The flag of Latvia
The coat of arms of Latvia
Latvia ( LAT -vee-ə , sometimes LAHT -vee-ə ; Latvian : Latvija Latvian pronunciation: [ˈlatvija] ), officially the 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, Belarus to the southeast, and shares a maritime border with Sweden to the west. Latvia covers an area of 64,589 km2 (24,938 sq mi), with a population of 1.9 million. The country has a temperate seasonal climate . Its capital and largest city is Riga . Latvians belong to the ethnolinguistic group of the Balts and speak Latvian , one of the only two surviving Baltic languages , a branch of the Indo-European language family . Russians are the most prominent minority in the country, at almost a quarter of the population.
After centuries of Teutonic , Swedish , Polish-Lithuanian , and Russian rule, which was mainly implemented through the local Baltic German aristocracy , the independent Republic of Latvia was established on 18 November 1918 after breaking away from the German 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 Latvia's 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 officially 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 national flag of Latvia (Latvian : Latvijas karogs ) was used by independent Latvia from 1918 until the country was occupied by the Soviet Union in 1940. Its use was suppressed during Soviet rule. On 27 February 1990, shortly before the country regained its independence , the Latvian government re-adopted the traditional red-white-red flag.
Though officially adopted in 1921, the Latvian flag was used in as early as the 13th century. The red colour is sometimes described as symbolizing the readiness of the Latvians to give the blood from their hearts for freedom and their willingness to defend their sovereignty. An alternative interpretation, according to the
Rhymed Chronicle of Livonia , is that a Latgalian leader was wounded in battle, and sheet on which he was laid on were stained by his blood with only the centre stripe of the sheet being left unstained. This story is similar to the legend of the origins of the
flag of Austria . (
Full article... )
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The following are images from various Latvia-related articles on Wikipedia.
Image 2 Winnig's note of November 26, 1918 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 3 Latvian peasant couple working, 18–19th century (from
History of Latvia )
Image 4 Neolithic bone tools (from
History of Latvia )
Image 5 Duchy of Courland and Semigallia in 1740 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 6 Church of Ikšķile, the first stone building in Latvia built by
Saint Meinhard in 1185 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 7 Divisions of Livonia, 1560–85 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 9 Estimated territories under Jersika rule (from
History of Latvia )
Image 10 Valka Town Hall, where December 2, 1917 Declaration of Autonomy was issued. Now
Valga in Estonia. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 11 Flag of the Republic of Latvia. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 12 Nicholas gate of Daugavpils fortress (from
History of Latvia )
Image 13 Krišjānis Barons, 1910 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 14 Baltic bronze necklace from the village of
Aizkraukle , Latvia dating to 12th century AD now in the British Museum. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 15 Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (from
History of Latvia )
Image 16 Baltic Tribes, circa 1200 CE. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 17 Maximum reach of Muscovite occupation, 1577 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 18 Comb pottery example from Estonia, 4000–2000 BC (from
History of Latvia )
Image 19 Soviet Latvia's 5 ruble note (from
History of Latvia )
Image 21 British Navy ships in Liepāja port, December 1918 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 23 Map of Riga and Reval Lieutenancies, 1783 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 24 Local counteroffensives, 1919–1920 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 25 All of Livonia was occupied by Sweden during the
Second Northern War (from
History of Latvia )
Image 26 Swedish Baltic possessions, with Polish Livonia (from
History of Latvia )
Image 27 Baltic tribes (purple) in 7–8th centuries (from
History of Latvia )
Image 28 Corded Ware culture area included Latvia (from
History of Latvia )
Image 29 May 1, 1919 celebrations in Soviet Riga (from
History of Latvia )
Image 30 Āraiši lake dwelling site dates back to the late Iron Age (from
History of Latvia )
Image 31 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 32 Barricade in Riga to prevent the Soviet Army from reaching the Latvian Parliament, July 1991. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 33 Iskolat flag (from
History of Latvia )
Image 34 Hard times for the fatherland, sons, sons, help! A patriotic postcard, 1916. (from
History of Latvia )
Image 35 Soviet offensive, 1918–1919 (from
History of Latvia )
Image 36 Latvian Song Festival, 2008 (from
History of Latvia )
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