Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of
Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
and is home to 605,802 inhabitants
which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the
Gulf of Riga
The Gulf of Riga, Bay of Riga, or Gulf of Livonia ( lv, Rīgas līcis, et, Liivi laht) is a bay of the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Estonia.
The island of Saaremaa (Estonia) partially separates it from the rest of the Baltic Sea. The main con ...
at the mouth of the
Daugava
, be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna
, image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png
, image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava
, source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia
, mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic Se ...
river where it meets 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 ...
. Riga's territory covers and lies
above sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''.
The comb ...
,
on a flat and sandy plain.
Riga was founded in 1201 and is a former
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German to ...
member. Riga's historical centre is a
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage Site
A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
, noted for its
Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...
/Jugendstil architecture and 19th century wooden architecture. Riga was the
European Capital of Culture in 2014, along with
Umeå
Umeå ( , , , locally ; South Westrobothnian: ;). fi, Uumaja; sju, Ubmeje; sma, Upmeje; se, Ubmi) is a city in northeast Sweden. It is the seat of Umeå Municipality and the capital of Västerbotten County.
Situated on the Ume River, Ume ...
in Sweden. Riga hosted the
2006 NATO Summit, the
Eurovision Song Contest 2003
The Eurovision Song Contest 2003 was the 48th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Riga, Latvia, following the country's victory at the with the song " I Wanna" by Marie N. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) a ...
, the
2006 IIHF Men's World Ice Hockey Championships,
2013 World Women's Curling Championship
The 2013 World Women's Curling Championship (branded as the Titlis Glacier Mountain World Women's Curling Championship 2013 for sponsorship reasons) was held at the Volvo Sports Centre in Riga, Latvia from March 16 to 24. It marked the first time ...
and the
2021 IIHF World Championship
The 2021 IIHF World Championship () took place from 21 May to 6 June 2021. It was originally to be co-hosted by Minsk, Belarus and Riga, Latvia, as the IIHF announced on 19 May 2017 in Cologne, Germany. Their joint bid won by a very tight margin ...
. It is home to the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
's office of
European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC). In 2017, it was named the
European Region of Gastronomy The European Region of Gastronomy is a title given every year to one or more cities or regions in Europe. The title is awarded by the International Institute of Gastronomy, Culture, Arts and Tourism (IGCAT). Kuopio, a city in eastern Finland, is the ...
.
In 2016, Riga received over 1.4 million visitors. The city is served by
Riga International Airport
Riga International Airport ( lv, Starptautiskā lidosta "Rīga"; ) is the international airport of Riga, the capital of Latvia, and the largest airport in the Baltic states with direct flights to 76 destinations as of November 2019. It serves as ...
, the largest and busiest airport in the Baltic states. Riga is a member of
Eurocities
Eurocities is a network of large cities in Europe, established in 1986 by the mayors of six large cities: Barcelona, Birmingham, Frankfurt, Lyon, Milan and Rotterdam. Today, Eurocities members includes over 200 of Europe's major cities from 38 c ...
, the
Union of the Baltic Cities
Union of the Baltic Cities (''UBC'') is a voluntary, proactive network mobilizing the shared potential of the member cities for democratic, economic, social, cultural and environmentally sustainable development of the Baltic Sea region.
Origi ...
(UBC) and Union of Capitals of the European Union (UCEU).
Etymology
There are numerous and speculative theories for the origin of the name ''Riga'':
* It is an adapted borrowing from the
Livonian ''ringa'' meaning loop, referring to the ancient natural harbour formed by the tributary loop of the Daugava River.
* It could be derived from Riege, the German name for the River Rīdzene, a former tributary of the
Daugava
, be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna
, image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png
, image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava
, source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia
, mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic Se ...
.
*
Bishop Albert claimed credit from his campaign to conquer and convert the local populace, as coming from the Latin ''rigata'' ("irrigated"), symbolising an "irrigation of dry pagan souls by Christianity".
However, the most reliably documented explanation is the affirmation by German historian Dionysius Fabricius (1610) that Riga's name comes from its already established role in trade: "''Riga nomen sortita est suum ab aedificiis vel horreis quorum a litus Dunae magna fuit copia, quas livones sua lingua Rias vocare soliti.''" ("Riga obtained its name from the buildings or warehouses found in great number along the banks of the Duna, which the Livs in their own language are accustomed to call Riae."). The "j" in Latvian ''rīja'' (REE-eh) hardened to a "g" in German. English geographer
Richard Hakluyt
Richard Hakluyt (; 1553 – 23 November 1616) was an English writer. He is known for promoting the English colonization of North America through his works, notably ''Divers Voyages Touching the Discoverie of America'' (1582) and ''The Pri ...
(1589) corroborates this account, calling Riga ''Rie'', as pronounced in Latvian.
History
Founding
The river
Daugava
, be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna
, image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png
, image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava
, source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia
, mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic Se ...
has been a
trade route
A trade route is a logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. The term can also be used to refer to trade over bodies of water. Allowing goods to reach distant markets, a sing ...
since antiquity, part of the
Vikings' Dvina–Dnieper navigation route to Byzantium.
[Bilmanis, A. Latvia as an Independent State. Latvian Legation. 1947.] A sheltered
natural harbour
A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...
upriver from the mouth of the Daugava—the site of today's Riga—has been recorded, as ''Duna Urbs'', as early as the 2nd century.
It was settled by the
Livs
The Livonians, or Livs ( Livonian: ''līvlizt''; Estonian: ''liivlased''; Latvian: ''līvi'', ''lībieši''), are a Balto-Finnic people indigenous to northern and northwestern Latvia. Livonians historically spoke Livonian, a Uralic language ...
, a
Finnic tribe.
Riga began to develop as a centre of
Viking trade during the early Middle Ages.
Riga's inhabitants occupied themselves mainly with fishing,
animal husbandry
Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, selective breeding, and the raising of livestock. Husbandry has a long history, starti ...
, and trading, later developing crafts (in bone, wood, amber, and iron).
The ''
Livonian Chronicle of Henry
The ''Livonian Chronicle of Henry'' ( la, Heinrici Cronicon Lyvoniae) offers a Latin narrative of events in Livonia (roughly corresponding to today's inland Estonia and the northern part of Latvia) and surrounding areas from 1180 to 1227. It was ...
'' testifies to Riga having long been a trading centre by the 12th century, referring to it as ''portus antiquus'' (ancient port), and describes dwellings and warehouses used to store mostly flax, and hides.
German traders began visiting Riga, establishing a nearby outpost in 1158.
Along with German traders the monk
Meinhard of Segeberg[Vauchez et al. Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages. Routledge, 2001] arrived to convert the Livonian pagans to Christianity.
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and
Orthodox Christianity
Orthodoxy (from Ancient Greek, Greek: ) is adherence to correct or accepted creeds, especially in religion.
Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical councils in Late antiquity, A ...
had already arrived in Latvia more than a century earlier, and many Latvians had been baptised.
Meinhard settled among the Livs, building a castle and church at Uexküll (now known as
Ikšķile
Ikšķile (; german: Uexküll; liv, Ikškilā; et, Üksküla; also known as ''Üxküll'') is a town in Latvia, in Ogre Municipality. It was the first capital of the Roman Catholic Bishopric of Livonia, known by the German name of Üxküll ...
), upstream from Riga, and established his bishopric there.
The Livs, however, continued to practice
paganism
Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christianity, early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions ot ...
and Meinhard died in Uexküll in 1196, having failed in his mission.
[Germanis, U. The Latvian Saga. 10th ed. 1998. Memento, Stockholm.] In 1198, the
Bishop Berthold arrived with a contingent of
crusaders
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...
and commenced a campaign of forced
Christianisation
Christianization (American and British English spelling differences#-ise.2C -ize .28-isation.2C -ization.29, or Christianisation) is to make Christian; to imbue with Christian principles; to become Christian. It can apply to the conversion of ...
.
Berthold died soon afterwards and his forces were defeated.
The Church mobilised to avenge this defeat.
Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III ( la, Innocentius III; 1160 or 1161 – 16 July 1216), born Lotario dei Conti di Segni (anglicized as Lothar of Segni), was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 to his death in 16 J ...
issued a bull declaring a crusade against the
Livonians
The Livonians, or Livs ( Livonian: ''līvlizt''; Estonian: ''liivlased''; Latvian: ''līvi'', ''lībieši''), are a Balto-Finnic people indigenous to northern and northwestern Latvia. Livonians historically spoke Livonian, a Uralic language c ...
.
Bishop Albert was proclaimed
Bishop of Livonia
The Diocese of Livonia, later Roman Catholic Diocese of Inflanty was a territorial division of the Roman Catholic Church established in 1186 as the Diocese of Üxküll and promoted as Metropolitan Archdiocese of Riga in 1255.
Re-established afte ...
by his uncle
Hartwig of Uthlede
Hartwig of Uthlede (died 3 November 1207) was a German nobleman who – as Hartwig II – Prince-Archbishop of Bremen (1185–1190 and de facto again 1192–1207) and one of the originators of the Livonian Crusade.
Biography
Coming from a family ...
,
Prince-Archbishop of Bremen and Hamburg in 1199. Albert landed in Riga in 1200
with 23 ships
[Laffort, R. (censor), ''Catholic Encyclopedia'', Robert Appleton Co., 1907] and 500 Westphalian crusaders.
[Tolstoy-Miloslavsky, D. ''The Tolstoys: Genealogy and Origin''. A2Z, 1991] In 1201, he transferred the seat of the Livonian bishopric from Uexküll to Riga, extorting agreement to do this from the elders of Riga by force.
Under Bishop Albert
The year 1201 also marked the first arrival of German merchants in Novgorod, via the Dvina.
[Dollinger, P. ''The Emergence of International Business 1200–1800'', 1964; translated Macmillan and Co edition, 1970] To defend territory
[Reiner et al. ''Riga''. Axel Menges, Stuttgart. 1999.] and trade, Albert established the
Order of Livonian Brothers of the Sword in 1202, which was open to nobles and merchants.
[
The Christianisation of the Livs continued. In 1207, Albert started to fortify the town.][Zarina, D. ''Old Riga: Tourist Guide'', Spriditis, 1992] Emperor Philip invested Albert with Livonia as a fief[Moeller et al. History of the Christian Church. MacMillan & Co. 1893.] and principality of the Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
.[ To promote a permanent military presence, territorial ownership was divided between the Church and the ''Order'', with the Church taking Riga and two-thirds of all lands conquered and granting the ''Order'' a third.][Palmieri, A. ''Catholic Origin of Latvia'', ed. Cororan, J.A. et al. ''The American Catholic Quarterly Review'', Volume XLVI, January–October 1921. Philadelphia.] Until then, it had been customary for crusaders to serve for a year and then return home.[
Albert had ensured Riga's commercial future by obtaining papal bulls which decreed that all German merchants had to carry on their Baltic trade through Riga.][ In 1211, Riga minted its first coinage,][ and Albert laid the cornerstone for the Riga Dom. Riga was not yet secure as an alliance of tribes failed to take Riga.][ In 1212, Albert led a campaign to compel ]Polotsk
Polotsk (russian: По́лоцк; be, По́лацк, translit=Polatsk (BGN/PCGN), Polack (official transliteration); lt, Polockas; pl, Połock) is a historical city in Belarus, situated on the Dvina River. It is the center of the Polotsk Distr ...
to grant German merchants free river passage.[ Polotsk conceded Kukenois (]Koknese
Koknese () is a town in Aizkraukle Municipality in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, on the right bank of the Daugava River. It has a population of nearly 3,000.
According to the provisions of the 2021 Latvian administrative reform, Koknese gained ...
) and Jersika
The principality of Jersika ( la, Gerzika, terra Lettia, german: Gerzika, Zargrad, russian: Ерсика, Герцике; also known as ''Лотыголa'') was an early medieval Latgalians, Latgalian principality in eastern modern-day Latvia an ...
to Albert, also ending the Livs' tribute to Polotsk.[Kooper, E. ''The Medieval Chronicle'' V. Radopi, 2008.]
Riga's merchant citizenry chafed and sought greater autonomy from the Church. In 1221, they acquired the right to independently self-administer Riga[ and adopted a city constitution.][Wright, C.T.H. ''The Edinburgh Review'', ''The Letts'', 1917]
That same year Albert was compelled to recognise Danish rule over lands they had conquered in Estonia and Livonia.[Murray, A., ''Crusade and Conversion on the Baltic Frontier, 1150–1500''. Ashgate, London. 2001.] Albert had sought the aid of King Valdemar of Denmark to protect Riga and Livonian lands against Liv insurrection when reinforcements could not reach Riga. The Danes landed in Livonia, built a fortress at Reval (Tallinn
Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...
