Short facts about Lithuania’s geography, politics, demography
Location: Lithuania is a state on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea.
Area: 65,300 km2.
Neighbouring states: Latvia, Belarus, Poland and Russia.
Herb and flag of the country
Climate: between maritime and continental. Average temperature in July is 23°C and in January is -4.9°C.
Landscape: Lithuania is a flat country, lowland plains make up 75% of its territory.
Language: the official language of the Republic of Lithuania is the Lithuanian language.
Population: 2,878,000.
Capital: Vilnius.
Form of government: parliamentary democracy. Head of state: President, the executive branch: Government (appointed by the President), the legislative branch: Seimas (unicameral parliament, direct election).
Administrative division: the territory of Lithuania is divided into 10 counties. Counties are subdivided into 60 municipalities. Municipalities consist of 546 elderships.
Largest cities according to the population: Vilnius (535,216), Kaunas (308,831), Klaipėda (159,342), Šiauliai (102,983), Panevėžys (98,598).
Ethnic composition: Lithuanians: 83.5%, Poles: 6.7%, Russians: 6.3%, Belorussians: 1.2%, other: 2.3%. It total there are 115 ethnicities in Lithuania.
Religion: Roman Catholic Church. There are also communities of Eastern Orthodox Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church, Evangelical Reformation Church, Old Believers, Judaism, Islam, and others.
Life expectancy: average life expectancy for Lithuanians is 71 years; for men – 66 and for women – 77.
National currency: € Euros
Independence:
- declared: on 16th of February, 1918;
- restored: on 11th of March, 1990;
- Lithuania joined NATO 29th of March, 2004;
- on 1st of May 2004 became a member state of the EU.
- new euro currency started in 2015
Sea ports around Lithuania
Lithuania is a geographical center of Europe
Lithuanian Government and Politics
Lithuania is an independent democratic republic with a multi-party parliament. Our state’s legislative power is vested in the Seimas (as we call our Parliament), the executive – in the Government. Lithuania’s foreign policy is carried out by the President and the Government.
The President
The President’s term of office in our country is 5 years. The President is elected by all citizens of Lithuania who are over 18 years of age. The President can be elected for maximum two consecutive terms. Currently, our country is led by the seventh head of the state after the Restoration of Independence and the first woman President – Dalia Grybauskaitė.
Dalia Grybauskaitė, the first woman to be elected President of Lithuania. What is surprising – she has a black belt in karate.
Seimas
Seimas – is the name of our parliament, supreme legislative body.
Seimas, as it was mentioned above, is the name of our unicameral parliament, supreme legislative body. It has 141 members who, are elected in direct and in secret elections for a 4 year term. The first sitting of the Seimas after the elections is opened by the eldest member of the Seimas.
The Government
The Government is composed of Prime Minister (currently Andrius Kubilius), acting as its head, and a cabinet of 14 ministers – the country’s executive body.
Lithuania is a multi-party republic. The most popular parties in Lithuania are Homeland Union – Lithuanian Christian Democrats, Social Democrats and Liberals.
Geography Of The Country
We invite you to visit Lithuania in different seasons of the year to see how different our country looks year-round: we know what a sunny spring, hot summer, long and warm autumn and a nippy winter are like. We also know what means hot sun, soaking rain, strong wind and winter blizzard is like. If you like contrasts, visit us in January and July – the coldest and hottest months of the year.
Small country
Lithuania is a small Middle European state at the shore of the Baltic Sea. Covering an area of 65 302 km². In size it is similar to Ireland. Lithuania’s territory extends 373 km from East to West and 276 km from North to South. There are 6129 kilometres from the geographical centre of Lithuania to the equator and 3873 km to the North Pole.
Neighbours
Our country shares borders with five neighbouring states. In the North, Lithuania has a 588 km border with Latvia, in the East and South – 660 km border with Belarus. In the South West, Lithuania borders with Poland (103 km) and the Russian Federation (273 km). More than three fourths of Lithuania’s borders stretch along rivers and lakes. Lithuania’s economic zone in the Baltic Sea (with and area around 6 400 km²) reaches the waters of Sweden. We are proud of our beautiful coastline, which stretches for over 100 kilometres.
