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Latvia

LVA | LV | 428

Location

Population

Notable Population Centers

City Population Note
Riga 742,572 Capital
Daugavpils 111,564
Liepāja 85,132
Jelgava 61,791
Jūrmala 54,088
Ventspils 42,644
Rēzekne 38,340
Jēkabpils 27,078
Valmiera 26,963
Ogre 26,760

Size

History

Several eastern Baltic tribes merged in medieval times to form the ethnic core of the Latvian people (ca. 8th-12th centuries A.D.). The region subsequently came under the control of Germans, Poles, Swedes, and finally Russians. A Latvian republic emerged following World War I, but the USSR annexed it in 1940 -- an action never recognized by the US and many other countries. Latvia reestablished its independence in 1991 after the breakup of the Soviet Union. Although the last Russian troops left in 1994, the status of the Russian minority (some 25% of the population) remains of concern to Moscow. Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in 2004; it joined the euro zone in 2014 and the OECD in 2016.

Climate

maritime; wet, moderate winters

Terrain

low plain

Languages

Latvian (official) 56.3%, Russian 33.8%, other 0.6% (includes Polish, Ukrainian, and Belarusian), unspecified 9.4%  (2011 est.)major-language sample(s): World Factbook, neaizstājams avots pamata informāciju. (Latvian)The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.note: data represent language usually spoken at home

Religions

Lutheran 36.2%, Roman Catholic 19.5%, Orthodox 19.1%, other Christian 1.6%, other 0.1%, unspecified/none 23.5% (2017 est.)

Government

parliamentary republic

Demographic Profile

Iceland is one of the most gender-equal countries in the world.  Its welfare policies enable both men and women to balance work and family life.  Iceland lagged its Nordic neighbors in introducing new childcare policies, and even when they did in the 1990s, parents still faced a childcare gap between the paid parental leave period and the start of pre-school. The female labor participation rate continued to grow from the 1960s to the 2000s, as women’s educational attainment increased.  Icelanders are marrying later, if they marry at all, and people are having children later.  The interval between births has decreased. Non-marital cohabitation and childbearing outside of marriage are common. Approximately 2 out of 3 children are born out of wedlock, which is among the highest in Europe.  Iceland’s total fertility rate (TFR) has been fairly stable, hovering around replacement level (2.1 children per woman), for decades – a rate higher even than its Nordic neighbors.  Iceland has fluctuated over time between being a country of net emigration and one of net immigration.  Most Icelandic emigrants return to their native country after a few years.  From 1960 to 1996, Iceland registered a net outflow, followed by a net inflow until the 2008 banking crisis. During and after the crisis, more Icelanders left the country than immigrated to it.  Following the crisis, Iceland returned to being a country of net immigration.  In 2017, the country’s foreign-born population accounted for 11% of the population and 17% had an immigrant background.  The countries of origin have become more diverse over time, with Polish immigrants composing the largest share in 2017. Foreigners acquiring Icelandic citizenship must have a basic comprehension of the Icelandic language.  The requirement that new citizens modify or change their names to be more Icelandic was dropped in 1996.  The most popular emigration destination was Sweden, followed by Denmark and Norway in 2021.

Economy

Additional Resources

Human Rights Watch Report
Wikipedia Portal
Wikipedia
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