) and set about conquering Estonian and Livonian lands. The Germans attempted, but failed, to assassinate Valdemar.["The Ecclesiastical Review", Vol. LVI. ''American Ecclesiastical Review''. Dolphin Press. 1917.] Albert was able to reach an accommodation with them a year later, however, and in 1222 Valdemar returned all Livonian lands and possessions to Albert's control.[Fonnesberg-Schmidt, I. ''The Popes and the Baltic Crusades, 1147–1254''. Brill. 2006.]
Albert's difficulties with Riga's citizenry continued; with papal intervention, a settlement was reached in 1225 whereby they no longer had to pay tax to the Bishop of Riga,[Švābe, A., ed. Latvju Enciklopēdija. Trīs Zvaigznes, Stockholm. 1953–1955 (in Latvian)] and Riga's citizens acquired the right to elect their magistrates and town councillors.[ In 1226, Albert consecrated the Dom Cathedral,][ built St. James's Church,][ (now a cathedral) and founded a parochial school at the Church of St. George.][
In 1227, Albert conquered Oesel][Fletcher, R.A., ''The Conversion of Europe: From Paganism to Christianity, 371–1386AD''. Harper Collins. 1991.] and the city of Riga concluded a treaty with the Principality of Smolensk
The Principality of Smolensk (eventually Grand Principality of Smolensk) was a Kievan Rus' lordship from the 11th to the 16th century. Until 1127, when it passed to Rostislav Mstislavich, the principality was part of the land of Kiev. The princip ...
giving Polotsk to Riga.[Michell, Thomas. ''Handbook for Travelers in Russia, Poland, and Finland''. London, John Murray, 1888.]
Albert died in January 1229.[Fonnesberg-Schmidt, I., ''The Popes and the Baltic Crusades, 1147–1254''. Brill, 2007] He failed in his aspiration to be anointed archbishop[ but the German hegemony he established over the Livonia would last for seven centuries.][
]
Hanseatic League
In 1282, Riga became a member of the Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League (; gml, Hanse, , ; german: label=Modern German, Deutsche Hanse) was a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Central and Northern Europe. Growing from a few North German to ...
. The Hansa was instrumental in giving Riga economic and political stability, thus providing the city with a strong foundation which endured the political conflagrations that were to come, down to modern times.
Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, the Swedish and Russian Empires
As the influence of the Hanseatic League waned, Riga became the object of foreign military, political, religious and economic aspirations. Riga accepted the Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
in 1522, ending the power of the archbishops. In 1524, iconoclast
Iconoclasm (from Greek: grc, εἰκών, lit=figure, icon, translit=eikṓn, label=none + grc, κλάω, lit=to break, translit=kláō, label=none)From grc, εἰκών + κλάω, lit=image-breaking. ''Iconoclasm'' may also be conside ...
s targeted a statue of the 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 Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...
in the cathedral to make a statement against religious icons. It was accused of being a witch, and given a trial by water in the Daugava
, be, Заходняя Дзвіна (), liv, Vēna, et, Väina, german: Düna
, image = Fluss-lv-Düna.png
, image_caption = The drainage basin of the Daugava
, source1_location = Valdai Hills, Russia
, mouth_location = Gulf of Riga, Baltic Se ...
river. The statue floated, so it was denounced as a witch and burnt at Kubsberg. With the demise of the Livonian Order
The Livonian Order was an autonomous branch of the Teutonic Order,
formed in 1237. From 1435 to 1561 it was a member of the Livonian Confederation.
History
The order was formed from the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword after the ...
during the Livonian War
The Livonian War (1558–1583) was the Russian invasion of Old Livonia, and the prolonged series of military conflicts that followed, in which Tsar Ivan the Terrible of Russia (Muscovy) unsuccessfully fought for control of the region (pre ...
, Riga for twenty years had the status of a free imperial city
In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...
of the Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
before it came under the influence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and, after 1791, as the Commonwealth of Poland, was a bi-confederal state, sometimes called a federation, of Crown of the Kingdom of ...
by the Treaty of Drohiczyn
The Treaty of Drohiczyn was concluded on 14 January 1581, during the Livonian War, between the city of Riga and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The former Free imperial city Riga was added to Polish-Lithuanian Livonia. Its freedoms and privi ...
, which ended the war for Riga in 1581. In 1621, during the Polish–Swedish War (1621–1625)
The Polish–Swedish War of 1621 to 1625 was a war in a long-running series of conflicts between the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Swedish Empire. It began with a Swedish invasion of the Polish–Lithuanian fiefdom Livonia. Swedish f ...
, Riga and the outlying fortress of Daugavgrīva
Daugavgrīva (german: Dünamünde; pl, Dynemunt; russian: Усть-Двинск or ''Ust`-Dvinsk'') is a neighbourhood in North West Riga, Latvia on the left bank of the Daugava river. In this neighbourhood there is a Swedish-built fortress ...
came under the rule of Gustavus Adolphus
Gustavus Adolphus (9 December Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">N.S_19_December.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 19 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/now ...
, King of Sweden
The monarchy of Sweden is the monarchical head of state of Sweden,See the Instrument of Government, Chapter 1, Article 5. which is a constitutional and hereditary monarchy with a parliamentary system.Parliamentary system: see the Instrument o ...
, who intervened in the Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...
not only for political and economic gain but also in favour of German Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...
Protestantism
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
. During the Russo-Swedish War (1656–1658)
The Russo-Swedish War of 1656–1658 was fought by Russia and Sweden as a theater of the Second Northern War. It took place during a pause in the contemporary Russo-Polish War (1654–1667) as a consequence of the Truce of Vilna. Despite i ...
, Riga withstood a siege by Russian forces.
Riga remained one of the largest cities under the Swedish crown until 1710, a period during which the city retained a great deal of autonomous self-government. In July 1701, during the opening phase of the Great Northern War
The Great Northern War (1700–1721) was a conflict in which a coalition led by the Tsardom of Russia successfully contested the supremacy of the Swedish Empire in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. The initial leaders of the anti-Swedi ...
, the ''Crossing of the Düna
The Crossing of the Düna (also known as Battle of Daugava or Battle of Spilves) took place during the Great Northern War on July 19, 1701 near the city of Riga, present-day Latvia. The Swedish king Charles XII was in hot pursuit of king Augustu ...
'' took place nearby, resulting in a victory for king Charles XII of Sweden
Charles XII, sometimes Carl XII ( sv, Karl XII) or Carolus Rex (17 June 1682 – 30 November 1718 O.S.), was King of Sweden (including current Finland) from 1697 to 1718. He belonged to the House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken, a branch line of t ...
. Between November 1709 and June 1710, however, the Russians under Tsar
Tsar ( or ), also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar'', is a title used by East Slavs, East and South Slavs, South Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word ''Caesar (title), caesar'', which was intended to mean "emperor" i ...
Peter the Great
Peter I ( – ), most commonly known as Peter the Great,) or Pyotr Alekséyevich ( rus, Пётр Алексе́евич, p=ˈpʲɵtr ɐlʲɪˈksʲejɪvʲɪtɕ, , group=pron was a Russian monarch who ruled the Tsardom of Russia from t ...
besieged and captured Riga, which was at the time struck by a plague. Along with the other Livonian towns and gentry, Riga capitulated to Russia, but largely retained their privileges. Riga was made the capital of the Governorate of Riga (later, Livonia). Sweden's northern dominance had ended, and Russia's emergence as the strongest Northern power was formalised through the Treaty of Nystad
The Treaty of Nystad (russian: Ништадтский мир; fi, Uudenkaupungin rauha; sv, Freden i Nystad; et, Uusikaupunki rahu) was the last peace treaty of the Great Northern War of 1700–1721. It was concluded between the Tsardom of ...
in 1721. At the beginning of the 20th century Riga was the largest timber export port in the Russian Empire and ranked the 3rd according to the external trade volume. At the same time, Riga was also the third largest city in Russian Empire.
During these many centuries of war and changes of power in the Baltic, and despite demographic changes, the Baltic Germans
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declin ...
in Riga had maintained a dominant position. By 1867, Riga's population was 42.9% German. Riga employed German as its official language
An official language is a language given supreme status in a particular country, state, or other jurisdiction. Typically the term "official language" does not refer to the language used by a people or country, but by its government (e.g. judiciary, ...
of administration until the installation of Russian in 1891 as the official language in the Baltic provinces
The Baltic governorates (russian: Прибалтийские губернии), originally the Ostsee governorates (german: Ostseegouvernements, russian: Остзейские губернии), was a collective name for the administrative units ...
, as part of the policy of Russification
Russification (russian: русификация, rusifikatsiya), or Russianization, is a form of cultural assimilation in which non-Russians, whether involuntarily or voluntarily, give up their culture and language in favor of the Russian cultur ...
of the non-Russian-speaking territories of the Russian Empire, including Congress Poland
Congress Poland, Congress Kingdom of Poland, or Russian Poland, formally known as the Kingdom of Poland, was a polity created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna as a semi-autonomous Polish state, a successor to Napoleon's Duchy of Warsaw. It w ...
, Finland and the Baltics, undertaken by Tsar Alexander III
Alexander III ( rus, Алекса́ндр III Алекса́ндрович, r=Aleksandr III Aleksandrovich; 10 March 18451 November 1894) was Emperor of Russia, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Finland from 13 March 1881 until his death in 1894. ...
. More and more Latvians started moving to the city during the mid-19th century. The rise of a Latvian bourgeoisie
The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...
made Riga a centre of the Latvian National Awakening
The Latvian National Awakening ( lv, latviešu r latvju
R, or r, is the eighteenth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ar'' (pronounced ), plural ''ars'', or in Irelan ...
tautas atmoda) refers to three distinct but ideologically related Romantic nationalism, National revival movements:
* the ''The First Latvian National Awakening, First Awakening'' refers ...
with the founding of the Riga Latvian Association in 1868 and the organisation of the first national song festival in 1873. The nationalist movement of the Neo-Latvians was followed by the socialist New Current
The New Current ( lv, Jaunā strāva) in the history of Latvia was a broad leftist social and political movement that followed the First Latvian National Awakening (led by the Young Latvians from the 1850s to the 1880s) and culminated in the 1905 ...
during the city's rapid industrialisation, culminating in the 1905 Revolution
The Russian Revolution of 1905,. also known as the First Russian Revolution,. occurred on 22 January 1905, and was a wave of mass political and social unrest that spread through vast areas of the Russian Empire. The mass unrest was directed again ...
led by the Latvian Social Democratic Workers' Party
)
, colours = Maroon Green
, headquarters = Riga, Lāčplēša iela 60, LV-1011
, seats1_title = Saeima
, seats1 =
, seats2_title = European Parliament
, seats2 =
, website lsdsp.lv, membership_year = 2017
, membership = 633
The Latv ...
.
World War I
The 20th century brought World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and the impact of the Russian Revolution
The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and ad ...
of 1917 to Riga. As a result of the battle of Jugla
The Battle of Jugla was a defensive battle of the Russian Republic's 12th Army of the First World War from 1 to 5 September 1917. It was part of the German offensive called the ''Battle of Riga'' or ''Schlacht um Riga''. The main objective for ...
, the German army
The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...
marched into Riga on 3 September 1917. On 3 March 1918, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk
The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk (also known as the Treaty of Brest in Russia) was a separate peace, separate peace treaty signed on 3 March 1918 between Russian SFSR, Russia and the Central Powers (German Empire, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Kingdom of ...
was signed, giving the Baltic countries
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
to Germany. Because of the armistice with Germany
The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed at Le Francport near Compiègne that ended fighting on land, sea, and air in World War I between the Entente and their last remaining opponent, Germany. Previous armistices ...
of 11 November 1918, Germany had to renounce that treaty, as did Russia, leaving Latvia and the other Baltic States in a position to claim independence. Latvia, with Riga as its capital city, thus declared its independence on 18 November 1918.
Between World War I and World War II (1918–1940), Riga and Latvia shifted their focus from Russia to the countries of Western Europe. The United Kingdom and Germany replaced Russia as Latvia's major trade partners. The majority of the Baltic Germans were resettled in late 1939, prior to the occupation of Estonia and Latvia by the Soviet Union in June 1940.
