Antakalnis (''literally'' lt, 'the place on hills', adapted in pl, Antokol) is an eldership in the

Vilnius city municipality Vilnius ( , ; see also #Etymology and other names, other names) is the capital and List of cities in Lithuania#Cities, largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the munic ...

, Lithuania. Antakalnis is one of the oldest, and largest historical suburbs of

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

City. It is in the eastern section of Vilnius, along the left bank of the

Neris The river Neris () or Viliya ( be, Ві́лія, pl, Wilia ) rises in northern Belarus. It flows westward, passing through Vilnius (Lithuania's capital) and in the south-centre of that country it flows into the Nemunas (Neman), at Kaunas, as ...

River, with the river running along the whole western side of the district. The Antakalnis eldership is the second-largest in Vilnius, with an area of . One of the greatest Lithuanian Baroque masterpieces, the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, is in Antakalnis, as is Sapieha Palace (''Sapiegų rūmai''). Sapieha Palace is surrounded by the only surviving Baroque-style park in Lithuania, which contains the oldest

linden tree ''Tilia'' is a genus of about 30 species of trees or bushes, native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The tree is known as linden for the European species, and basswood for North American species. In Britain and Ireland they ...

in Vilnius. Antakalnis is home to the historically important Antakalnis Cemetery, where victims of the January Events in 1991, killed by the

Soviet Army uk, Радянська армія , image = File:Communist star with golden border and red rims.svg , alt = , caption = Emblem of the Soviet Army , start_date ...

, are buried; their graves are often visited, as they are considered national heroes of Lithuania. Antakalnis eldership includes the recreational area and prestigious cottage district Valakampiai, where two river beaches have been established. The current and former

president of Lithuania The President of the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublikos Prezidentas) is the head of state of Lithuania. The officeholder has been Gitanas Nausėda since 12 July 2019. Powers The president has somewhat more executive authority th ...

, the

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

of Lithuania, and other state officials reside in the Turniškės neighborhood of Antakalnis. The Botanical Garden of Vilnius University lies in Kairėnai, the settlement in the eastern part of the district. The Jewish surnames Antokolec,

Antokolsky Antokolsky (spelling variations: Antokolskiy, Antokolski) (russian: Антокольский) is a Russian surname. It derives from the Polish form Antokol of the toponym Antakalnis, a neighborhood of Vilnius, Lithuania. The notable bearers of this ...

and variants derive from the Polish pronunciation of the district's name.

History

Antakalnis is one of the oldest parts of Vilnius. Historically, the suburb of Antakalnis developed along a road to

Aukštaitija Aukštaitija (; literally in Lithuanian: ''Upper lands'') is the name of one of five ethnographic regions of Lithuania. The name comes from lands being in upper basin of Nemunas River or being relative to Lowlands up to Šiauliai. Geography Au ...

and Viršupis, the summer palace of the grand dukes.Vykintas Vaitkevičius. ''Neris. 2007 metų ekspedicija.'' Trečia knyga. Vilnius: Mintis, 2013.

Areas

Antakalnis eldership includes these city parts:

Aukštagiris Antakalnis (''literally'' lt, 'the place on hills', adapted in pl, Antokol) is an eldership in the Vilnius city municipality, Lithuania. Antakalnis is one of the oldest, and largest historical suburbs of Vilnius City. It is in the eastern se ...

, Aukštieji Karačiūnai, Antakalnis, Antaviliai, Baniškės, Didieji Pupojai, Dvarčionys, Galgiai, Gvazdikai, Kalnai, Kairėnai, Liepynė, Mažieji Pupojai, Meiriškės, Mileišiškės, Pečiukai, Pylimėliai, Sapieginė, Saulėtekis, Smėlynė, Šilas, Šilėnai, Turniškės, Vaguva, Valakampiai, Aukštoji Veržuva, Žemoji Veržuva, Vinciūniškės, Vismalai, Vismaliukai, Vyriai, Žemieji Karačiūnai.

Tourist Attractions

* Pavilniai Regional Park * Antakalnis Park of Benches * UNO Park Vilnius * Colorful Springs

Famous people

Famous Lithuanians having lived in Antakalnis eldership: *

Valdas Adamkus Valdas Adamkus (; born Voldemaras Adamkavičius; 3 November 1926) is a Lithuanian-American politician, diplomat and civil engineer. He served as the 5th and 7th President of Lithuania from 1998 to 2003 and again from 2004 to 2009. Adamkus' ...

, former President of Lithuania *

Mark Antokolski Mark Matveyevich Antokolsky (russian: Марк Матве́евич Антоко́льский; 2 November 18409 July 1902) was a Russian Imperial sculptor of Lithuanian Jewish descent. Biography Mordukh Matysovich Antokolsky''Boris Schatz: The ...

, sculptor * Algirdas Brazauskas, former president and Prime Minister of Lithuania * Janina Degutytė, poet *

Vytautas Kernagis Vytautas Kernagis (May 19, 1951 – March 15, 2008) was a Lithuanian singer-songwriter, bard, actor, director, and television announcer. He is considered a pioneer of Lithuanian sung poetry. Career Vytautas Kernagis was born to the family o ...

, actor and composer *

Andrius Kubilius Andrius Kubilius (born 8 December 1956) is a Lithuanian politician who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 2019. He served as Prime Minister of Lithuania from 1999 to 2000 and again from 2008 to 2012.LR Vyriausio ...

, former Prime Minister of Lithuania * Andrius Mamontovas, a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

singer *

Virgilijus Noreika Virgilijus Kęstutis Noreika (; 22 September 1935 – 3 March 2018) was a Lithuanian tenor. Early life and education Noreika was born in Šiauliai and graduated with honors from the Lithuanian State Conservatory in 1958. A year earlier, whil ...

, an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

singer *

Rolandas Paksas Rolandas Paksas (; born 10 June 1956) is a Lithuanian politician who was the sixth President of Lithuania from 2003 to 2004. He was previously Prime Minister of Lithuania in 1999 and again from 2000 to 2001, and he also served as Mayor of Vilniu ...

, former President of Lithuania *

Paulius Širvys Paulius Širvys (6 September 1920 – 27 March 1979) was a Lithuanian poet. Biography Paulius Širvys was born in Padustėlis village (now in Zarasai District Municipality), but soon moved to Degučiai village. After his parents and brother died, ...

, poet * Sofija Veiverytė, artist/painter *

Ingrida Šimonytė Ingrida Šimonytė (; born 15 November 1974) is a Lithuanian politician and economist who is the Prime Minister of Lithuania since 11 December 2020. She has been a Member of the Seimas of Antakalnis constituency since 2016 and was Minister of F ...

, former Minister of Finance and Prime Minister of Lithuania *

Jurga Ivanauskaitė Jurga Ivanauskaitė (14 November 1961 – 17 February 2007) was a Lithuanian writer. She was born in Vilnius, Lithuania. While studying at the Vilnius Art Academy, she wrote her first book, ''The Year of the Lilies of the Valley'', published ...

, writer

Twin towns

2nd district of Budapest The 2nd district of Budapest is a district of Budapest, Hungary. It has an area of 36.34 km² and is situated to the south of the 3rd district and to the north of the 1st district and the 12th district. Notable places * Széll Kálmá ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...

References

External links

Antakalnis photogallery

Visitor's guide to Antalkalnis Cemetery
{{Vilnius elderates Neighbourhoods of Vilnius