Tõnis Lukas (; born 5 June 1962) is an

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

, former

Minister of Culture A culture minister or a heritage minister is a common cabinet position in governments. The culture minister is typically responsible for cultural policy, which often includes arts policy (direct and indirect support to artists and arts organiza ...

from 2019 to 2021 and Minister of Education and Research from 1999 to 2002 and from 2007 to 2011.

Early life and career

Lukas was born in

Tallinn Tallinn is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Estonia, most populous city of Estonia. Situated on a Tallinn Bay, bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, it has a population of (as of 2025) and ...

, Estonia.CV at the Estonian government web site
/ref> After graduating from secondary school and spending another year in technical school in Tallinn, he went on to study history in

University of Tartu The University of Tartu (UT; ; ) is a public research university located in the city of Tartu, Estonia. It is the national university of Estonia. It is also the largest and oldest university in the country.

. He graduated in 1987 and continued postgraduate studies from 1989 to 1992, receiving his master's degree in history 1997. Lukas started his career as a school teacher in southern Estonia. 1989 he became a lecturer for postgraduate students in the University of Tartu. From 1992 to 1995 he worked as Director of the Estonian National Museum. Since 1995 he has held mainly political posts both on local and national level. He briefly returned to University of Tartu for two years in 1997 to work as a project manager and to participate in doctorate programme (still unfinished). From 2013 to 2019 he took a break from politics, working from 2013 to 2018 again as Director of the Estonian National Museum and from 2018 to 2019 as Director of the Tartu Vocational Education Centre. He left the last post in order to serve as the Minister of Culture. Tõnis Lukas is a member of the Estonian Vocational Education Promotion Union, Society of Friends of Estonian National Museum, Estonian Heritage Society and Learned Estonian Society. He is an author of several textbooks on history. Tõnis Lukas is married to a literary scholar Liina Lukas. They have two daughters and a son.CV at the Estonian Ministry of Culture

Political career

Lukas joined Pro Patria Union in 1992 and was elected to Tartu City Council the next year. 1995 he became a member of

Riigikogu The Riigikogu (, from Estonian ''riigi-'', "of the state", and ''kogu'', "assembly") is the unicameral parliament of Estonia. In addition to approving legislation, the Parliament appoints high officials, including the prime minister and chi ...

and served for a year as the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for Cultural Affairs. Tõnis Lukas left the parliament in 1996 to serve as a Mayor of

Tartu Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,759 (as of 2024). It is southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres (152 miles) northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the ...

(1996–1997). After the parliamentary elections of 1999 he was appointed a

Minister of Education An education minister (sometimes minister of education) is a position in the governments of some countries responsible for dealing with educational matters. Where known, the government department, ministry, or agency that develops policy and deli ...

in Prime Minister Mart Laar's cabinet on 25 March 1999. The highlight of his career as Minister was the transfer of the Ministry of Education from Tallinn to Tartu, justified as decentralisation of power and fostering regional development, while the critics see in it a result of successful lobby by

. When the government fell on 28 January 2002 Tõnis Lukas returned to Riigikogu and was re-elected to the parliament in 2003, serving currently as a member of the Parliamentary Committee for Cultural Affairs. After the resignation of Tunne Kelam he was elected the Chairman of Pro Patria Union on 16 April 2005. In November 2005 he unveiled plans of merger between Pro Patria Union and Union for the Republic - Res Publica. After the merger of the parties on 4 June 2006 he became one of the two co-Chairmen of the new Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica. At the party congress on 26 May 2007 Mart Laar was elected a new Chairman of the Union and Tõnis Lukas became one of the three Vice-Chairmen elected to assist Mart Laar. From 5 April 2007 to 6 April 2011, he again served as the Minister of Education and Research. He returned to the government in April 2019, becoming the

in Jüri Ratas' second cabinet.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lukas, Tonis 1962 births 20th-century Estonian historians Isamaa politicians Living people Mayors of Tartu Members of the Riigikogu, 1995–1999 Members of the Riigikogu, 1999–2003 Members of the Riigikogu, 2003–2007 Members of the Riigikogu, 2007–2011 Members of the Riigikogu, 2011–2015 Members of the Riigikogu, 2023–2027 Ministers of culture of Estonia Politicians from Tallinn Recipients of the Order of the National Coat of Arms, 4th Class University of Tartu alumni