World War II
During World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, Latvia was occupied by the Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
in June 1940 and then was occupied by Nazi Germany in 1941–1944. On 17 June 1940, the Soviet forces invaded Latvia occupying bridges, post/telephone, telegraph, and broadcasting offices. Three days later, Latvian president Karlis Ulmanis was forced to approve a pro-Soviet government which had taken office. On 14–15 July, rigged elections were held in Latvia and the other Baltic states, The ballots held the following instructions: "Only the list of the Latvian Working People's Bloc
The Communist Party of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Komunistiskā partija, LKP) was a political party in Latvia.
History Latvian Social-Democracy prior to 1919
The party was founded at a congress in June 1904. Initially the party was known as the Latvia ...
must be deposited in the ballot box. The ballot must be deposited without any changes." The alleged voter activity index was 97.6%. Most notably, the complete election results were published in Moscow 12 hours before the election closed. Soviet electoral documents found later substantiated that the results were completely fabricated. The Soviet authorities, having regained control over Riga and Latvia imposed a regime of terror, opening the headquarters of the KGB
The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
, massive deportations started. Hundreds of men were arrested, including leaders of the former Latvian government. The most notorious deportation, the June deportation
The June deportation ( et, juuniküüditamine, lv, jūnija deportācijas, lt, birželio trėmimai) was a Population transfer in the Soviet Union, mass deportation by the Soviet Union of tens of thousands of people from the Soviet occupation of t ...
took place on 13 and 14 June 1941, estimated at 15,600 men, women, and children, and including 20% of Latvia's last legal government. Similar deportations were repeated after the end of WWII. The building of the KGB located at 61 Brīvības iela
Brīvības iela is the central street of Riga, the capital of Latvia. It is more than 12 km long, going through all of Riga from the historical centre to the outskirts.
History
The street was the beginning of an important trade route - ...
, known as 'the corner house', is now a museum. Stalin's deportations also included thousands of Latvian Jews. (The mass deportation totalled 131,500 across the Baltics.)
During the Nazi occupation, the Jewish community
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
was forced into the Riga Ghetto and a Nazi concentration camp
From 1933 to 1945, Nazi Germany operated more than a thousand concentration camps, (officially) or (more commonly). The Nazi concentration camps are distinguished from other types of Nazi camps such as forced-labor camps, as well as concen ...
was constructed in Kaiserwald. On 25 October 1941, the Nazis relocated all Jews from Riga and the vicinity to the ghetto. Most of Latvia's Jews (about 24,000) were killed on 30 November and 8 December 1941 in the Rumbula massacre
The Rumbula massacre is a collective term for incidents on November 30 and December 8, 1941, in which about 25,000 Jews were murdered in or on the way to Rumbula forest near Riga, Latvia, during the Holocaust. Except for the Babi Yar massacre in U ...
. By the end of the war, the remaining Baltic Germans
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declin ...
were expelled to Germany.
The Soviet Red Army re-entered Riga on 13 October 1944. In the following years the massive influx of labourers, administrators, military personnel, and their dependents from Russia and other Soviet republics started. Microdistrict
Microdistrict, or microraion (russian: микрорайо́н, ''mikrorajón''), is a residential complex—a primary structural element of the residential area construction in the Soviet Union and in some post-Soviet and former Socialist st ...
s of the large multi-storied housing blocks were built to house immigrant workers.
By the end of the war, Riga's historical centre was heavily damaged from constant bombing. After the war, huge efforts were made to reconstruct and renovate most of the famous buildings that had been part of the skyline of the city before the war. Such buildings were, amongst others, St. Peter's Church which lost its wooden tower after a fire caused by the Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previous ...
(renovated in 1954). Another example is the House of the Blackheads, completely destroyed, its ruins subsequently demolished; a facsimile
A facsimile (from Latin ''fac simile'', "to make alike") is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, Old master print, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from ...
was constructed in 1995.
In 1989, the percentage of Latvians in Riga had fallen to 36.5%.
21st century
In 2004, the arrival of low-cost airline
A low-cost carrier or low-cost airline (occasionally referred to as '' no-frills'', ''budget'' or '' discount carrier'' or ''airline'', and abbreviated as ''LCC'') is an airline that is operated with an especially high emphasis on minimizing op ...
s resulted in cheaper flights from other European cities such as London and Berlin, and consequently a substantial increase in numbers of tourists. In the spring of 2006, the hitherto biggest party of hospitality exchange service
Social networking services where hosts do not receive payments are called hospitality exchange services (HospEx). The relationships on hospitality exchange services are shaped by altruism and are related to the cyber-utopianism on the Web in its ...
HC took place in Riga, counting 430 participants from 36 countries.
On 21 November 2013, the roof of a supermarket collapsed in Zolitūde
Zolitūde () is mainly an apartment house neighbourhood (or microdistrict) located in the western part of Riga, the capital of Latvia. Zolitūde is a centrally planned estate, consisting mostly of prefabricated concrete block Brutalist style ho ...
, one of the neighbourhoods of the city, possibly as a result of the weight of materials used in the construction of a garden on the roof. Fifty-four people were killed. Latvian President Andris Bērziņš described the disaster as "a large-scale murder of many defenceless people".
Riga was the European Capital of Culture in 2014. During Latvia's Presidency of the Council of the European Union
The presidency of the Council of the European Union is responsible for the functioning of the Council of the European Union, which is the co-legislator of the EU legislature alongside the European Parliament. It rotates among the member state ...
in 2015, the 4th Eastern Partnership
The Eastern Partnership (EaP) is a joint initiative of the European External Action Service of the European Union (EU) together with the EU, its member states, and six Eastern European partners governing the EU's relationship with the post-Sovi ...
Summit took place in Riga.
Geography
Riga is the second largest city
The United Nations uses three definitions for what constitutes a city, as not all cities in all jurisdictions are classified using the same criteria. Cities may be defined as the cities proper, the extent of their urban area, or their metropo ...
(after 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 ...
) in the three Baltic states
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
: Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. Riga is home to approximately one tenth of the three Baltic countries' combined population.
Administrative divisions
* Central District ()
* Kurzeme District ()
* Zemgale Suburb ()
* Northern District ()
* Vidzeme Suburb ()
* Latgale Suburb ()
Riga's administrative divisions consist of six administrative entities: Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
, Kurzeme and Northern
Northern may refer to the following:
Geography
* North, a point in direction
* Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe
* Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States
* Northern Province, Sri Lanka
* Northern Range, a ra ...
districts and the Latgale
Latgale ( ltg, Latgola; ; ger, Lettgallen; be, Латгалія, Łathalija; pl, Łatgalia; la, Lettgallia), also known as Latgalia is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. It is the easternmost region and is north of the Daugava River. While m ...
, Vidzeme
Vidzeme (; Old Latvian orthography: ''Widda-semme'', liv, Vidūmō) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands. The capital of Latvia, Riga, is situated in the southwestern part of the region. Literally meaning "the Middle Land", it is situated in n ...
and Zemgale
Semigallia, also spelt Semigalia, ( lv, Zemgale; german: Semgallen; lt, Žiemgala; pl, Semigalia; liv, Zemgāl) is one of the Historical Latvian Lands located in the south of the Daugava river and the north of the Saule region of Samogitia. ...
suburbs. Three entities were established on 1 September 1941, and the other three were established in October 1969. There are no official lower-level administrative units, but the Riga City Council Development Agency is working on a plan, which officially makes Riga consist of 58 neighbourhoods. The current names were confirmed on 28 December 1990.
Climate
The climate of Riga is humid continental
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...
(Köppen ''Dfb''). The coldest months are January and February, when the average temperature is but temperatures as low as can be observed almost every year on the coldest days. The proximity of the sea causes frequent autumn rains and fogs. Continuous snow cover may last eighty days. The summers in Riga are mild and rainy with an average temperature of , while the temperature on the hottest days can exceed .
Government
The head of the city government in Riga is the mayor, or officially the Chairman of the Riga City Council. He is assisted by one or more Vice Mayors (deputy mayors). The current mayor since October 2020 is Mārtiņš Staķis
Mārtiņš Staķis (born 4 July 1979) is a Latvian politician and businessman, currently serving as Mayor of Riga since 2020. He served as a deputy of the 13th Saeima, the Latvian parliament, until he resigned on 5 June 2020. On 29 August 2020, S ...
elected from Movement For!
Movement For! ( lv, Kustība Par!) is a liberal political party in Latvia. , which is a part of the Development/For!
Development/For! ( Latvian: ''Attīstībai/Par!,'' AP!) is a liberal political alliance in Latvia. It was formed in 2018 and it is made up of Movement For!, For Latvia's Development and Izaugsme.
The coalition itself has embraced a centrist posi ...
/Progressives
Progressivism holds that it is possible to improve human societies through political action. As a political movement, progressivism seeks to advance the human condition through social reform based on purported advancements in science, techno ...
faction, but on 24 March 2022, he left the party. The three other parties in the governing coalition each received a Vice Mayor post.
The city council is a democratically elected institution and is the final decision-making authority in the city. The Council consists of 60 members or deputies who are elected every four years. The Presidium of the Riga City Council consists of the Chairman of the Riga City Council and the representatives delegated by the political parties or party blocks elected to the City Council. From February to October 2020, the offices of the Mayor and Vice Mayors were suspended and the council itself had been dissolved and replaced by an interim administration of representatives from three governmental
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a State (polity), state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, Executive (government), e ...
ministries until snap elections
An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office.
Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operate ...
were held in 2020.
Demographics
With 605,800 inhabitants in 2022 as according to the Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia, Riga was the largest city in the Baltic states
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
, though its population has decreased from just over 900,000 in 1991 and it is expected to be decrowned by 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 ...
. Notable causes include emigration and low birth rates. According to the 2017 data, ethnic Latvians made up 44.03% of the population of Riga. Slavs (mainly Eastern ones) made up the same percentage - Russians
, native_name_lang = ru
, image =
, caption =
, population =
, popplace =
118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate)
, region1 =
, pop1 ...
formed 37.88%, Belarusians
, native_name_lang = be
, pop = 9.5–10 million
, image =
, caption =
, popplace = 7.99 million
, region1 =
, pop1 = 600,000–768,000
, region2 =
, pop2 ...
3.72%, Ukrainians
Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian. The majority ...
3.66%, Poles
Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, who share a common history, culture, the Polish language and are identified with the country of Poland in Ce ...
1.83%, other ethnicities consisted 8.10%. By comparison, 60.1% of Latvia's total population was ethnically Latvian, 26.2% Russian, 3.3% Belarusian, 2.4% Ukrainian, 2.1% Polish, 1.2% are Lithuanian and the rest of other origins.
Upon the restoration of Latvia's independence in 1991, Soviet-era
The history of Soviet Russia and the Soviet Union (USSR) reflects a period of change for both Russia and the world. Though the terms "Soviet Russia" and "Soviet Union" often are synonymous in everyday speech (either acknowledging the dominance ...
immigrants (and any of their offspring born before 1991) were not automatically granted Latvian citizenship because they had migrated to the territory of Latvia during the years when Latvia was part of the Soviet Union. The proportion of ethnic Latvians in Riga increased from 36.5% in 1989 to 42.4% in 2010. In contrast, the percentage of Russians fell from 47.3% to 40.7% in the same time period. Latvians overtook Russians as the largest ethnic group in 2006. In 2013 citizens of Latvia made up 73.1%, non-citizens
In law, an alien is any person (including an organization) who is not a citizenship, citizen or a nationality, national of a specific country, although definitions and terminology differ to some degree depending upon the continent or region. ...
21.9% and citizens of other countries 4.9% of the population of Riga.
Historic population figures
Economy
Riga is one of the key economic and financial centres of the Baltic states
The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
. Roughly half of all the jobs in Latvia are in Riga and the city generates more than 50% of Latvia's GDP as well as around half of Latvia's exports. The biggest exporters are in wood products, IT, food and beverage manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, transport and metallurgy. Riga Port is one of the largest in the Baltics. It handled a record 34 million tons of cargo in 2011 and has potential for future growth with new port developments on Krievu Sala. Tourism is also a large industry in Riga and after a slowdown during the global economic recessions of the late 2000s, grew 22% in 2011 alone.
