Estonia
Estonia, officially the
Republic of Estonia (
Estonian:
Eesti or
Eesti Vabariik), is a country in
Northeastern Europe. Estonia has land borders with
Baltic country Latvia (339 km) to the south and
Russia (229 km) to the east. It is separated from
Finland in the north by the narrow
Gulf of Finland and from
Sweden in the west by the middle part of the
Baltic Sea. Its coastline is 3794 km long. Estonia has been a member state of the
European Union since
May 1,
2004.
Human settlement in Estonia became possible 11,000â€"13,000 years ago, when the ice from the last
glacial era melted away. The oldest known settlement in Estonia was the
Pulli settlement located on the banks of the
Pärnu River, near the town of
Sindi in south Estonia. According to radiocarbon dating, it was settled 11,000 years ago, at the beginning of the 9th millennium BC.
Evidence has been found of hunting and fishing communities existing around 6500 B.C. near the town of Kunda in north 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 early
Iron Age were marked by great cultural changes. The most significant was the transition to farming, which has remained at the foundation of Estonian economy and culture. During the Iron Age, approximately the 1stâ€"5th century 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.
A more troubled and war-ridden
Middle Iron Age followed with external danger coming both from the Baltic tribes, who attacked across the southern border, and from overseas. Several
Scandinavian
sagas refer to campaigns against Estonia. Estonian pirates conducted similar raids in the
Viking age and sacked and burned the Scandinavian capital of
Sigtuna in
1187.
By the early 13th Century, Estonia was divided into eight large counties â€" Saaremaa, Läänemaa, Revala, Harju, Viru, Järva, Sakala, and Ugandi. Annual consultations were held by representatives of several counties and developments took the direction of establishing a state. Estonia until this time retained a
pagan religion centered around a deity called
Tharapita.
Estonia was
christianised when the
German "
Livonian Brothers of the Sword" invaded south Estonia as part of the
Northern Crusades in the early 13th Century. At the same time
Denmark attempted to take possession of north Estonia and Estonia was consolidated under the two forces by
1227. Northern Estonia remained a possession of Denmark until
1346. Tallinn (Reval) was given its
Lübeck Rights in 1248 and joined the
Hanseatic League at the end of the 13th century. Ethnic Estonians became
serfs for the German-speaking nobility. In 1343 the people of northern Estonia and
Saaremaa rebelled against the rule of the Germans in the
St. George's Night Uprising, which was put down in 1344. There were unsuccessful Russian invasions in 1481 and 1558. From 1524, during the
Protestant Reformation, Estonia converted to
Lutheranism.
During the Livonian War in 1561, northern Estonia submitted to Swedish control, while southern Estonia briefly came under the control of
Poland 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, southern Estonia and northern Latvia, a division which persisted until early 20th century.
In 1631, the Swedish king
Gustavus Adolphus 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
Tartu (Dorpat). This period is known in Estonian history as the "Good Old Swedish Times."
Following the
Great Northern War, the Swedish empire lost Estonia to
Russia (
1710 de facto, and
1721 de jure, 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. The rights of peasants were initially weakened, however, serfdom was abolished in 1816 in the province of Estonia and in 1818 in Livonia.
As a result of the abolishment of serfdom and the availability of education to the natives, an active Estonian nationalist movement started in the 19th century. It began on a cultural level, resulting in the establishment of Estonian-language literature, theater and professional music and the formation of the Estonian national identity. Among the leaders of this 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
October Revolution, Estonia declared itself an independent republic on
February 24,
1918. After winning the
Estonian Liberation War against Soviet Russia (
Treaty of Tartu signed in
February 2,
1920) 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.