Flat land
Lithuania’s is a flat land, indeed. This is most evident as you travel from the eastern to the western part of the country – towards the Baltic Sea. Our highest hill is Aukštojo kalnas, which rises 293.8 m above the sea level. There are no mountains in Lithuania.
More than a half of Lithuania’s land is suitable for agriculture. About one third of our land area is occupied by forests.
Lithuania is commonly called the land of rivers and lakes with inland waters making up 4 % of its territory. The total number of rivers and rivulets is 22 200 (the longest river – Nemunas), and the number of lakes is well over 830. The deepest of them is Tauragnas (62.5 m deep).
Climate
Weather changes
Lithuania’s climate is characterized by seasonal weather changes, so when you come to our country in different seasons you can see how different it looks – we know what a really sunny spring, hot summer, long and warm autumn and a nippy winter are like.
In recent decades the climate of Lithuania has become warmer – the average annual temperature in the whole territory is 6.5-7.9° C. The warmest month of the year is July (with an average temperature – about 19.7° C, and a maximum – over 30° C), and the coldest is January (with an average temperature – about -2.9° C, its lowest temperature during severe frosts may occasionally drop below -30° C).
The most rainfall is recorded from April to October (60-65% of annual rainfall). Heavy rains are common nearly every summer with precipitation exceeding 30 mm per day.
The strongest winds blow in the months between November and January (at speeds of 5-6 m/s near the coast and 3-5 m/s elsewhere), the weakest winds occur between May and September (4-5 m/s near the coast and 2-3 m/s elsewhere). Occasionally, the winds get dangerously strong, with gusts reaching over 15 m/s. Such winds occur on the coast with an average of 60 days a year. As the temperatures warms up, tornado-like winds are more likely to be seen.
Seaside and the Curonian Spit
If you want to sunbathe during your stay in Lithuania, we recommend you a trip to our seaside. The seaside and the Curonian Spit have the most sunny hours per year – about 1 860. The sunniest months in Lithuania are between May and August, the lowest amount of sunshine is from November to January.
History of Lithuania
We are proud of our history and keep telling our foreign guests about things which make us tingle inside and gather our spirits, fill us with strength and faith and which make us unique and known worldwide.
Pre-history of Lithuania
The first settlers of Lithuania arrived in approximately 12, 000 B. C. In 3,000–2,500 B. C., the Indo-European Balts came to live here. Between the 5th and 8th centuries tribal groupings formed in the western territories: Prussians, Yotvingians, Curronians, Zemgalians, Lithuanians and Latgallians. In the 10th c. the pagan Baltic tribes became the target of the missions of the Catholic Europe. In 1009, the name of Lithuania was mentioned for the first time in the written account of the mission of St. Bruno.
The name of Lithuania was first mentioned in the Quedlinburg Annals in 1009, in the context of St. Bruno‘s mission to pagan lands.
Monarchy and Tolerance
In the Middle Ages, Lithuania already had its state: the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (Magnus Ducatus Lithuaniae). It is generally accepted that the state of Lithuania found its way into the world maps, following the coronation of Mindaugas, ruler of the consolidated Lithuania, on 6 July 1253. The Papal Bull granted the State with the highest title of the monarchy, which meant that Lithuania was recognized by and accepted into the family of the Western Europe as an equal member of the political system. With the official adoption of Christianity in 1387, Lithuania chose to follow the Western path of development: the following period saw the spread of the written language, schools were opened, Lithuanian students travelled to study to European universities.
From the Baltic to the Black Sea
We won one more important victory in the Battle of Žalgiris (Grünwald) in 1410 when in alliance with the Kingdom of Poland we defeated the Order of Teutonic Knights. After the battle, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania reached the peak of its power, with its territory stretching from the Baltic to the Black Sea and from Poland to Smolensk, thus emerging as an important political power in Eastern and Central Europe. The success of the expansion of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania was essentially based on ethnic and religious tolerance towards those who were traditionally considered potential enemies.
At the beginning of the 15th c. the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania stretched from the Baltic to the Black Sea.