Riga was intended to become the global financial centre in the former Soviet Union. One bank, which provided high levels of secrecy for its customers, promoted itself as "We are closer than Switzerland!" (russian: «Мы ближе, чем Швейцария!») On 28 July 1995, twenty Latvian banks with assistance of persons from the Paris Stock Exchange
Euronext Paris is France's securities market, formerly known as the Paris Bourse, which merged with the Amsterdam, Lisbon, and Brussels exchanges in September 2000 to form Euronext NV. As of 2022, the 795 companies listed had a combined market ...
organised the Riga Stock Exchange
The Nasdaq Riga, formerly Riga Stock Exchange, is the sole stock exchange operating in Riga, Latvia. It is owned by Nasdaq, which also operates exchanges in the USA, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Armenia, Lithuania, and Estonia. Established i ...
which was the first Latvian stock exchange in Riga.
File:Latvias Banka.JPG, Bank of Latvia
File:Riga stock exchange.jpg, Riga Stock Exchange early 20th century. Now The Art Museum Riga Bourse
Culture
Theatres
* The Latvian National Opera
The Latvian National Opera and Ballet (LNOB) is an opera house and opera company at Aspazijas boulevard 3 in Riga. Its repertoire includes performances of opera and ballet presented during the season which lasts from mid-September to the end of Ma ...
was founded in 1918. The repertoire of the theatre embraces all opera masterpieces. The Latvian National Opera is famous not only for its operas, but for its ballet troupe as well.
* The Latvian National Theatre
The Latvian National Theatre ( lv, Latvijas Nacionālais teātris) is one of the leading professional theatres in Latvia. The building is in the Eclectic style and is an architectural and artistic monument. The country of Latvia was proclaimed ...
was founded in 1919. The Latvian National Theatre preserves the traditions of Latvian drama school. It is one of the biggest theatres in Latvia.
* The Mikhail Chekhov Riga Russian Theatre
The Mikhail Chekhov Riga Russian Theatre ( lv, Mihaila Čehova Rīgas Krievu teātris, russian: Рижский русский театр имени Михаила Чехова), colloquially referred to as the Russian Theatre ( lv, Krievu teātris ...
is the oldest professional drama theatre in Latvia, established in 1883. The repertoire of the theatre includes classical plays and experimental performances of Russian and other foreign playwrights.
* The Daile Theatre
The Dailes Theatre ( lv, Dailes teātris) is a professional Latvian theater founded by Latvian director and actor Eduards Smiļģis (1886-1966) on November 19, 1920 at the Craftsmen Relief Society House at Lāčplēša Street 25, Riga, Latvia. T ...
was opened for the first time in 1920. It is one of the most successful theatres in Latvia and is distinguished by its frequent productions of modern foreign plays.
* Latvian State Puppet Theatre was founded in 1944 and presents shows for children and adults.
* The New Riga Theatre
New Riga Theatre ( lv, Jaunais Rīgas teātris) is a theatre in Riga, Latvia. It was established in 1992. Several world known Latvian directors have started their career in this theatre, like Alvis Hermanis, Viesturs Kairišs among others.
Di ...
was opened in 1992.
World Choir Games
Riga hosted the biannual 2014 World Choir Games from 9 to 19 July 2014 which coincided with the city being named European Capital of Culture for 2014. The event, organised by the choral foundation, Interkultur, takes place at various host cities every two years and was originally known as the "Choir Olympics". The event regularly sees over 15,000 choristers in over 300 choirs from over 60 nations compete for gold, silver and bronze medals in over 20 categories. The competition is further divided into a Champions Competition and an Open Competition to allow choirs from all backgrounds to enter. Choral workshops and festivals are also witnessed in the host cities and are usually open to the public.
Architecture
The radio and TV tower of Riga is the tallest structure in Latvia and the Baltic States, and one of the tallest in the European Union, reaching . Riga centre also has many great examples of Gothic revival architecture, such as the Kalpaka Boulevard Library
The Kalpaka Boulevard Library (Latvian: ''Bibliotēka Kalpaka bulvārī'') is a branch of the University of Latvia libraries located on its eponymous street in central Riga, Latvia. It is housed in a historic mansion built between 1874–78 to d ...
, and a bevy of Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...
architecture, as well as a medieval old town.
Art Nouveau
Riga has one of the largest collections of Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...
buildings in the world, with at least 800 buildings. This is due to the fact that at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, when Art Nouveau was at the height of its popularity, Riga experienced an unprecedented financial and demographic boom. In the period from 1857 its population grew from 282,000 (256,200 in Riga itself and another 26,200 inhabitants beyond the city limits in the patrimonial district and military town of Ust-Dvinsk) to 472,100 in 1913. The middle class of Riga used their acquired wealth to build imposing apartment blocks outside the former city walls
A defensive wall is a fortification usually used to protect a city, town or other settlement from potential aggressors. The walls can range from simple palisades or earthworks to extensive military fortifications with towers, bastions and gates ...
. Local architects, mostly graduates of Riga Technical University
Riga Technical University (RTU) ( lv, Rīgas Tehniskā universitāte) is the oldest technical university in the Baltic countries established on October 14, 1862. It is located in Riga, Latvia and was previously known as 'Riga Polytechnical Instit ...
, adopted current European movements and in particular Art Nouveau. Between 1910 and 1913, between 300 and 500 new buildings were built each year in Riga, most of them in Art Nouveau style and most of them outside the old town.[
File:Edificio modernista en Alberta iela 13, Riga, Letonia, 2012-08-07, DD 01.jpg, Alberta iela 13
File:Edificio modernista en Alberta iela 2a, Riga, Letonia, 2012-08-07, DD 02.JPG, Alberta iela 2a
File:Alberta ielā 12 20120728-05.JPG, Staircase of Alberta ielā 12
File:A. Čaka iela 26 Rīga 03.jpg, Aleksandra Čaka iela 26
File:La salle à manger (musée dart nouveau, Riga) (7562659988).jpg, Riga Art Nouveau Museum
File:Edificio modernista en Strelnieku Iela 4a, Riga, Letonia, 2012-08-07, DD 01.JPG, Strēlnieku iela 4a
FILE:0871 LVA Riga art noveau relief meistaru iela 10.jpg, meistaru iela 10 relief
FILE:0872 LVA Riga art noveau relief.jpg, Strelnieku iela relief
]
Sports
Riga has a rich basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
history. In the 1950s, Rīgas ASK
Rīgas Armijas Sporta Klubs was a professional basketball club that was based in Riga, Latvia.
History
Rīgas ASK was founded in 1931, and started playing in the Latvian Basketball Championship. In the years that Latvia was controlled by the Sovi ...
became the best club in the Soviet Union and also in Europe, winning the first three editions of the European Cup for Men's Champions Clubs from 1958 to 1960.
In 1960, ASK was not the only team from Riga to take the European crown. TTT Riga
TTT Rīga is a professional women's basketball club based in Riga, Latvia. "TTT" means Tram and Trolley Trust. The team held its first official game on 5 November 1958. The next 25 years are known as the ''First Golden age'' of the club. Internati ...
clinched their first title in the European Cup for Women's Champion Clubs, turning Riga into the capital city of European basketball because for the first and, to date, only time in the history of European basketball, clubs from the same city were concurrent European men's and women's club champions.
In 2015, Riga was one of the hosts for EuroBasket 2015
EuroBasket 2015 was the 39th edition of the EuroBasket championship that was organized by FIBA Europe. It was co-hosted by Croatia, France, Germany, and Latvia, making it the first EuroBasket held in more than one country. It started on 5 Sept ...
.
Sports clubs
* Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
** BK VEF Rīga
VEF Rīga is a Latvian professional basketball team that is based in Riga, Latvia. VEF Rīga is a nine-time Latvian Basketball League champion.
History
Early years
The club name VEF came from the radio manufacturing company VEF which created th ...
– a professional basketball team that is a three-time Latvian champion. VEF also participates in high-level international competition such as Eurocup
** Barons LMT
BK Barons/LDz (previously Barons/LMT) was a professional basketball club which is based in Riga, Latvia. The team played in the first division of Latvian Basketball League.
History
Barons kvartāls was an integral part of Latvia's recent basket ...
– a men's basketball team, two-time Latvian champion, as well as the 2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
FIBA EuroCup
FIBA EuroChallenge (called the FIBA Europe League in 2003–05, and FIBA EuroCup in 2005–08) was the 3rd-tier level transnational men's professional continental club basketball competition in Europe, from 2003 to 2015. It was organized and run ...
winner
** TTT Riga
TTT Rīga is a professional women's basketball club based in Riga, Latvia. "TTT" means Tram and Trolley Trust. The team held its first official game on 5 November 1958. The next 25 years are known as the ''First Golden age'' of the club. Internati ...
– a women's basketball team, which between 1960 and 1982 won eighteen FIBA EuroLeague Women titles
* Ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
** Dinamo Riga
Dinamo Riga ( lv, Rīgas Dinamo) is a professional ice hockey team based in Riga, Latvia. It is a member of the Latvian Hockey Higher League. The club is affiliated with HK Zemgale/LLU.
The club was re-founded on 7 April 2008 as a successor of ...
– a professional ice hockey club established in 2008. It played in the Kontinental Hockey League
The Kontinental Hockey League (KHL; russian: Континентальная хоккейная лига (КХЛ), Kontinental'naya khokkeynaya liga) is an international professional ice hockey league founded in 2008. It comprises member clubs ba ...
until 2022. Dinamo was established as a successor to the former hockey team with the same name, which was founded in 1946 but ceased to exist in 1995.
** HK Riga
HK Riga is an ice hockey club, based in Riga, Latvia. It was founded in 2009 to serve as the farm club of former Kontinental Hockey League club Dinamo Riga. The club played the 2009–10 season in both the Latvian Hockey Higher League (which they ...
– a junior hockey club, playing in the Minor Hockey League
The Junior Hockey League (JHL) (russian: Молодежная Хоккейная Лига (МХЛ), Molodezhnaya Hokkeinaya Liga), sometimes translated as the ''Minor'' or ''Youth'' Hockey League, is a major junior ice hockey league in Eurasia ...
* Football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
**Riga FC
Riga Football Club, commonly referred to as Riga FC, is a Latvian football club, founded in 2014. The club is based at the Skonto Stadium in Riga. Since 2016 the club has been playing in the Virslīga.
History
The club was officially registered i ...
– Riga Football Club, commonly referred to as Riga FC, were established in 2015 after a merger of two Riga based teams – FC Caramba Riga and Dinamo Rīga. In 2018 they became champions of the Virslīga
Latvian Higher League or Virslīga is a professional football league and the top tier of association football in Latvia. Organised by the Latvian Football Federation, the Higher League is contested by 10 clubs. The full name of the league is Op ...
Latvian Higher League for the first time.
** RFS – FK Rīgas Futbola Skola, known as RFS are based on the Riga Football School (RFS) academy, established in 1962.
** FS Metta-LU
FK Metta (also called FK Metta/Latvijas Universitāte from 2007 till the end of 2018 season) is a professional Latvian football (soccer), football club in Riga. As of 2012 they play in the Latvian Higher League. Metta play their home games at Da ...
– founded in 2006. Metta play their home games at Daugava Stadium.
** JDFS Alberts
Jura Docenko Futbola Skola Alberts, commonly referred to as JDFS Alberts, is a Latvian football club based in Riga, that plays in Latvian First League
The Latvian First League ( lv, Latvijas Pirmā līga, 1. līga) is the second tier of footb ...
– Jura Docenko Futbola Skola Alberts, commonly referred to as JDFS Alberts was founded as a football school in 2008 and subsequently became a professional Latvian football league team.
**Riga United FC
Riga United FC is a Latvian Association football, football club, founded in 2007. The club plays at the School 49 ground in Riga. Riga United men's first team plays in Latvian League 2 Riga Division, the men's reserve team plays in Latvian Leagu ...
**FC New Project
FC may refer to:
Businesses, organisations, and schools
* Fergusson College, a science and arts college in Pune, India
* Finncomm Airlines (IATA code)
* FranklinCovey company, NYSE stock symbol FC
* Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force in Pakis ...
::Dissolved Football Clubs
:* Skonto FC
Skonto FC was a Latvian football club, active from 1991 until 2016. The club played at the Skonto Stadium in Riga. Skonto won the Virsliga in the first 14 seasons of the league's resumption (15 in total), and often provided the core of the Latvia ...