The country was occupied by Soviet troops in June
1940, as a consequence of the
1939 Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact between
Nazi Germany and the
Soviet Union. The
Estonian SSR was formed, which joined the Soviet Union. Many of its political and intellectual leaders were killed or deported to
Soviet Union. The country was occupied by the
Third Reich from
1941 to
1944, when Soviet forces reconquered it. A
guerilla war against the Soviet authorities in Estonia was waged into the early 1950s by so called
forest brothers (
metsavennad) consisting mostly of Estonian veterans of both German and Finnish armies as well as civilians.
Estonia regained its independence on
August 20,
1991, with the
Singing Revolution and the
collapse of the Soviet Union. The last Russian troops left on
August 31,
1994, and Estonia joined
NATO on
March 29,
2004 and the
European Union on
May 1,
2004.
 |
The Estonian Parliament building in Tallinn |
Estonia is a
constitutional
democracy, with a president elected by its unicameral
parliament (elections every four years). The government or the
executive branch is formed by the prime minister, nominated by the president, and a total of 14 ministers. The government is appointed by the president after approval by the parliament.
The
legislative power lies with the unicameral parliament, the
Riigikogu or State Assembly, which consists of 101 seats. Members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. The supreme
judiciary court is the National Court or
Riigikohus, with 19 justices whose chairman is appointed by the parliament for life on nomination by the president.
Internet voting has already been used in local elections in Estonia. The lawmakers in Estonia have authorized internet voting for parliamentary elections as well.[
1].
Estonia is divided into 15 counties. (
maakonnad; sing. -
maakond). They include:
*
Harju County (Estonian:
Harjumaa)
*
Hiiu County (Estonian:
Hiiumaa)
*
Ida-Viru County (Estonian:
Ida-Virumaa)
*
Järva County (Estonian:
Järvamaa)
*
Jõgeva County (Estonian:
Jõgevamaa)
*
Lääne County (Estonian:
Läänemaa)
*
Lääne-Viru County (Estonian:
Lääne-Virumaa)
*
Pärnu County (Estonian:
Pärnumaa)
*
Põlva County (Estonian:
Põlvamaa)
*
Rapla County (Estonian:
Raplamaa)
*
Saare County (Estonian:
Saaremaa)
*
Tartu County (Estonian:
Tartumaa)
*
Valga County (Estonian:
Valgamaa)
*
Viljandi County (Estonian:
Viljandimaa)
*
Võru County (Estonian:
Võrumaa)
 |
Map of Estonia |
|
Gulf of Finland and Estonia |
Estonia lies on the eastern shores of the
Baltic Sea 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 50
metres (164
ft), and the country's highest point is the
Suur Munamägi in the southeast at 318 metres (1,043 ft).
Oil shale (or kukersite) and
limestone deposits, along with forests which cover 47% of the land, play key economic roles in this generally resource-poor country. Estonia boasts over
1,400 lakes (most very small, with the largest,
Lake Peipus, (Peipsi in Estonian) being 3555 km²; 1372
sq. mi), numerous
bogs, and 3794
kilometers (2,357
mi) of coastline marked by numerous bays, straits, and inlets. The number of islands and islets is estimated at some 1,500, with two of them large enough to constitute their own counties,
Saaremaa and
Hiiumaa.
Climate
See
Weather (English),
Ilm (Estonian) or
Pogoda (Russian).
As a member of the
European Union, Estonia is part of the world's largest economic zone. In
1999, Estonia experienced its worst year economically since it regained independence in
1991, largely because of the impact of the August
1998 Russian financial crisis. Estonia joined the
WTO in November 1999 â€" the second Baltic state to join â€" and continued its
EU accession talks. With assistance from the European Union, the
World Bank and the
Nordic Bank, Estonia completed most of its preparations for EU membership by the end of
2002 and now has one of the strongest economies of the new member states of the European Union, which Estonia joined on
1 May 2004. The Estonian economy is growing quickly, partly due to a number of
Scandinavian companies relocating their routine operations and
Russian oil transit using Estonian ports. Estonia has a strong
information technology (IT) sector.
GDP PPP per capita is at $17,802, the highest among the
Baltic states.
