Rapla

Rapla
Town
Centre of Rapla, the church in the background.
Flag Coat of arms
Rapla Location in Estonia
Coordinates: 58°59′40″N24°48′04″E / 58.99444°N 24.80111°E / 58.99444; 24.80111
Country	Estonia
County	Rapla County
Municipality	Rapla Parish
Elevation	67 m (220 ft)
Population  (2024) [1]
• Total	5,355
• Rank	22nd
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code	79511

Drone video of Rapla and its octagonal KEK house in Estonia 2021

Rapla (German : Rappel (the name Rappel was also used in other languages in the past) is a town in north-central Estonia , the capital of Rapla County and the centre of Rapla Parish.

History

The oldest records date back to 1241 in the Danish Census Book, when it was said that it was a small village with 8 acres of cultivated fields. By the end of the 13th century, the village centre was firmly established. At around the same time, a Cistercian monastery was built.

Rapla's ambitious period of fast growth began only in the late 19th century. In 1866, a pharmacy was built, in 1868 a school, and in 1888 a hospital. In 1898, a brick factory was opened, and in 1900, a railway line was built between Rapla and Viljandi. The old stone church was demolished in the late 19th century and a new one was built in a Romanesque style, one of the purest examples of this style in all of Estonia. ^[2]

In 1913, Rapla consisted of around 20 stone and 60 wooden houses. During this time period, a number of social societies were established, such as the Volunteer Fire Company, the Song and Music Society, the Society of Agriculture, a Mutual Fire Insurance Company, a Consumer Association, and the Deposit Insurance Fund.

It has a railway station on the Tallinn–Viljandi railway line operated by Elron. In 1931, a narrow gauge railway from Rapla to Virtsu opened and remained in use until 1968.

Rapla received town rights in 1993.

Demographics

Ethnicity	1934 [3] [note 1]		1959 [4]		1970 [5]		1979 [6]		1989 [6]		2000 [7]		2011 [8]		2021 [9]
	amount	%	amount	%	amount	%	amount	%	amount	%	amount	%	amount	%	amount	%
Estonians	975	98.1	2462	80.1	3998	91.0	5070	90.6	5647	90.0	5387	93.6	4981	95.8	5022	95.6
Russians	8	0.80	-	-	210	4.78	345	6.16	391	6.24	233	4.05	139	2.67	106	2.02
Ukrainians	-	-	-	-	21	0.48	32	0.57	40	0.64	33	0.57	17	0.33	19	0.36
Belarusians	-	-	-	-	26	0.59	22	0.39	21	0.33	11	0.19	4	0.08	3	0.06
Finns	-	-	-	-	75	1.71	72	1.29	89	1.42	39	0.68	25	0.48	25	0.48
Jews	-	-	-	-	0	0.00	3	0.05	2	0.03	2	0.03	1	0.02	3	0.06
Latvians	3	0.30	-	-	2	0.05	4	0.07	1	0.02	2	0.03	2	0.04	8	0.15
Germans	5	0.50	-	-	-	-	32	0.57	41	0.65	9	0.16	8	0.15	8	0.15
Tatars	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	0.02	0	0.00	0	0.00	0	0.00	0	0.00
Poles	-	-	-	-	-	-	3	0.05	1	0.02	2	0.03	0	0.00	3	0.06
Lithuanians	-	-	-	-	16	0.36	6	0.11	6	0.10	6	0.10	1	0.02	0	0.00
unknown	0	0.00	0	0.00	0	0.00	0	0.00	0	0.00	10	0.17	2	0.04	19	0.36
other	3	0.30	611	19.9	43	0.98	9	0.16	32	0.51	24	0.42	22	0.42	37	0.70
Total	994	100	3073	100	4391	100	5599	100	6271	100	5758	100	5202	100	5254	99.9

Gallery

• 
  Rapla Maria Magdalena Lutheran Church
• 
  Rapla railway station
• 
  Rapla cultural centre
• 
  Central square of Rapla
• 
  Bank in Rapla

See also

• Cheleutochroa (Acritarch from the Rapla borehole)

References

1. Population by sex, age and place of residence after the 2017 administrative reform, 1 January. Statistics Estonia.
2. "Rapla Maarja-Magdaleena Church, Estonia".
3. Valdade rahvastik. 1. III 1934 rahvaloenduse andmed. Vihk I. II rahvaloendus Eestis (in Estonian and French). Tallinn: Riigi Statistika Keskbüroo. 1934. p. 38. hdl:10062/4438.
4. Katus, Kalev; Puur, Allan; Põldma, Asta (2005). Rahvastiku ühtlusarvutatud sündmus- ja loendusstatistika: Raplamaa 1965-1990. Sari C (in Estonian and English). Tallinn: Eesti Kõrgkoolidevaheline Demouuringute Keskus. pp. 31–32. ISBN   9985-820-86-X.
5. Население районов, городов и поселков городского типа Эстонской ССР : по данным Всесоюзной переписи населения на 15 января 1970 года (in Russian). Tallinn: Eesti NSV Statistika Keskvalitsus. 1972. p. 79.
6. Eesti Vabariigi maakondade, linnade ja alevite rahvastik. 1. osa, Rahvaarv rahvuse, perekonnaseisu, hariduse ja elatusallikate järgi : 1989. a. rahvaloenduse andmed (in Estonian). Tallinn: Eesti Vabariigi Riiklik Statistikaamet. 1990. pp. 30, 35. ISBN   978-9949-7193-2-7 – via Digar.
7. "RL222: RAHVASTIK ELUKOHA JA RAHVUSE JÄRGI". Estonian Statistical Database (in Estonian).
8. "RL0429: RAHVASTIK RAHVUSE, SOO, VANUSERÜHMA JA ELUKOHA JÄRGI, 31. DETSEMBER 2011". Estonian Statistical Database. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
9. "RL21429: Rahvastik Rahvuse, Soo, Vanuserühma Ja ELukoha (Haldusüksus) Järgi, 31. DETSEMBER 2021". Estonian Statistical Database (in Estonian).

Notes

1. Data for 'Rapla borough' and 'Rapla railway station' has been summed for convenience

External links

Media related to Rapla at Wikimedia Commons