Grinkiškis ( pl, Grynkiszki, yi, גרינקישאָק, ''Grinkishok'') is a town in the

Radviliškis District Municipality Radviliškis () (german: Radwilischken; pl, Radziwiliszki; yi, ראדווילישאָק, ''Radvilishok'') is a town in the Radviliškis district municipality, Šiauliai County, Lithuania. Radviliškis has been the administrative center of the ...

in Šiauliai County,

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

. It is situated on the

Šušvė River Šušvė is a river in central Lithuania, a right (the longest) tributary of the Nevėžis river. It begins in Kelmė district municipality, 6 km (4 mi) southeast from Tytuvėnai. The river passes through Tytuvėnai and Sulinkiai Marshe ...

. It is the seat of an eldership. According to the 2011 census, the town had population of 678. The town was first mentioned in 1454 and soon became property of the Gatavičius family. Krzysztof Gatavičius, thankful for his military achievements, built a church in 1618. The present church was built in 1875. In 1999, coat of arms of Grinkiškis were approved by a presidential decree. The coat of arms depict a golden angel on one knee, who holds a silver lily with three blooms. The angel was borrowed from one of the two surviving crosses in town's cemetery, made by 19th-century

dievdirbys A dievdirbys ("god maker", plural: ''dievdirbiai'') is a Lithuanian wood carver who creates statues of Jesus and the Christian saints in more recent times, but used to create statues of the Lithuanian pagan deities. The art is closely related t ...

Vincas Svirskis Vincas Svirskis (January 28, 1835 — March 7, 1916) was the most prominent Lithuanian folk sculptor and wood carver, known for his works in Lithuanian cross crafting, Dievdirbys, god-carving and roofed pole carving. References

183 ...

. The lily, a symbol of purity and innocence, represents

Blessed Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jews, Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Jose ...

– patron of the town and namesake of its church.

References

Towns in Lithuania Towns in Šiauliai County Kovensky Uyezd Radviliškis District Municipality {{ŠiauliaiCounty-geo-stub