– Skonto FC was a football club established in 1991. The club won fourteen successive Latvian Higher League
Latvian Higher League or Virslīga is a professional football league and the top tier of association football in Latvia. Organised by the Latvian Football Federation, the Higher League is contested by 10 clubs. The full name of the league is Op ...
titles. For a long time it provided the core of the Latvian national football team
The Latvia national football team ( lv, Latvijas futbola izlase) represents Latvia in international football and is controlled by the Latvian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Latvia. They have never qualified for the F ...
. Following financial problems, the club was demoted to the Latvian First League in 2016 and went bankrupt in December of that year and subsequently dissolved.
:* JFK Olimps
JFK Olimps was a Latvian football club, playing in the top division of Latvian football. The club was from the city of Riga. According to a study from January 2011, the club was the youngest team in Europe, with an average age of 19.02 years.
...
– JFK Olimps played in the top division of Latvian football. The club was founded in 2005 and dissolved in 2012. According to a study from January 2011, the club was the youngest team in Europe, with an average age of 19.02 years.
Sports facilities
* Arena Riga
Arena Riga ( lv, Arēna Rīga) is an indoor arena in Riga, Latvia. It is primarily used for ice hockey, basketball and concerts. Arena Riga holds a maximum of 14,500 and was opened on 15 February 2006.
It was built to be used as one of the v ...
– a multi-purpose arena built in 2006 as the main venue for the 2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 2006 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships was the 70th such event hosted by the International Ice Hockey Federation. Teams representing 45 countries participated in four levels of competition. The competition also served as qualifications for ...
. It can hold up to 14,500 people and has hosted ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
, basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
and volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
events, as well as Red Bull X-Fighters
Red Bull X-Fighters was a freestyle motocross motorbike stunt competition organized by Red Bull from 2001 to 2017. It was the most popular freestyle motocross event in the world, with a 15-year plus history and more than 50 past events on six c ...
* Skonto Stadium
Skonto Stadium ( lv, Skonto stadions) is a football stadium in Riga, Latvia. The stadium was built in 2000 and currently has 8,087 seats in total (open for spectators & VIP guests on matchdays). It is the 2nd-largest stadium in Latvia, behind Daug ...
– a football stadium, built in 2000. It is the main stadium used for games of the Latvian national football team
The Latvia national football team ( lv, Latvijas futbola izlase) represents Latvia in international football and is controlled by the Latvian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Latvia. They have never qualified for the F ...
and the home stadium of Riga FC. The stadium was previously the home stadium of Skonto FC prior to the team's dissolution.
* Daugava Stadium – a stadium built in 1958, used for both football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
and athletics
Athletics may refer to:
Sports
* Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking
** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport
* Athletics (physical culture), competiti ...
* Latvijas Universitates Stadions
Latvijas Universitātes Stadions was a multi-use stadium in Riga, Latvia. It was used mostly for football and rugby matches and was the home stadium of FK Rīga
FK Rīga was a Latvian football club based in Riga. They played in the Virsl ...
* Biķernieku Kompleksā Sporta Bāze – Latvia's leading motorsport
Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...
complex
Sports events
* EuroBasket 1937
The 1937 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 1937, was the second FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship, held by FIBA. Eight national teams affiliated with the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) took pa ...
* 1999 European Athletics Junior Championships
The 1999 European Athletics Junior Championships were held in Riga, Latvia on August 5–8.
Men's results
Women's results
Medal table
Referenceseuropean-athletics- European Athletics- GBR Athletics- GBR AthleticsHistoria Europy Juniorów ...
* EuroBasket Women 2009
The 2009 European Women Basketball Championship, commonly called EuroBasket Women 2009, was the 32nd regional championship held by FIBA Europe. The competition was held in Latvia from June 7 to June 20, 2009.
Qualified teams
* – as host.
*, ...
* 2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships
The 2006 Men's Ice Hockey World Championships was the 70th such event hosted by the International Ice Hockey Federation. Teams representing 45 countries participated in four levels of competition. The competition also served as qualifications for ...
* Riga Marathon
The Riga Marathon (also known as the Rimi Riga Marathon) is an annual road marathon held in Riga, Latvia, since 1991. A flat, single-lap marathon course in the Baltic states, Baltics' largest city. The marathon course has been measured and certif ...
* 2013 World Women's Curling Championship
The 2013 World Women's Curling Championship (branded as the Titlis Glacier Mountain World Women's Curling Championship 2013 for sponsorship reasons) was held at the Volvo Sports Centre in Riga, Latvia from March 16 to 24. It marked the first time ...
* 2014 Cricket Latvia play Masstor Cricket Club
Fourteen or 14 may refer to:
* 14 (number), the natural number following 13 and preceding 15
* one of the years 14 BC, AD 14, 1914, 2014
Music
* 14th (band), a British electronic music duo
* ''14'' (David Garrett album), 2013
*''14'', an unrele ...
* EuroBasket 2015
EuroBasket 2015 was the 39th edition of the EuroBasket championship that was organized by FIBA Europe. It was co-hosted by Croatia, France, Germany, and Latvia, making it the first EuroBasket held in more than one country. It started on 5 Sept ...
* 2016 Men's World Floorball Championships
The 2016 Men's World Floorball Championships were the 11th World Championships in men's floorball. The tournament took place in Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, ...
* 2021 IIHF World Championship
The 2021 IIHF World Championship () took place from 21 May to 6 June 2021. It was originally to be co-hosted by Minsk, Belarus and Riga, Latvia, as the IIHF announced on 19 May 2017 in Cologne, Germany. Their joint bid won by a very tight margin ...
* FIDE Grand Swiss Tournament 2021
The FIDE Grand Swiss Tournament 2021 was a chess tournament that forms part of the qualification cycle for the World Chess Championship 2022. It was an 11-round Swiss-system tournament, with 108 players competing, running from 25 October to 8 N ...
Transport
Riga, with its central geographic position and concentration of population, has always been the infrastructural hub of Latvia. Several national roads begin in Riga, and European route E22
European route E22 is one of the longest European routes. It has a length of about . Many of the E-roads have been extended into Asia since the year 2000; the E22 was extended on 24 June 2002.
Route
United Kingdom
Port of Holyhead ()
*: ...
crosses Riga from the east and west, while the Via Baltica
European route E 67 is an E-road running from Prague in the Czech Republic to Estonia and by ferry to Finland. It goes via Prague, Wrocław, Warsaw, Kaunas, Panevėžys, Riga, Tallinn, Helsinki.
The route is known as the Via Baltica ...
crosses Riga from the south and north.
As a city situated by a river, Riga also has several bridges. The oldest-standing bridge is the Railway Bridge
A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whic ...
, which is also the only railroad-carrying bridge in Riga. The Stone Bridge (''Akmens tilts'') connects Old Riga
Old or OLD may refer to:
Places
* Old, Baranya, Hungary
* Old, Northamptonshire, England
*Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD)
*OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, M ...
and Pārdaugava
Pārdaugava (literally means "Trans" or "Over" -Daugava area) is an area most often associated with Riga, composed of several neighbourhoods on the west (left) bank of Daugava River. The name is literally translated as 'over Daugava'.
In the la ...
; the Island Bridge (''Salu tilts'') connects Maskavas Forštate
Maskavas Forštate (german: Moskauer Vorstadt) also known as Maskavas priekšpilsēta and colloquially as Maskačka, is a suburb of Riga situated on the right bank of the Daugava. The neighborhood is located to the south of Old Riga along the r ...
and Pārdaugava via Zaķusala
Zaķusala ( en, 'Hare Island') is one of several islands in the Daugava river in the central part of Riga, the capital of Latvia. A part of the city's Salas neighbourhood, Zaķusala is home to the Riga Radio and TV Tower, which was completed in 1 ...
; and the Shroud Bridge
Shroud usually refers to an item, such as a cloth, that covers or protects some other object. The term is most often used in reference to '' burial sheets'', mound shroud, grave clothes, winding-cloths or winding-sheets, such as the famous S ...
(''Vanšu tilts'') connects Old Riga and Pārdaugava via Ķīpsala
Ķīpsala is an island on the left bank of the Daugava river, connected to Riga city center and Pārdaugava by the Shroud Bridge. Ķīpsala is divided from the rest of Riga by the Daugava in the east, '' Roņu dīķis'' in the north, '' Zund ...
. In 2008, the first stage of the new Southern Bridge
The Southern Bridge ( lv, Dienvidu tilts) is an extradosed bridge built across the Daugava River in Riga, the capital of Latvia. The bridge was constructed between 2004 and 2008, and was opened on November 17, 2008. Construction of the access ...
(''Dienvidu tilts'') route across the Daugava was completed, and was opened to traffic on 17 November.
The Southern Bridge was the biggest construction project in the Baltic states in 20 years, and its purpose was to reduce traffic congestion
Traffic congestion is a condition in transport that is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. Traffic congestion on urban road networks has increased substantially since the 1950s. When traffic de ...
in the city centre. Another major construction project is the planned Riga Northern transport corridor
A transport corridor is a generally linear area that is defined by one or more modes of transportation crossing the limits of more than one city or county like highways, railroads or public transit which share a common destination. Development of ...
; its first segment detailed project was completed in 2015.
The Freeport of Riga
Riga Free Port ( lv, Rīgas brīvosta) is a major port on the east coast of the Baltic Sea, located in Riga, the capital of Latvia. It stretched for 15 kilometers along both banks of the Daugava within the city limits, the area of the port is 19 ...
facilitates cargo and passenger traffic by sea. Sea ferries connect Riga Passenger Terminal
Riga Passenger Terminal ( lv, Rīgas pasažieru termināls) is a terminal in Riga, Latvia, that services public and private passenger traffic by sea. The terminal is situated at the address 3A Eksporta Street.
Destinations
Tallink
Tallink ( ...
to Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
operated by Tallink
Tallink () is an Estonian shipping company operating Baltic Sea cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden to Sweden and Finland to Sweden. It is the largest passenger and cargo shipping company in the Baltic Sea r ...
.
Riga has one active airport that serves commercial airlines—the Riga International Airport
Riga International Airport ( lv, Starptautiskā lidosta "Rīga"; ) is the international airport of Riga, the capital of Latvia, and the largest airport in the Baltic states with direct flights to 76 destinations as of November 2019. It serves as ...
(RIX), built in 1973. Renovation and modernisation of the airport was completed in 2001, coinciding with the 800th anniversary of the city. In 2006, a new terminal extension was opened. Extension of the runway was completed in October 2008, and the airport is now able to accommodate large aircraft such as the Airbus A340, Boeing 747, 757, 767 and 777. Another terminal extension is under construction . The annual number of passengers has grown from 310,000 in 1993 to 4.7 million in 2014, making Riga International Airport the largest in the Baltic States.
The former international airport of Riga, Spilve Airport
Spilve Airport ( lv, Spilves lidosta, also given as ''Rīgas Centrālā lidosta'' – Riga Central Airport) is a former civilian and military airport in Latvia located 5 km north of Riga's city centre, from which aircraft took off as early a ...
, located from Riga city centre, is used for small aircraft, pilot training and recreational aviation. Riga was also home to a military air base during the Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
—Rumbula Air Base
Rumbula is an air base located southeast of Riga city centre in Latvia. The airfield was used for military purposes in the 1950s and 1960s. In the 1960s it was used as temporary passenger airport for bigger planes until the new Riga Internatio ...
.
Public transport in the city is provided by Rīgas Satiksme
Rīgas Satiksme is a municipally-owned public transportation and infrastructure company serving Riga, Latvia and the surrounding areas. It was founded on 20 February 2003 as an Umbrella organization, umbrella organisation for the respective operat ...
which operates a large number of trams, buses and trolleybus
A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or troll ...
es on an extensive network of routes across the city. In addition, up until 2012 many private owners operated minibus
A minibus, microbus, minicoach, or commuter (in Zimbabwe) is a passenger-carrying motor vehicle that is designed to carry more people than a multi-purpose vehicle or minivan, but fewer people than a full-size bus. In the United Kingdom, th ...
services, after which the City Council established the unified transport company ''Rīgas mikroautobusu satiksme'', establishing a monopoly over the service.
Riga International Coach Terminal
Riga International Coach Terminal ( lv, Rīgas Starptautiskā autoosta) is a bus station in Riga, Latvia, for both domestic and international bus line
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a roa ...
provides domestic and international connections by coach
Coach may refer to:
Guidance/instruction
* Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities
* Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process
** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers
Transportation
* Co ...
.
