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Riga is the capital of Latvia and is home to 614,618 inhabitants (2021), which is a third of Latvia's population. Being significantly larger than other cities of Latvia, Riga is the country's primate city. It is also the largest city in the three Baltic states and is home to one tenth of the three Baltic states' combined population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Baltic Sea. Riga's territory covers 307.17 km2 (118.60 sq mi) and lies 1–10 m (3.3–32.8 ft) above sea level, on a flat and sandy plain.
Courland is one of the Historical Latvian Lands in western Latvia. The largest city is Liepāja, the third largest city in Latvia. The regions of Semigallia and Selonia are sometimes considered as part of Courland as they were formerly held by the same duke.
Viesīte is a town in the western part of Jēkabpils Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. The population in 2020 was 1,500.
Historical Latvian Lands or formerly Cultural regions of Latvia are several areas within Latvia formally recognised as distinct from the rest of the country. While some of these regions are seen purely as culturally distinct, others have historically been parts of different countries and have been used to divide the country for administrative and other purposes. The Constitution of Latvia recognises four distinct regions: Kurzeme, Zemgale, Latgale and Vidzeme.
Coat of arms of Republic of Latvia was officially adopted by the Constitutional Assembly of Latvia on July 15, 1921, and was in official use from August 19, 1921. It was created using new national symbols and elements of coats of arms of Polish and Swedish Livonia and of the Duchy of Courland and Semigallia. Thus the coat of arms combines symbols of Latvian national statehood, as well as symbols of its historical regions. The Latvian national coat of arms was designed by the Latvian artist Rihards Zariņš.
Semigallia, also spelt Semigalia, is one of the Historical Latvian Lands located in the south of the Daugava river and the north of the Saule region of Samogitia. The territory split between Latvia and Lithuania, previously inhabited by the Semigallian Baltic tribe. They are noted for their long resistance (1219–1290) against the German crusaders and Teutonic Knights during the Northern Crusades. Semigallians had close linguistic and cultural ties with Samogitians.
In Latvia, Russians have been the largest ethnic minority in the country for the last two centuries. The number of Russians in Latvia more than quadrupled during the Soviet occupation of Latvia when the size of the community grew from 8.8% of the total population in 1935 (206,499) to 34.0% in 1989 (905,515). It started to decrease in size again after Latvia regained independence in 1991 falling to 25.2% at the beginning of 2018.
Līvāni is a town in Līvāni Municipality in the Latgale region of Latvia. It is situated at the junction of the Dubna and Daugava rivers, approximately 170 kilometers east of Riga, the capital.
Saulkrasti is a town in Latvia on the east coast of the Gulf of Riga and the capital of the Saulkrasti municipality. Made up of a number of historic fishing settlements, the town stretches for some 17 km from the Inčupe river in the south to the village of Skulte in the north. The town itself spans across 4.8 square kilometres (1.9 sq mi) and includes an additional 42 square kilometres (16 sq mi) of fields and forests.
There are five planning regions of Latvia ; Kurzeme, Latgale, Riga, Vidzeme and Zemgale. The boundaries of the regions aligns to the boundaries of the municipalities of Latvia following the municipality reform of 1 July 2009. The planning regions of Latvia are not administrative territorial divisions, since they are not mentioned in the law that prescribes the administrative territorial divisions of Latvia.
The Ethnographic Open-Air Museum of Latvia is an open-air museum located just outside Riga, the capital of Latvia, on the lightly wooded shores of Jugla Lake.
The three NUTS levels for Latvia (LV) are:
There are six statistical regions in Latvia are Kurzeme, Latgale, Pierīga, Rīga, Vidzeme and Zemgale.
Pierīga Region is one of the six statistical regions of Latvia.
The coat of arms of Courland (Kurzeme), a historical region in western Latvia, has been known since the 16th century and depicts a lion gules on a silver background.
Coat of arms of Vidzeme, a region in central Latvia, depicts a white griffin in a red field. It is a version of the earlier Coat of arms of Livonia granted in the 16th century.
South Kurzeme Municipality is one of the 35 municipalities established in Latvia in 2021. It surrounds Liepāja, Latvia's third largest city. Its first elected municipal council will take office on 1 July 2021. Its seat is at Grobiņa.
Augšdaugava Municipality is one of the 35 municipalities established in Latvia in 2021. It surrounds the independent city of Daugavpils and its municipal headquarters are located there. Its first elected municipal council has taken office on 1 July 2021.
Valmiera Municipality is one of the 35 municipalities established in Latvia in 2021, located approximately 180 kilometres (110 mi) west of the national capital Riga. Its first elected municipal council took office on 1 July 2021. Its seat is the city of Valmiera.
The Thirteenth Saeima of Latvia was elected in the 2018 Latvian parliamentary election held on 6 October 2018. The Saeima's term commenced on 6 November 2018 and will end on 1 November 2022.
References
- 1 2 Mikk Lõhmus and Illar Tõnisson. "Evolvement of Administrative Division of Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius" (PDF). Tallinn University of Technology. pp. 55, 77. Retrieved 2010-06-29.
- ↑ "Apkaimju projekts" (in Latvian). Riga City Council Development Agency. Archived from the original on 25 May 2010. Retrieved 2010-06-29.
- 1 2 "Changes in the Administrative Division of the Territory of Riga after the Loss of Independence (1940-1991)". Riga City Environment Centre "Agenda 21". Retrieved 2010-06-29.
- 1 2 "Rīga skaitļos" (in Latvian). Riga City Council . Retrieved 2010-06-29.
