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Introduction

Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania

Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, and the Russian semi-exclave of Kaliningrad Oblast to the southwest, with a maritime border with Sweden to the west. Lithuania covers an area of 65,300 km² (25,200 sq mi), with a population of 2.89 million. Its capital and largest city is Vilnius; other major cities include Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai and Panevėžys. Lithuanians who are the titular nation and form the majority of the country's population, belong to the ethnolinguistic group of Balts and speak Lithuanian.

For millennia, the southeastern shores of the Baltic Sea were inhabited by various Baltic tribes. In the 1230s, Lithuanian lands were united for the first time by Mindaugas, who formed the Kingdom of Lithuania on 6 July 1253. Subsequent expansion and consolidation resulted in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which by the 14th century was the largest country in Europe. In 1386, the Grand Duchy entered into a de facto personal union with the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland. The two realms were united into the bi-confederal Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1569, forming one of the largest and most prosperous states in Europe. The Commonwealth lasted more than two centuries, until neighbouring countries gradually dismantled it between 1772 and 1795, with the Russian Empire annexing most of Lithuania's territory.

Towards the end of World War I, Lithuania declared Independence in 1918, founding the modern Republic of Lithuania. In World War II, Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union, then by Nazi Germany, before being reoccupied by the Soviets in 1944. Lithuanian armed resistance to the Soviet occupation lasted until the early 1950s. On 11 March 1990, a year before the formal dissolution of the Soviet Union, Lithuania became the first Soviet republic to break away when it proclaimed the restoration of its independence. (Full article...)

Selected pictures

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  Klaipėda (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Kruonis Pumped Storage Plant (from Lithuania)
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  Painter and composer M.K. Čiurlionis (from Lithuania)
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  Mažeikiai (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Palanga (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Visaginas (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Panorama of Vilnius in 1600 (from Lithuania)
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  Marijampolė (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Šiauliai (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Simple Words of Catechism by Martynas Mažvydas was the first Lithuanian book and was published in 1547. (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Hill of Crosses near Šiauliai (from Lithuania)
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  Biržai Castle (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian dark rye bread (from Lithuania)
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  The first Lithuanian printed book, Catechism of Martynas Mažvydas (1547, Königsberg) (from Lithuania)
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  Kėdainiai (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Lithuania's GDP per capita compared to rest of the world (2022) (from Lithuania)
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  Major highways in Lithuania (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuania has longlasting beer brewing traditions. (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuania's name in writing (Litua, on line 7), 1009 (from Lithuania)
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  Emilia Plater leading peasant scythemen during the 1831 Uprising against Russian Empire; often nicknamed as a Lithuanian Joan of Arc (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian counties by GDP per capita, 2022 (from Lithuania)
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  Baltic amber was a valuable trade item, transported from the region of modern-day Lithuania to the Roman Empire through the Amber Road. (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian Panzerhaubitze 2000 firing during an exercise in 2022 (from Lithuania)
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  Map of cultural regions of Lithuania:
  

    Lithuania Minor (Mažoji Lietuva)

    Samogitia (Žemaitija)

    Highland (Aukštaitija)

    Dainava (Dzūkija)

    Sudovia (Suvalkija)

