Selonia ( lv, Sēlija; lt, Sėla), also known as Augšzeme (the "Highland"), is one of the

Historical Latvian Lands Historical Latvian Lands ( lv, Latviešu vēsturiskās zemes) or formerly Cultural regions of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas kultūrvēsturiskie novadi) are several areas within Latvia formally recognised as distinct from the rest of the country. While som ...

encompassing the eastern part of the historical region of

Semigallia 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. ...

( lv, Zemgale) as well as a portion of northeastern

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

. Its main city and cultural center is

Jēkabpils Jēkabpils (; german: Jakobstadt; pl, Jakubów) is a state city in Jēkabpils Municipality in southeastern Latvia roughly halfway between Riga and Daugavpils and spanning the Daugava River. Historic Jēkabpils lies on the left bank, in Selonia ...

. The

Selonian language Selonian was an Eastern Baltic language, which was spoken by the Eastern Baltic tribe of the Selonians, who until the 15th century lived in Selonia, a territory in southeastern Latvia and northeastern Lithuania. History During the 13th–15t ...

has become extinct, though some of the inhabitants still speak a Latgalian dialect.

History

The territory of Selonia is defined by Latvian law as follows: the part of

Aizkraukle Aizkraukle (german: Ascheraden) is a town in Vidzeme region in Latvia, the administrative centre of Aizkraukle Municipality on the right bank of the Daugava River. The population in 2020 was 7,018. History In the second half of the 14th century ...

city on the left bank 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 ...

, Daudzese Parish, Jaunjelgava Parish,

Jaunjelgava Jaunjelgava ( german: link=no, Friedrichstadt) (literally:"New Jelgava") is a town on the left bank of the Daugava River in Aizkraukle Municipality, in the Selonia region of Latvia, about 80 km southeast of Riga. The population in 2020 ...

city,

Mazzalve Parish Mazzalve Parish ( lv, Mazzalves pagasts) is an administrative unit of Aizkraukle Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Towns, villages and settlements of Mazzalve Parish * Ērberģe * Lielmēmele Parishes of Latvia Aizkraukle M ...

, Pilskalne Parish, Sece Parish,

Sērene Parish Sērene Parish ( lv, Sērenes pagasts) is an administrative unit of Aizkraukle Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Towns, villages and settlements of Sērene Parish * Dīķi * Krolīši * Talsiņa * Sērene Parishes of Latv ...

, Staburags Parish, Sunākste Parish,

Zalve Parish Zalve Parish ( lv, Zalves pagasts) is an administrative unit of Aizkraukle Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Towns, villages and settlements of Zalve Parish * Cīruļkalns * Kalnamuiža * Pētermuiža * Salas * Sierotava * Sm ...

, Bebrene Parish,

Demene Parish Demene Parish ( lv, Demenes pagasts) is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Towns, villages and settlements of Demene Parish * Demene Parishes of Latvia Augšdaugava Municipality Selon ...

Dviete Parish Dviete Parish ( lv, Dvietes pagasts) is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia (Prior to the 2009 administrative reforms it was part of Daugavpils District). Towns, villages and settlements of Dv ...

Eglaine Parish Eglaine Parish ( lv, Eglaines pagasts) is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Villages * Annasmuiža * Baltmuiža * Eglaine * Laši * Vitkuški See also * Gotthard Friedrich Stender Ref ...

Ilūkste Ilūkste (; lt, Alūksta, Ilūkšta; german: Illuxt) is a town in Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. The population in 2020 was 2,216. History Territory of modern Ilūkste was inhabited by ancient baltic tribe- Selonian ...

city,

Kalkūne Parish Kalkūne Parish ( lv, Kalkūnes pagasts) is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Towns, villages and settlements of Kalkūne Parish * External links * Parishes of Latvia Selonia

Laucesa Parish Laucesa Parish ( lv, Laucesas pagasts) is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. The administrative centre is the village of Mirnijs. Parishes of Latvia Selonia {{Latvia-geo-stub ...

Medumi Parish Medumi Parish ( lv, Medumu pagasts) is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Towns, villages and settlements of Medumi Parish * Medumi Parishes of Latvia Selonia {{Latvia-geo-stu ...

, Pilskalne Parish,

Prode Parish Prode parish is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia (From 2009 until 2021, it was part of the former Ilūkste Municipality Ilūkste Municipality ( lv, Ilūkstes novads) was a municipality in S ...

