refer to: People and fictional characters * Luke (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Luke (surname), including a list of people with the name * Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luk ...

and

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

. Models of Matthew and

Mark Mark may refer to: In the Bible * Mark the Evangelist (5–68), traditionally ascribed author of the Gospel of Mark * Gospel of Mark, one of the four canonical gospels and one of the three synoptic gospels Currencies * Mark (currency), a currenc ...

sit on top of the altarpiece. On top of the altarpiece is also a model of the

Crucifixion of Jesus The crucifixion of Jesus was the death of Jesus by being crucifixion, nailed to a cross.The instrument of Jesus' crucifixion, instrument of crucifixion is taken to be an upright wooden beam to which was added a transverse wooden beam, thus f ...

. The church's pulpit is from 1590 to 1600 and the sounding board from 1703. The two church bells are from 1847 and 1854 respectively, and both from Copenhagen. The church once had a turret clock from 1656, but when the clock was unable to be repaired in 1856, the clock was removed and despite the church's desire for a new clock, it was never acquired.

Grundtvigtianist Independent Church

Odder Grundtvigtianist Independent Church (Danish: ''Odder Grundtvigske Valgmenighedskirke'') is located east of Odder Parish Church, also near the center of the town. It is a church, independent from the

, though largely with the same beliefs. The congregation was founded in 1884 and the church built in 1885 and opened in 1886. The drawings for the church were made by Christen Jensen. The altarpiece displays a young Jesus, and is made by Troels Trier. The organ is from 1899, made by Frederik Nielsen from Aarhus.Ogv.dk
"Kirken" Retrieved 17 August 2020

Notable residents

Ejler Bille Ejler Bille (6 March 1910 – 1 May 2004) was a Danish artist. Biography Ejler Bille was born in Odder, Denmark. He was the son of Torben Holger Bille and Anna Kirstine Lysabild Jensen. Bille graduated from Birkerød State School in 1930, and then ...

(1910 — 2004), artist *

Jane Muus Mary Jane Crafoord Muus (10 June 1919 – 12 July 2007) was a Danish painter and illustrator. Most of her works portray people, either in portraits or walking about on streets or market places in foreign countries. She is remembered above all for h ...

(1919 — 2007), painter *

Knud Enggaard Knud Enggaard (4 June 1929 – 11 April 2024) was a Danish politician representing the centre-right Venstre party. He served as a Member of Parliament from 1984 to 1998, and held numerous cabinet positions in the Danish government. He served as Mi ...

(born 1929), politician *

Jens Jørn Spottag Jens Jørn Spottag (born 13 December 1957) is a Danish actor. He appeared in more than seventy films since 1987. Selected filmography References External links

* 1957 births Living people Danish male film actors {{Denmark-acto ...

(born 1957), actor * Kirsten Brosbøl (born 1977), politician * Mette Dencker (born 1978), politician and MF * Morten Nørgaard (born 1990), singer

Sport

* Hans Christian Nielsen (1928 — 1990), football player * Niels Fredborg (born 1946), cyclist * Henrik Mortensen (born 1968), football player *

Jakob Fenger-Larsen Jakob Fenger-Larsen (born 6 February 1971) was a Danish association football player who played professionally in Denmark and in the U.S. divisions. From 1989 to 1994, Fenger played for AGF Aarhus. In 1996 and 1997, Fenger attended Lindsey Wilso ...

(born 1971), football player *

Torben Grimmel Torben Grimmel (born 23 November 1975 in Odder) is a Denmark, Danish Shooting sport, sport shooter. Specialising in the ISSF 50 meter rifle prone, ISSF 50m prone rifle event, Grimmel won the silver medal at the 2000 Summer Olympics. He was the ...

(born 1975), sport shooter *

Pernille Harder Pernille Mosegaard Harder (born 15 November 1992) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or a forward for Frauen-Bundesliga club Bayern Munich and the Denmark national team. In September 2020, she became the w ...

(born 1977), badminton player *

Juliane Rasmussen Juliane Elander Rasmussen (born 17 February 1979, in Odder) is a Danish rower. She weighs 61 kilograms, and is therefore in the lightweight class. She lives in Copenhagen. 2008 Summer Olympics In the first race at the lightweight double scul ...

(born 1979), rower * Louise Pedersen (born 1979), handball player *

Steffen Ernemann Steffen Ernemann (born 26 April 1982) is a Danish former professional footballer. Career Steffen Ernemann played his youth career in Odder IGF and BMI. In 1999, Steffen Ernemann moved to AGF Youth Academy and in 2002 he became pro in AGF's firs ...

(born 1982), football player * Thomas Mogensen (born 1983), handball player * Thomas Kvist (born 1987), cyclist *

Anders Skaarup Rasmussen Anders Skaarup Rasmussen (born 15 February 1989) is a Danish badminton player. Rasmussen won the men's doubles title at the 2018 European Championships and at the 2023 European Games partnered with Kim Astrup. He also won the bronze medal at th ...

(born 1989), badminton player * Steffen Jensen (born 1989), rower *

Morten Ring Christensen Morten Ring Christensen (born 9 November 1990) is a Norwegian- Danish freestyle athlete who is competes in the sport Skicross. He represents IL Trysilgutten. He lives in Trysil Municipality, Norway and is a member of the Norwegian Skicross Worldc ...

(born 1990), athlete *

Mathias Bay-Smidt Mathias Bay-Smidt (born 19 March 1996) is a Danish badminton player. In 2014, he won his first senior international title at the Finnish International tournament in the men's doubles event partnered with Frederik Søgaard. In 2016, he won the Cz ...

(born 1996), badminton player

Sources

References

External links

Official municipality websiteCastles and manor house in Odder

odderfodbold.dk
{{Authority control Municipal seats of the Central Denmark Region Municipal seats of Denmark Cities and towns in the Central Denmark Region Odder Municipality