  (from Lithuania)
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  Commemoration of the Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania in the historical Seimas hall where it was originally signed in 1990. The ceremony is attended by the Lithuanian President, Prime Minister, Chairman of the Seimas and other high-ranking officials. (from Lithuania)
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  Physical map and geomorphological subdivision of Lithuania (from Lithuania)
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  Utena (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Lithuania men's national basketball team is ranked eighth worldwide in FIBA Rankings. (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuania was a member of the United Nations Security Council. Its representatives are on the right side. (from Lithuania)
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  Guests of the 2023 Vilnius (NATO) summit in the Courtyard of the Presidential Palace in Vilnius (from Lithuania)
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  Le Château — Conte de fées (Lithuanian: Pilis — Pasaka) by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis (1909) (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  A Lithuanian folklore band Kūlgrinda performing in Vilnius (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Telia (skyscraper with the old Teo LT logo) and Huawei headquarters in Vilnius (from Lithuania)
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  Vilnius Cathedral by Laurynas Gucevičius (from Lithuania)
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  Statutes of Lithuania were the central piece of Lithuanian law in 1529–1795. (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian Armed Forces returning to Vilnius in 1939 (from Lithuania)
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  Cepelinai served with sour cream (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Druskininkai is a popular spa town. (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian basketball clubs Žalgiris and Šiauliai playing a match (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Gryčia (traditional dwelling house, built in the 19th century) (from Lithuania)
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  Seimas — Parliament of Lithuania (from Lithuania)
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  A ceremony of Lithuanian modern pagans. (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Vilnius University, one of the oldest universities in the region. It was established by Stephen Báthory, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, in 1579. (from Lithuania)
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  Romuva Cinema, the oldest still operational cinema in Lithuania (from Lithuania)
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  Violeta Urmanavičiūtė, a Lithuanian soprano singer. (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Opera performance Sun & Sea (Marina) at 2019 Venice Biennale (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  The title page of Radivilias (1592, Vilnius). The poem celebrating commander Mikalojus Radvila Rudasis (1512–1584) and recounts the famous victory of Lithuanian Armed Forces over Moscow troops (1564). (from Lithuania)
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  Druskininkai (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Chapel of Saint Casimir, the patron saint of Lithuania and Lithuanian youth, with his sarcophagus in the centre (from Lithuania)
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  Telšiai (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Ancient Kernavė hillforts (from Lithuania)
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  Members of the Council of Lithuania after signing the Act of Independence of Lithuania in 1918 (from Lithuania)
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  Kaunas Clinics, a medical institution in Lithuania (from Lithuania)
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  FSRU Independence in port of Klaipėda (from Lithuania)
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  Tauragė (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian artist Jonas Mekas, regarded as godfather of American avant-garde cinema (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian cemetery at All Souls night (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Marijampolė railway station, completed in 1924 (from Lithuania)
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  Real GDP per capita development of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania (from Lithuania)
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  Ukmergė (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Jonava (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Trakai Island Castle, the former residence of the Grand Dukes. Trakai was the capital of the medieval state. (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian police cruiser in Gediminas Avenue, Vilnius (from Lithuania)
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  Cepelinai, a potato-based dumpling dish characteristic of Lithuanian cuisine with meat, curd or mushrooms (from Lithuania)
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  Panevėžys (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Radviliškis (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  The Picture Gallery in Vilnius' Chodkiewicz Palace (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Kretinga (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Elektrėnai (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  The white stork is the national bird of Lithuania, which has the highest-density stork population in Europe. (from Lithuania)
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  Population density in Lithuania by elderships (from Lithuania)
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  Alytus (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Traditional Lithuanian house from late 19th century (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  The Great Courtyard of Vilnius University and the Church of St. Johns (from Culture of Lithuania)
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  Vilnius University Life Sciences Center in the Sunrise Valley (from Lithuania)
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  Plungė (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Stamp dedicated to Lithuania's presidency of the European Union. Post of Lithuania, 2013. (from Lithuania)
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  Šilutė (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Kings' Fairy Tale (1908–1909) by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian Army soldiers with their NATO allies during Iron Sword 2014 (from Lithuania)
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  Changes in the territory of Lithuania from the 13th to 15th century. At its peak, Lithuania was the largest state in Europe. (from Lithuania)
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  Lithuanian National Drama Theatre (from Lithuania)
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  The earliest known Lithuanian glosses (between 1520 and 1530) written in the margins of Johann Herolt book Liber Discipuli de eruditione Christifidelium. Words: teprÿdav[ſ]ʒÿ (let it strike), vbagÿſte (indigence). (from Lithuania)
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  Rock band Antis, which under firm censorship actively mocked the Soviet Union regime by using metaphors in their lyrics, during an anti-Sovietism, anti-communism concert in 1987 (from Lithuania)
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  Gargždai (from List of cities in Lithuania)
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  Kaunas (from List of cities in Lithuania)