In 1994, Estonia became among the first in the world to adopt a
flat tax, with a uniform rate of 26% regardless of the income a person makes. In January 2005 the personal income tax rate was reduced to 24%. A subsequent reduction to 23% followed in January 2006. In the following years the income tax rate will be decreased by 1% annually to reach 20% by January 2009.
Since
January 1,
2000, companies have not had to pay income tax on re-invested income. However, tax is due on profit distributions (incl. hidden distributions) at a rate of 24%. Despite the fact that only the moment of taxation was shifted from earning profits to their distribution, leaving the rest of the corporate taxation system mostly unchanged, the current legislation is said to be in violation of one of the fundamental freedoms of the European Union â€" free movement of capital. Estonia is to remove this hindrance by January 2009 when the temporary derogation expires.
In June 1992, Estonia replaced the
ruble with its own freely convertible currency, the
Kroon (EEK). A currency board was created and the new currency was pegged to the German Mark at the rate at 8 EEK for 1 DEM. When Germany introduced the
Euro the peg was changed to 15.6466 Kroon for 1 Euro.The Estonian government is intending to adopt the
Euro as the country's currency on
1 January 2008 due to continued high inflation, and finalised the design of Estonia's Euro coins in late 2004.
|
Beautifully painted buildings in Old Town Tallinn |
Indigenous Estonian-speaking ethnic Estonians constitute nearly 70 percent of the total population of about 1.3 million people. First and second generation immigrants from various parts of the former Soviet Union, mainly
Russia comprise most of the remaining 30 percent. The latter, mostly Russian-speaking ethnic minorities reside predominantly in the capital city (Tallinn) and the industrial urban areas in northeastern Estonia (
Ida-Virumaa county). There is also a small group of
Finnish descent, mainly from Ingermanland. Historically, large parts of Estonia's north-western coast and islands have been populated by an indigenous ethnically Swedish population called "rannarootslased" ("coastal Swedes"). The majority of Estonia's Swedish population fled to Sweden in 1944, escaping the advancing Soviet Army. Only a few hundred Swedes were left.
The country's official language is
Estonian, which is closely related to
Finnish, and like Finnish contains many Swedish words.
Russian is also widely spoken as a secondary language by 30â€"70 year old ethnic Estonians because Russian was a compulsory second language in school during the Soviet era. Younger people, born at the end of or following the Soviet era, can usually speak
English, having learned it as their first foreign language.
Ethnicity
According to information published by the Estonian Statistical Office in 2006, the population of Estonia comprised the following self-reported ethnic groups [
2]:
* 68.6%
Estonians* 25.7%
Russians * 2.1%
Ukrainians* 1.2%
Belarusians* 0.8%
Finns* 1.6% others (including Swedes, Tatars, Jews and Germans)
Religion
|
Tallinn, churches in the background |
The predominant religion of indigenous ethnic Estonians has traditionally been the
Christian belief in the form of the
Protestant Evangelical Lutheran confession; however, less than a quarter of ethnic Estonians define themselves as active believers at present. Most believers amongst the Russian minority are
Eastern Orthodox. The
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople has since the 1920s recognised a separate national
Estonian Orthodox Church, which has led to strained relations with the
Russian Orthodox Church, which claimed sole authority over Orthodox believers in the country during the period of Soviet rule.
Today, over 31% of the adult population are active followers of a particular faith, and they are made up of:
* 15%
Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church* 14%
Orthodox* 0.5%
Baptists
* 0.5%
Roman Catholics
There are nearly 10,000
Muslims in Estonia (most of whom are
Tatars), as well as a number of smaller
Buddhist,
Protestant and
Jewish groups, and some
neopagans who revere the local ancient deity
Taara. The results of 2002 poll are as follows:
Q: What religion is the dearest, most cherished for you?
