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Väike-Pakri
Pakri islands (, ) are two Estonian islands in the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea: Suur-Pakri and Väike-Pakri ( and ). Administratively the islands are part of the town of Paldiski. For centuries the two islands were inhabited by Estonian Swedes, until during World War II their entire civilian population was forced to leave. Etymology The Swedish name of the islands ''Rågöarna'' means ''Rye Islands'' - historically rye was the primary crop grown on the island. Thus ''Stora Rågö'' and ''Lilla Rågö'' mean ''Big Rye Island'' and ''Small Rye Island'', respectively. Alternative names for the two islands are ''Västra Rågö''/''Västerö'' and ''Östra Rågö''/''Österö'' (''West Island'' and ''East Island''). In terms of area Väike-Pakri (''Lesser Pakri'') is actually somewhat larger than Suur-Pakri (''Greater Pakri''). The reason for this contradiction is probably that Suur-Pakri had more inhabitants and better farming lands and was reckoned as more important. Geograp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paldiski
Paldiski is a seaside Populated places in Estonia, town in northwestern Estonia, located on the Pakri Peninsula and adjacent Pakri Islands, Pakri islands in the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea. It is the administrative centre of the Lääne-Harju Parish in Harju County. Paldiski is home to a large ice-free port and the terminus of the Tallinn-Tallinn-Paldiski Railway, Paldiski railway line. The port is served by passenger ferry services to Kapellskär, Sweden, operated by Tallink and DFDS Seaways. As of 1 January 2021, the town had a population of 3542. Etymology The first known name of Paldiski Bay is Rågervik, meaning "rye island bay" in the Swedish language; it was derived from the name Estonian Swedes used for the Pakri Islands, Pakri islands: ''Rågöarna''. A small harbour, also named Rågervik, was established on the southern coast of the Pakri Peninsula in the 17th century. This port has also been referred to as ''Rudewa'' and ''Rågövik''. After Estonia was co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Harju County
Harju County ( or ''Harjumaa''), is one of the fifteen counties of Estonia. It is situated in northern Estonia, on the southern coast of the Gulf of Finland, and borders Lääne-Viru County to the east, Järva County to the southeast, Rapla County to the south, and Lääne County to the southwest. The Capital (political), capital and largest city of Estonia, Tallinn, is situated in Harju County. Harju is the largest county in Estonia in terms of population, as almost half (45%) of Estonia's population lives in Harju County. History Ancient history The territory of modern Harju County consists mostly of two ancient Estonian counties: Revala, around what is now Tallinn, and Harjumaa (ancient county), Harjumaa, which was situated south of Revala and presently rests mostly in Rapla County. Lindanise, then a small trading post at the Gulf of Finland, served as the capital of Revala. It eventually grew into the mostly Germans, German-populated Hanseatic league, Hanseatic town of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alvar
An alvar is a biological environment based on a limestone plain with thin or no soil and, as a result, sparse grassland vegetation. Often flooded in the spring, and affected by drought in midsummer, alvars support a distinctive group of prairie-like plants. Most alvars occur either in northern Europe or around the Great Lakes in North America. This stressed habitat supports a community of rare plants and animals, including species more commonly found on prairie grasslands. Lichen and mosses are common species. Trees and bushes are absent or severely stunted. The primary cause of alvars is the shallow exposed bedrock. Flooding and drought, as noted, add to the stress of the site and prevent many species from growing. Disturbance may also play a role. In Europe, grazing is frequent, while in North America, there is some evidence that fire may also prevent encroachment by forest. The habitat also has strong competition gradients, with better competitors occupying the deeper ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the world's largest brackish water basin. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 10°E to 30°E longitude. It is a Continental shelf#Shelf seas, shelf sea and marginal sea of the Atlantic with limited water exchange between the two, making it an inland sea. The Baltic Sea drains through the Danish straits into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, Great Belt and Little Belt. It includes the Gulf of Bothnia (divided into the Bothnian Bay and the Bothnian Sea), the Gulf of Finland, the Gulf of Riga and the Bay of Gdańsk. The "Baltic Proper" is bordered on its northern edge, at latitude 60°N, by Åland and the Gulf of Bothnia, on its northeastern edge by the Gulf of Finland, on its eastern edge by the Gulf of Riga, and in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Estonian Swedes