Saliena Parish Saliena Parish ( lv, Salienas pagasts) is an administrative unit of Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia
Latviešu vēsturisko ze ...

, Skrudaliena Parish,

Subate Subate (; lt, Subačius, german: Subbath) is a town in Augšdaugava Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia, near the border with Lithuania. Subate is located 40 km west of Daugavpils. The population in 2020 was 596. In 1570 Gotthard K ...

city, Svente Parish, Šēdere Parish, Tabore Parish, Vecsaliena Parish, the part of

Daugavpils Daugavpils (; russian: Двинск; ltg, Daugpiļs ; german: Dünaburg, ; pl, Dyneburg; see other names) is a state city in south-eastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. The parts of the c ...

city on the left bank of the

, Aknīste Parish,

Aknīste Aknīste (; lt, Aknysta; pl, Oknista) is a town in Jēkabpils Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia, near the Lithuanian border. The town is located near the river Dienvidsusēja. Prior to the 2009 administrative reforms it was part ...

city, Asare Parish, Ābeļi Parish, Dignāja Parish, Dunava Parish, Elkšņi Parish, Gārsene Parish, the part of

city on the left bank of the

Kalna Parish Kalna parish ( lv, Kalna pagasts) is an administrative unit of Jēkabpils Municipality Jēkabpils Municipality ( lv, Jēkabpils novads) is a municipality in Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2009 by merging Ābeļi Parish, Dignāja Par ...

, Leimaņi Parish,

Rite Parish Rite Parish ( lv, Rites pagasts) is an Administrative divisions of Latvia, administrative territorial entity of Jēkabpils Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. Prior to 2009, it was an administrative unit of the former Jēkabpils Distr ...

, Rubene Parish, Sēlpils Parish, Sala Parish, Sauka Parish, Viesīte city, Viesīte Parish, Zasa Parish, Kaplava Parish and the part of

Krāslava Krāslava (; ltg, Kruoslova, german: Kreslau, be, Краслаўка, pl, Krasław, russian: Краслава, Креславль) is a town and the administrative centre of Krāslava Municipality, in the Latgale region of Latvia. The town lies ...

city on the left bank of the

.
Latviešu vēsturisko zemju likums The subjugation and baptism of the

Selonians The Selonians ( lv, sēļi; lt, sėliai, from liv, sälli – "highlanders") were a tribe of Baltic peoples. They lived until the 15th century in Selonia, located in southeastern Latvia and northeastern Lithuania. They eventually merged with ...

started in 1208, when

Albert of Buxhoeveden Albert of Riga or Albert of Livonia or Albrecht (german: Albert von Buxthoeven, lv, Alberts fon Buksthēvdens; c.1165 – 17 January 1229) was the third Bishop of Riga in Livonia. In 1201 he allegedly founded Riga, the modern capital of Latvi ...

captured Sēlpils hillfort ( la, castrum Selonum). The term "Selonians" is most probably the German adaptation of the Livonian name "Highlanders", which leads to the hypothesis that the Selonians and Aukštaitians belonged to the same ethnos. 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 ...

describes the Selonians as allies of the

Lithuanians Lithuanians ( lt, lietuviai) are a Baltic ethnic group. They are native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,378,118 people. Another million or two make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Uni ...

. In 1218 the region formed a Selonian

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, pro ...

, but in 1226 part of that diocese was joined to the

Riga 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 Ba ...

archbishopric and the Bishopric of Semigalia was formed. After 1561, Selonia became a part of

Duchy of Courland and Semigallia The Duchy of Courland and Semigallia ( la, Ducatus Curlandiæ et Semigalliæ; german: Herzogtum Kurland und Semgallen; lv, Kurzemes un Zemgales hercogiste; lt, Kuršo ir Žiemgalos kunigaikštystė; pl, Księstwo Kurlandii i Semigalii) was ...

. Nowadays the region is mainly inhabited by Latvians with larger proportion of ethnic minorities of

Russians , native_name_lang = ru , image = , caption = , population = , popplace = 118 million Russians in the Russian Federation (2002 ''Winkler Prins'' estimate) , region1 = , pop1 ...

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 ...

