Estonia ( ), officially the
Republic of
Estonia ( ), is a
country in
Northern Europe.
It is bordered to the
north by the Gulf of
Finland
, to the west by the Baltic Sea
, to the south by Latvia
(343 km), and to the east by the Russian Federation
(338.6 km). The territory of Estonia
covers and is influenced by a
temperate seasonal climate.
The
Estonians are a
Finnic people, with the
Estonian language exhibiting many
similarities to
Finnish. The modern
name of Estonia is thought to originate from the
Roman historian
Tacitus,
who in his book
Germania
(ca. 98 CE) described a people called the
Aestii. Similarly, ancient
Scandinavian sagas refer to
a land called
Eistland, close to the
Danish,
German,
Dutch,
Swedish and
Norwegian term
Estland for the
country. Early
Latin and other ancient
versions of the name are
Estia and
Hestia.
Esthonia was a common alternate English spelling prior to
independence.
Estonia is a
democratic parliamentary republic and is divided
into fifteen
counties.
The
capital and largest city is Tallinn
. With
a population of only 1.33 million, Estonia is one of the
least-populous members of the
European
Union.
Estonia was a member of the League of Nations from 22 September 1921,
has been a member of the United
Nations since 17 September 1991, of the European Union since 1 May 2004 and of
NATO
since 29 March 2004. Estonia has also signed
the
Kyoto protocol.
The settlement of modern day Estonia began around 8500 BC,
immediately after the
Ice Age.
Over the centuries,
the Estonians were subjected to Danish
, Teutonic, Swedish and Russian
rule.
Foreign rule in Estonia began in 1227. In the aftermath of the
Livonian Crusade the area was
conquered by
Danes and
Germans.
From 1228–1562, parts or most of Estonia were
incorporated into a crusader state Terra Mariana
, that became part of the Ordensstaat
, and after its decline was formed the Livonian Confederation. During
the era economic activities centered around the
Hanseatic League.
In the 1500s Estonia
passed to Swedish rule, under which
it remained until 1721, when it was ceded to the Russian Empire
. The
Estophile
Enlightenment Period (1750–1840) led to a
national awakening in the
mid-19th century. In 1918 the
Estonian Declaration of
Independence was issued, to be followed by the
Estonian War of Independence
(1918–1920), which resulted in the
Tartu Peace
Treaty recognizing Estonian independence in perpetuity.
During
World War II, Estonia was occupied and
annexed first by the Soviet
Union
and subsequently by the Third Reich, only to be re-occupied by the
Soviet Union in 1944.
Estonia regained its independence on 20 August 1991. It has since
embarked on a rapid programme of social and economic reform. Today,
the country has gained recognition for its economic freedom, its
adaptation of new technologies and was one of the world's fastest
growing economies for several years. However,
Estonia's economy was second worst hit of
all 27 European Union members in the
2008–2009 economic crisis, contracting
sharply in the first quarter of 2009.
History
Human settlement in Estonia became possible 11,000 to 13,000 years
ago, when the ice from the last
glacial era
melted away.
The oldest known settlement in Estonia is the
Pulli settlement, which was located
on the banks of the river Pärnu
, near the town of Sindi
, in southern
Estonia. According to
radiocarbon dating, it was settled around
11,000 years ago, at the beginning of the 9th
millennium BC.
Prehistory
Evidence
has been found of hunting and fishing communities existing around
6500 BC near the town of Kunda
in northern
Estonia. Bone and stone artifacts similar to those
found at Kunda have been discovered elsewhere in Estonia, as well
as in Latvia, northern Lithuania
and in southern Finland
. The
Kunda
culture belongs to the middle stone age, or
Mesolithic period.
The end of the
Bronze Age and the early
Iron Age were marked by great cultural
changes. The most significant was the transition to farming, which
has remained at the core of Estonian economy and culture. From
approximately the first to 5th centuries AD, resident farming
was widely established, the population grew, and settlement
expanded. Cultural influences from the
Roman Empire reached Estonia, and this era is
therefore also known as the
Roman Iron
Age.
The first mention of the people inhabiting present-day Estonia is
by the
Roman historian
Tacitus, who in his book
Germania (ca. AD 98) describes the
Aestii tribe. Tacitus mentions their term for
amber in an apparently latinised form,
glesum (cf.
Latvian glīsas). This is
the only word of their language recorded from antiquity. In spite
of this point, the Aestii are generally considered the ancestors of
the later
Baltic peoples.
A more troubled and war-ridden middle
Iron
Age followed with external dangers coming both from the
Baltic tribes, who attacked across the
southern land border, and from overseas. Several
Scandinavian sagas refer to
campaigns against Estonia.
Estonian
pirates conducted similar raids in the
Viking age.
The "pagan raiders" who sacked the Swedish
town of Sigtuna
during the early middle ages, in 1187 may have been
Estonians.
In the first centuries AD political and administrative subdivisions
began to emerge in Estonia. Two larger subdivisions appeared: the
province (Estonian:
kihelkond) and the land (Estonian:
maakond). The province comprised several
elderships or villages. Nearly all provinces had at least one
fortress. The defense of the local area was
directed by the highest official, the
king or
elder. The terra was
composed of one or several provinces, also headed by an elder, king
or their collegium. By the 13th century the following major lands
had developed in Estonia:
Revala,
Harjumaa,
Saaremaa,
Hiiumaa,
Läänemaa,
Alempois,
Sakala,
Ugandi,
Jogentagana,
Soopoolitse,
Vaiga,
Mõhu,
Nurmekund,
Järvamaa and
Virumaa.
Estonia retained a
pagan religion centered
around a deity called
Tharapita.
The
Chronicle of Henry of
Livonia mentions Tharapita as the
superior god of Oeselians
(inhabitants of Saaremaa
island), also well known to Vironian tribes in northern Estonia.
Middle Ages

Medieval Livonia
At the beginning of the 13th century,
Lembitu of Lehola, a chieftain of
Sakala sought to unify the Estonian people and
thwart Danish and Germanic conquest during the
Livonian Crusade. He managed to assemble an
army of 6,000 Estonian men from different counties, but he was
killed during the
Battle of
St. Matthew's Day in September, 1217.
In the
aftermath of Livonian Crusade from 1228 to the 1560s Estonia became
part of Terra
Mariana
, established on February 2, 1207 as a principality
of the Holy Roman Empire and
proclaimed by pope Innocent III in 1215
as a subject to the Holy See. The
southern parts of the country were conquered by
Swordbrothers who joined the
Teutonic Order in 1237 and became its branch
known as
Livonian Order.
In the Northern parts
of the country was formed Duchy of Estonia as a
direct dominion of the King of Denmark from 1219 until 1346 when it
was sold to the Teutonic order and
became part of the Ordenstaat
. In 1343, the people of northern Estonia and
Saaremaa
rebelled against the German rule in the St. George's Night Uprising,
which was put down by 1345.
Reval (known as Tallinn since 1918) gained
Lübeck Rights in 1248 and joined an alliance
of trading guilds called the
Hanseatic
League at the end of the thirteenth century.
After the
Teutonic Order fell into decline following its defeat in the
Battle of
Grunwald
in 1410, and the defeat of the Livonian Order in
the Battle of
Swienta
on September 1, 1435, the Livonian Confederation agreement was
signed on December 4, 1435.The Grand Duchy of Moscow and Tsardom of
Russia
attempted unsuccessful invasions in 1481 and
1558.
The Livonian Confederation ceased to exist during the
Livonian War (1558–82). The wars had reduced
the Estonian population from about 250–300,000 people before the
Livonian War to 120–140,000 in the 1620s.
Reformation
The
Reformation in Europe
officially began in 1517 with
Martin
Luther (1483–1546) and his
95 Theses.
The Reformation resulted in great change in the
Baltic region. Ideas entered the
Livonian Confederation very quickly
and by the 1520s they were well known. Language, education,
religion, and politics were greatly transformed. The
Church services were now given in the
local vernacular, instead of
Latin, as was
previously used. During the
Livonian
War in 1561, northern Estonia submitted to Swedish control,
while southern Estonia briefly came under the control of
Polish–Lithuanian
Commonwealth in the 1580s. In 1625, mainland Estonia came
entirely under Swedish rule.
Estonia was administratively divided between
the provinces of Estonia
in the north and Livonia in
southern Estonia and northern Latvia
, a division
which persisted until the early twentieth century.
In 1631, the Swedish king
Gustaf II Adolf, forced the
nobility to grant the peasantry greater rights, although serfdom
was retained.
In 1632 a printing press and university
were established in the city of Dorpat
(known as
Tartu
since 1918). This period is known in
Estonian history as
"the Good Old Swedish Time."
The steady growth of the population continued until the outbreak of
the plague in 1657. The
Great Famine of
1695–97 killed some 70,000 people – almost 20% of the
population.
Estonia in the Russian Empire
Following
the Great Northern War, the
Swedish empire lost Estonia to Russia
by the
Treaty of Nystad. However,
the upper classes and the higher middle class remained primarily
Baltic German. The war devastated the
population of Estonia, but it recovered quickly. Although the
rights of peasants were initially weakened, serfdom was abolished
in 1816 in the province of Estonia and in 1819 in
Livonia. After the
Russian revolution of 1917,
Tallinn remained under Soviet control until 24 February 1918, when
Estonian independence was declared.
