Portal:Lithuania
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Lithuania (/ˌlɪθjuˈeɪniə/ ⓘ LITH-yoo-AYN-ee-ə; Lithuanian: Lietuva [lʲɪɛtʊˈvɐ]), officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Respublika [lʲɪɛtʊˈvoːs rʲɛsˈpʊblʲɪkɐ]), 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. It borders Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, and Russia 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 2.86 million. Its capital and largest city is Vilnius; other major cities are Kaunas, Klaipėda, Šiauliai and Panevėžys. Lithuanians belong to the ethnolinguistic group of the Balts and speak Lithuanian, one of only a few living members of the Baltic branch of the Indo-European language family, which is also the most widely spoken language of the branch.
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.
Lithuania is a developed country with a high income, advanced economy, ranking 35th in the Human Development Index. Lithuania is a member of the European Union, the Council of Europe, the eurozone, the Nordic Investment Bank, the Schengen Agreement, NATO, and OECD. It also participates in the Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8) regional co-operation format. (Full article...)
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Andrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko (English: Andrew Thaddeus Bonaventure Kosciuszko; 4 or 12 February 1746 – 15 October 1817) was a Polish military engineer, statesman, and military leader who then became a national hero in Poland, the United States, and Belarus. He fought in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth's struggles against Russia and Prussia, and on the U.S. side in the American Revolutionary War. As Supreme Commander of the Polish National Armed Forces, he led the 1794 Kościuszko Uprising.
Kościuszko was born in February 1746, in a manor house on the Mereczowszczyzna estate in Brest Litovsk Voivodeship, then Grand Duchy of Lithuania, a part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, now the Ivatsevichy District of Belarus. At age 20, he graduated from the Corps of Cadets in Warsaw, Poland. After the start of the civil war in 1768, Kościuszko moved to France in 1769 to study. He returned to the Commonwealth in 1774, two years after the First Partition, and was a tutor in Józef Sylwester Sosnowski's household. In 1776, Kościuszko moved to North America, where he took part in the American Revolutionary War as a colonel in the Continental Army. An accomplished military architect, he designed and oversaw the construction of state-of-the-art fortifications, including those at West Point, New York. In 1783, in recognition of his services, the Continental Congress promoted him to brigadier general. (Full article...)General images
- Image 1Counties of Lithuania 1920–1939 (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 2Lithuanian territorial issues 1939–1940 (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 3Restored Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania, which was reconstructed in a Renaissance style by Sigismund I the Old and his son Sigismund II Augustus (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 4Coin of the Principality of Kiev, around the time of Vladimir Olgerdovich (1362–1394), imitating a Gulistan mint dang of Golden Horde ruler Jani Beg (Jambek). Uncertain Kiev region mint. Pseudo-Arabic legend. (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 716th-century image of Algirdas, one of the great rulers of 14th-century Europe (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 11Description of Kernavė as "Kiernow primum M. Duci Lith. domicilium" (English: Kernavė, the first residence-capital of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania) in the Radziwiłł map (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 12Constitution of 3 May, one of the first official state documents issued in both Polish and Lithuanian, Lithuanian edition (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 13Traditional ethnographic regions of Lithuania proper (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 14Gediminas' Tower and other remnants of the Upper Castle in Vilnius (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 16Baltic tribes around 1200, in the neighbourhood about to face the Teutonic Knights’ conversion and conquests; note that Baltic territory extended far inland. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 171960 postage stamp depicting Lithuanians in traditional clothing (from Culture of Lithuania)
- Image 19Lithuania in the Mappa mundi of Pietro Vesconte, 1321. The inscription reads: Letvini pagani – pagan Lithuanians. (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 20Royal insignias of the rulers of Lithuania in the Vilnius Cathedral, 1931 (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 21Demarcation lines between Poland and Lithuania 1919–1939 (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 22Celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the restoration of statehood of Lithuania with foreign leaders (Vilnius, 2018) (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 25A flyer with a proposed agenda for the Great Seimas of Vilnius; it was rejected by the delegates and a more politically activist schedule was adopted (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 27Lithuania and its administrative divisions in 1385. (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 28Joseph Stalin, Joachim von Ribbentrop and others at the signing of the German–Soviet Boundary and Friendship Treaty (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 31Oldest surviving manuscript in the Lithuanian language (beginning of the 16th century), rewritten from a 15th-century original text (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 32A facsimile of a page from Sebastian Münster atlas Cosmographia universalis (first edition 1544), describing the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1544 (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 33Lithuanian artist Jonas Mekas, regarded as godfather of American avant-garde cinema (from Culture of Lithuania)
