Welcome to the Lithuania Portal — Sveiki atvykę į Lietuvos Portalą
Lithuania (/ˌlɪθjuˈeɪnijə/ LITH-yoo-AYN-ee-yə; Lithuanian: Lietuva [lʲiətʊˈvɐ]), officially the Republic of Lithuania (Lithuanian: Lietuvos Respublika [lʲiətʊˈvoːs 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 37th in the Human Development Index (HDI) and 19th in the World Happiness Report. 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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Lithuania proper (Latin: Lithuania propria; Lithuanian: Tikroji Lietuva, Didžioji Lietuva)[a] refers to a region that existed within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania where the Lithuanian language was spoken. The primary meaning is identical to the Duchy of Lithuania, a land around which the Grand Duchy of Lithuania evolved. The territory can be traced by Catholic Christian parishes established in pagan Baltic lands of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania subsequent to the Christianization of Lithuania in 1387. Lithuania proper (Lithuania Propria) was always distinguished from the Ruthenian lands since the Lithuanians differed from the Ruthenians in their language and faith (Paganism in the beginning and Catholicism since 1387). The term in Latin was widely used during the Middle Ages and can be found in numerous historical maps until World War I.
Lithuania proper is sometimes also called Lithuania Major, particularly in contrast with Lithuania Minor. (Full article...)General images
Did you know -
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/a/a0/Updated_DYK_query.svg/65px-Updated_DYK_query.svg.png)
- ...national food Cepelinai is named after the Zeppelins?
Romualdas Marcinkus - ...football champion Romualdas Marcinkus (pictured) was the only Lithuanian pilot to serve in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War?
- ...the only public sculpture for Frank Zappa was in Vilnius, the capital, until in 2002 a bronze bust was installed in a square in Bad Doberan, Germany?
- ... that the trial of Neumann and Sass, held in Lithuania in 1934–1935, is said to be the first mass trial of Nazis in Europe?
- ... 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?
- ... that following Soviet occupation in 1940, the Lithuanian Armed Forces were transformed into the Lithuanian People's Army, dropped all use of Lithuanian national symbols and faced repression?
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Military of Lithuania
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Public holidays in Lithuania | |||
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Date | English name | Local name | Remarks |
1 January | New Year's Day | Naujųjų metų diena | |
16 February | Day of Restoration of the State of Lithuania (1918) | Lietuvos valstybės atkūrimo diena | |
11 March | Day of Restoration of Independence of Lithuania (1990) | Lietuvos nepriklausomybės atkūrimo diena | |
Moveable Sunday | Easter Sunday | Šv. Velykos | Commemorates resurrection of Jesus. The first Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or soonest after 21 March. |
The day after Easter Sunday | Easter Monday | Antroji šv. Velykų diena | |
1 May | International Workers' Day | Tarptautinė darbo diena | |
First Sunday in May | Mother's Day | Motinos diena | |
First Sunday in June | Father's Day | Tėvo diena | |
24 June | St. John's Day / Day of Dew | Joninės / Rasos | Celebrated according to mostly pagan traditions (Midsummer Day, Saint Jonas Day). |
6 July | Statehood Day | Valstybės (Lietuvos karaliaus Mindaugo karūnavimo) ir Tautiškos giesmės diena | Celebrates the 1253 coronation of Mindaugas, the first King of Lithuania, and the national anthem of Lithuania. |
15 August | Assumption Day | Žolinė (Švč. Mergelės Marijos ėmimo į dangų diena) | Also marked according to pagan traditions, celebrating the goddess Žemyna and noting the mid-August as the middle between summer and autumn. |
1 November | All Saints' Day | Visų šventųjų diena | Halloween is increasingly popular and is also informally celebrated on the eve (31 October). |
2 November | All Souls' Day | Mirusiųjų atminimo (Vėlinių) diena | |
24 December | Christmas Eve | Šv. Kūčios | |
25 and 26 December | Christmas Day | Šv. Kalėdos | Commemorates birth of Jesus. |
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Rules | Match log | Results page (for watching) | Last updated: 2024-06-24 22:29 (UTC)
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- Public election committee (Lithuania) (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Augenis (talk · contribs · new pages (1)) started on 2024-06-24, score: 100
- Transylvanian campaign into Poland (1657) (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Gvssy (talk · contribs · new pages (7)) started on 2024-06-24, score: 20
- UAB (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Niokog (talk · contribs · new pages (1)) started on 2024-06-24, score: 20
- Baiba Braže (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by THeShavidow1 (talk · contribs · new pages (1)) started on 2024-06-21, score: 30
- Monastery of the Holy Spirit, Vilnius (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Oliwiasocz (talk · contribs · new pages (31)) started on 2024-06-19, score: 100
- Vincas Pietaris (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by KrivisKrivaitis (talk · contribs · new pages (1)) started on 2024-06-23, score: 70