Declaration of independence
As a result of the abolition of
serfdom and
the availability of education to the native Estonian-speaking
population, an active Estonian
nationalist movement
developed in the nineteenth century. It began on a cultural level,
resulting in the establishment of Estonian language
literature,
theatre and
professional
music and led on to the formation
of the Estonian national identity and the
Age of Awakening. Among the
leaders of the movement were
Johann Voldemar Jannsen,
Jakob Hurt and
Carl Robert Jakobson.
Significant accomplishments were the publication of the national
epic,
Kalevipoeg, in 1862, and the
organization of the first
national song festival in 1869.
In
response to a period of Russification
initiated by the Russian
empire
in the 1890s, Estonian nationalism took on more
political tones, with intellectuals first calling for greater
autonomy, and later, complete independence from the Russian
empire
. Following the Bolshevik takeover of power in Russia
after the
October Revolution of 1917 and
German
victories
against the Russian army, between the Russian Red Army's retreat and the arrival of advancing
German
troops, the
Committee of Elders of the
Maapäev issued the Estonian Declaration of
Independence in Pärnu
on 23
February and in Tallinn
on 24
February 1918.
After
winning the Estonian Liberation
War against Soviet Russia and at
the same time German
Freikorps volunteers (the Tartu Peace
Treaty was signed on 2 February 1920). The Republic of
Estonia was recognized (de jure) by Finland on 7 July 1920, Poland
on 31 December 1920, Argentina on 12 January 1921 and by the
Western Allies on 26 January 1921. Estonia maintained its
independence for twenty-two years. Initially a
parliamentary democracy, the
parliament (
Riigikogu) was disbanded in 1934, following
political unrest caused by the
global
economic crisis. Subsequently the country was ruled by decree
by
Konstantin Päts, who became
President in 1938, the year parliamentary elections resumed.
Estonia in World War II
The fate of Estonia in
World War II was
decided by the
German–Soviet Nonaggression
Pact and its
Secret
Additional Protocol of August 1939.
World War II losses in Estonia, estimated at
around 25% of population, were among the highest in
Europe. War and occupation deaths have been estimated
at 90,000. These include the
Soviet deportations in
1941, the German deportations and
Holocaust victims.
World War II
began with the invasion and subsequent
partition of an important regional ally of Estonia – Poland
, by a joint
operation of Nazi Germany and Soviet Union
.
Soviet occupation
The fate of the Republic of Estonia before
World War II was decided by the
German–Soviet Nonaggression
Pact of August 1939 after Stalin gained Hitler's agreement to
divide Eastern Europe into "spheres of special interest" according
to the
Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact and
its
Secret
Additional Protocol.
On 24
September 1939, warships of the Red Navy
appeared off Estonian ports and Soviet
bombers began a patrol over Tallinn
and the
nearby countryside. The Estonian government was forced to give
their assent to an agreement which allowed the USSR
to establish
military bases and station 25,000 troops on Estonian soil for
"mutual defence". On 12 June 1940, the order for a total
military blockade on Estonia was given to the Soviet
Baltic Fleet.
On 14 June 1940, while world's attention
was focused on the fall of Paris
to Nazi Germany a day earlier, the Soviet military
blockade on Estonia went into effect, two Soviet bombers downed a
Finnish passenger airplane "Kaleva" flying from Tallinn to Helsinki
carrying three diplomatic pouches from the U.S. legations in
Tallinn
, Riga
and
Helsinki
. On 16 June 1940, the Soviet Union invaded
Estonia. The Red Army exited from their military bases in Estonia
on 17 June. The following day, some 90,000 additional troops
entered the country.In the face of overwhelming Soviet force, the
Estonian government capitulated on 17 June 1940 to avoid bloodshed.
The military occupation of Estonia was complete by the 21 June
1940.
Most of the
Estonian Defence
Forces and the
Estonian
Defence League surrendered
according to the orders of the Estonian Government believing that
resistance was useless and were disarmed by the Red Army. Only the
Estonian Single Signal Battalion stationed in Tallinn at Raua
Street showed resistance to Red Army and Communist Militia called
"People's Self-Defence" on 21 June 1940. As the Red Army brought in
additional reinforcements supported by six
armoured fighting vehicles, the
battle lasted several hours until sundown. Finally the military
resistance was ended with
negotiations
and the Single Signal Battalion surrendered and was disarmed. There
were 2 dead Estonian servicemen, Aleksei Männikus and Johannes
Mandre, and several wounded on the Estonian side and about 10
killed and more wounded on the Soviet side. The Soviet militia that
participated in the battle was led by
Nikolai Stepulov
In August
1940, Estonia was illegally annexed by the Soviet Union as the
Estonian
SSR
. The provisions in the Estonian constitution
requiring a popular referendum to decide on joining a
supra-national body were ignored. Instead the vote to join the
Soviet Union was taken by those elected in the sham elections held
in the previous month. Additionally those who had failed to do
their "political duty" of voting Estonia into the USSR,
specifically those who had failed to have their passports stamped
for voting, were condemned to death by Soviet tribunals. The
repressions followed with the mass
deportations carried
out by the Soviets in Estonia on 14 June 1941. Many of the
country's political and intellectual leaders were killed or
deported to remote areas of the USSR by the Soviet authorities in
1940–1941. Repressive actions were also taken against thousands of
ordinary people.
When the German
Operation
Barbarossa started against the Soviet Union, about 34,000 young
Estonian men were forcibly drafted into the
Red
Army. Fewer than 30% of them survived the war. Political
prisoners who could not be evacuated were executed by the
NKVD.
Many
countries, including the United States
, did not recognize the annexation of Estonia by the
USSR
. Such countries recognized Estonian
diplomats and
consuls who
still functioned in many countries in the name of their former
governments. These diplomats persisted in this anomalous situation
until the ultimate restoration of
Baltic independence.
Contemporary Russian politicians deny that the Republic of Estonia
was illegally annexed by the Soviet Union in 1940. They state that
the Soviet troops had entered Estonia in 1940 following the
agreements and with the consent of the government of the Republic
of Estonia, regardless of how their actions can be interpreted
today. They maintain that the USSR was not in a state of war and
was not waging any combat activities on the territory of
Estonia
; therefore there could be no occupation.
The
official Soviet
and current
Russian
version claims that Estonians voluntarily gave up
their statehood. Freedom
fighters of 1944–1976 are labeled "
bandits" or "
nazis". The
Russian position is not recognized internationally.
German occupation
After the
invasion of the Soviet
Union
on 22 June 1941, the Wehrmacht traversed about a thousand miles,
reaching Estonia within days. The German Army crossed the
Estonian southern
border on 7 July.
The
Red Army retreated behind the Pärnu
River
– Emajõgi
line on 12 July. At the end of July the
Germans resumed their advance in Estonia working in tandem with the
Estonian
Forest Brothers. Both
German troops and Estonian partisans took Narva on 17 August and
the Estonian capital Tallinn on 28 August. After the Soviets were
driven out from Estonia German troops disarmed all the partisan
groups. Although initially the Germans were perceived by most
Estonians as liberators from the USSR and its repressions, and
hopes were raised for the restoration of the country's
independence, it was soon realized that they were but another
occupying power. The Germans pillaged the country for the war
effort and unleashed the
Holocaust. For
the duration of the occupation Estonia was incorporated into the
German province of
Ostland. This led many Estonians,
unwilling to side with the Nazis, to join the
Finnish Army to fight against the Soviet Union.
The
Finnish Infantry
Regiment 200 (Estonian:
soomepoisid) was formed out of
Estonian volunteers in Finland. Although many Estonians were
recruited in to the German armed forces (including
Estonian
Waffen-SS), the majority did so only in 1944 when the threat of
a new invasion of Estonia by the Red Army had become imminent and
it was clear that Nazi Germany could not win the war.By January
1944, the front was pushed back by the Red Army almost all the way
to the former Estonian border. Narva was evacuated.
Jüri Uluots, the last legitimate prime
minister of the Republic of Estonia (according to the
Constitution of the Republic of
Estonia) prior to its fall to the Soviet Union in 1940,
delivered a radio address that appealed to all able-bodied men born
from 1904 through 1923 to report for military service (Before this,
Jüri Uluots had opposed Estonian mobilization.) The call drew
support from all across the country: 38,000 volunteers jammed
registration centers.
Several thousand Estonians who had joined
the Finnish Army came back across the Gulf of Finland
to join the newly formed Territorial Defense Force,
assigned to defend Estonia against the Soviet advance. It
was hoped that by engaging in such a war Estonia would be able to
attract
Western support for the cause
of Estonia's independence from the USSR and thus ultimately succeed
in achieving independence.
Soviet Estonia
The
Soviet
forces
reconquered Estonia in the autumn of 1944 after fierce battles in
the northeast of the country on the Narva
river
, on the Tannenberg Line
(Sinimäed), in
Southeast
Estonia
, on the Suur Emajõgi
, and in the Moonsund
Archipelago.
