History thumb|upright=0.7|left|Malmö's 1437 grant of arms Malmö was for centuries Denmark's second-biggest city. The earliest written mention of Malmö as a city dates from 1275. It is thought to have been founded shortly before that date, as a fortified quay or ferry berth of the Archbishop of Lund, to the north-east. Its original name was Malmhaug (with alternate spellings), meaning "Gravel pile" or "Ore Hill". An alternate and more gruesome story, stemming from the likeness of modern spelling "Malmö" to Swedish words "mal mö" (lit. "grind maiden"), suggests that a maiden was once ground up in a mill on what is now the town square. A millstone that was placed on the town square in 1538 has at times been connected to this pun.
History thumb|upright=0.7|left|Malmö's 1437 grant of arms Malmö was for centuries Denmark's second-biggest city. The earliest written mention of Malmö as a city dates from 1275. It is thought to have been founded shortly before that date, as a fortified quay or ferry berth of the Archbishop of Lund, to the north-east. Its original name was Malmhaug (with alternate spellings), meaning "Gravel pile" or "Ore Hill". An alternate and more gruesome story, stemming from the likeness of modern spelling "Malmö" to Swedish words "mal mö" (lit. "grind maiden"), suggests that a maiden was once ground up in a mill on what is now the town square. A millstone that was placed on the town square in 1538 has at times been connected to this pun