Thisted is a town in the municipality of Thisted in the North Denmark Region of Denmark. It has a population of 13,522 (1 January 2024) and is located in Thy, in northwestern Jutland. Market town status was given to Thisted in 1500.

Name

The town's name derives from the Germanic deity Tyr and could be translated as Tyr's Stead.

History

During the Jutland Peasant rebellion of 1441, Christopher of Bavaria, King of Denmark, approached the rebel camp at Husby Hole near St. Jørgen's Hill in northern Jutland and sent word that anyone who left the camp and went home, would not be punished for rebellion. The men from Thisted, as well as those of Mors, left for which they were afterwards called cowards and traitors. In 1882, Thisted was connected with the Danish rail network as the Thy railway line between Thisted and Struer opened.

Geography

Thisted is located in northwestern Jutland, in the traditional district of Thy, which forms the western part of the North Jutlandic Island. It is located on the northern shore of Thisted Bredning, a body of water between Thy and the island of Mors, which itself is a part of the Limfjord, a sound separating the North Jutlandic Island from the rest of the Jutland Peninsula. Thisted is located on three ridges, divided by two streams.

Demographics

Thisted has a population of 13,461, of which 6,622 males and 6,839 females (1 January 2022).

Economy

Thisted has a cluster of industries within food production: the Tican Slaughterhouse, Dragsbæk Maltfactory, Dragsbæk Margarinefactory, the brewery Thisted Bryghus, known for its high quality organic beer, and Premier Ice.

Cityscape

Burial mound

Langdos, the largest Bronze Age burial mound in Denmark, is located in Thisted. The burial mound is 175 meters long and was built between 1800 and 1000 BC.

Thisted Church

Thisted features a Gothic-style church, Thisted Church, which replaced a smaller Romanesque-style church around 1490. The exterior of the church contains a stone with Runic inscriptions.

Sports

Soccer

Thisted has a football team Thisted FC in the Danish 2nd Division (2022–2023 season)

Infrastructure

Rail

Thisted is served by Thisted railway station which opened in 1882. It is the northern terminus of the Thy railway line which connects Thisted with Struer to the south. Thisted station offers frequent local train services to Struer station with onward connections by train from Struer to the rest of Denmark. Until 2019, it also offered direct InterCity services to Copenhagen.

Air

The small Thisted Airport is owned by Thisted municipality, and is located 15 kilometers from Thisted. The airport opened in 1970, and until 2007 serviced daily flights between Thisted and the Danish capital, Copenhagen. Today, the nearest airport from Thisted with scheduled national and international flights is Aalborg Airport c. 86 km east of Thisted (road distance).

Education

There are several educational institutions in Thisted. There are three schools, Østre skole, Rolighedskolen, and Tingstrup skole. There's also a gymnasium, Higher Preparatory Examination, Higher Commercial Examination Programme and Higher Technical Examination Programme.

Notable people

Sport

Emigrants to the United States