The Estonian Swedes (, or ''aibofolke'', "island people"; , or ''rannarootslased'', "coastal Swedes") are a Swedish language, Swedish-speaking minority traditionally residing in the coastal areas and islands of what is now western and northern Estonia. During World War II, almost all of the remaining Swedish-speaking minority escaped from the Soviet invasion of Estonia and fled to Sweden in 1944. Only the descendants of a few individuals who stayed behind are permanent residents in Estonia today. History Early history The Swedish-speaking population in Estonia persisted for about 650 years. The first written mention of the Swedish population in Estonia comes from 1294, in the laws of the town of Haapsalu. Further early mentions of Swedes in Estonia came in 1341 and 1345 (when an Estonian monastery in Padise sold "the Laoküla Estate" and Suur-Pakri Island to a group of Swedes). Based on some of the place names, it is possible that there was a Swedish presence in Estonia ev ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Census
A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of statistics. This term is used mostly in connection with Population and housing censuses by country, national population and housing censuses; other common censuses include Census of agriculture, censuses of agriculture, traditional culture, business, supplies, and traffic censuses. The United Nations (UN) defines the essential features of population and housing censuses as "individual enumeration, universality within a defined territory, simultaneity and defined periodicity", and recommends that population censuses be taken at least every ten years. UN recommendations also cover census topics to be collected, official definitions, classifications, and other useful information to coordinate international practices. The United Nations, UN's Food ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baltic Germans
Baltic Germans ( or , later ) are ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their resettlement in 1945 after the end of World War II, Baltic Germans have drastically declined as a geographically determined ethnic group in the region, with diaspora generally relocating to Germany proper and beyond. Since the late Middle Ages, native German-speakers formed the majority of merchants and clergy, and the large majority of the local landowning nobility who effectively constituted a ruling class over indigenous Latvian and Estonian non-nobles. By the time a distinct Baltic German ethnic identity began emerging in the 19th century, the majority of self-identifying Baltic Germans were non-nobles belonging mostly to the urban and professional middle class. In the 12th and 13th centuries, Catholic German traders and crusaders (''see '') began settling in the eastern Baltic territories. With the decline of Latin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Occupation Of The Baltic States
The occupation of the Baltic states was a period of annexation of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania by the Soviet Union from 1940 until its Dissolution of the Soviet Union, dissolution in 1991. For a period of several years during World War II, Nazi Germany occupied the Baltic states after it invaded the Soviet Union in 1941. The initial Soviet occupation of the Baltic states (1940), Soviet invasion and occupation of the Baltic states began in June 1940 under the Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, made between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany in August 1939 before the outbreak of World War II. The three independent Baltic states, Baltic countries were annexed as constituent Republics of the Soviet Union in August 1940. Most Western countries did not recognise this annexation, and considered it illegal. In July 1941, the German occupation of the Baltic states during World War II, occupation of the Baltic states by Nazi Germany took place, just weeks after its Operation Barbarossa, invasion ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unexploded Ordnance
Unexploded ordnance (UXO, sometimes abbreviated as UO) and unexploded bombs (UXBs) are explosive weapons (bombs, shell (projectile), shells, grenades, land mines, naval mines, cluster munition, and other Ammunition, munitions) that did not explosion, explode when they were deployed and remain at risk for Detonation#Applications, detonation, sometimes many decades after they were used or discarded. When unwanted munitions are found, they are sometimes destroyed in Controlled explosion, controlled explosions, but accidental detonation of even very old explosives might also occur, sometimes with fatal consequences. For example, UXO from World War I continues to be a hazard, with poisonous gas filled munitions still a problem. UXO does not always originate from conflict; areas such as military training bases can also hold significant numbers, even after the area has been abandoned. Seventy-eight countries are contaminated by land mines, which kill or maim 15,000–20,000 people ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