- 1982 Soviet Cup Final (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Aleksandr Grigoryev (talk · contribs · new pages (13)) started on 2024-06-22, score: 20
- Rokas Jazdauskas (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Bearas (talk · contribs · new pages (6)) started on 2024-06-22, score: 40
- Kristupas Trepočka (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Bearas (talk · contribs · new pages (6)) started on 2024-06-22, score: 40
- Tomas Lukminas (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Bearas (talk · contribs · new pages (6)) started on 2024-06-21, score: 40
- Sylvester Hulevych (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by SafariScribe (talk · contribs · new pages (141)) started on 2024-06-21, score: 20
- Coat of arms of Smolensk (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Valeino (talk · contribs · new pages (4)) started on 2024-06-20, score: 50
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- Global War Party (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Zlad! (talk · contribs · new pages (8)) started on 2024-06-11, score: 40
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- Antoni Owsianik (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Oliwiasocz (talk · contribs · new pages (31)) started on 2024-06-14, score: 80
- 2024–25 Kaohsiung Aquas season (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by 安狄 (talk · contribs · new pages (10)) started on 2024-06-17, score: 20
- David Šimek (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by FromCzech (talk · contribs · new pages (12)) started on 2024-06-17, score: 30
- Voldemarininkai (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Renata3 (talk · contribs · new pages (4)) started on 2024-06-17, score: 100
- Battle of Byteń (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Setergh (talk · contribs · new pages (1)) started on 2024-06-15, score: 30
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- Henryk Hermanowicz (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Максим Огородник (talk · contribs · new pages (10)) started on 2024-06-14, score: 40
- Grigory Gorchakov (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Kevin9217 (talk · contribs · new pages (12)) started on 2024-06-14, score: 20
- List of Orenstein & Koppel steam locomotives (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Opolito (talk · contribs · new pages (1)) started on 2024-06-14, score: 60
- Bucas (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Altenmann (talk · contribs · new pages (68)) started on 2024-06-13, score: 20
- Bučas (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Altenmann (talk · contribs · new pages (68)) started on 2024-06-13, score: 40
- Brazaitis (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Altenmann (talk · contribs · new pages (68)) started on 2024-06-13, score: 20
- Bitė (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Altenmann (talk · contribs · new pages (68)) started on 2024-06-13, score: 20
- Birutis (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Altenmann (talk · contribs · new pages (68)) started on 2024-06-13, score: 20
- Anatoly Kalinovsky (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Kevin9217 (talk · contribs · new pages (12)) started on 2024-06-13, score: 20
- Maurice Pion (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Максим Огородник (talk · contribs · new pages (10)) started on 2024-06-13, score: 20
- Conquest of Eastern Circassia (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Sadifan (talk · contribs · new pages (39)) started on 2024-06-12, score: 20
- Angus Kilkolly (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Das osmnezz (talk · contribs · new pages (49)) started on 2024-06-12, score: 20
- Siege of Kamenets (1687) (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by عبدالرحمن4132 (talk · contribs · new pages (7)) started on 2024-06-12, score: 20
- Permanent exhibition in the Palace of the Commonwealth (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Redaktor GLAM (talk · contribs · new pages (31)) started on 2024-06-12, score: 30
- Bielinis (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Altenmann (talk · contribs · new pages (68)) started on 2024-06-12, score: 20
- Theodor, Prince of Podolia (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Heroldicas (talk · contribs · new pages (3)) started on 2024-06-12, score: 30
- Jacob De La Gardie's march into Moscow (1610) (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by TheJarlXIV (talk · contribs · new pages (4)) started on 2024-06-10, score: 20
- Global war party (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Zlad! (talk · contribs · new pages (8)) started on 2024-06-11, score: 40
- List of members of the European Parliament (2024–2029) (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by PLATEL (talk · contribs · new pages (16)) started on 2024-06-10, score: 20
- List of members of the European Parliament for Lithuania, 2024–2029 (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Kazkaskazkasako (talk · contribs · new pages (1)) started on 2024-06-10, score: 60
- United Nations General Assembly Resolution 78/282 (edit | talk | history | links | watch | logs | tools) by Srđan (talk · contribs · new pages (1)) started on 2024-06-10, score: 30
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