As the population of Riga city started to approach 1 million people in the 1980s, the city became eligible (under the Soviet standards of the time) for the construction of a subway system Riga Metro
The Riga Metro ( lv, Rīgas metro) was a planned metro system in Riga, Latvia, during the time of the Soviet Union. Three lines with a total of 33 stations were planned to be built by 2021, however in the late 1980s, during the Singing Revolution, ...
, which would have been paid for by the Soviet government. However, the population decline and shortage of funding following Latvian independence put an end to this plan.
Riga is connected to the rest of Latvia by domestic trains operated by the national carrier Passenger Train
A passenger train is a train used to transport people along a railroad line. These trains may consist of unpowered passenger railroad cars (also known as coaches or carriages) hauled by one or more locomotives, or may be self-propelled; self pr ...
, whose headquarters are in Riga. The main railway station is the Riga Central Station __NOTOC__
Riga Central Station ( lv, Rīgas Centrālā stacijа) is the main railway station in Riga, Latvia. It is known as the main point of Riga due to its central location, and most forms of public transport stop in this area. Part of the bui ...
. It has stops for public transport along the streets Satekles iela, 13. janvāra iela Marijas iela, and Merķeļa iela. There are also international rail services to Russia and Belarus
Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...
, and plans to revive passenger rail traffic with Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
. International overnight service is with Latvia Express trains ( lv, Latvijas Ekspresis). A TEN-T
The Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) is a planned network of roads, railways, airports and water infrastructure in the European Union. The TEN-T network is part of a wider system of Trans-European Networks (TENs), including a telecommunic ...
project called Rail Baltica
Rail Baltica (also known as Rail Baltic in Estonia) is a high-speed railway under construction between Warsaw, Poland and Tallinn, Estonia, with further connections to Finland via Baltic Sea cruiseferries or the proposed Helsinki–Tallinn Tunne ...
envisages building a high-speed rail
High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail system that runs significantly faster than traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines ...
way line via Riga connecting Tallinn
Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...
to Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
using standard gauge
A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...
, expected to be put into operation in 2024. Latvian Railways
JSC Latvian Railway ( lv, Latvijas dzelzceļš or LDz) was established on 2 September 1991 and is seen as the successor of the Latvian Railway Board (Latvian Railways) which was established on 5 August 1919.
Latvijas dzelzceļš is a state-owned ...
( lv, Latvijas dzelzceļš or ''LDz'') operates the Latvian Rail History Museum in Riga.
Universities
*University of Latvia
University of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Universitāte, shortened ''LU'') is a state-run university located in Riga, Latvia established in 1919.
The ''QS World University Rankings'' places the university between 801st and 1000th globally, seventh ...
(LU)
*Art Academy of Latvia
The Art Academy of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Mākslas akadēmija) is an institution of higher education and scientific research in art, located in Riga, Latvia. The neo-Gothic brick building is located on Krišjānis Valdemārs Street, next to t ...
(LMA)
*Riga Technical University
Riga Technical University (RTU) ( lv, Rīgas Tehniskā universitāte) is the oldest technical university in the Baltic countries established on October 14, 1862. It is located in Riga, Latvia and was previously known as 'Riga Polytechnical Instit ...
(RTU)
*Riga Stradiņš University
Riga Stradiņš University (RSU) ( lv, Rīgas Stradiņa universitāte, la, Universitas Rigensis Stradina) is a public university located in the city of Riga, Latvia. The Stradiņš (pronounced stradiɲʃ name in the university's title is owed ...
(RSU)
*Riga Graduate School of Law
The Riga Graduate School of Law (RGSL) ( lv, Rīgas Juridiskā augstskola) in Riga, Latvia is an autonomous law school in Baltic region offering Bachelor, Masters and Doctoral studies. It was established in 1998 through an international agreeme ...
(RGSL)
*Stockholm School of Economics in Riga
The Stockholm School of Economics in Riga (''SSE Riga'' or lv, Rīgas Ekonomikas augstskola) is a business school in Riga, Latvia. It is a subsidiary of the Stockholm School of Economics (SSE).
The school was founded in 1994 by the Stockholm Sc ...
(SSE Riga)
*BA School of Business and Finance
BA School of Business and Finance ( lv, Banku Augstskola) is one of the leading, self-financing business schools in Latvia. It was founded in 1992 as a Banking College under the Bank of Latvia and received accreditation in 1997
In 2007 BA Scho ...
(BA)
*Transport and Telecommunication Institute
Transport and Telecommunication Institute (TTI) ( lv, Transporta un Sakaru Institūts, TSI) (russian: Институт Транспорта и Связи, ИТС) (previously known as RCAII and Riga Aviation University) is the largest university- ...
(TTI)
* Riga International School of Economics and Business Administration (RISEBA)
*Turība University
Turība University ( lv, Biznesa augstskola „Turība”; formerly known as the Turība School of Business Administration) is the largest business school in Latvia. The university was established in 1993. It has five branches located in Liepāja ...
*Riga Aeronautical Institute
Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Bal ...
(RAI)
Notable people
Public service
*Sir Isaiah Berlin
Sir Isaiah Berlin (6 June 1909 – 5 November 1997) was a Russian-British social and political theorist, philosopher, and historian of ideas. Although he became increasingly averse to writing for publication, his improvised lectures and talks ...
(1909–1997), a British social and political theorist, philosopher and historian of ideas
*Emil Friedrich von Boetticher
__NOTOC__
Emil Friedrich von Boetticher (1836–1907) was a politician, burgomaster of Riga and its representative on the Livonian state council.
Boetticher was born 1 October 1836 at Riga, the youngest son to the Riga merchant and landowner Ca ...
(1836–1907) a politician, burgomaster
Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, literally "master of the town, master of the borough, master of the fortress, master of the citizens") is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief m ...
of Riga
*Friedrich Heinrich von Boetticher
__NOTOC__
Friedrich Heinrich von Boetticher (1826–1902) was a German publisher, bookseller, scholar and art historian.
Boetticher was born 23 June 1826 in Riga, the tenth of 17 children of the merchant and landowner Carl von Boetticher (1782- ...
(1826–1902) a German publisher, bookseller, scholar and art historian.
*Deniss Čalovskis
Deniss Čalovskis (born 1985 in Riga, Latvia) is a Latvian computer hacker. He is the creator of the Gozi virus. Calovskis is a certified Data Protection Officer (DPO).
Hacker
In February 2015, Deniss Čalovskis was extradited to the U.S. ...
(born 1985), Latvian computer hacker
A hacker is a person skilled in information technology who uses their technical knowledge to achieve a goal or overcome an obstacle, within a computerized system by non-standard means. Though the term ''hacker'' has become associated in popu ...
who created the Gozi virus.
*Valdis Dombrovskis
Valdis Dombrovskis (born 5 August 1971) is a Latvian politician serving as Executive Vice President of the European Commission for An Economy that Works for People since 2019 and European Commissioner for Trade since 2020. He previously served ...
(born 1971), a Latvian politician and EU Commissioner
*Laila Freivalds
Laila Ligita Freivalds (born 22 June 1942) is a Swedish Social Democratic politician who served as Minister for Justice from 1988 to 1991 and again from 1994 to 2000, as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2003 to 2006 and as Deputy Prime Minist ...
(born 1942), former Swedish Minister for Justice and Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden
The deputy prime minister of Sweden ( sv, Ställföreträdande statsminister) is the deputy head of government of Sweden. The incumbent deputy prime minister is Ebba Busch.
The Swedish constitution allows the prime minister to appoint one of th ...
*Juris Hartmanis
Juris Hartmanis (July 5, 1928 – July 29, 2022) was a Latvian-born American computer scientist and computational theorist who, with Richard E. Stearns, received the 1993 ACM Turing Award "in recognition of their seminal paper which established ...
(born 1928), a Latvian-American computer scientist, won the 1993 Turing Award
The ACM A. M. Turing Award is an annual prize given by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) for contributions of lasting and major technical importance to computer science. It is generally recognized as the highest distinction in compu ...
*Nicolai Hartmann
Paul Nicolai Hartmann (; 20 February 1882 – 9 October 1950) was a Baltic German philosopher. He is regarded as a key representative of critical realism and as one of the most important twentieth-century metaphysicians.
Biography
Hartmann was ...
(1882–1950), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
philosopher, an important metaphysician
Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...
*Johann Gottfried Herder
Johann Gottfried von Herder ( , ; 25 August 174418 December 1803) was a German philosopher, theologian, poet, and literary critic. He is associated with the Enlightenment, ''Sturm und Drang'', and Weimar Classicism.
Biography
Born in Mohrun ...
(1744–1803), a German philosopher, theologian, poet and literary critic
*Albert Woldemar Hollander
__NOTOC__
Albert Woldemar Hollander (1796–1868), was a German educator and Pedagogy, pedagog.
Hollander was born 22 September 1796 in Riga, Livonia to Johann Heinrich Hollander and Karoline Amalie Marg. (Stumpf), from a well-to-do and influent ...
(1796–1868), a German educator and pedagog.
*Yeshayahu Leibowitz
Yeshayahu Leibowitz ( he, ישעיהו ליבוביץ; 29 January 1903 – 18 August 1994) was an Israeli Orthodox Jewish public intellectual and polymath. He was a professor of biochemistry, organic chemistry, and neurophysiology at the Hebrew ...
(1903–1994), an Israeli public intellectual and polymath
*Yosef Mendelevich
Yosef Mendelevitch (or Mendelovitch) (b. 1947 in Riga), was a Refusenik (Soviet Union), refusenik from the former Soviet Union, also known as a "Prisoner of Zion" and now a politically unaffiliated rabbi living in Jerusalem who gained fame for his ...
(born 1947), a Jewish refusenik from the Soviet Union, known as a ''"Prisoner of Zion"''
*Ernst Munzinger
Ernst Gustav Adolf Munzinger (6 July 1887 – 23 April 1945) was a German businessman and lieutenant colonel in Army intelligence. After World War I, Munzinger became a supporter of the growing National Socialist movement in his home country, ...
(1887–1945), German Abwehr
The ''Abwehr'' (German for ''resistance'' or ''defence'', but the word usually means ''counterintelligence'' in a military context; ) was the German military-intelligence service for the ''Reichswehr'' and the ''Wehrmacht'' from 1920 to 1944. A ...
(Army intelligence) officer, later anti-Nazi
*Valters Nollendorfs
Valters Nollendorfs is board chair of the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia and a professor emeritus of German language and literature at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
Nollendorfs was born 22 March 1931 in Riga, Latvia, where his fath ...
(born 1931), chairman of the board of the Museum of the Occupation of Latvia
The Museum of the Occupation of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Okupācijas muzejs) is a museum and historic educational institution located in Riga, Latvia. It was established in 1993 to exhibit artifacts, archive documents, and educate the public about th ...
*Alfred Rosenberg
Alfred Ernst Rosenberg ( – 16 October 1946) was a Baltic German Nazi theorist and ideologue. Rosenberg was first introduced to Adolf Hitler by Dietrich Eckart and he held several important posts in the Nazi government. He was the head of ...
(1892–1946), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
theorist and ideologue of the Nazi Party
*Johann Steinhauer
Johann Steinhauer ( lv, Jānis Šteinhauers, born Jānis Akmeņkalis; 19 January 1705 – 21 February 1779) was a Latvian entrepreneur, social reformer and landowner, who made significant contributions to the Latvian civil rights throughout the 1 ...
(1705–1779) a Latvian entrepreneur, social reformer and landowner
*Charlotte Wahl
Charlotte Wahl née Mundel, (1817–1899), was a Latvians, Latvian philanthropist who founded of many charitable organizations and is said "to have been the most decorated woman of her time."
Life and work
Charlotte Mundel was born in Riga, La ...
(1817–1899), a Latvian-born philanthropist
*Tatiana Warsher
Tatiana Warsher (, 1880–1960) was a Russian archaeologist known for her studies of Pompeii, especially her 40-volume ''Codex Topographicus Pompeianus.''
Early life and family
Tatiana Sergeyevna Warsher was born in Moscow on , to a Russian n ...
(1880–1960), a Russian archaeologist known for her studies of Pompeii
Pompeii (, ) was an ancient city located in what is now the ''comune'' of Pompei near Naples in the Campania region of Italy. Pompeii, along with Herculaneum and many villas in the surrounding area (e.g. at Boscoreale, Stabiae), was buried ...
The Arts
*Rutanya Alda
Rutanya Alda (born Rūta Skrastiņa; October 13, 1942) is a Latvian-American actress. She began her career in the late 1960s, and went on to have supporting parts in ''The Deer Hunter'' (1978), ''Rocky II'' (1979), and ''Mommie Dearest'' (1981). S ...
