Latvia

Capital: Riga Population: 2,217,053 Official Languages: Latvian Time Zone: +2 / Summer +3 Dialing Code: +371

Government: Parliamentary republic Area: 64,589 km2 largest city: Riga Currency : Lats (Ls) (LVL) ISO 3166 code: LV

Basic Info

Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia (border length 343 km), to the south by Lithuania (588 km), to the east by the Russian Federation (276 km), and to the southeast by Belarus (141 km), and it shares a maritime border to the west with Sweden. With 2,070,371 inhabitants and a territory of 64,589 km2 (24,938 sq mi) it is one of the least populous and least densely populated countries of the European Union. The capital of Latvia is Riga. The official language is Latvian and the currency is called Lats (Ls). The country has a temperate seasonal climate.

Geography

Latvia lies in Northern Europe, on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea and northwestern part of the East European craton, between latitudes 55° and 58° N (a small area is north of 58°), and longitudes 21° and 29° E (a small area is west of 21°). Latvia has a total area of 64,559 km2 (24,926 sq mi) of which 62,157 km2 (23,999 sq mi) land, 18,159 km2 (7,011 sq mi) agricultural land, 34,964 km2 (13,500 sq mi) forest land and 2,402 km2 (927 sq mi) inland water.

Climate

Latvia has a temperate climate that has been described in various sources as either humid continental (Köppen Dfb) or oceanic/maritime (Köppen Cfb.)

Coastal regions, especially the western coast of Courland Peninsula, possess a more maritime climate with cooler summers and milder winters, while eastern parts exhibit a more continental climate with warmer summers and harsher winters. Daugavpils in southeastern Latvia has been the site for both the lowest and highest temperatures ever recorded.

Latvia has four pronounced seasons of near-equal length. Winters, starting in mid-December and lasting till mid-March, have average temperatures of around – 6°C and are characterized by stable snow cover, bright sunshine and short days. Severe spells of winter weather with cold winds, extreme temperatures of around – 30° and heavy snowfalls are common. Summers, starting in June and lasting till August, are usually warm and sunny with cool evenings and nights. Summers have average temperatures of around +19°C with extremes of +35°C. The weather in spring and autumn is fairly mild.

Religion

The main religion traditionally practiced in Latvia is Christianity. Lutheranism is the main Christian denomination among ethnic Latvians due to strong historical links with the Nordic countries and Northern Germany, while Roman Catholicism is most prevalent in Eastern Latvia (Latgale) mostly due to Polish influence. The Latvian Orthodox Church is the third largest Christian church in Latvia, with an overwhelming majority of the members being Russian-speaking Soviet-era immigrants and their descendants. In addition, a large portion of Latvians claim to practice no religion.

Administrative divisions

There are 9 cities (Latvian: Republikas pilsētas) and 67 towns (Latvian: Novada pilsētas) in Latvia. By Latvian law towns are settlements that are centers of culture and commerce with well-developed engineer-infrastructure and street grid, and have at least 2,000 residents; however, a settlement can be designated a town, if it has fewer residents, but fulfils all other requirements. To become a city, a town must have at least 25,000 residents, additionally city should have well-developed commerce, transport, public utilities, social infrastructure and be significant center of culture, however these requirements may be disregarded if there is sufficient population.

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