Riga is the capital, primate, and the largest city of Latvia, as well as the most populous city in the Baltic States. Home to 605,273 inhabitants, the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga metropolitan area, which stretches beyond the city limits, is estimated at 860,142. 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 (3–33 ft) above sea level on a flat and sandy plain.
The Livonian language is a Finnic language whose native land is the Livonian Coast of the Gulf of Riga, located in the north of the Kurzeme peninsula in Latvia but also used to be spoken in the Salaca River valley. Although initially its last native speaker died in 2013, a child, Kuldi Medne, born in 2020 is reported to be a native speaker of Livonian. Her parents are Livonian language revival activists Jānis Mednis and Renāte Medne. Also, there are about 40 reported L2 speakers and 210 having reported some knowledge of the language. Possibly uniquely among the Uralic languages but similarly to Latvian and Lithuanian, Livonian has been described as a pitch-accent language.
Ventspils is a state city in northwestern Latvia in the historical Courland region of Latvia, and is the sixth largest city in the country.
The Livonians, or Livs, are a Balto-Finnic people indigenous to northern and northwestern Latvia. Livonians historically spoke Livonian, a Uralic language closely related to Estonian and Finnish. Initially, the last person to have learned and spoken Livonian as a mother tongue, Grizelda Kristiņa, died in 2013, making Livonian a dormant language. In 2020, it was reported that newborn Kuldi Medne had once again become the only living person who speaks Livonian as their first language. As of 2010, there were approximately 30 people who had learned it as a second language.
Mikko is a Finnish masculine given name and equivalent of the English name Michael, having been borrowed into the Finnic languages. The given name Mikko is shared by the following notable people:
In Albanian and Turkish, Kadri is a masculine given name. In Estonian, Kadri is a feminine given name. The name entered Latvian as the variant of Kadri, Kadrija.
Ari is a given name in many languages and cultures, for both men and women. It also may be a nickname for a wide variety of unrelated names.
Eino is a Finnish and Estonian masculine given name. The name is thought to be the Finnic form of the given name Henri. Both Finnish and Estonian languages belong to the Finno-Ugric language group through their being Uralic languages. Another possible origin of the name is the German Enewald (Aginwald).
Maina is a name with multiple independent origins.
Laimonis is a Latvian masculine given name, borne by more than 1,800 men in Latvia. The name means "lucky", "happy" or "blessed" and is related to the ancient Latvian word laime, or the goddess Laima.
Dzintars is a Latvian masculine given name borne by more than 4,000 men in Latvia. The name means "amber". Its nameday is celebrated on 4 September.
Aivars is a Latvian masculine given name. It is borne by over 13,000 men in Latvia and in 2006 was the sixth most popular man's name in the country. Its nameday is celebrated on 29 January.
Modris is a Latvian masculine given name, borne by more than 2,500 men in Latvia. The name means "watchful" or "vigilant". Its nameday is celebrated on 21 September.
Miervaldis is a Latvian masculine given name, borne by some 600 men in Latvia.
Gatis is a Latvian masculine given name borne by over 5,000 men in Latvia. The etymology of the name is disputed. Some of the suggestions include a possible relation to the Latvian word gatavs. Other versions suggest its possible relation to an old Latvian word "gātis" meaning gates or river source. Another version suggests that the word is derived from the German name Gotthard. Its name-day is celebrated on 8 January.
Indulis is a Latvian masculine given name, borne by more than 1,000 men in Latvia. Its nameday is celebrated on 2 January.
Latvian names, like in most European cultures, consist of two main elements: the given name (vārds) followed by family name (uzvārds). During the Soviet occupation the practice of giving a middle name was discouraged, but since the restoration of independence, Latvian legislation again allows the giving of up to two given names and it has become more common to give a middle name to children.
Kaija is a contemporary feminine personal name thought to have arisen as a Finnic variant of the Katrin, or alternatively from Katariina.
Aiga is a Latvian language feminine given name, the most popular such name descended from Livonian language origins. Several names have descended from Aiga, among them being Aigis, Aigija, Aigins, Aigisa, and Aigita. The first recorded use of this name was in 1940 in Riga. The use of the name peaked in the 1970s and has declined since then.
Latvian Canadians are Canadians of full or partial Latvian descent. At the 2011 census, there were about 27,355 people of Latvian descent in Canada.