Selected county

Selected municipality

Selected World Heritage Site

Selected history article

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  The Soviet Union (USSR) occupied most of the territory of the Baltic states in its 1944 Baltic Offensive during World War II. The Red Army regained control over the three Baltic capitals and encircled retreating Wehrmacht and Latvian forces in the Courland Pocket where they held out until the final German surrender at the end of the war. (Full article...)
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  A map of the territory of the Yotvingians and other Baltic tribes

  
  
  Yotvingians (also called: Sudovians, Jatvians, or Jatvingians; Yotvingian: Jotvingai; Lithuanian: Jotvingiai, Sūduviai; Latvian: Jātvingi; Polish: Jaćwingowie, Belarusian: Яцвягі, German: Sudauer) were a Western Baltic people who were closely tied to the Old Prussians. The linguist Petras Būtėnas asserts that they were closest to the Lithuanians. The Yotvingians contributed to the formation of the Lithuanian state. (Full article...)
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  Map of Baltic tribes ca. 13th century. The Eastern Balts are shown in brown hues, the Western Balts in green.

  
  The Lithuanian land confederation (Lithuanian: Lietuvių žemių konfederacija) was a political union between the early dukes of Lithuania that constituted the transition to the early feudal Lithuanian state. It was part of a larger trend in the 13th century of various Baltic tribes forming land confederations, albeit none gave rise to individual Baltic states such as the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. This period also marked the emergence of the allod, wherein an individual family would own land, replacing communal land ownership. It would be another key factor in the emerging unification of the Lithuanian tribes. (Full article...)

Selected politics article

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  In Lithuania, a public election committee (Lithuanian: visuomeninis rinkimų komitetas) is an organized group of voters outside of political parties which participates in local or European Parliament elections. (Full article...)
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  The territory of Lithuania is divided into 10 counties (Lithuanian: singular apskritis, plural apskritys), all named after their capitals. The counties are divided into 60 municipalities (Lithuanian: singular savivaldybė, plural savivaldybės): 9 city municipalities, 43 district municipalities and 8 municipalities. Each municipality is then divided into elderates (Lithuanian: singular seniūnija, plural seniūnijos). This division was created in 1994 and slightly modified in 2000. (Full article...)

Selected biography

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  Stasys Lozoraitis (born: September 5, 1898 – December 24, 1983) was a prominent Lithuanian diplomat and politician who served as the Foreign Minister of Lithuania from 1934 until 1938. After Lithuania lost its independence in June 1940, Lozoraitis headed the Lithuanian diplomatic service from 1940 to his death in 1983. Most western countries did not recognize the Soviet occupation and continued to recognize legations and envoys of independent Lithuania thus maintaining the legal continuity of Lithuania.
  
  Lozoraitis was a son of Motiejus Lozoraitis, a lawyer, activist of the Lithuanian National Revival, and contributor to Varpas. In 1923 he was assigned to the Lithuanian legation in Berlin. While in Germany, Lozoraitis studied international law at the University of Berlin. In 1929, he was transferred to Rome, where he became chargé d'affaires in 1931. In 1932, he returned to Lithuania and worked at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, becoming the Minister in June 1934. He worked to establish the Baltic Entente and to normalize relations with Poland, with which there were no diplomatic relations since Żeligowski's Mutiny in 1920. Lozoraitis resigned after Poland presented an ultimatum in 1938 to resume diplomatic relations. (Full article...)
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  Romualdas Granauskas (18 May 1939 – 28 October 2014) was a Lithuanian/Samogitian author and dramaturge. He was born in Mažeikiai, Lithuania. (Full article...)
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  Petras Kunca (born 1942) is a Lithuanian violinist, awarded the National Prize of Lithuania (1979) and the Order of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas. For 31 years he performed with the Vilnius Quartet.
  
  In 1965 Kunca graduated from the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre and continued his studies at the Moscow Conservatory. He took further courses on violin and chamber music in Hungary (1968), Finland (1988), Spain (1992), Sweden (1998), Denmark (1999), Austria (2001). (Full article...)

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