First written Constitunion in Europe
The Lithuanian Statutes having served as the legal framework testify to the fact that it was as early as the 16th century that Lithuania became an integral part of the Western Europe. The legal thought reached further heights at the end of the 18th century when a Constitution was adopted on 3 May 1791. It was the first constitution in Europe (preceding the French Constitution), and the second in the world.
Oldest University in Eastern Europe
The beginning of higher education in Lithuania goes back to 1579, the year of Vilnius University founding. Its foundation was the most significant event in the cultural life of the 16th century Lithuanian Grand Duchy bearing high political importance. Vilnius University was the first higher education school not only in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, but in the whole Eastern Europe.
Book Smuggling-19th Century Phenomenon
Book smuggling emerged as resistance to the repressive actions of tsarist Russia authorities against the Lithuanian Catholic Church consisting of the ban of Lithuanian prayer books and the imposition of Russian Orthodox faith. Book smuggling activities involved the printing of books, mostly in the then Prussia, Lithuania Minor and America, carrying them illegally through the border and their distribution. Though the participants of book smuggling were mostly ordinary peasants, this cultural movement, which is considered to be a part of Lithuanian national movement, paved the way for the restoration of Lithuania‘s independence in 1918 and, as a means of preserving national identity, has retained importance until this day. Thus, book smuggling is often regarded to be Lithuania’s historical phenomenon of the 19th century. In 2004, the UNESCO characterized book smuggling as a unique and unprecedented phenomenon in the world.
On 16 February 1918, 20 courageous, determined and trusted representatives of the Lithuanian nation signed the Act of Independence of Lithuania “re-establishing an independent state, based on democratic principles, with Vilnius as its capital city, severing all previous links with other states.” Having withstood the fight for independence against Bolsheviks and Polish invaders, Lithuania sealed its parliamentary democracy in the Constituent Assembly (Steigiamasis Seimas) in 1920. The historical tragic flight by Steponas Darius and Stasys Girėnas, who were among the first in the world to fly a propeller plane over the Atlantic (from the US to Europe) in 1933, became a national symbol of patriotism. The principles of the civic society, cultural values and farming foundations rooted in during this period helped Lithuania to survive the Soviet occupation and subsequently served as ideological basis for the restoration of the independence.
Soviet Occupation and Annexation of Lithuania
On 15 June 1945, the Soviet Union occupied Lithuania and, on 14–18 June, started mass deportations of the Lithuanian population to remote areas of the Soviet Union. Yet we have survived these hardships: we endured occupations, first by the Soviets, then by the Nazi Germany. Many Lithuanians joined partisan groups to fight for Lithuania’s independence. The period of partisan fights is one of the most dramatic and tragic events in Lithuania‘s history.
Singing Revolution
The Initiative Group of Sąjūdis (Lithuanian Reform Movement), established in June 1988, inspired us with faith and hope: the independence movement Sąjūdis soon spread into the whole Lithuania. On 23 August 1989, we joined our hands to form a human chain stretching 650 kilometres across Vilnius, Riga and Tallinn to mark the 50th anniversary of Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact as a result of which Lithuania lost its independence. The Baltic Way was a symbolic action that separated the Baltic States from the Soviet Union and by which our people expressed their will to be free. We did not have to wait long. On 11 March 1990, the independent State of Lithuania was re-established. However, the will of our people was opposed by the Soviet Union authorities which, on 13 January 1991, sent to Vilnius their well trained and heavily armed paratrooper units. But even under the threat of violence we responded to the Soviet Union’s aggression peacefully – without arms, singing songs and with an endless faith in our victory. That is why these events are commonly referred to the Singing Revolution. This was the third time in history when Lithuania started an epoch of autonomous life.
EU and NATO Membership
Following its EU and NATO membership in 2004, Lithuania again reunited with the European family. Once an EU member, Lithuania has become an official donor country and has been giving aid to Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, South Caucasus, Afghanistan and Iraq; it has also been fulfilling multilateral obligations within the EU framework.
This is our history – we are brave and strong-willed and this is how we always overcome all hardships!