- Image 34The plan of deportations of the civilian population in Lithuania during the Operation Priboi (1949) created by the Soviet MGB. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 36Former KGB headquarters in Vilnius, containing the Museum of Occupations and Freedom Fights. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 38Lithuanian–Polish territorial disputes in the early 1920s, including the Republic of Central Lithuania. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 39Church of St. Johns in Vilnius. Example of Vilnian Baroque style (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 40Lithuanian armed resistance against Soviet occupation lasted until 1953. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 41The Grand Duchy of Lithuania within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth c. 1635 (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 42Martynas Mažvydas' Catechism was published in Lithuanian in Königsberg (1547) (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 44Expansion of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 13–15th centuries (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 45Modern Lithuania with the former Russian Empire's administrative divisions (governorates) shown (1867–1914). (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 48Administrative divisions of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in the 17th century (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 49The first printed book in Lithuanian Catechism of Martynas Mažvydas by Martynas Mažvydas (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 50Antanas Smetona, the first and last president of independent Lithuania during the interbellum years. The 1918–1939 period is often known as "Smetona's time". (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 51Lithuanian basketball clubs Žalgiris and Šiauliai playing a match (from Culture of Lithuania)
- Image 53The Grand Duke of Lithuania, Alexander Jagiellon, specified that the Roman Catholic priests in these 28 churches must know the Lithuanian language, according to his letter of 18 September 1501, which was addressed to the Bishop of Vilnius Albertas. (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 55The Great Courtyard of Vilnius University and the Church of St. Johns (from Culture of Lithuania)
- Image 56Unarmed Lithuanian citizen standing against a Soviet tank during the January Events. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 57Leaders of the Supreme Council of Lithuania on 11 March 1990, after promulgation of the Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania in Vilnius (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 59Third Grand Duchy's Statute (1588 legal code) was still written in the Ruthenian language. Lithuanian coat of arms, "the Chase", is shown on the title page (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 62Lithuanian cemetery at All Souls night (from Culture of Lithuania)
- Image 63Area where according to Zigmas Zinkevičius the Lithuanian language was predominantly spoken in the 16th century (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 64Medieval-like Lithuanian soldiers during the historical reenactment of the Battle of Grunwald in 2009 (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 66Lubart's Castle in Ukraine, built by the son of Gediminas' Liubartas in the mid-14th century, is famous for the Congress of Lutsk which took place in 1429 (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 68Trakai Island Castle, built by Grand Duke Vytautas, which served as a residence of Lithuanian Grand Dukes (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 69Lithuania and its administrative divisions in the 17th century (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 70Poland and Lithuania after the Union of Lublin (1569) (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 71Battle of Grunwald was one of the largest battles in Medieval Europe and is regarded as one of the most important victories in the history of Lithuania (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 72Lithuanian resistance fighters, commanded by the Provisional Government, lead the disarmed soldiers of the Red Army in Kaunas during the June Uprising in 1941 (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 73Map of the ancient Baltic homelands at the time of the Hunnish invasions (3rd-4th c. AD). Baltic cultural areas (identified archaeologically) are in purple. The Baltic sphere originally covered Eastern Europe from the Baltic Sea to modern Moscow. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 74Aušra, originally spelled Auszra, formulated the ideas of Lithuanian nationalism (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 75Pope Innocent IV's bull regarding Lithuania's placement under the jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome, Mindaugas' baptism and coronation (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 76An Anti-Soviet rally in Vingis Park of about 250,000 people. Sąjūdis was a movement which led to the restoration of an Independent State of Lithuania. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 77Grand Duchy of Lithuania under the rule of Vytautas the Great (1392 – 1430) (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 78Jogaila's treaty with the Teutonic Knights precipitated the fall of Kęstutis. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 79Simple Words of Catechism by Martynas Mažvydas was the first Lithuanian book and was published in 1547. (from Culture of Lithuania)