In the face of the country being re-occupied by the Red Army, tens
of thousands of Estonians (including majority of the education,
culture, science, political and social specialists) (estimates as
much as 80,000) chose to either retreat together with the Germans
or flee to Finland or Sweden. On 12 January 1949 the
Soviet Council of Ministers
issued a decree "on the expulsion and deportation" from
Baltic states of "all
kulaks and their families, the families of bandits
and nationalists", and others. More than 200,000 people are
estimated to have been deported from the
Baltic in 1940–1953. In addition, at least
75,000 were sent to
Gulag. More than 10% of
the entire adult Baltic population was deported or sent to
Soviet labor and deathcamps.
In response to the
continuing insurgency against Soviet rule, more than 20,000
Estonians were forcibly deported either to labor camps or Siberia
(see Gulag). Within the
few weeks that followed, almost all of the remaining rural
households were
collectivized.
After World War II, as part of the goal to more fully
integrate Baltic countries into the Soviet Union
, mass deportations were concluded in the Baltic
countries and the policy of encouraging Soviet immigration to the
Baltic states continued. In addition to the human and material losses
suffered due to war, thousands of civilians were killed and tens of
thousands of people deported from Estonia by the Soviet
authorities until Joseph Stalin's death in 1953.
Half of the deported perished, the other half were not allowed to
return until the early 1960s (years after Stalin's death). The
various repressive activities of Soviet forces in 1940–1941 and
after reoccupation sparked a
guerrilla
war against the Soviet authorities in Estonia which was waged
into the early 1950s by "
forest
brothers" (
metsavennad) consisting mostly of Estonian
veterans of both the German and Finnish armies as well as some
civilians. Material damage caused by the world war and the
following Soviet era significantly slowed Estonia's
economic growth, resulting in a wide
wealth gap in comparison with neighboring
Finland and Sweden.
Militarization was another aspect of
the Soviet regime. Large parts of the country, especially the
coastal areas were restricted to all but the Soviet military.
Most of
the sea shore and all sea islands (including Saaremaa
and Hiiumaa
) were declared "border zones". People not
actually resident there were restricted from traveling to them
without a permit.
A notable closed military installation was
the city of Paldiski
which was entirely closed to all public
access. The city had a support base for the Soviet
Baltic Fleet's submarines and several large
military bases, including a nuclear submarine training centre
complete with a full-scale model of a
nuclear submarine with working
nuclear reactors. The Paldiski reactors
building passed into Estonian control in 1994 after the last Soviet
troops left the country.
Immigration was
another effect of Soviet occupation.
Hundreds of thousands
of migrants were relocated to Estonia from other parts of Soviet Union
to assist industrialization and militarization,
contributing an increase of about half million people within 45
years.
Period of independence
The
United
States
, United
Kingdom
, France
and the
majority of other Western democracies considered illegal the
annexation of Estonia by the
USSR. They retained diplomatic relations with the
representatives of the independent Republic of Estonia, never
de jure recognized the existence of
the Estonian SSR, and never recognized Estonia as a legal
constituent part of the Soviet Union. Estonia's return to
independence became possible as the Soviet Union faced internal
regime challenges, loosening its hold on outer empire. As the 1980s
progressed, a movement for Estonian autonomy started. In the
initial period of 1987–1989, this was partially for more economic
independence, but as the Soviet Union weakened and it became
increasingly obvious that nothing short of full independence would
do, the country began a course towards self-determination.
In 1989,
during the "Singing Revolution",
in a landmark demonstration for more independence, called The Baltic Way, a human chain of more than
two million people was formed, stretching through Lithuania
, Latvia
and
Estonia. All three nations had similar experiences of
occupation and similar aspirations for regaining independence. The
Estonian Sovereignty
Declaration was issued on November 16, 1989 and formal
independence declared on 20 August 1991, reconstituting the
pre-1940 state, during the
Soviet military coup attempt in
Moscow.
The first country to diplomatically
recognize Estonia's reclaimed independence was Iceland
. The last Russian troops left on 31 August
1994.
Accession of the European Union

German stamp celebrating the accession
of
Estonia and other countries in 2004
2004 enlargement
of the European Union was the largest single
expansion of the European Union (EU), both in terms of
territory and
population, however not in
terms of
gross domestic
product (wealth).
Estonia was amongst a group
of ten countries which were incorporated into the EU on 1 May 2004.
The
Treaty of Accession
2003 was signed on 16 April 2003.
Geography
State border
Estonia's land border with Latvia runs 267 kilometers; the Russian
border runs 290 kilometers. From 1920 to 1945, Estonia's border
with Russia, set by the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty, extended beyond
the
Narva River in the northeast and
beyond the town of Pechory (Petseri) in the southeast. This
territory, amounting to some 2,300 square kilometers, was
incorporated into Russia by Stalin at the end of World War II.
Topography

Satellite image of Estonia
Estonia
lies on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea
immediately across the Gulf of Finland from Finland
on the level northwestern part of the rising east European platform
between 57.3° and 59.5° N and 21.5° and 28.1° E.
Average
elevation reaches only and the country's highest point is the
Suur
Munamägi
in the southeast at . There is of coastline
marked by numerous bays, straits, and inlets. The number of islands
and islets is estimated at some 1,500.
Two of them are large
enough to constitute separate counties: Saaremaa
and Hiiumaa
.
1) Kassari is sometimes considered part of
Hiiumaa.
A small,
recent cluster of meteorite craters, the largest of which is called
Kaali
is found
near Saaremaa
, Estonia. It is thought that the impact was
witnessed by the Iron Age inhabitants of the area.
Climate
Estonia lies in the northern part of the
temperate climate zone and in the transition zone
between
maritime and
continental climate. Estonia has four
seasons of near-equal length. Average temperatures range from 16.3
°C on the Baltic islands to 17.1 °C inland in July, the warmest
month, and from −3.5 °C on the Baltic islands to −7.6 °C inland in
February, the coldest month. The average annual temperature in
Estonia is 5.2°C . The average precipitation in 1961–1990 ranged
from 535 to 727 millimeters per year.. Snow cover, which is deepest
in the south-eastern part of Estonia, usually lasts from
mid-December to late March.
Water
Estonia has over
1,400
lakes.
Most are very small, with the largest,
Lake
Peipus
, (Peipsi in Estonian) being 3,555 km²
(1372 sq mi). There are many rivers in the country. The
longest of them are Võhandu (162 km), Pärnu (144 km), and
Põltsamaa (135 km). Estonia has numerous
fens and
bogs.
Wildlife
Phytogeographically, Estonia is
shared between the Central European and Eastern European provinces
of the
Circumboreal Region
within the
Boreal Kingdom. According
to the
WWF, the territory
of Estonia belongs to the
ecoregion of
Sarmatic mixed forests.
Administrative divisions
Counties
The Republic of Estonia is divided into fifteen
counties (Maakonnad) which are
the administrative subdivisions of the country. The first
documented mentioning of Estonian political and administrative
subdivisions comes from the
Chronicle of Henry of Livonia,
written in the 13th century during the
Northern Crusades.
A
maakond (county) is the biggest
administrative subdivision.The
county
government (Maavalitsus) of each county is led by a
county governor (Maavanem), who
represents the
national government at the
regional level. Governors are appointed by
Eesti Valitsus (government) for a term
of five years.
Several changes were made to the borders of
counties after Estonia became independent, most notably the
formation of Valga County (from parts
of Võru, Tartu and Viljandi counties) and Petseri County
(area acquired from Russia with the 1920 Tartu Peace
Treaty).
During
the Soviet
rule
, Petseri
County
was annexed and ceded to the Russian SFSR in 1945 where it became one the
Pskovs
districts. Counties
were again re-established in 1 January 1990 in the borders of the
Soviet-era regions. Due to the numerous differences between the
current and historical (pre-1940) layouts, the historical borders
are still used in ethnology, representing cultural and linguistic
differences better.
Municipalities and cities
File:Eesti_maakonnad_2006.svg|350px|right|Counties of Estoniapoly
149 174 230 291 137 327 40 263
Hiiu
Countypoly 197 110 338 228 338 319 263 375 203 242
Lääne Countypoly 225 294 271 387 233
585 38 511 21 363
Saare Countypoly 534
33 567 172 515 174 492 245 421 185 342 240 246 141
Harju Countypoly 531 35 567 168 514 176 572 197
569 221 594 244 597 263 666 247 693 192 670 170 666 85
Lääne-Viru Countypoly 669 77 667
170 693 192 665 246 704 273 805 244 874 107
Ida-Viru Countypoly 340 240 422 185 490 246
475 314 443 318 433 308 374 323 338 322
Rapla Countypoly 270 375 337 318 373 327 433
307 486 314 477 352 453 361 449 408 484 421 446 495 345 546
Pärnu Countypoly 476 309 515 173
573 197 569 223 594 243 596 275 546 317 505 340 484 335 491 313
Järva Countypoly 454 365 479 348
482 334 505 338 545 319 597 366 602 379 591 454 560 462 527 507 458
486 487 418 445 401
Viljandi
Countypoly 597 367 546 316 597 265 665 246 707 274 735 310 684
344
Jõgeva Countypoly 600 365 676
347 748 300 809 443 731 412 662 452 637 439 591 461
Tartu Countypoly 525 512 556 461 637 442 662
453 658 495 632 501 652 588 622 598
Valga
Countypoly 656 492 660 452 732 412 806 445 840 514 756 522 753
501
Põlva Countypoly 634 502 659
493 756 502 756 521 816 524 765 612 654 619
Võru CountyAn
omavalitsus (municipality) is the smallest
administrative subdivision of Estonia. Each
county is further divided into
municipalities which are of two types:
urban municipality, or
linn (
town), and
rural municipality, or
vald (
parish). There is no other status
distinction between them. Each municipality is a unit of
self-government with its
representative and
executive bodies. The municipalities
in Estonia cover the entire territory of the country.
