Tikøb is a small town and parish located 8 km west of
Helsingør
Helsingør ( , ; ), classically known in English as Elsinore ( ), is a coastal city in northeastern Denmark. Helsingør Municipality had a population of 63,953 on 1 January 2025, making it the 23rd most populated municipality in Denmark. Helsin ...
and six km north of
Fredensborg
Fredensborg () is a railway town located in Fredensborg Municipality, North Zealand, some 30 kilometres north of Copenhagen, Denmark. It is most known for Fredensborg Palace, one of the official residences of the Danish royal family. As of 1 Janua ...
, between
Lake Esrum
Lake Esrum (, ) is the largest lake in Denmark by water volume and the second-largest lake by surface area, after lake Arresø. It is situated in the central part of North Zealand (the northeastern region of Zealand), straddling the boundaries of ...
to the southwest and
Gurre Lake to the east. in
Helsingør Municipality
Helsingør Municipality (a variant English name: Elsinore Municipality; Danish: ''Helsingør Kommune''), is a municipality in the Capital Region on the northeast coast of the island of Zealand (''Sjælland'') in eastern Denmark. The municipal ...
, some 40 km north of
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 ...
,
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 ...
.
History
Tikøb was probably founded during the late Viking period. The name is first documented as ''Tiwithcop'' in
Esrom Abbey's Book of Letters (''Esrum Klosters Brevbog'') in 1170. It is believed that that name means "acquired land in/by the forest dedicated to the Gods".
The sparsely populated was the largest parish on
Zealand
Zealand ( ) is the largest and most populous islands of Denmark, island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size) at 7,031 km2 (2715 sq. mi.). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 Januar ...
and one of the largest in Denmark.
The village was originally located on three sides of a small lake. For centuries the village consisted of six farms, one of which was the rectory, a few other houses, an inn and a forge. The first school in Tikøb, a so-called ''
rytterskole'', was built in 1722.
When the new civil parishes (''sognekommuner'') were established in 1942, Tikøb became the administrative centre of Tikøb–Hornbæk–Hellebæk (later referred to as Tikøb Kommune, "Tikøb Municipality").
The parish had a large population of poor people who were attracted by the opportunity to work in the local forest industry. In 1861, a large social institution Tikøb Workhouse ''Tikøb Forsørgelses- og Arbejdsanstalt''), was built in the outskirts of town, replacing the old poorhouses. It was one of the first institution of its kind in Denmark located outside a market town. The newly established local fire department was also established and based at the same site. A few years later, i 1867, a municipal office (''kommunekontor''), with daily opening hours, another new feature at the site, opened in the same building complex. From 1877, the institution also had a section for psychiatric patients.
[
A post office also opened in the 186+s. A windmill was built in 1873, a co-operative dairy opened in 1893 and Tikøb Brugsforening eas founded in 1920. The town was also home to a post office and several other stores.
In the first half of the 20th century, it was increasingly the communities that became the focus of development. In 1954, both the town hall and the retirement home moved to Esperglærde. The old municipal seat in Tikøb was sold to ]Copenhagen Municipality
Copenhagen Municipality (), also known in English language, English as the Municipality of Copenhagen, located in the Capital Region of Denmark, is the largest of the four municipalities that constitute the City of Copenhagen (), the other three ...
and used as a retirement home under the name Gyrrelund. The new Hornbækvej had been constructed in the 1930s as an eastern bypass. Tikøb Lake dried out in the 1950s and together with the new road Harreshøjvej in 1964, this led to the establishment of a new neighbourhood. The 1970 Danish Municipal Reform merged Tikøb Municipality with Helsingør Municipality.[
]
Description
Tikøb Church was probably built by monk from Esrum Abbey. The nave and chancel date from the end of the 12th century. Gurrelund, the former municipal seat, retirement home and fire station, has been converted into a complex with 16 apartments. It has a 30,000 square metre park. Tikøb's old school from 1722 is located at Præstegaardsvej 11. It remained in use until 1912 when the new Tikøb School was built.
Two of the original farms, Stengaard samt Søgaard )now called Møllegård), are still found in their original location. Two have been moved to locations outside the village, one has been dissolved and the rectory burned in 1939.

Notable people
Notable people that were born or lived in Tikøb include:
* Valdemar IV of Denmark
Valdemar IV Atterdag, Valdemar Christoffersen or Waldemar (24 October 1375) was King of Denmark from 1340 to 1375. He is mostly known for his reunion of Denmark after the bankruptcy and mortgaging of the country to finance wars under previous rul ...
(1320 in Tikøb – 1375) was king of Denmark from 1340 to 1375.
* Christopher, Duke of Lolland (1341 in Tikøb – 1363), Duke of Lolland, was the son of King Valdemar IV of Denmark
Valdemar IV Atterdag, Valdemar Christoffersen or Waldemar (24 October 1375) was King of Denmark from 1340 to 1375. He is mostly known for his reunion of Denmark after the bankruptcy and mortgaging of the country to finance wars under previous rul ...
* Ludvig Munthe (1593 in Tikøb – 1649), Bishop of Bjørgvin (Bergen
Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo.
By May 20 ...
)
* Jacob Andersen (1892 in Tikøb - 1955) a sailor, competed at the 1928 Summer Olympics
The 1928 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the IX Olympiad (), was an international multi-sport event that was celebrated from 28 July to 12 August 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The city of Amsterdam had previously bid for ...
* Jan Grarup (born 1968 in Kvistgaard, near Tikøb) a Danish photojournalist
See also
Esbønderup
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tikob
Helsingør Municipality