(born 1942), a Latvian-American
Latvian Americans are Americans who are of Latvian ancestry. According to the 2008 American Community Survey, there are 93,498 Americans of full or partial Latvian descent.
History
The first significant wave of Latvian settlers who immigrated ...
actress
*Mikhail Baryshnikov
Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov ( rus, Михаил Николаевич Барышников, p=mʲɪxɐˈil bɐ'rɨʂnʲɪkəf; lv, Mihails Barišņikovs; born January 28, 1948) is a Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, Soviet Latvian-born R ...
(born 1948), a Russian dancer, choreographer and actor
*Léopold Bernhard Bernstamm
Léopold Bernhard Bernstamm (20 April 1859 – 22 January 1939), also written as Léopold-Bernhard Bernstam, Léopold Bernard Bernstamm or Leopold Adolfovich Bernstam, was a Baltic German sculptor active in France and Russia. He was one of the o ...
(1859–1939), a Russian sculptor
*Gunnar Birkerts
Gunnar Birkerts ( lv, Gunārs Birkerts, January 17, 1925 – August 15, 2017) was a Latvian American architect who, for most of his career, was based in the metropolitan area of Detroit, Michigan.
Some of his notable designs include the Corni ...
(1925–2017), a Latvian-American
Latvian Americans are Americans who are of Latvian ancestry. According to the 2008 American Community Survey, there are 93,498 Americans of full or partial Latvian descent.
History
The first significant wave of Latvian settlers who immigrated ...
architect
*Leonīds Breikšs
Leonīds Breikšs (8 April 1908 – 30 September 1942) was a noted Latvian poet, journalist and nationalist. His Latvian-based country style sits with contemporaries including Aleksandrs Pelēcis, Jānis Medenis, Gunārs Freimanis, Broņislava M ...
(1908–1942), a Latvian poet, author and newspaper editor
*Jacob W. Davis
Jacob William Davis (born Jākobs Jufess; 1831–1908) was an American tailor of Latvian-Jewish origin who is credited with inventing modern jeans. Growing up in Latvia, he emigrated to the United States as a young man and spent some time in ...
(born ''Jākobs Jufess'') (1831–1908) an American tailor, invented modern jeans
Jeans are a type of pants or trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with copper-riveted pockets which were invented by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and paten ...
.
*Mikhail Eisenstein
Mikhail Osipovich Eisenstein (russian: Михаил Осипович Эйзенштейн, translit=Michail Osipovič Ejzenštein, lv, Mihails Eizenšteins; – 2 July 1920) was a civil engineer and architect working in Riga, the present-day cap ...
(1867–1920) a Latvian civil engineer and architect
*Sergei Eisenstein
Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein (russian: Сергей Михайлович Эйзенштейн, p=sʲɪrˈɡʲej mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ ɪjzʲɪnˈʂtʲejn, 2=Sergey Mikhaylovich Eyzenshteyn; 11 February 1948) was a Soviet film director, screenw ...
(1898–1948), a Soviet Russian film director, filmed ''Battleship Potemkin
'' Battleship Potemkin'' (russian: Бронено́сец «Потёмкин», ''Bronenosets Potyomkin''), sometimes rendered as ''Battleship Potyomkin'', is a 1925 Soviet silent
drama film produced by Mosfilm. Directed and co-written by S ...
''
*Heinz Erhardt
Heinz Erhardt (; 20 February 1909 – 5 June 1979) was a German comedian, musician, entertainer, actor, and poet.
Life
Heinz Erhardt was born in Riga, the son of Baltic German Kapellmeister Gustav Erhardt. He lived most of his childhood at his ...
(1909–1979), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
comedian, musician and entertainer
*Artur Fonvizin
Artur Vladimirovich Fonvizin (russian: Артур Влади́мирович Фонви́зин, from german: von Wiesen; 11 January 1883 – 19 August 1973) was a Soviet painter of watercolours.
Biography
Artur Fonvizin was born on 11 Ja ...
(1883–1973), a Soviet painter of watercolours
*Elīna Garanča
Elīna Garanča (born 16 September 1976) is a Latvian mezzo-soprano. She began to study singing in her hometown of Riga in 1996 and continued her studies in Vienna and in the United States. By 1999 she had won first place in a significant compe ...
(born 1976), a Latvian operatic mezzo-soprano
*Philippe Halsman
Philippe Halsman ( lv, Filips Halsmans, german: Philipp Halsmann; 2 May 1906 – 25 June 1979) was an American portrait photographer. He was born in Riga in the part of the Russian Empire which later became Latvia, and died in New York City.
Li ...
(1906–1979), an American portrait photographer
*Aivars Kalējs
Aivars Kalējs (April 22, 1951, Riga, Latvian SSR) is a Latvian composer, organist and pianist.
Career
Aivars Kalējs has written more than 100 opuses of symphonic, organ, piano, chamber and choir music. His works have won several composition ...
(born 1951), a Latvian composer, organist and pianist
*Gidon Kremer
Gidon Kremer ( lv, Gidons Krēmers; born 27 February 1947) is a Latvian classical violinist, artistic director, and founder of Kremerata Baltica.
Life and career
Gidon Kremer was born in Riga. His father was Jewish and had survived the Holoc ...
(born 1947), a Latvian classical violinist and conductor
*Barbara von Krüdener
Beate Barbara Juliane Freifrau von Krüdener (née Freiin von Vietinghoff genannt Scheel; ), often called by her formal French name, Madame de Krüdener, was a Baltic German religious mystic, author, and Pietist Lutheran theologian who exerted ...
(1764–1824), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
author, religious mystic and Pietist
Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christianity, Christian life, including a social concern for ...
Lutheran theologian.
*Ivan Krylov
Ivan Andreyevich Krylov (russian: Ива́н Андре́евич Крыло́в; 13 February 1769 – 21 November 1844) is Russia's best-known fabulist and probably the most epigrammatic of all Russian authors. Formerly a dramatist and journalis ...
(1769–1844), a Russian fable
Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular mo ...
writer
*DJ Lethal
Leor Dimant ( lv, Leors Dimants, russian: Леор Григорьевич Димант, ; born December 18, 1972), better known as DJ Lethal, is a Latvian-American Turntablism, turntablist and producer and is best known as a member of the groups ...
(born 1972), an American music producer, real name ''Leor Dimant''
*Alan Melikdjanian
Alan Melikdjanian (; Russian: Алан Меликджанян; born April 13, 1980), known by the alias Captain Disillusion, is a Soviet-born American independent filmmaker and YouTuber. Melikdjanian has been active in the founding of video-s ...
(born 1980), a Latvian-American
Latvian Americans are Americans who are of Latvian ancestry. According to the 2008 American Community Survey, there are 93,498 Americans of full or partial Latvian descent.
History
The first significant wave of Latvian settlers who immigrated ...
independent filmmaker
An independent film, independent movie, indie film, or indie movie is a feature film or short film that is produced outside the major film studio system, in addition to being produced and distributed by independent entertainment companies (or, in ...
known as ''Captain Disillusion
Alan Melikdjanian (; Russian: Алан Меликджанян; born April 13, 1980), known by the alias Captain Disillusion, is a Soviet-born American independent filmmaker and YouTuber. Melikdjanian has been active in the founding of video-sha ...
''
*Raimonds Pauls
Ojārs Raimonds Pauls (born 12 January 1936 in Iļģuciems, Riga, Latvia) is a Latvian composer and piano player who is well known in Latvia, Russia, post-Soviet countries and worldwide. He was the Minister of Culture of Latvia from 1988 to 199 ...
(born 1936), a Latvian composer and piano player
*Kristjan Jaak Peterson
Kristian Jaak Peterson (, Riga – , Riga) also known as Christian Jacob Petersohn, was an Estonian poet, commonly regarded as a herald of Estonian national literature and the founder of modern Estonian poetry. He died of tuberculosis aged 21.
...
(1801–1822), an Estonian poet
*Valentin Pikul
Valentin Savvich Pikul (russian: Валенти́н Са́ввич Пи́куль) (July 13, 1928 – July 16, 1990) was a popular and prolific Soviet historical novelist of Ukrainian-Russian heritage. He lived and worked in Riga.
Pikul's novels w ...
(1928–1990), a Soviet historical novelist
*Marie Seebach
Marie Seebach (24 February 1829 – 3 August 1897) was a German actress.
Biography
She was born in Riga, Livonia, Russian Empire as the daughter of an actor, Wilhelm Friedrich Seebach (1798–1863). After appearing first at Nuremberg as Julie in ...
(1829–1897) a German actress.
*Ksenia Solo
Ksenia Solo (born 8 October 1987; pronounced ) is a Latvian-Canadian actress known for portraying Mackenzie "Kenzi" Malikov on ''Lost Girl''. She portrayed Peggy Shippen on '' Turn: Washington's Spies''. Solo also portrayed the character "Natash ...
(born 1987), a Latvian-Canadian actress and activist
Science
*Ernst von Bergmann
Ernst Gustav Benjamin von Bergmann (16 December 1836 – 25 March 1907) was a Baltic German surgeon. He was the first physician to introduce heat sterilisation of surgical instruments and is known as a pioneer of aseptic surgery.
Biography
B ...
(1836–1907), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
surgeon, pioneer of aseptic surgery
Asepsis is the state of being free from disease-causing micro-organisms (such as pathogenic bacteria, viruses, pathogenic fungi, and parasites). There are two categories of asepsis: medical and surgical. The modern day notion of asepsis is deriv ...
*Walter von Boetticher
__NOTOC__
Walter von Boetticher (11 December 1853 – 3 July 1945) was a German historian, genealogist and physician.
Walter von Boetticher was born at Riga, the son to the art historian Friedrich von Boetticher (1826–1902) and his wife Euge ...
(1853–1945) a German historian, genealogist and physician.
*Jakob Benjamin Fischer
Jakob Benjamin Fischer (13 October 1731 – 25 July 1793) was a Baltic German naturalist and apothecary.
Life and work
Jakob Benjamin Fischer was born in Riga and studied to become an apothecary there. Between 1756 and 1758, he studied natural sc ...
(1731–1793), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
naturalist and apothecary
''Apothecary'' () is a mostly archaic term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons, and patients. The modern chemist (British English) or pharmacist (British and North Ameri ...
*Lola Hoffmann
Lola Hoffmann (also known as Helena Jacoby) (March 19, 1904 – April 30, 1988) was a German Jewish Chileanphysiologist and psychiatrist.
Early life and education
Lola (Helena) was born in Riga, then part of the Russian Empire, to a well-off ...
(1904–1988), a physiologist, psychiatrist and guide to self-development and transformation
*Charles Kalme
Charles Ivars Kalme ( lv, Kārlis Ivars Kalme, November 15, 1939 – March 20, 2002) was a Latvian American chess master and a mathematician.
Kalme was born in Riga, Latvia on November 15, 1939. At the conclusion of World War II, Kalme and wh ...
(1939–2002), an American mathematician and International Master of chess
*Karlis Kaufmanis
Kārlis Kaufmanis (February 21, 1910, Riga, Latvia – June 21, 2003, Clearwater, Florida) was a Latvian-American astronomer. He is noted for his theory, on which he delivered a public lecture more than a thousand times, that the Star of Bethle ...
(1910–2003), astronomer, he lectured that the Star of Bethlehem
The Star of Bethlehem, or Christmas Star, appears in the nativity story of the Gospel of Matthew chapter 2 where "wise men from the East" (Magi) are inspired by the star to travel to Jerusalem. There, they meet King Herod of Judea, and ask him: ...
was a conjunction in 7 BC of the planets Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the List of Solar System objects by size, largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but ...
and Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second-largest in the Solar System, after Jupiter. It is a gas giant with an average radius of about nine and a half times that of Earth. It has only one-eighth the average density of Earth; h ...
*Mstislav Keldysh
Mstislav Vsevolodovich Keldysh (russian: Мстисла́в Все́володович Ке́лдыш; – 24 June 1978) was a Soviet mathematician who worked as an engineer in the Soviet space program.
He was the academician of the Academy o ...
(1911–1978), a Soviet mathematician, worked on the first artificial satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisoto ...
*George Nagobads
Visvaldis George Nagobads (born November 18, 1921) is an American physician. He was born in Latvia, earned a medical degree from the University of Tübingen in Germany, then emigrated to the United States in 1951. He served 34 years as the team ...