Municipality may contain one or several populated places. Some
urban municipalities are divided into
linnaosad (districts) with limited
self-government, e.g.
Tallinn consists of 8 districts (Haabersti
, Kesklinn
, Kristiine
, Lasnamäe
, Mustamäe
, Nõmme
, Pirita
and
Põhja-Tallinn
).
Municipalities are ranging in size from
Tallinn with 400,000 inhabitants to Ruhnu
with as
few as 60. As over two-thirds of the municipalities have a
population of under 3,000, many of them have found it advantageous
to co-operate in providing services and carrying out administrative
functions.Since March 2008 there are total of 227 municipalities in
Estonia, 33 of them are urban and 194 are rural.
Tallinn is the
capital and
largest city of Estonia.
It lies on the northern coast of Estonia,
along the Gulf of
Finland
. The city is an important industrial,
political and cultural center, and
seaport.
There are currently 33 cities and several town-parish towns in the
county. More than 70% of the entire population lives in the towns.
The 20 largest cities are shown in the table below:
Politics
Politics of Estonia takes place
in a framework of a
parliamentary representative democratic republic, whereby the
Prime Minister of Estonia is the
head of government, and of a
multi-party system.
Parliament
The
Parliament of Estonia ( )
or the
legislative branch is
elected by people for a four year term by
proportional representation.
Estonia is a
parliamentary,
representative democratic republic. The
Estonian political system operates under a framework laid out in
the 1992
constitutional document. The
Estonian parliament has 101 members and influences the governing of
the state primarily by determining the income and the expenses of
the state (establishing taxes and adopting the budget). At the same
time the parliament has the right to present statements,
declarations and appeals to the people of Estonia, ratify and
denounce international treaties with other states and international
organisations and decide on the Government loans.
The Riigikogu elects and appoints several high officials of the
state, including the President of the Republic. In addition to
that, the Riigikogu appoints, on the proposal of the
President of Estonia, the Chairman of
the National Court, the Chairman of the Board of the Bank of
Estonia, the Auditor General, the Legal Chancellor and the
Commander-in-Chief of the
Defence Forces. A member of the
Riigikogu has the right to demand explanations from the Government
of the Republic and its members. This enables the members of the
parliament to observe the activities of the executive power and the
above mentioned high officials of the state.
Government and e-Government
The
Government of Estonia ( )
or the
executive branch is formed
by the
Prime Minister of
Estonia, nominated by the president and approved by the
parliament. The government exercises executive power pursuant to
the
Constitution of Estonia
and the laws of the Republic of Estonia and consists of 12
ministers, including the prime minister. The prime minister also
has the right to appoint other ministers, whom he or she will
assign with a subject to deal with and who will not have a ministry
to control, becoming a minister without portfolio who currently is
the Minister of Regions. The prime minister has the right to
appoint a maximum of 3 such ministers, as the limit of ministers in
one government is 15. It is also known as the
cabinet. The cabinet carries out the
country's domestic and foreign policy, shaped by parliament; it
directs and co-ordinates the work of government institutions and
bears full responsibility for everything occurring within the
authority of executive power. The government, headed by the
Prime Minister, thus
represents the political leadership of the country and makes
decisions in the name of the whole executive power.
Estonia has pursued the development of the
e-state and
e-government.
Internet voting is used in elections in
Estonia. The first
Internet voting took
place in the 2005 local elections and the first in a parliamentary
election was made available for the
2007 elections, in
which 30,275 individuals voted over the
Internet. Voters have a chance to invalidate their
vote in traditional elections, if they wish to. In its 2007
Worldwide Press Freedom Index,
Reporters Without Borders ranked
Estonia 3rd out of 169 countries.
Law and courts
According to the
Constitution of
Estonia ( ) the supreme power of the state is vested in the
people. The people exercise their supreme power of the state on the
elections of the Riigikogu through citizens who have the right to
vote. The supreme
judicial power is
vested in the
Supreme Court or
Riigikohus, with 19 justices. The Chief
Justice is appointed by the parliament for nine years on nomination
by the president. The official
Head of
State is the
President of
Estonia, who gives
assent to the laws
passed by
Riigikogu, also having the right
of
sending them back
and proposing new laws. The president, however, does not use these
rights very often, having a largely ceremonial role. He or she is
elected by
Riigikogu, with two-thirds of
the votes required. If the candidate does not gain the amount of
votes required, the right to elect the president goes over to an
electoral body, consisting of the 101 members of Riigikogu and
representatives from local councils. As other spheres, Estonian
law-making has been successfully integrated with the
Information Age.
Foreign relations
Since regaining independence, Estonia has pursued a foreign policy
of close cooperation with its Western European partners.
The two
most important policy objectives in this regard have been accession
into NATO
and the
European Union, achieved in March and
May 2004 respectively. Estonia's international realignment toward
the West has been accompanied by a general deterioration in
relations with Russia
, most
recently demonstrated by the controversy surrounding the relocation
of the Bronze
Soldier
WWII memorial in Tallinn.An important element
in Estonia's post-independence reorientation has been closer ties
with the Nordic countries,
especially Finland
and Sweden
.
Indeed, Estonians consider themselves a Nordic people rather than
Balts, based on their historical ties
with Sweden, Denmark and particularly Finland. In December 1999
Estonian foreign minister (and since 2006,
president of Estonia)
Toomas Hendrik Ilves delivered a speech
entitled "Estonia as a Nordic Country" to the
Swedish Institute
for International Affairs. In 2003, the
foreign ministry also hosted an exhibit
called "Estonia: Nordic with a Twist". And in 2005, Estonia joined
the
European Union's
Nordic Battle Group. It has also shown
continued interest in joining the
Nordic
Council.Whereas in 1992 Russia accounted for 92% of Estonia's
international trade, today there is extensive economic
interdependence between Estonia and its Nordic neighbors: three
quarters of
foreign investment in
Estonia originates in the Nordic countries (principally Finland and
Sweden), to which Estonia sends 42% of its exports (as compared to
6.5% going to Russia, 8.8% to Latvia, and 4.7% to Lithuania). On
the other hand, the Estonian political system, its
flat rate of income tax, and its non-welfare-state
model distinguish it from the other Nordic states, and indeed from
many other European countries.
Human rights
Estonia is ranked above-average in
democracy,
press
freedom,
privacy. and
human development. Individuals
are guaranteed basic rights under the
constitution, legislative acts, and
treaties relating to
human rights ratified by the Estonian government.
Human rights
organisations have indicated areas requiring improvement. With
reference mainly to Estonia's significant
Russophone minority, those not fluent
in Estonian allegedly face discrimination in
employment and
education. Also there are problems with
police use of force, conditions in
detention and lengthy pretrial detentions.
Military
The
military of Estonia is based
upon the
Estonian Defence
Forces ( ) which is the name of the unified armed forces of the
republic with
Maavägi (Army),
Merevägi (Navy),
Õhuvägi (Air Force) and a
paramilitary national guard organization
Kaitseliit (Defence League).
The Estonian National Defence Policy aim is to guarantee the
preservation of the
independence and
sovereignty of the state, the
integrity of its land, territorial waters,
airspace and its constitutional order.
At the moment the
main strategic goals are to be able to defend the country's
interests and development of the armed forces which would be ready
to be interoperability with the
other armed forces of NATO
and European Union member states and also their
capability to participate in NATO
missions
.
The current national
military
service ( ) is compulsory for men between 18 and 28, and
conscripts serve eight-month to eleven-month tours of duty
depending on the
army branch they serve in.
Estonia
has retained conscription unlike
Latvia
and Lithuania
and has no plan to transition to a contract armed
forces. In 2008 annual military spending will reach 1.85% of
GDP, or 5 billion
krones, and will continue to increase until
2010, when a 2.0% level is expected to be reached.
