| Official Name: | Holbæk |
| Pushpin Map: | Denmark#Denmark Region Zealand |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | Denmark |
| Subdivision Type1: | Region |
| Subdivision Name1: | Zealand (Sjælland) |
| Subdivision Type2: | Municipality |
| Subdivision Name2: | Holbæk |
| Area Urban Km2: | 13.9 |
| Coordinates: | 55.7156°N 11.7225°W |
| Elevation M: | 11 |
| Population As Of: | 2024 |
| Population Urban: | 30503 |
| Population Density Urban Km2: | auto |
| Population Blank1 Title: | Gender [1] |
| Population Blank1: | 14557 males and 15946 females |
| Population Blank2 Title: | Municipality |
| Population Blank2: | 73440 |
| Population Demonym: | Holbækker |
| Established Date: | 1236 |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Timezone: | CET |
| Utc Offset: | +1 |
| Timezone Dst: | CEST |
| Utc Offset Dst: | +2 |
| Postal Code: | 4300 |
| Postal Code Type: | Postal code |
| Area Code: | (+45) 00 |
Holbæk (pronounced as /da/) is a town in Denmark and the seat of Holbæk municipality with a population of 30,503 (1 January 2024).[2] It is located in the northwestern part of Region Sjælland, Denmark.
Holbæk is located on Zealand, on the banks of Holbæk Fjord, an inlet of the larger Isefjord. Holbæk is a commercial and industrial center for the surrounding area. By rail, Holbæk is served by Danske Statsbaner's line from Roskilde to Kalundborg, which runs through the city. Vestsjællands Lokalbaner connects Holbæk by rail to Nykøbing Sjælland. The city is a major hub for the Movia bus routes. Holbæk has an active commercial seaport that serves as the harbor for the ferry to Orø (island). Near the harbor there is a substantial marina.
Holbæk is first mentioned in official documents in Absalon's letter of 8 June 1199, in which he granted the majority of his estates to Sorø Klosterkirke in Sorø. It was called Holbækgaard, a larger farm belonging to a nobleman, around which the city eventually developed.
Next it appears in Valdemar the Victorious's book of properties (see Kong Valdemars Jordebog on the Danish Wikipedia) in 1231. Valdmar broke ground for Holbæk Slot (Holbæk Castle) in 1236.
Holbæk grew from then on but is not mentioned again until around 1400 when Margaret I came for a court proceeding that granted her territories in Jutland. The event may have triggered the creation of the first city seal, which shows the three trees by the water that are the prominent features of the current seal.
Companies headquartered in Holbæk include Sparekassen Sjælland-Fyn and Pharmacosmos
Culturally, Holbæk can be noted for Musikhus Elværket, a converted power station that serves as a concert venue for modern music.
Bogart, Book-café and moreBooks gets new life and people new energy at Bogart . For more than 40 years, Bogart was a traditional antiquarian in Holbæk. In 2021 new owners transformed the place into a book café and intimate stage with a mix of concerts, lectures and open mic.
The local newspaper is Nordvestnyt, which is published Monday to Saturday and is published by Sjællandske Medier. In 2022, the newspaper had 39,000 weekly readers.[3]
Holbaekonline.dk is a local news website that brings news, sports, and entertainment from Holbæk and Holbæk Municipality. [4]
Holbæk Radio is a local radio station run by volunteers. It started in 2015. In addition to music, the radio station also provides local news, and citizens have the opportunity to create their own segments on the radio. Holbæk Radio can be heard on the FM band 104.7 as well as through online streaming.[5]
The city is home to the Holbæk B&I football club, who as of 2023 played in the fourth tier in the Danish football league system.[6] They have played at the Holbæk Sportsby (Sports City) football stadium since its construction in 2019.[7]
The Holbæk Sportsby (Sports City) was constructed in 2019 and has 23,000 square metres of space indoors over two floors and 47 hectares outdoors. It includes the new Sports City football stadium, athletics stadium, swimming pool, badminton hall, synthetic football pitches, tennis courts and the Padel Klub.[8]
The Holbæk Stadium was, which existed from 1948 to 2019, when it was demolished for housing, was the former home of Holbæk B&I. It was also an athletics stadium[9] and hosted motorcycle speedway between 1950 and 1954.[10] It held the final of the Danish Individual Speedway Championship in 1954.[11]
The Northwest Line connects Holbæk with Kalundborg and Roskilde and the rest of the Danish rail network, and the Odsherred Line connects Holbæk with Nykøbing Sjælland. Holbæk railway station is the principal railway station of the town, and offers direct regional train services to Copenhagen, and operated by the national railway company DSB[12] and local train services to operated by the regional railway company Lokaltog.[13] The western part of the town is also served by the railway halt .
See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Denmark.
Holbæk is twinned with:
Dorchester, Dorset, United Kingdom. resulted from a shared interest in community plays. Groups of actors from the two towns each took part in the other's community play in the early 1990s and this resulted in the formal twinning in 1992.[19]
Botevgrad, Bulgaria