(born 1921), American physician, recipient of the Paul Loicq Award
The Paul Loicq Award is presented annually by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) to honour a person who has made "outstanding contributions to the IIHF and international ice hockey". Named after Paul Loicq, who was president of the I ...
.
*Wilhelm Ostwald
Friedrich Wilhelm Ostwald (; 4 April 1932) was a Baltic German chemist and German philosophy, philosopher. Ostwald is credited with being one of the founders of the field of physical chemistry, with Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff, Walther Nernst, ...
(1853–1932), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry
)
, image = Nobel Prize.png
, alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then "M ...
in 1909
*Georg August Schweinfurth
Georg August Schweinfurth (29 December 1836 – 19 September 1925) was a Baltic German botanist and ethnologist who explored East Central Africa.
Life and explorations
He was born at Riga, Latvia, then part of the Russian Empire. He was edu ...
(1836–1925) a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
botanist and ethnologist who explored East Central Africa
Central Africa is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries according to different definitions. Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, ...
.
*Georg von Tiesenhausen
Georg Heinrich Patrick Baron von Tiesenhausen (May 18, 1914 – June 4, 2018) was a Baltic-German-born American rocket scientist.
After being brought to the United States in 1953 as part of Operation Paperclip, he was part of Wernher von Braun ...
(1914–2018), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
American rocket scientist
Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is sim ...
.
*Juris Upatnieks
Juris Upatnieks (born 7 May 1936 in Riga) is a Latvian-American physicist and inventor, and pioneer in the field of holography.
Upatnieks fled the Latvia with his parents at the close of World War II, seeking asylum in Germany. In 1951 the famil ...
(born 1936), a Latvian-American physicist and inventor, pioneer in the field of holography
Holography is a technique that enables a wavefront to be recorded and later re-constructed. Holography is best known as a method of generating real three-dimensional images, but it also has a wide range of other applications. In principle, i ...
.
*Friedrich Zander
Georg Arthur Constantin Friedrich Zander (also Tsander, russian: Фридрих Артурович Цандер, tr. ; lv, Frīdrihs Canders, – 28 March 1933), was a Baltic German pioneer of rocketry and spaceflight in the Russian Empire an ...
(1887–1933), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
engineer, designed the first Soviet liquid-fuelled rocket
*Walter Zapp
Walter Zapp ( lv, Valters Caps; – 17 July 2003) was a Baltic German inventor. His greatest creation was the Minox subminiature camera.
Biography
Zapp was born in Riga, Governorate of Livonia (now Latvia).
In 1932, while living in ...
(1905–2003), a Baltic German
Baltic Germans (german: Deutsch-Balten or , later ) were ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their coerced resettlement in 1939, Baltic Germans have markedly declined ...
inventor, he created the Minox subminiature camera.
Sport
*Helmuts Balderis
Helmuts Balderis-Sildedzis (born 31 July 1952) is a Soviet former ice hockey player. He played right wing, participated in the Soviet team's losing effort in the Miracle on Ice, and played part of a single season in the NHL after being drafted in ...
(born 1952) a Latvian former ice hockey player
*Dāvis Bertāns
Dāvis Bertāns (born 12 November 1992) is a Latvian professional basketball player for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed the "Latvian Laser", he also represents the Latvian national team. He was the 42 ...
(born 1992), a Latvian professional basketball player
* Jānis Beinarovičs (1907-1967), a Latvian wrestler
*Andris Biedriņš
Andris Biedriņš (; born April 2, 1986) is a Latvian former professional basketball player. He was drafted by the Golden State Warriors with the 11th overall pick in the 2004 NBA draft.
Professional career
Skonto (2002–2004)
Biedriņš's p ...
(born 1986), a Latvian former basketball player
*Sergejs Boldaveško
Sergejs Boldaveško (born October 9, 1970 in Rīga, Latvian SSR, Soviet Union) is a retired Latvian ice hockey forward, who played for Dinamo Riga later HK Pārdaugava Rīga of the Soviet Hockey League, Liepājas Metalurgs and various German reg ...
(born 1970), retired ice hockey player, born in Riga
*Teddy Blueger
Teodors Bļugers (anglicized as Theodor "Teddy" Blueger; born 15 August 1994) is a Latvian professional ice hockey centre for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected 52nd overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by ...
(born 1994), ice hockey player for the Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...
*Tanhum Cohen-Mintz
Tanhum Cohen-Mintz (תנחום (תני) כהן-מינץ; also "Tanchum or Tani" and "Cohen-Minz"; October 18, 1939 – October 11, 2014) was an Israeli professional basketball player. He was 6'8 " (2.04 m ) tall, and he played at the center posit ...
(1939–2014), an Israeli basketball player
*Kaspars Dubra
Kaspars Dubra (born 20 December 1990) is a Latvian professional football defender who plays for RFS. He plays as a centre-back and as a defensive midfielder.
Club career
Skonto Riga
Dubra started playing football at the age of seven, as ...
(born 1990), a footballer with 50 caps for Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
*Zemgus Girgensons
Zemgus Girgensons (born 5 January 1994) is a Latvian professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed "the Latvian Locomotive", he was selected 14th overall in the 2012 NHL ...
(born 1994), ice hockey player, highest-ever drafted Latvian in the NHL Entry Draft
The NHL Entry Draft (french: Repêchage d'entrée dans la LNH) is an annual meeting in which every franchise of the National Hockey League (NHL) systematically select the rights to available ice hockey players who meet draft eligibility requirem ...
*Jørgen Hviid
Jørgen Alfred Hviid ( lv, Jergens Alfreds Hvīds; 1 September 1916 – 5 September 2001) was a Danish and Latvian multi-sport athlete, and an officer in the Royal Danish Navy. He was primarily an ice hockey player, but also competed in speed sk ...
(1916–2001), a Danish and Latvian athlete; ice hockey, speed skating and sailing.
*Miervaldis Jurševskis
Miervaldis (Walter) Jurševskis (November 6, 1921 in Riga, Latvia – March 15, 2014 in Burnaby, British Columbia) was a Latvian-Canadian chess master, and a professional artist.
Jurševskis learned chess from his father at the age of six, but ...
(1921–2014), a Latvian-Canadian chess master and a professional artist.
*Matīss Kivlenieks
Matīss Edmunds Kivlenieks (26 August 1996 – 4 July 2021) was a Latvian professional ice hockey goaltender who played for Prizma Riga of the Latvian Hockey Higher League (LHL), the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League (AHL), and th ...
(1996–2021), an ice hockey goaltender for the Columbus Blue Jackets
The Columbus Blue Jackets (often simply referred to as the Jackets) are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference, ...
*Jeļena Ostapenko
Jeļena Ostapenko (born 8 June 1997), also known as Aļona Ostapenko, is a Latvian professional tennis player. She has career-high WTA rankings of world No. 5 in singles, achieved on 19 March 2018, and world No. 9 in doubles, reached on 22 Augus ...
(born 1997) women's tennis player, 2017 French Open – Women's singles
Seventeen or 17 may refer to:
*17 (number), the natural number following 16 and preceding 18
* one of the years 17 BC, AD 17, 1917, 2017
Literature
Magazines
* ''Seventeen'' (American magazine), an American magazine
* ''Seventeen'' (Japanese ...
winner
*Sandis Ozoliņš
Sandis Ozoliņš (born August 3, 1972), commonly spelled Sandis Ozolinsh in North America, is a Latvian former professional ice hockey player and coach. During his career in North America, Ozoliņš was a seven-time NHL All-Star, Stanley Cup ch ...
(born 1972), Latvian ice hockey player, a seven-time NHL All-Star, Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...
champion
*Marians Pahars
Marians Pahars (born 5 August 1976) is a Latvian professional football manager and a former player.
As a player, he spent the majority of his career operating as a striker for English club Southampton, where he played in the Premier League an ...
(born 1976), footballer with 75 caps for Latvia
Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
*Alexei Shirov
Alexei Shirov (, lv, Aleksejs Širovs; born 4 July 1972) is a Latvian and Spanish chess player. Shirov was ranked number two in the world in 1994.
He won a match against Vladimir Kramnik in 1998 to qualify to play as challenger for the classic ...
(born 1972), Latvian / Spanish chess grandmaster, ranked world No. 2 in 1994
*Mikhail Tal
Mikhail Nekhemyevich Tal; rus, Михаил Нехемьевич Таль, ''Mikhail Nekhem'yevich Tal' '', ; sometimes transliterated ''Mihails Tals'' or ''Mihail Tal'' (9 November 1936 – 28 June 1992) was a Soviet-Latvian chess player ...
(1936–1992), Soviet-Latvian chess grandmaster, 8th. World Chess Champion
The World Chess Championship is played to determine the world champion in chess. The current world champion is Magnus Carlsen of Norway, who has held the title since 2013.
The first event recognized as a world championship was the 1886 match ...
.
*Valdis Valters
Valdis Valters (born August 4, 1957) is a retired Latvian professional basketball player. He played at the point guard position for the senior USSR national team. He is regarded as one of the greatest players to have played the game in Europe in ...
(born 1957) a retired Latvian basketball player.
Twin towns – sister cities
Riga is twinned with:
* Aalborg
Aalborg (, , ) is Denmark's fourth largest town (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an urban population of 143,598 (1 July 2022). As of 1 July 2022, the Municipality of Aalb ...
, Denmark
* Almaty
Almaty (; kk, Алматы; ), formerly known as Alma-Ata ( kk, Алма-Ата), is the List of most populous cities in Kazakhstan, largest city in Kazakhstan, with a population of about 2 million. It was the capital of Kazakhstan from 1929 to ...
, Kazakhstan
* Astana
Astana, previously known as Akmolinsk, Tselinograd, Akmola, and most recently Nur-Sultan, is the capital city of Kazakhstan.
The city lies on the banks of the Ishim (river), Ishim River in the north-central part of Kazakhstan, within the Akmo ...
, Kazakhstan
* Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
, China
* Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
, France
* Bremen
Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...
, Germany
* Cairns
Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...
, Australia
* Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, United States
* Florence
Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...
, Italy
* 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 ...
, Lithuania
* Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
, Ukraine
* Kobe
Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...
, Japan
* Norrköping
Norrköping (; ) is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County, about 160 km southwest of the national capital Stockholm, 40 km east of county seat Linköp ...
, Sweden
* Pori
)
, website www.pori.fi
Pori (; sv, Björneborg ) is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. The city is located some from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäki River, west of Tampere, north of Turku and north-w ...
, Finland
* Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, c ...
, Germany
* Santiago
Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, whose ...
, Chile
* Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
, Sweden
* Suzhou
Suzhou (; ; Suzhounese: ''sou¹ tseu¹'' , Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Soochow, is a major city in southern Jiangsu province, East China. Suzhou is the largest city in Jiangsu, and a major economic center and focal point of trade ...
, China
* Taipei
Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the n ...
, Taiwan
* Tallinn
Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...
, Estonia
* Tartu
Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after the Northern European country's political and financial capital, Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 91,407 (as of 2021). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of ...
, Estonia
* Tashkent
Tashkent (, uz, Toshkent, Тошкент/, ) (from russian: Ташкент), or Toshkent (; ), also historically known as Chach is the capital and largest city of Uzbekistan. It is the most populous city in Central Asia, with a population of ...
, Uzbekistan
* Tbilisi
Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...
, Georgia
* 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 ...
, Lithuania
* Warsaw
Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...
, Poland
* Yerevan
Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Y ...
, Armenia
See also
*Riga Charter, on cultural heritage conservation, adopted here in 2000
*Riga Region
*Riga Salsa Festival
Other capitals of the Baltic states
*Tallinn
Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...
*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 ...
Notes
References
Bibliography
* Grava, Sigurd. "The Urban Heritage of the Soviet Regime The Case of Riga, Latvia." ''Journal of the American Planning Association'' 59.1 (1993): 9-30.
*
* Šolks, Guntis, Gita Dejus, and Krists Legzdiņš. "Transformation of Historic Industrial Areas in Riga." ''Book of Proceedings''. (2012
online
External links
(in Latvian)
*
i
{{Authority control
Riga,
Cities in Latvia
Capitals in Europe
Populated coastal places in Latvia
Port cities in Latvia
Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea
Republican cities of Latvia
Gulf of Riga
Kreis Riga
Members of the Hanseatic League
Vidzeme
NUTS 3 statistical regions of the European Union
World Heritage Sites in Latvia
Holocaust locations in Latvia