As of January 2008,
the Estonian military had almost 300 troops stationed in foreign
countries as part of various international peacekeeping forces,
including 35 Defence League troops
stationed in Kosovo
; 120
Ground Forces soldiers in the NATO
-led ISAF force in
Afghanistan
; 80 soldiers stationed as a part of MNF in the
Iraq
; and 2 Estonian officers in Bosnia-Herzegovina
and 2 Estonian military agents in Israel
in
Golan
Heights
. The Estonian Defence Forces have also
previously had military missions in Croatia
from March till October 1995, in Lebanon
from December 1996 till June 1997 and in Macedonia
from May till December 2003. Estonia participates
in the Nordic Battlegroup and has
announced readiness to send soldiers also to Sudan
to
Darfur
if
necessary, creating the very first African
peacekeeping mission for the armed
forces of Estonia.
e-Military
The
Ministry of Defence
and the
Defence Forces have
been working on a
cyberwarfare and
defence formation for some years now. In 2007 a
military doctrine of an
e-military of Estonia was officially
introduced as the country was under massive cyberattacks. The
proposed aim of the e-military is to secure the vital
infrastructure and
e-infrastructure of Estonia. The main cyber warfare
facility is the Computer Emergency Response Team of Estonia (CERT)
which was founded in 2006. The organization operates with the
security problems that occur in the local networks also with those
which are started there.
On 25
June 2007, Estonian president Toomas Hendrik Ilves met with the
President of the United
States
, George W.
Bush. Among the topics discussed were
the attacks on Estonian e-infrastructure. The attacks triggered a
number of military organisations around the world to reconsider the
importance of network security to modern military doctrine.
On 14
June 2007, defence ministers of NATO
members held
a meeting in Brussels
, issuing a joint communiqué promising immediate
action. First public results are estimated to arrive by
autumn 2007. As to the placement of a newly planned
NATO
Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence (CCDCOE), Bush
announced his support of Estonia as this centre's location.
In the
aftermath of the 2007
cyberattacks on Estonia, plans to combine network defence with
Estonian military doctrine, and related NATO
plans to
create a cybernetic defence centre in Estonia, have been nicknamed
as the Tiger's Defence, in reference to Tiigrihüpe.
Economy

Triumph Plaza apartment and office
building in the centre of Tallinn

Tallink hotel

Real GDP growth in Estonia
1996–2006.

Foorum apartment and office building
in the centre of Tallinn
As a member of the
European Union,
Estonia's economy is rated as high income by the
World Bank. The Estonian economy
Estonian economic miracle has often been
described as the
Baltic Tiger.By 1929,
a stable currency, the
kroon, was established. It is issued by
the
Bank of Estonia, the country's
central bank. Trade focused on the
local market and the West, particularly Germany and the United
Kingdom.
Only 3% of all commerce was with the
USSR
. Before the
Second World War Estonia was mainly an
agriculture country whose products such as
butter,
milk and
cheese was widely known on the
western European markets.
The USSR's
forcible
annexation
of Estonia
in 1940 and
the ensuing Nazi and Soviet
destruction
during World War II crippled the Estonian economy.
Post-war Sovietization
of life continued with the integration of Estonia's economy and
industry into the USSR's
centrally
planned structure.
Since
re-establishing
independence, Estonia has styled itself as the gateway between
East and West and aggressively pursued economic reform and
integration with the West. Estonia's market reforms put it among
the economic leaders in the former
COMECON
area. In 1994, Estonia became one of the first countries in the
world to adopt a
flat tax, with a uniform
rate of 26% regardless of personal income. In January 2005 the
personal income tax rate was reduced to 24%. A subsequent reduction
to 23% followed in January 2006. The income tax rate will be
decreased by 1% annually to reach 18% by January 2010. The
Government of Estonia finalized the
design of Estonia's
euro coins in late
2004, and is now intending to adopt the
euro as
the country's currency on 1 January 2011, later than planned due to
continued high
inflation. In 1999, Estonia
experienced its worst year economically since it regained
independence in 1991, largely because of the impact of the
1998 Russian financial crisis.
Estonia joined the
WTO in
November 1999. With assistance from the
European Union, the
World Bank and the
Nordic Investment Bank, Estonia
completed most of its preparations for
European Union membership by the end of 2002
and now has one of the strongest economies of the new member states
of the
European Union.
A balanced
budget, almost non-existent
public debt, flat-rate
income tax,
free trade
regime, fully convertible
currency backed
by
currency board and a strong peg to
the
euro, competitive commercial banking
sector,
innovative e-Services and even mobile-based services are all
hallmarks of Estonia's free-market-based economy.
Until recent years the Estonian economy grew with admirable rates.
Estonian GDP grew by 6.4% in the year 2000 and with double speeds
after accession to the EU in 2004. The
GDP grew
by 7.9% in 2007 alone. Increases in labor costs, rise of taxation
on tobacco, alcohol, electricity, fuel, and gas, and also external
pressures (growing prices of oil and food on the global market) are
expected to raise inflation just above the 10% mark in the first
months of 2009.In the first quarter 2008 GDP grew only 0,1%. The
government made a supplementary negative budget, which was passed
by
Riigikogu. The revenue of the budget
was decreased for 2008 by EEK 6.1 billion and the expenditure by
EEK 3.2 billion.Estonia joined the World Trade Organization in
1999. A sizable current account deficits remains, but started to
shrink in the last months of 2008 and is expected to do so in the
near future.In the second quarter of 2009, the average monthly
gross wage in Estonia was 12,716
kroons (€812.7, US$1,196.4).
Estonia is nearly energy independent supplying over 90% of its
electricity needs with locally mined
oil
shale. Alternative energy sources such as wood, peat, and
biomass make up approximately 9% of primary energy production.
Estonia imports needed
petroleum products
from western Europe and Russia.
Oil shale
energy,
telecommunications,
textiles, chemical products, banking, services, food and fishing,
timber, shipbuilding, electronics, and transportation are key
sectors of the economy.
The ice-free
port of Muuga, near Tallinn
, is a modern
facility featuring good transshipment capability, a high-capacity
grain elevator, chill/frozen storage, and brand-new oil tanker
off-loading capabilities. The railroad serves as a conduit
between the West, Russia, and other points to the East.
After a long period of very high growth of GDP, the GDP of Estonia
decreased by a little over 3% on a yearly basis in the 3rd quarter
of 2008. In the 4th quarter of 2008 the negative growth was already
−9,4%.
The
central bank uses a
currency board system and has independent
reserves, which are big enough to buy back all the currency in
circulation.
Estonia today is mainly influenced by developments in Germany,
Finland and Sweden – the three main trade partners. The government
recently increased greatly its spending on innovation. The prime
minister of
Estonian Reform
Party has stated its goal of bringing Estonian
GDP per capita into the TOP 5 of EU by 2022.
Ireland
is sometimes seen as a model for Estonian economic
future. However, the GDP of Estonia decreased by 1.4% in the
2nd quarter of 2008, over 3% in the 3rd quarter of 2008, and over
9% in the 4th quarter of 2008.
According to
Eurostat data, Estonian PPS
GDP per capita stood at 67 per cent of the EU average in
2008.
Resources
Although Estonia is in general resource-poor, the land still offers
a large variety of smaller resources. The country has large
oil shale and
limestone deposits, along with forests which cover
47% of the land. In addition to oil shale and limestone, Estonia
also has large reserves of
phosphorite,
pitchblende and
granite which are not mined or mined extensively at
the moment.
In recent years a public debate has been
raised in the terms of whether Estonia should build a nuclear power
plant in order to secure the energy production after the closure of
old units in the Narva Power Plants
if they are not reconstructed by the year 2016., It
has been estimated that once Estonia starts using nuclear energy
then the local uranium mining could have potential in the terms of
financial risks and investments.
Industry and environment
Food, construction, and electronic industries are currently among
the most important branches of Estonia's industry. In 2007, the
construction industry employed more than 80,000 people which make
around 12% of the entire country's workforce.
Another important
industrial sector is the machinery and chemical industry which is
mainly located in Ida-Viru County
and around Tallinn
. The
oil shale based
mining industry,
which is also concentrated in
East-Estonia,
produces around 90% of the entire country's electricity. The
extensive
oil shale usage however has
caused also severe damage to the environment. Although the amount
of pollutants emitted to the air have been falling since the 1980s,
the air is still polluted with
sulphur
dioxide from the mining industry which was rapidly developed by
the Soviet Union in early 1950s.
In some areas the coastal seawater is
polluted, mainly around the Sillamäe
industrial complex.
Estonia is a dependent country in the terms of energy and energy
production. In recent years many local and foreign companies have
been investing in renewable energy sources.
The importance of
wind power has been increasing steadily in Estonia and currently
the total amount of energy production from wind is nearly 60
MW while at the same time roughly 399 MW
worth of projects are currently being developed and more than 2800
MW worth of projects are being proposed in the Lake Peipus
area and the coastal areas of Hiiumaa
. Currently there are plans to renovate some
older units of the Narva Power Plants, establish new power
stations, and provide higher efficiency in oil shale based energy
production. The Estonian energy market liberalization is in
progress and should be completed before 2009, as well as all of the
non-household market, which totals around 77% of consumption,
before 2013.
Together
with Lithuania
, Poland
, and
Latvia
, the country is considering to participate in the
Visaginas
nuclear power plant
in Lithuania to replace the Ignalina
.
However, due to the slow pace of the project, Estonia does not rule
out building its own nuclear reactor. Another consideration is
doing a joint project with Finland because the two electricity
grids are connected.
