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 Latvia| Facts & Figures |
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| President:
Valdis Zatlers (2007) Prime
Minister: Valdis Dombrovskis (2009) Land area: 24,903 sq mi (64,500 sq km);
total area: 24,938 sq mi (64,589 sq km) Population (2010 est.): 2,217,969 (growth
rate: –0.6%); birth rate: 9.9/1000; infant mortality rate:
8.6/1000; life expectancy: 72.4; density per sq km: 35
Capital and largest city (2003 est.):
Riga, 867,700 (metro. area), 706,200 (city
proper) Other large cities:
Daugavpils, 111,700; Liepaja, 82,300 Monetary unit: Lats More Facts & Figures |
GeographyLatvia borders Estonia in the north, Lithuania
in the south, the Baltic Sea with the Gulf of Riga in the west, Russia in
the east, and Belarus in the southeast. Latvia is largely a fertile
lowland with numerous lakes and hills to the east.
GovernmentParliamentary democracy.
HistoryBaltic tribespeople settled along the Baltic Sea
and, lacking a centralized government, fell prey to more powerful peoples.
In the 13th century, they were overcome by the Livonian Brothers of the
Sword, a German order of knights whose mission was to conquer and
Christianize the Baltic region. The land became part of the state of
Livonia until 1561. Germans composed the ruling class of Livonia and
Baltic tribes made up the peasantry. German was the official language of
the region.
Poland conquered the territory in 1562 and
occupied it until Sweden took over the land in 1629, ruling until 1721.
The land then passed to Russia. From 1721 until 1918, the Latvians
remained Russian subjects, although they preserved their language,
customs, and folklore.
The Russian Revolution of 1917 gave Latvia the
opportunity for freedom, and the Latvian republic was proclaimed on Nov.
18, 1918. The republic lasted little more than 20 years. Plagued by
political instability, Latvia essentially became a dictatorship under
President Karlis Ulmanis. The country was occupied by Russian troops in 1939 and
incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1940. German armies occupied the
nation from 1941 to 1944. Of the 70,000 Jews living in Latvia during World
War II, 95% were massacred. In 1944, Russia again took control.
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