Preila (

Kursenieki The Kursenieki ( lv, kursenieki, kāpenieki, german: Kuren – 'Curonians'; lt, kuršiai; pl, Kuronowie pruscy – 'Prussian Curonians') are a nearly extinct Baltic ethnic group living along the Curonian Spit. "Kuršiai" refers only to inhabi ...

: ''Preiļi'' or ''Prēle'', german: Preil) is a settlement in the

Neringa Municipality Neringa () or Neringa Municipality ( lt, Neringos savivaldybė) is a municipality of Klaipėda County in westernmost Lithuania, comprising several villages in the Curonian Spit. In terms of population, it is the smallest municipality of the count ...

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 located on the Preila Bay (north of the and south of the Small ) of the

Curonian Lagoon The Curonian Lagoon (or Bay, Gulf; russian: Куршский залив, lt, Kuršių marios, pl, Zalew Kuroński, german: Kurisches Haff, lv, Kuršu joma) is a freshwater lagoon separated from the Baltic Sea by the Curonian Spit. Its surfac ...

). Preila is situated about away from the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...

and north of

Nida Nida or NIDA may refer to: People * Nida Allam (born 1993), American politician * Nida Fazli (1938–2016), Indian Hindi and Urdu poet and lyricist * Nida Eliz Üstündağ (born 1996), Turkish female swimmer * Eugene Nida (1914–2011), American l ...

, which is a popular tourist destination. The village is surrounded by many dunes: Preila Hill (53 m), Vecekrugas Hill (67 m), and (59 m).

Infrastructure

The settlement is part of the Preila-Pervalka parish centre. Preila is on located on the main road 167 which runs around the bay, serving as a connection between

and

Klaipėda Klaipėda (; ; german: Memel; pl, Kłajpeda; russian: Клайпеда; sgs, Klaipieda) is a city in Lithuania on the Baltic Sea coast. The capital of the eponymous county, it is the third largest city and the only major seaport in Lithuan ...

. Many of the homes are for rent for summer holidaymakers. Most of the houses are from the 19th century, end of the twentieth century. There is a library which was built in 1954, and a marina which has connections to the nearby

. In the southern part of the settlement there is a

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

cemetery. The Preila Neringa bike trail goes through the village connecting Nida and

Juodkrantė Juodkrantė (literally: ''Black Shore'', Kursenieki: ''Šatnūrta'' or ''Šatnūrte'', German: ''Schwarzort'') is a Lithuanian seaside resort village located on the Curonian Spit with a permanent population of about 720 people. A part of Neringa ...

History

In 1843–1845, Preila was founded by the inhabitants of the village of Naujieji Nagliai which was buried under shifting sand dunes. In 1849, 84 people lived in Preila. In the same year, a

village school One-room schools, or schoolhouses, were commonplace throughout rural portions of various countries, including Prussia, Norway, Sweden, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Spain. In most rural and s ...

moved from Naujieji Nagliai and opened in Preila. In 1907 a new building was built for the school. In the beginning of the 20th century there was already one hotel in Preila. Although life in Preila was not easy, the number of inhabitants grew: 453 in 1864, 123 in 1871, 133 in 1895, 225 in 1897, 207 in 1905, 238 in 1919 and 250 in 1923. At present, the population of Preila is about 205 people. In 1933, Preila was recognized as a resort. It was connected by a road to

in 1947. In 1961, Preila was administratively incorporated into the Neringa city.

References

{{Authority control Seaside resorts in Lithuania Villages in Klaipėda County Neringa Municipality