The country is considering to apply nuclear power for its oil shale
production.
Information technology
Estonia has a strong
information
technology sector, partly due to the
Tiigrihüpe project undertaken in
mid-1990s, and has been mentioned as the most "wired" and advanced
country in
Europe in the terms of
e-Government of
Estonia.
Trade and investment
Estonia has a modern
market-based
economy since the end of 1990s and one of
the highest
per capita income levels in
Eastern
Europe. Proximity to the Scandinavian markets, location between
the East and West, competitive cost structure and high-skill labour
force have been the major Estonian comparative advantages in the
beginning of the 2000s.
Tallinn
as the
largest city has emerged as a financial
center and the Tallinn Stock
Exchange joined recently with the OMX
system. The current government has pursued relatively sound
fiscal policies, resulting in balanced
budgets and low
public debt. In 2007,
however, a large current account deficit and rising inflation put
pressure on
Estonia's currency, which
is pegged to the
euro, highlighting the need
for growth in export-generating industries.Estonia exports mainly
machinery and equipment, wood and paper, textiles, food products,
furniture, and metals and chemical products. Estonia also exports
1.562 billion
kilowatt hours of
electricity annually. At the same time Estonia
imports machinery and equipment, chemical products, textiles, food
products and transportation equipment. Estonia imports 200 million
kilowatt hours of electricity annually.
Between 2007 and 2013 Estonia receives 53.3 billion
krones (3.4 billion
euros) from various
European
Union Structural Funds as direct supports by creating the
largest foreign investments into Estonia ever. Majority of the
European Union financial aid will be invested into to the following
fields: energy economies, entrepreneurship, administrative
capability, education, information society, environment protection,
regional and local development, research and development
activities, healthcare and welfare, transportation and labour
market.
Transport
As Estonia has been an important transit center since the medieval
ages the country's favorable geographic location, along with its
developing
infrastructure, offers
good opportunities for all transport and logistics related
activities. The
rail
transport dominates the cargo sector, comprising 70% of all
carried goods, domestic and international.
Since 2007
the
transit sector importance in the economy has been reducing, mainly
due to the economical-political confrontation between Estonia and
Russia. This however has not recognized internationally. The
road transportaccounts almost 90% of all transported passengers.
The reconstruction of the Tallinn–Tartu highway has gained national
attention as it connects two of the largest cities in the country.
The highway reconstruction (2+2 route) is part of the current
Government Coalition programme.
Also the proposed permanent connection to
Saaremaa
Island
is in the national infrastructure building
programme. The costs of the projects have been estimated in
billions of kroons which have also gained a lot of media attention
and caused public debates over the feasibility. There are currently
five major
cargo ports
which offer easy navigational access, deep waters, and good ice
conditions.
There are 12 airports and one heliport
in Estonia of which the Lennart Meri Tallinn Airport
is the largest airport, providing services to a
number of international carriers flying to 23
destinations.
Demographics
.png/180px-Population_of_Estonia_(1970-2009).png)
Demography of Estonia 1970–2009.
Data of Statistics Estonia, year 2009
Prior to
World War II ethnic Estonians
constituted 88% of the population, with national minorities
constituting the remaining 12%. The largest minority groups in 1934
were
Russians,
Germans,
Swedes,
Latvians,
Jews,
Poles,
Finns and
Ingrians. The share of
Baltic Germans had fallen from 5.3% (~46,700)
in 1881 to 1.3% (16,346) in 1934.
Between
1945 and 1989 the share of ethnic Estonians in the population
resident within currently defined boundaries of Estonia dropped to
61%, caused primarily by the Soviet
program
promoting mass immigration of urban industrial workers from
Russia
, Ukraine
, and Belarus
, as well as by wartime emigration and Stalin's mass deportations and executions. By
1989, minorities constituted more than 1/3 of the population, the
number of non-Estonians had grown almost 5-fold, while the
percentage of ethnic Estonians in the total population decreased by
27%. At the end of the 1980s, Estonians perceived their demographic
change as a
national catastrophe.
This was
a result of the migration policies
essential to the Soviet
Nationalisation Programme
aiming to
russify Estonia – forceful administrative
and military immigration of non-Estonians from the USSR
coupled with
the mass deportations of Estonians to the USSR. During the
purges up to 110,000 Estonians were killed or deported. In the
decade following the reconstitution of independence, large scale
emigration by ethnic Russians and the removal of the Russian
military bases in 1994 caused the proportion of ethnic Estonians in
Estonia to increase from 61% to 69% in 2006.
Modern Estonia is a fairly ethnically heterogeneous country, but
this heterogeneity is not a feature of much of the country as the
non-Estonian population is concentrated in two of Estonia's
counties.
13 of Estonia's 15 counties are over 80
percent ethnic Estonian, the most homogeneous being Hiiumaa
, where Estonians account for 98.4% of the
population. In the counties of Harju (including the capital city, Tallinn
) and Ida-Viru,
however, ethnic Estonians make up 60% and 20% of the population,
respectively. Russians make up 25.6% of the
total population, but account for 36% of the population in Harju
county, and 70% of the population in Ida-Viru county.
The law on the
Cultural Autonomy for National Minorities was
passed in 1925, which was the first in
Europe
at the time. Cultural autonomies could be granted to
minorities numbering more than 3,000 people with
longstanding ties to the Republic of Estonia.
Prior to the
Soviet
occupation
, the
Germans and Jewish minorities managed to elect a cultural
council. The Law on Cultural Autonomy for National
Minorities was reinstated in 1993.Historically, large parts of
Estonia's north-western coast and islands have been populated by
indigenous ethnically
Rannarootslased (Coastal Swedes).
The
majority of Estonia's Swedish population of 3,800 fled to Sweden
or were deported in 1944, escaping the advancing
Red Army. In the recent years the numbers of Coastal Swedes
has risen again, numbering in 2008 almost 500 people, due to the
property reforms in the beginning of 1990s. In 2005, the
Ingrian Finnish minority in Estonia elected
a cultural council and was granted cultural autonomy. The
Estonian Swedish minority similarly received
cultural autonomy in 2007.
Culture and arts
The
culture of Estonia
incorporates indigenous heritage, as represented by
Estonian language from the
Finno-Ugric languages and the
sauna, with mainstream
Nordic and
European
cultural aspects.
Due to its history and geography, Estonia's
culture has been influenced by the traditions of the adjacent
area's various Finnic, Baltic and Germanic peoples as well as the
cultural developments in the former dominant powers Sweden
and Russia
.
Traditionally, Estonia has been seen as an area of rivalry between
western and eastern Europe on many levels. An example of this
geopolitical legacy is an exceptional combination of nationally
recognized Christian traditions: a western
Protestant and an
eastern
Orthodox
Church. Like the mainstream culture in the other Nordic
countries, Estonian culture can be seen to build upon the ascetic
environmental realities and traditional livelihoods, a heritage of
comparatively widespread
egalitarianism out of practical reasons (see:
Everyman's right and
universal suffrage), and the ideals of
closeness to nature and
self-sufficiency (see:
summer cottage).
Arts
The
Estonian Academy of
Arts (Estonian: Eesti Kunstiakadeemia, EKA) is the only public
university in Estonia providing higher education in art, design,
architecture, media, art history and conservation.
Literature
The
literature of Estonia
refers to literature written in the
Estonian language (ca. 1 million
speakers). The domination of Estonia after the
Northern Crusades, from the 13th century
to 1918 by Germany, Sweden, and Russia resulted in few early
written literary works in the Estonian language. The oldest records
of written Estonian date from the 13th century.
Originates
Livoniae in
Chronicle
of Henry of Livonia contains Estonian place names, words and
fragments of sentences. The
Liber Census Daniae (1241) contains
Estonian place and family names.
The cultural stratum of Estonian was originally characterised by a
largely lyrical form of folk poetry based on syllabic quantity.
Apart from a few albeit remarkable exceptions, this archaic form
has not been much employed in later times. One of the most
outstanding achievements in this field is the national epic
Kalevipoeg. At a professional level,
traditional folk song reached its new heyday during the last
quarter of the 20th century, primarily thanks to the work of
composer
Veljo Tormis.
Oskar Luts was the most prominent prose
writer of the early Estonian literature, who is still widely read
today, especially his lyrical school novel
Kevade
(Spring).
Anton Hansen
Tammsaare's social epic and psychological realist
pentalogy Truth
and Justice captured the evolution of Estonian society
from a peasant community to an independent nation. In modern times
Jaan Kross and
Jaan Kaplinski remain to be Estonia's best
known and most translated writers. Among the most popular writers
of the late 20th and early 21st centuries are
Tõnu Õnnepalu and
Andrus Kivirähk, who uses elements of
Estonian folklore and mythology, deforming them into
absurd and
grotesque.
Media
The
cinema of Estonia started in
1908 with the production of a newsreel about Swedish King
Gustav V's visit to Tallinn. The first
public TV broadcast in Estonia was in July 1955. Regular, live
radio-broadcasts began already in December 1926. Deregulation in
the field of electronic media has brought radical changes compared
to the beginning of 1990s. The first licenses for private TV
broadcasters were issued in 1992. The first private radio station
went on the air in 1990.