Belarusians , native_name_lang = be , pop = 9.5–10 million , image = , caption = , popplace = 7.99 million , region1 = , pop1 = 600,000–768,000 , region2 = , pop2 ...

and

in the southeastern municipalities (

Ilūkste Municipality Ilūkste Municipality ( lv, Ilūkstes novads) was a municipality in Selonia, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2003 by merging Pilskalne Parish, Šēdere Parish, Bebrene Parish and Ilūkste town. In 2009 it absorbed Dviete parish, Eglain ...

and

Daugavpils Municipality Daugavpils Municipality ( lv, Daugavpils novads) was a municipality in Latgale, Latvia from 2009 to 2021. It was formed in 2009 by merging Ambeļi parish, Biķernieki parish, Demene parish, Dubna parish, Kalkūne parish, Kalupe parish, L ...

Historic boundaries

Among historical documents, the

Mindaugas Mindaugas (german: Myndowen, la, Mindowe, orv, Мендог, be, Міндоўг, pl, Mendog, c. 1203–1263) is the first known Grand Duke of Lithuania and the only crowned King of Lithuania. Little is known of his origins, early life, or r ...

's Donation Act of 1261 is the one that best describes the transfer of the Selonian lands to the Knights of the Sword. Their boundary went from the

at Naujene, near

castle, running along Kopkelis to Luodis lake and northwards along the Duseta river to lake

Sartai Sartai is a lake located in Rokiškis district municipality, Rokiškis and Zarasai district municipality, Zarasai municipalities, northeastern Lithuania. The lake's 79 km shoreline is the longest in Lithuania. There are six islands in the lak ...

and towards the source of the Šventoji. It stretched further to the Latuva, Vašuoka and

Viešinta Viešinta is a river of Anykščiai district municipality, Utena County, northeastern Lithuania. It flows for and has a basin area of . It is a left tributary of the river Lėvuo.Lėvuo river northwards to the

Mūša Mūša ( lv, Mūsa; German: Muhsse) is a river in Northern Lithuania and Southern Latvia (Zemgale region). At its Confluence (geography), confluence with the river Nemunėlis ( lv, Mēmele) in Latvia, near city Bauska, the river Lielupe, Lielupė ...

(Mūsa) and downstream, to the mouth of the Babīte (Būga, 1961, p. 273–274). Thus, the historical sources describing the Selonian boundaries in the second half of the 13th century are rather precise. The linguist

Kazimieras Būga Kazimieras Būga (; November 6, 1879 – December 2, 1924) was a Lithuanian linguist and philologist. He was a professor of linguistics, who mainly worked on the Lithuanian language. He was born at Pažiegė, near Dusetos, then part of the Russia ...

, basing himself on linguistic data alone, specifies the southern boundary of the Selonian territory as running approximately by the towns of

Salakas Salakas is a town in northeastern Lithuania with a population of 519 inhabitants according to the 2011 census. It is famous for the neo-romantic church of Lady of Sorrows. It was built in 1911. History The settlement of Salakas was first menti ...

Tauragnai Tauragnai ( pl, Tauroginy) is a town in Utena County, Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic ...

Utena Utena () is a city in north-east Lithuania. It is the administrative center of Utena district and Utena County. Utena is one of the oldest settlements of Lithuania. The name of the city is most probably derived from a hydronym. The name of the s ...

, Svėdasai, Subačius, Palėvenė,

Pasvalys Pasvalys () is a town in Panevėžys County, Lithuania, located near the bank of the Svalia River. History In 1557, the Treaty of Pasvalys was signed in the town, which provoked Ivan IV of Russia to start the Livonian War. Pasvalys has mineral s ...

, and

Saločiai Saločiai is a small town in Panevėžys County, in northeastern Lithuania next to the border with Latvia. According to the 2011 census, the town has a population of 720 people. References

Towns in Lithuania Towns in Panevėžys Count ...

. Regional history museum of the Selonia region of Lithuania, founded in 1928 in

Biržai Castle Biržai Castle is a castle in Biržai, Lithuania. Construction of the earth bastion-type castle started in 1586 by the order of Krzysztof Mikołaj "the Lightning" Radziwiłł. In 1575, preparing for this construction, a dam was built on the Ag ...

References

Sources

* Arveds Švābe, ed.: ''Latvju enciklopēdija''. Stockholm: Trīs Zvaigznes, 1952-1953. * Edgars Andersons, ed.: ''Latvju enciklopēdija 1962-1982''. Lincoln: American Latvian Associatio

1983-1990. Entry "Sēlija" available a
historia.lv
Retrieved 25. II. 2006. * Vytautas Kazakevičius

Retrieved 25. II. 2006. {{authority control Historical regions in Latvia Historical regions in Lithuania Medieval Latvia Selonia