*
Lutheran 39%
*
Orthodox 28%
*
Catholic 10%
*
Taara Religion 6%
*
Estonian Indigenious Religion/Estonian Native Religion (
Estonian mythology) 5%
*
Baptism 5%
*
Buddism 4%
*
Jehovah's Witnesses 3%
*
Pentecostalists 3%
*
Old Believers 2%
*
Hinduism 1%
*
Mormonism 1%
*
Islam <1%
* Other 4%
* None 19%
Altogether 1000 people were questioned, out of which 72% were Estonians.According to the most recent Eurostat "Eurobarometer" poll, in 2005
[ Eurobarometer, http://europa.eu.int/comm/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_225_report_en.pdf], only 16% of Estonian citizens responded that "they believe there is a God", whereas 54% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force" and 26% that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, God, or life force". This, according to the survey, would make
Estonians the
least religious people in the 25-member
European Union.
*
State of World Liberty Index 2006: 1st out of 159 countries.
*
Human Development Index 2005: Rank 38th out of 177 countries.
*
Reporters Without Borders world-wide press freedom index 2005: Rank 11th out of 167 countries.
*
Index of Economic Freedom 2006: Rank 7th out of 157 countries.
*
Corruption Perceptions Index 2005: 27/159
*
Bertelsmann:
Bertelsmann Transformation Index 2006: 2/119 (Ranked 2nd out of 134 countries.)
|
Estonian Song Festival - Laulupidu 2004 |
*
Estonian mythology*
Estonian food*
List of traditional Estonian meals*
Estonian rock music*
Music of Estonia*
List of Estonian films*
Tallinn University of Technology*
University of Tartu*
Baltic Germans *
Communications in Estonia *
Constitution of Estonia *
Crime in Estonia *
Estonian Boy Scouts Association *
Estonian State Decorations *
Foreign relations of Estonia *
Islam in Estonia *
List of cities in Estonia *
List of Estonian Americans*
List of Estonian newspapers*
List of Estonian rulers *
List of famous Estonians *
List of islands of Estonia *
List of lakes in Estonia*
List of municipalities of Estonia *
List of national parks of Estonia*
List of people on stamps of Estonia *
List of rivers of Estonia*
Military of Estonia *
Public holidays in Estonia*
Russians in Estonia*
Soviet occupation of Baltic countries *
Tourism in the Baltics*
Transportation in EstoniaImage:Estonian Folk Dancing.jpg|Estonian folk dancingImage:RingDance.jpg|Estonian folk dance festival "Tantsupidu"Image:MenEnter.jpg|Tantsupidu - The men enter!Image:Statue of Anton Hansen Tammsaare, Tallinn.jpg|Statue of Anton Hansen Tammsaare, TallinnImage:Tallin-markt.jpg|Medieval city centre and marketplace of Tallinn*
The Baltic Nations and Europe: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in the Twentieth Century John Hiden and Patrick Salmon
*
The Baltic Revolution: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and the Path to Independence Anatol
Lieven*
The Baltic States: The National Self-Determination of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania Graham Smith
*
Bradt Travel Guide: Estonia Neil Taylor
*
Estonia and the Estonians Toivo U. Raun
*
Estonia: Independence and European Integration David J. Smith
*
Estonia: Return to Independence Rein Taagepera
*
Lonely Planet World Guide: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania Nicola Williams, Cathryn Kemp and Debra Herrmann
*
War In The Woods: Estonia's Struggle For Survival 1944â€"1956 M. Laar, Mart Laar and Tiina Ets
*
Estonian Institute*
Estonia Map*
Estonia onLine â€" website about Estonia*
Estonia Pictures â€" in French.
*
Estonica â€" from A to Z about Estonia*
Official State Website (eRiik) â€" in English
*
Culture events in Estonia*
Webcam and weather in Tallinn*
Parks in Estonia â€" National parks, nature reserves and protected areas
roa-rup:Estoniands-nl:Estlaandfiu-vro:Eesti