Today the media is a vibrant sector at the forefront of change in
Estonian society. There is a plethora of weekly newspapers and
magazines. Estonians face a choice of 9 domestic TV channels and a
host of radio stations. The Constitution guarantees freedom of
speech and the fact that Estonia does have a free press is
recognized by various international press freedom bodies, like the
US-based
Freedom House and
Reporters Without Borders who
ranks Estonia media as one of the most free in world in their
Worldwide Press Freedom
Index. Estonia has two news agencies.
The Baltic News Service (BNS), founded in
1990, is a private regional news agency covering Estonia, Latvia
and Lithuania
. The ETV24 is an agency owned by
Eesti Rahvusringhääling
who is a publicly funded radio and television organization created
on 30 June 2007 to take over the functions of the formerly separate
Eesti Raadio and
Eesti Televisioon under the terms of the
Estonian National Broadcasting Act.
Music
.jpg/180px-XXV_laulupidu_(3).jpg)
A moment before the opening of the
25th Estonian Song Festival (2009) at the Tallinn Song Festival
Grounds
The earliest mentioning of Estonian singing dates back to
Saxo Grammaticus Gesta Danorum
(ca. 1179). Saxo speaks of Estonian warriors who sang at night
while waiting for a battle. The older folksongs are also referred
to as
regilaulud, songs in the
poetic metre
regivärss the
tradition shared by all
Baltic Finns.
Runic singing was widespread among Estonians until the 18th
century, when it started to be replaced by rhythmic folksongs.
Traditional
wind instruments derived
from those used by
shepherds were once
widespread, but are now becoming again more commonly played. Other
instruments, including the
fiddle,
zither,
concertina and
accordion are used to play
polka or other dance music. The
kannel is a native instrument that is now again
becoming more popular in Estonia.
A Native Music Preserving Center was opened in 2008 in
Viljandi
.
The tradition of
Estonian Song
Festivals (
Laulupidu) started at the height of the
Estonian national
awakening in 1869. Today, it is one of the largest amateur
choral events in the world, as the joint
choir usually comprises of 18,000 people. In 2004, a total of
34,000 participated in the Song Festival, held before an audience
of 200,000. Since 1928,
the Tallinn Song Festival
Grounds (
Lauluväljak) host the event every five years
in July. The next festival will take place in 2009. In addition,
Youth Song Festivals are held in every five years, last of them in
2007.
Professional Estonian musicians and composers such as
Rudolf Tobias,
Mart
Saar and
Artur Kapp emerged in the
late 19th century. Nowadays the most known Estonian composers are
Arvo Pärt,
Eduard Tubin and
Veljo
Tormis.
Estonia won the
Eurovision Song
Contest in 2001 with the song "
Everybody" performed by
Tanel Padar and
Dave
Benton. In 2002, Estonia hosted the event.
Maarja-Liis Ilus has competed for Estonia
on two occasions (1996 and 1997), while
Eda-Ines Etti,
Koit
Toome and
Evelin Samuel owe their
popularity partly to the Eurovision Song Contest.
Languages
The
Estonian language belongs to
the
Finnic branch of the
Uralic languages.
Estonian is thus
closely related to Finnish, spoken
on the other side of the Gulf of Finland
, and is one of the few languages of Europe that is
not of an Indo-European
origin. Despite some overlaps in the vocabulary due to
borrowings, in terms of its origin, Estonian is not related to its
nearest neighbours,
Swedish,
Latvian and
Russian, which are all Indo-European
languages.
Russian is widely spoken as a secondary
language by thirty- to seventy-year-old ethnic Estonians, because
Russian was the unofficial language of the Estonian SSR
from 1944 to 1991 and taught as a compulsory second
language during the Soviet
era. First and second generation of
industrial immigrants from various parts of the former Soviet Union
(mainly
Russia) do not
speak Estonian. The latter, mostly Russian-speaking ethnic
minorities, reside predominantly in the capital city of Tallinn and
the industrial urban areas in
Ida-Virumaa.
In the small Noarootsi Parish
in Läänemaa (known as Nuckö
kommun in Swedish and Noarootsi vald in Estonian),
both Swedish and Estonian are co-official languages, and there are
22 villages with officially bilingual names.Most common
foreign languages learned by Estonians are
English,
German, Russian,
Swedish and
Finnish.
Society
Today's Estonia is a multinational country where, according to the
2000 census, altogether 109 languages are spoken. 83.4% of Estonian
citizens speak
Estonian as their
mother tongue, 15.3% –
Russian and
1% speak other languages. 83.6% of Estonian residents are Estonian
citizens, 7.4% are citizens of other countries and 9% are
"
citizens with undetermined citizenship". The number of
Estonian citizens who have become citizens through
naturalization process (over 140,000 persons)
exceeds the number of residents of undetermined citizenship (ac.
110,000 persons).
There is only one
Nationality Holiday in Estonia which is
on the 24 February and marks the Independence Day of Estonia, which
is also a day of rest. There are 12
State Holidays and 10
Over-National Days celebrated in the country.
Cuisine
Historically the
cuisine of
Estonia has been heavily dependent on seasons and simple
peasant food, which today is influenced by many countries. Today it
includes many typical international foods. The most typical foods
in Estonia are black bread, pork, potatoes and dairy products.
Traditionally in summer and spring, Estonians like to eat
everything fresh – berries, herbs, vegetables and everything else
that comes straight from the garden. Hunting and fishing have also
been very common, although currently hunting and fishing are
enjoyed mostly as hobbies. Today it is also very popular to grill
outside in summer. Traditionally in winter jams, preserves and
pickles are brought to the table. Estonia has been through rough
times in the past and thus gathering and conserving fruits,
mushrooms and vegetables for winter has always been essential.
Today gathering and conserving is not that common because
everything can be bought from stores, but preparing food for winter
is still very popular in the countryside and still has somewhat
ritual significance. Being a country with a large coastal line,
fish has also been very important.
Education and science
The history of formal education in Estonia dates back to the
13–14th centuries when the first
monastic
and
cathedral schools were
founded. The first primer in the Estonian language was published in
1575.
The oldest university is the University
of Tartu
which was established by the Swedish king
Gustav II Adolf in
1632. In 1919, university courses were first taught in the
Estonian language.
Today's education in Estonia is divided into general, vocational
and hobby education. The education system is based on four levels
which include the pre-school, basic, secondary and higher
education. A wide network of schools and supporting educational
institutions have been established. The
Estonian educational system consists of state, municipal, public
and private educational institutions. There are currently 589
schools in Estonia.
Academic higher education in Estonia is divided into three levels:
bachelor's studies, master's studies, and doctoral studies. In some
specialties (basic medical studies, veterinary, pharmacy,
dentistry, architect-engineer and a classroom teacher program) the
Bachelors and Master's levels are integrated into one unit.
Estonian public universities have significantly more autonomy than
applied higher education institutions. In addition to organizing
the academic life of the university, universities can create new
curricula, establish admission terms and conditions, approve the
budget, approve the development plan, elect the rector and make
restricted decisions in matters concerning assets. Estonia has a
moderate number of public and private universities.
The largest public
universities are Tartu
University
, Tallinn University of
Technology
, Tallinn University
, Estonian
University of Life Sciences
, Estonian
Academy of Arts, and the largest private university is Estonian
Business School.
The
Estonian Academy of
Sciences is Estonia's
national
academy of science.
The first computer centers were established
in late 1950s in Tartu
and Tallinn
. Estonian specialists contributed in the
development of software engineering standards for different
ministries of the Soviet Union during the 1980s.
Religion
According to the constitution, there are freedom of religion,
separation of church and state, and individual right to privacy of
belief and religion. Although Estonia has one of the highest level
of
irreligious individuals in the world,
with over 76 percent of the population stating no specific
religious affiliation, the dominant religion in the country is
Evangelical Lutheranism. The country was
christianized by the
Teutonic
Knights in the 13th century. During the
Reformation, Lutheranism spread, and
the church was officially established in Estonia in 1686. Still,
many Estonians profess not to be particularly religious, because
religion through the 19th century was associated with German feudal
rule.
The second most populous religious group is the
Eastern Orthodox, especially among the
Russian minority.
Historically there has been also another
dominant minority religion, Russian
Old-believers, near Lake Peipus
area in Tartu
County.
In 2000 there were about 152,000
Lutherans, 143,000
Orthodox Christians, 5,000
Catholics, and nearly 2,000
Taaras in Estonia. In addition there were around
68,000 people who stated themselves as
atheists.
Sports
Sport plays an important role in Estonian culture. Estonia first
competed as a nation at the
1920
Summer Olympics, although the
National Olympic Committee was
established in 1923.
Estonian athletes took part of the Olympic Games until the country was annexed by
the Soviet
Union
in 1940. The 1980
Summer Olympics sailing regatta was held
in the capital city Tallinn
. Estonia has won most of her
Olympic medals in athletics, weightlifting,
wrestling and
cross-country
skiing.