- Image 80A ceremony of Lithuanian modern pagans. (from Culture of Lithuania)
- Image 81Lithuanian state in 13–15th centuries (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 82Hetman Kristupas Radvila or Krzysztof Radziwiłł (1585–1640), a Lithuanian Calvinist and an accomplished military commander (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 84Title of the Statute of Grand Duchy of Lithuania written in the Ruthenian language, 1588 (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 85Adam Mickiewicz was a Polish–Lithuanian poet when the Polish–Lithuanian state no longer existed (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 86The preservation of the Great Seal of Lithuania (pictured, dating to 1623) when concluding the Union of Lublin meant that the elected monarchs acts without being confirmed with the Lithuanian seals were void in Lithuania. These Lithuanian seals were in possession of the Lithuanian Grand Chancellor (Great Seal) and Lithuanian Vice-Chancellor [lt] (Lesser Seal). (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 87Cepelinai served with sour cream (from Culture of Lithuania)
- Image 88Lithuania's name first written in 1009, in the annals of the Quedlinburg Abbey, Germany. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 90The Third Statute of Lithuania (confirmed in 1588), which stated that Poland and Lithuania have equal rights within the Commonwealth (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 91Sigismund II Augustus took decisive steps to ensure preservation of the union after his death (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 92German soldiers and locals watch a Lithuanian synagogue burn in 1941. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 94Jonas Basanavičius, a preeminent figure in the Lithuanian National Revival movement (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 96St. Anne's Church and the church of the Bernardine Monastery in Vilnius. Two examples of Gothic architecture. (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 98Daumantas of Pskov killed Mindaugas in revenge for the king's taking of Daumantas' wife (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 100King Władysław IV's universal of March 22, 1639 forbidding his subjects to hunt on the territory of Ducal Prussia. The universal was translated into Old Lithuanian at the Prussian chancellery. (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 105The Battle of Grunwald, 1410, with Ulrich von Jungingen and Vytautas at center (from Grand Duchy of Lithuania)
- Image 1061864 Lithuanian prayer book, printed in the Latin characters and therefore prohibited. (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 107Grand Duke Vytautas, a Lithuanian hero, was Jogaila's first cousin and rival (from History of Lithuania)
- Image 108Grodno Military Command, loyal to Lithuania, decorated with three flags of Lithuania, Belarus, and with the Coat of arms of Lithuania, January 1919 (from History of Lithuania)
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- ...that Lithuanian book smugglers transported Lithuanian language books printed in the Latin alphabet into Lithuanian-speaking areas of the Russian Empire, defying a ban on such materials in force from 1864 to 1904?
- ...The Lithuanian language is believed to be the linguistically most conservative living Indo-European tongue, retaining many features of Proto Indo-European?
- ...the evil serial killer Hannibal Lecter from The Silence of the Lambs was born in Lithuania?
- ... that after being featured on a Lithuanian website, Maya and Yehuda Devir got so many followers that they thought Instagram had broken?
- ... that when journalist and trade unionist Nisn Pups was released from jail, the Communist Party of Lithuania instructed him to change his name?
- ... that during the Polish–Soviet War, Lithuanian-Belorussian Soviet Republic People's Commissar for Justice Yitzhak Weinstein-Branovsky organized revolutionary militias in villages near Utena?
Selected images
- Image 2Commemorative 2016 post stamp with George Maciunas
- Image 3Bridge in Lyduvėnai is the longest railway bridge in Lithuania
- Image 4"Fairy Tale - III" (1907) by Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis
- Image 5Lithuanian resistance fighters. Anti-Soviet resistance lasted until 1950s.
- Image 6Summer in the port city of Klaipėda
- Image 7Skyscrapers in Vilnius
- Image 8Lithuanian design ANBO III aircraft from 1930s
- Image 9Old Town of Kaunas
- Image 10Žaltys and the Holy Fire are depicted in Olaus Magnus' Carta Marina, above the inscription LITVANIE PARS
- Image 11Vilnius Old Town
- Image 12Bird's-eye view of town Nida
- Image 13The Seal of Mindaugas is a medieval seal affixed to the October 1255 act by Mindaugas, King of Lithuania, granting Selonia to the Teutonic Knights.
- Image 14Sand dunes in the Curonian Spit
- Image 15Winter in the countryside of Lithuania
- Image 16Lithuanian 2 Euro coin
- Image 18Kretinga Museum
- Image 19Kaunas Castle in 2016
- Image 20Trakai Island Castle was built in the 14th century
- Image 22One of the old hillfort mounds at Kernavė
- Image 23The victory of the Polish-Lithuanian forces over the Grand Duchy of Moscow at the Battle of Orsha in 1514
- Image 24Orlen Lietuva is the only oil refinery in the Baltic States
- Image 25The modern skyline of Vilnius