Hjørring County () is a former

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of Denmark , establishe ...

, located on the northern tip of

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

and encompassing most of the island of

Vendsyssel-Thy The North Jutlandic Island (), Vendsyssel-Thy, or Jutland north of the Limfjord (''Jylland nord for Limfjorden''), is the northernmost part of Denmark and of Jutland. It is more common to refer to the three traditional districts Vendsyssel, Han ...

and the island of

Læsø Læsø ("Isle of Hlér") is the largest island in the North Sea bay of Kattegat, and is located off the northeast coast of the Jutland Peninsula, the Danish mainland. Læsø is also the name of the municipality ( Danish, '' kommune'') on that ...

. Hjørring County was established in 1793 and abolished in 1970 when it merged with

Aalborg County Aalborg County () is a former province in Denmark, located in north-eastern Jutland around the eastern approach to the Limfjord. Aalborg County was established in 1793 and abolished in 1970 when it merged with Hjørring County forming the new Nort ...

forming the new

North Jutland County North Jutland County ( da, Nordjyllands Amt) is a former county (Danish: ''amt'') in northern Denmark. It was located on the eastern half of Vendsyssel-Thy and the northernmost part of the Jutland peninsula. It was the largest county in Denmark, ...

. The region belonged to

Vendsyssel Vendsyssel () is the northernmost traditional district of Denmark and of Jutland. Being divided from mainland Jutland by the Limfjord, it is technically a part of the North Jutlandic Island, but the name often used informally for the entire island. ...

during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. In 1542, the north Jutland region was reorganised as

Aalborghus Len Aalborghus Castle ( da, Aalborghus Slot) is a castle in Aalborg, Denmark. It is a half-timbered (''bindingsværk'') castle built by King Christian III from 1539 to around 1555 initially as a fortification. A building had existed at the site befo ...

. This province was divided in 1662 forming

Aalborghus County Aalborghus Castle ( da, Aalborghus Slot) is a castle in Aalborg, Denmark. It is a half-timbered (''bindingsværk'') castle built by King Christian III from 1539 to around 1555 initially as a fortification. A building had existed at the site befo ...

and Aastrup, Sejlstrup and Børglum County. The latter province was divided again in 1793 and the bulk of its territory was reorganised as Hjørring County. Smaller parts of the province became parts of the counties of

Thisted Thisted is a town in the municipality of Thisted in the North Denmark Region of Denmark. It has a population of 13,461 (1 January 2022)Aalborg Aalborg (, , ) is Denmark's fourth largest town (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an urban population of 143,598 (1 July 2022). As of 1 July 2022, the Municipality of ...

. This division lasted from 1793 to 1970 when the Hjørring and Aalborg Counties merged, forming the new North Jutland County. Hjørring County featured the

market town A market town is a Human settlement, settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular marketplace, market; this distinguished it from a village or ...

s (''købstæder'') of

Brønderslev Brønderslev is a city in Denmark with a population of 12,549 (1 January 2022). The city is the largest urban area in Brønderslev Municipality and is the municipal seat. It is the fourth largest city of Vendsyssel within the North Jutland Region ...

Frederikshavn Frederikshavn () is a Danish town in Frederikshavn municipality, Region Nordjylland, on the northeast coast of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark. Its name translates to "Frederik's harbor". It was originally named Fladstrand. The town ...

Hjørring Hjørring () is a town on the island of Vendsyssel-Thy at the top of the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Hjørring Municipality in the North Jutland Region. The population is 25,644 (acc ...

Skagen Skagen () is Denmark's northernmost town, on the east coast of the Skagen Odde peninsula in the far north of Jutland, part of Frederikshavn Municipality in Nordjylland, north of Frederikshavn and northeast of Aalborg. The Port of Skagen ...

, and

Sæby Sæby () is a town and seaport located on the east coast of the historical region of Vendsyssel in the Jutland peninsula in northern Denmark. The town is located in Frederikshavn municipality in Region Nordjylland. It has a population of 8,838 ( ...

List of former hundreds ''(herreder)''

*Børglum Herred *Dronninglund Herred *Horns Herred *Hvetbo Herred *

Herred *Vennebjerg Herred *Øster Han Herred

References

Counties of Denmark dissolved in 1970 {{NJutlandDK-stub