International rankings
See also
Further reading
Notes and references
- Portal of the Republic of Estonia,
- Baltic yearbook of international law
- The Law of Nations: cases, documents and notes –
Page 106
- Estonian date of admission into the United Nations
- Estonian date of admission into the European Union
- Estonian date of admission into the NATO
- U.S.–Baltic Relations: Celebrating 85 Years of
Friendship at state.gov
- Motion for a resolution on the Situation in
Estonia by EU
-
European Court of Human Rights cases on Occupation of Baltic
States
- Index of Economic Freedom
- BBC NEWS Europe Tiny Estonia leads internet
revolution
- The Estonian Economic Miracle
- Estonian economy contracts sharply in first
quarter
- Enn Kaljo – Üks väga väga vana rahvas ...
- Viduramžių Lietuva – Šaltiniai 50-1009 m
- Postimees arhiiv
- Through Past Millennia: Archaeological Discoveries
in Estonia
- Raid on Sigtuna
- Estonia and the Estonians (Studies of Nationalities) Toivo U.
Raun p.11 ISBN 0817928529
- eestigiid.ee Lembitu
- Protestant Reformation in the Baltic at
University of Washington
- 1558–1710. Estonia under Swedish rule –
Population
- Estonian Declaration of Independence 24 February 1918
at www.president.ee
- Encyclopædia Britannica:
Baltic states, World War II losses
- The World Book Encyclopedia ISBN 0716601036
- The History of the Baltic States by Kevin O'Connor ISBN
0313323550
- Moscow's Week at Time Magazine on Monday, 9 October
1939
- The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David J.
Smith, Page 24, ISBN 0415285801
- Pavel Petrov at Finnish Defence Forces home
page
- documents published from the State Archive of
the Russian Navy
- The Last Flight from Tallinn at American Foreign
Service Association
- Five Years of Dates at Time magazine on Monday,
Jun. 24, 1940
- Estonia: Identity and Independence by Jean-Jacques Subrenat,
David Cousins, Alexander Harding, Richard C. Waterhouse ISBN
9042008903
- The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David J.
Smith p.19 ISBN 0415285801
- The Baltic States: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by David J.
Smith, Page 27, ISBN 0415285801
- June 14 the Estonian government surrendered without
offering any military resistance; The occupation authorities
began...by disarming the Estonian Army and removing the higher
military comman from power
- the Estonian armed forces were disarmed by the Soviet
occupation in June 1940
- 51 years from the Raua Street Battle at Estonian
Defence Forces Home Page
- Justice in The Baltic at Time magazine on
Monday, Aug. 19, 1940
- The Baltic Revolution: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Path
to Independence by Anatol Lieven p424 ISBN 0300060785
- Diplomats Without a Country: Baltic Diplomacy, International
Law, and the Cold War by James T. McHugh , James S. Pacy ISBN
0313318786
- Russia denies it illegally annexed the Baltic
republics in 1940 – Pravda.Ru
- Resistance! Occupied Europe and Its Defiance of Hitler by Dave
Lande on Page 188, ISBN 0760307458
- Estonia 1940–1945, Estonian International Commission for the
Investigation of Crimes Against Humanity, p.613 ISBN
9949-13-040-9
- Resistance! Occupied Europe and Its Defiance of Hitler
(Paperback) by Dave Lande on Page 200 ISBN 0760307458
- The Baltic States: The National Self-Determination of Estonia,
Latvia and Lithuania Graham Smith p.91 ISBN 0312161921
- Stephane Courtois; Werth, Nicolas; Panne,
Jean-Louis; Paczkowski, Andrzej; Bartosek, Karel; Margolin,
Jean-Louis & Kramer, Mark (1999). The Black
Book of Communism: Crimes, Terror, Repression.
Harvard University Press. ISBN
0-674-07608-7.
- Heinrihs Strods, Matthew Kott, The file on operation
"Priboi": A re-assessment of the mass deportations of 1949,
Journal of Baltic Studies, Volume 33, Issue 1 Spring 2002 , pages
1–36
- Valge raamat, page 18
- Background Note: Latvia at US Department of State
- Valge raamat, pages 25–30
- Valge raamat, pages 125, 148
- Tuumarelvade leviku tõkestamisega seotud
probleemidest Eestis
- Estonia had a nuclear submarine fleet – The Paldiski
nuclear object
- Valge raamat
- "whereas the Soviet annexias of the three Baltic States
still has not been formally recognized by most European States and
the USA, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and the Vatican
still adhere to the concept of the Baltic States".
- EMHI
- Sademed, õhuniiskus
- World Info Zone
- History of Estonia History of
Estonia
- Riigikogu functions, Riigikogu
- Estonia pulls off nationwide Net voting,
Download.com
- Riigikogu introduction, Riigikogu
- BBC NEWS| Europe| Estonia blames Russia for
unrest
- Estonian foreign ministry publication, 2004
- Estonian foreign ministry publication, 2002
- Foreign investment
- Estonian National Defence Policy
- Estonian Defence Budget
- Estonian military missions in Middle-East
- Former operations
- Eesti osalus Euroopa julgeoleku- ja
kaitsepoliitikas – ESDP, Estonian Ministry of
Defence
- CERT
Estonia
- White House
4 May 2007: President Bush to Welcome President Toomas Ilves of
Estonia
- Yahoo/AFP 25 June 2007: Bush, Ilves eye tougher tack on cybercrime
- Eesti Päevaleht 15 June 2007: NATO andis
rohelise tule Eesti küberkaitse kavale by Ahto Lobjakas
- Eesti Päevaleht 28 June 2007: USA toetab
Eesti küberkaitsekeskust by Krister Paris
- Office of the President of Estonia 25 June 2007:
President Ilves kohtus Ameerika Ühendriikide
riigipeaga
- Ministry
of Finance
- Uranium production at Sillamäe
- Future Report: Finnish and Estonian joint nuclear
power station could be located in Estonia, Postimees
- Invest in Estonia: Overview of the Construction
industry in Estonia
- http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact2005/geos/en.html
Environment – current issues in Estonia. CIA Factbook
- Estonian Wind Power Association
- Peipsile võib kerkida mitusada tuulikut,
Postimees
- Tuule püüdmine on saanud Eesti kullapalavikuks,
Estonian
Daily
- State Environment in Estonia.
- Energy Security of Estonia in the context of the Energy
Policy of the EU
- Collier, Mike. "Estonia to become nuclear power?" The Baltic
Times. 22 February 2008.
- World Environment News – INTERVIEW – Tiny Estonia
Could Go Nuclear, Sees Oil Shale Hope – Planet Ark
- Hackers Take Down the Most Wired Country in
Europe, August 2007
- CIA World Factbook: Estonia
- European
Union Structural Funds in Estonia
- Riigi
Raha Raamat
- Estonian rail transport reduced 24,5% in
2007
- Programme of the Coalition for 2007–2011: Rural life,
regional and infrastructure development policy
- Saaremaa–mandri sild saab sõltumatu Eesti
proovikiviks
- Ethnic minorities in Estonia: past and present
- Baltic Germans in Estonia. Estonian Institute
www.einst.ee
- Culture of Estonia, Wikipedia
- Estonian literature at Encyclopædia Britannica
- The Development of Written Estonian By George
Kurman ISBN 0700703802
- Seeking the contours of a ‘truly’ Estonian
literature Estonica.org
- Literature and an independent Estonia
Estonica.org
- Anton Tammsaare (1878–1940) – originally Anton Hansen
Pegasos, Helsinki
- Jaan Kross at google.books
- Andrus Kivirähk. The Old Barny (novel) Estonian
Literature Centre
- Cinema of Estonia
- The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians;
p.358 ISBN 0333231112
- Estonian Native Music Preserving Center is opened
- Welcome Estonian Song and Dance Celebration
Foundation
- The historical overview of Estonian Song Celebrations
Estonian Song and Dance Celebration Foundation
- Kirch,
Aksel. "Russians in contemporary Estonia – different strategies of
the integration in to the nation-state."
- Information
about the bilingual Estonian/Swedish parish of Noarootsi.
- Eesti andis mullu kodakondsuse 2124 inimesele,
Postimees
- The Portal of Estonia: National symbols
- Estonian Food Inforserver
- Cuisine of Estonia, Wikipedia
- Ministry
of Education and Research
- Estonian Education Infosystem,
- Implementation of Bologna Declaration in
Estonia
- A. Kalja, J. Pruuden, B. Tamm, E. Tyugu, Two Families of
Knowledge Based CAD Environments. In: Software for
Manufacturing (North-Holland), 1989, pp 125–134
- H. Jaakkola, A. Kalja, Estonian Information Technology
Policy in Government, Industry and Research. In: Technology
Management: Strategies and Applications. (Vol. 3, No. 3),
1997, pp 299–307
- tallest building
-
Constitution of Estonia#Chapter 2: Fundamental Rights, Liberties,
and Duties Article 40.–42.
- Statistical database: Population Census 2000 –
Religious affiliation
- Country Studies: Estonia – Religion
- Holy Trinity: Estonia Today – Religion
External links
- Government
- General information
- Travel
- News