Latvia
Latvia, 1991 to today. Draft, not yet reviewed
After centuries of Teutonic, Swedish, Polish-Lithuanian, and Russian rule, the independent Republic of Latvia was established on 18 November 1918 after breaking away from the Russian Empire. The peaceful Singing Revolution started in 1987 among the Baltic Soviet republics and ended with the restoration of both de facto and official independence on 21 August 1991. The major goals of Latvia in the 1990s, to join NATO and the European Union, were achieved in 2004. On 1 January 2014, the euro became the country's currency, superseding the Lats.
Seat of power: Riga
Rulers
Ivars Godmanis
Prime Minister of Latvia, 1990–1993
He was the first prime minister of Latvia after the country restored its independence from the Soviet Union. Godmanis served as prime minister from 1990 to 1993, focusing primarily on Latvia's difficult economic transition from planned to market economy.
Portrait of Ivars Godmanis: Saeima, CC BY-SA 2.0, file
Guntis Ulmanis
President of Latvia, 1993–1999
Guntis Ulmanis is a Latvian politician and the fifth president of Latvia from 1993 to 1999.
Portrait of Guntis Ulmanis: Saeima, CC BY-SA 2.0, file
Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga
President of Latvia, 1999–2007
She is the first and to date only woman to hold the post and the most recent to be re-elected for a second term. As President of the Republic of Latvia 1999–2007, she was instrumental in achieving membership in the European Union and NATO for her country.
Portrait of Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga: Reinis Inkēns, Saeima, CC BY-SA 2.0, file
Valdis Zatlers
President of Latvia, 2007–2011
Valdis Zatlers is a Latvian politician and former physician who served as the seventh president of Latvia from 2007 to 2011. He became President of Latvia on 8 July 2007 and left office on 7 July 2011 after failing to win reelection for a second term.
Portrait of Valdis Zatlers: Saeima, CC BY-SA 2.0, file
Andris Bērziņš
President of Latvia, 2011–2015
Andris Bērziņš is a Latvian businessman and politician who was President of Latvia from 2011 to 2015. He was elected as President by the Saeima on 2 June 2011.
Portrait of Andris Bērziņš: Saeima, CC BY-SA 2.0, file
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Raimonds Vējonis
President of Latvia, 2015–2019
Raimonds Vējonis is a Latvian politician who served as the 9th President of Latvia from 2015 to 2019. He became Minister of Defence of Latvia in 2014 and held that office until becoming president in 2015.
Portrait of Raimonds Vējonis: KristineK1979, CC BY-SA 4.0, file
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Egils Levits
President of Latvia, 2019–2023
Egils Levits is a Latvian politician, lawyer, political scientist, and jurist who served as the tenth president of Latvia from 2019 to 2023. He was a member of the European Court of Justice from 2004 to 2019.
Portrait of Egils Levits: PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY Official website, CC BY 4.0, file
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Edgars Rinkēvičs
President of Latvia, 2023 to today
Edgars Rinkēvičs is a Latvian public official and politician serving as the 11th and current president of Latvia since July 2023. He previously served as the minister of foreign affairs of Latvia from 2011 to 2023.
Portrait of Edgars Rinkēvičs: Stenbocki maja, CC BY 4.0, file
Culture
- The Latvian Song and Dance Festival is an important event in Latvian culture and social life. It has been held since 1873, normally every five years.
- Latvia is a developed country with a high-income, advanced economy ranking 39th in the Human Development Index.
- Latvians, who are the titular nation and comprise 65.5% of the country's population, belong to the ethnolinguistic group of the Balts and speak Latvian.
- It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south.
Picture
The current building of the National Library of Latvia was designed in 1989 by the Latvian-American architect Gunnar Birkerts and opened in 2014.
Image: National Library of Latvia, Public domain, file
Sources
Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.