Kunioniai (''Kunionys'', formerly russian: Куняны, pl, Kuniany) is a village in

Kėdainiai district municipality Kėdainiai () is one of the oldest cities in Lithuania. It is located north of Kaunas on the banks of the Nevėžis River. First mentioned in the 1372 Livonian Chronicle of Hermann de Wartberge, its population is 23,667. Its old town dates to th ...

, in

Kaunas County Kaunas County ( lt, Kauno apskritis) is one of ten counties of Lithuania The territory of Lithuania is divided into 10 counties ( Lithuanian: singular ''apskritis'', plural ''apskritys''), all named after their capitals. The counties are ...

, in central

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 ...

. According to the 2011 census, the village had a population of 321 people. It is located from

Josvainiai Josvainiai (formerly pl, Jaswojnie, russian: link=no, Ясвойни, Ясвойне) is a small town in Kėdainiai district, central Lithuania. It is located on the Šušvė River 10 km southwest from Kėdainiai. In the town there is a C ...

, nearby the

Šušvė 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 Marshes ...

river, by the Josvainiai- Kampai II road. There are library, agriculture companies, farms. Former Jasnagurka manor is located next to Kunioniai.

History

Kunioniai is known since

1593 Events January–December * January – Siege of Pyongyang (1593): A Japanese invasion is defeated in Pyongyang by a combined force of Korean and Ming troops. * January 18 – Siamese King Naresuan, in combat on elephant back, k ...

. It developed alongside the ancient road to

Kaunas Kaunas (; ; also see other names) is the second-largest city in Lithuania after Vilnius and an important centre of Lithuanian economic, academic, and cultural life. Kaunas was the largest city and the centre of a county in the Duchy of Trakai ...

and probably belonged to the Josvainiai manor. There was a small Jewish community which hosted a

tavern A tavern is a place of business where people gather to drink alcoholic beverages and be served food such as different types of roast meats and cheese, and (mostly historically) where travelers would receive lodging. An inn is a tavern that h ...

, distillated

vodka Vodka ( pl, wódka , russian: водка , sv, vodka ) is a clear distilled alcoholic beverage. Different varieties originated in Poland, Russia, and Sweden. Vodka is composed mainly of water and ethanol but sometimes with traces of impuritie ...

and baked cakes. There was a watermill on the Vikšrupis river and four wooden crosses made by

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 ...

(did not survive till nowadays). The first school was opened in 1929. During the Soviet era Kunioniai was a ''

kolkhoz A kolkhoz ( rus, колхо́з, a=ru-kolkhoz.ogg, p=kɐlˈxos) was a form of collective farm in the Soviet Union. Kolkhozes existed along with state farms or sovkhoz., a contraction of советское хозяйство, soviet ownership or ...

'' center. Between 1950 and 1988 it was a Kunioniai ''

selsovet Selsoviet ( be, сельсавет, r=sieĺsaviet, tr. ''sieĺsaviet''; rus, сельсовет, p=ˈsʲelʲsɐˈvʲɛt, r=selsovet; uk, сільрада, silrada) is a shortened name for a rural council and for the area governed by such a cou ...

'' center.

Demography

References

Villages in Kaunas County Kėdainiai District Municipality {{KaunasCounty-geo-stub