The flag of Latvia The coat of arms of Latvia Latvia Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of northern Europe . It is one of the three Baltic states , along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to the southeast and shares a maritime border with Sweden to the west. Latvia covers an area of 64,573 km2 (24,932 sq mi), with a population of 1.83 million. The country has a temperate seasonal climate . Its capital and largest city is Riga . Latvians , who are the titular nation and comprise 65.5% of the country's population, belong to the ethnolinguistic group of the Balts and speak Latvian . Russians are the most prominent minority in the country, at almost a quarter of the population; 37.7% of the population speak Russian as their native tongue.
After centuries of Teutonic , Swedish , Polish-Lithuanian , and Russian rule, the independent Republic of Latvia was established on 18 November 1918 after breaking away from the Russian Empire in the aftermath of World War I . The country became increasingly autocratic after the coup in 1934 established the dictatorship of Kārlis Ulmanis . Latvia's de facto independence was interrupted at the outset of World War II , beginning with forcible incorporation into the Soviet Union , followed by the invasion and occupation by Nazi Germany in 1941 and the re-occupation by the Soviets in 1944, which formed the Latvian SSR for the next 45 years. As a result of extensive immigration during the Soviet occupation , ethnic Russians became the most prominent minority in the country. The peaceful Singing Revolution started in 1987 among the Baltic Soviet republics and ended with the restoration of both de facto and official independence on 21 August 1991. Latvia has since been a democratic unitary parliamentary republic .
Latvia is a developed country with a high-income , advanced economy ranking 39th in the Human Development Index . It is a member of the European Union , Eurozone , NATO , the Council of Europe , the United Nations , the Council of the Baltic Sea States , the International Monetary Fund , the Nordic-Baltic Eight , the Nordic Investment Bank , the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development , the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe , and the World Trade Organization . (Full article...
The Baltic Way: The human chain connecting the three Baltic capitals –
Tallinn ,
Riga and
Vilnius .
The Baltic Way Lithuanian : Baltijos kelias ; Latvian : Baltijas ceļš ; Estonian : Balti kett ) or Baltic Chain (also "Chain of Freedom") was a peaceful political demonstration that occurred on 23 August 1989. Approximately two million people joined their hands to form a human chain spanning 675 kilometres (419 mi) across the three Baltic states of Estonia , Latvia , and Lithuania , with a combined population of around eight million citizens, who had been subject to the Soviet Union's repression for more than 45 years before the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. At the time, the three Baltic countries were occupied by the Soviet Union .
The demonstration originated from "Black Ribbon Day " protests held in Western cities in the 1980s. It marked the 50th anniversary of the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact , in which Poland, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Romania were (as "spheres of influence ") divided between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany . The Soviet-Nazi pact led to the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 and the Soviet invasion and occupation of the Baltic countries in June 1940. (Full article...
Holidays and observances in Latvia
14 June - Commemoration Day of Victims of Communist Terror 17 June - Occupation of the Republic of Latvia 22 June - Heroes’ Commemoration Day23 June - Midsummer Eve24 June - Midsummer
The following are images from various Latvia-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 1 Soviet offensive, 1918–1919 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 2 Duchy of Courland and Semigallia in 1740 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 3 Neolithic bone tools (from
History of Latvia )
Image 4 Hard times for the fatherland, sons, sons, help! A patriotic postcard, 1916. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 5 Maximum reach of Muscovite occupation, 1577 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 6 Soviet Latvia's 5 ruble note (from
History of Latvia )
Image 7 Barricade in Riga to prevent the Soviet Army from reaching the Latvian Parliament, July 1991. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 8 Estimated territories under Jersika rule (from
History of Latvia )
Image 9 According to the 1939
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact "
the Baltic States (Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) " were divided into German and Soviet "spheres of influence" (German copy) (from
History of Latvia )
Image 10 Swedish Baltic possessions, with Polish Livonia (from
History of Latvia )
Image 11 British Navy ships in Liepāja port, December 1918 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 13 Latvian peasant couple working, 18–19th century (from
History of Latvia )
Image 14 Krišjānis Barons, 1910 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 16 Valka Town Hall, where December 2, 1917 Declaration of Autonomy was issued. Now
Valga in Estonia. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 17 Baltic bronze necklace from the village of
Aizkraukle , Latvia, dating to 12th century AD now in the British Museum. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 18 May 1, 1919 celebrations in Soviet Riga (from
History of Latvia )
Image 19 Nicholas gate of Daugavpils fortress (from
History of Latvia )
Image 20 Local counteroffensives, 1919–1920 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 21 Baltic tribes (purple) in 7–8th centuries (from
History of Latvia )
Image 22 Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (from
History of Latvia )
Image 23 Divisions of Livonia, 1560–85 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 24 Map of Riga and Reval Lieutenancies, 1783 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 25 Iskolat flag (from
History of Latvia )
Image 26 Flag of the Republic of Latvia. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 28 Comb pottery example from Estonia, 4000–2000 BC (from
History of Latvia )
Image 29 Latvian Song Festival, 2008 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 30 Winnig's note of November 26, 1918 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 31 Āraiši lake fortress (reconstruction) dates back to the late Iron Age (from
History of Latvia )
Image 32 Corded Ware culture area included Latvia (from
History of Latvia )
Image 33 Baltic Tribes, circa 1200 CE. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 35 All of Livonia was occupied by Sweden during the
Second Northern War (from
History of Latvia )
Image 36 Church of Ikšķile, the first stone building in Latvia built by
Saint Meinhard in 1185 (from
History of Latvia )
Select [►] to view subcategories
-es.svg)
.svg)
.JPG)
.jpg)
.JPG)
_Befehl_i._J._1783.jpeg)
.png)
