Elsen

Elsen is a village in Germany that forms a part of the city Paderborn in North Rhine-Westphalia. Until 1975 Elsen was an autonomous Gemeinde (municipality). As of 2021, Elsen has around 16,000 inhabitants.

Elsen
Stadtteil of Paderborn
Coat of arms
Location of Elsen
Elsen Show map of Germany Elsen Show map of North Rhine-Westphalia
Coordinates: 51°44′N 8°41′E
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Detmold
District	Paderborn
City	Paderborn
Area
• Total	20.19 km2 (7.80 sq mi)
Elevation	112 m (367 ft)
Population  (2021)[1]
• Total	16,323
• Density	808.5/km2 (2,094/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	33106
Dialling codes	05254

History

Based on discovery of early Germanic and Roman remains near the village, which date back to the third century B.C., it can be assumed that the area was populated by Germanic tribes during this time.

Only very few remains or artifacts exist that shed light on the early development of the village. However, a farm named Ilasan, a subsidiary location of the main farmstead Nigenhus (Neuhaus) is mentioned in a scripture dating back to 1036. In this writing the farm is given to a local clerical collegiate by the bishop of Paderborn. In a 15th-century copy of this document the village is already named "Elesen".

Catholic church St. Dionysius in the centre of Elsen

Monument for the 950th anniversary of Elsen village