Lithuania

LITHUANIA

Some facts:

Official name – The Republic of Lithuania

Highest body of power – Supreme Council

System – Parliamentary republic

Capital – Vilnius

Borders:

with Latvia – 610 km

with Byelorussia – 724 km

with Poland – 110 km

with Russia (Kaliningrad region) – 303 km

sea border (Baltic Sea) – 99 km

Lithuania’s area – 65,2 sq.km

Longest distances:

from the East to the West – 373 km

from the North to the South – 276 km

Population – 3,723 thousand

Density population – 57,1 per square km

68,5% of the entire ppopulation resides in towns.

Major towns:

Vilnius – 600.000

Kaunas – 430.000

Klaipeda – 210.000

Fields and meadows – 57%

Forests and bushes – 30%

Swamps -3%

Inland waters – 4%

Other land – 6%

Relief: ¾ of the territory consists of low-lying plains

Highest hill – 293 m above sea level

Largest river – the Nemunas -937 km, of which 475 km in Lithuania. 71,6% of Lithuania’s territory belongs to the Nemunas’s basin.

Largest lake – 44,8 sq. km – Drūkšiai.

Total number of lakes larger than 0,5 hectare is

2833 ( 1,5% Lithuania’s tterritory)

The protected natural area – 327 thousand hectares

( 5% of Lithuania’s territory)

The climate is that of the middle latitudes, changing from the maritime to the continental. The mean yearly

temperature +6° C ( average for January being -5° C,

average July +17° CC ). During the last 50 years the lowest registered temperature was -43° C in 1956, and the highest (+37° C) in 1979. Thus, the seasons are differentiated quite distincly in Lithuania – cold and snowy winters and warm and sunny summers.

Lithuania lies on the road between East Europe and West Europe, as the straightest road from Germany to Russia crosses Lithuania. Thus, the great German assault to the East, as well as that of the Russians to the West, used to be carried out through Lithu-

ania. Somebody has remarked to this point : “If

Switzerland is characterized by high mountains, Italy- by its works of art, Finland – by its lakes, then Lithu-

ania should be characterized as a lland, very unsafe to live in for a small nation”. In the period of 1940 –

1953 Lithuania was occupied three times. Each occu-

pation was accompanied by the Bolshevist and Hit-

lerite genocide and resulted in armed resistence, which lasted for a decade the end of World War II.

Lithuania lost 30% of its population during that pe-

riod. This loss was one of the heaviest in Europe.

Our nation is very old our language is archaic.

Lithuanians formed a nation simultaneously with the forming oof the Lithuanian state in the 13th century.

The Lithuanian-speaking territory embraced 110.000

sq. km. However, this area continued to grow narrower due to the process of Slavonization, especially in the 19th century. The calamities of the 20th century dipersed the Lithuanians all around the world. At present 80% of all Lithuanians live in the Republic of Lithuania, 20% – in other countries.

Lithuania was the last country in Europe to adopt Christianity (1387). The main confession today is Catholicism.

Lithuania is an agricultural country. Lithuania has a comparatively well-developed agriculture and food-processing industry, production of radioelectronic and electrotechnical goods and a light industry.

There are 500 km of hard surface roads in every one thousand square kilometers in