Latvia
Between Estonia, Lithuania
Latvia is a country on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, one of three Baltic states along with Estonia and Lithuania.
Formerly part of the Soviet Union, it regained independence in 1991 and joined the European Union in 2004.
The capital is Riga.
My grandmother emigrated from Latvia before the war.
Saltwater body, not ocean
- coastlineLand-water boundary
- amberHardened ancient tree secretion
- RigaLatvian capital city
- gulfPartially enclosed sea
dunes · beaches · fishing · maritime · seaport · shipbuilding · sailing · herring
One's regular paid work
- deportationsForced removal from country
- USSRFormer communist superpower
- collective farmsJointly worked agricultural land
- independence movementOrganized push for self-rule
Singing Revolution · 1991 · Soviet era · repressions · memory · restoration · freedom · dissidents
Densely treed land areas
- birchPale deciduous hardwood
- pineCone-bearing evergreen
- spruceNeat; also a conifer
- bogsSoft, wet terrain
wetlands · storks · wildlife · national parks · lakes · meadows · mushrooms · berries
Inherited cultural narratives
- national costumeCountry's traditional garments
- amberHardened ancient tree secretion
- mittensThumbed hand coverings
- craftsmanshipSkill in making objects
ethnography · traditions · Midsummer · oak · linden · mythology · ceramics · folk dance
Original settlement area preserved
- Art NouveauCurvilinear decorative movement, 1890s
- spireTapering architectural peak
- cobblestoneRiver-smoothed paving stone
- medievalOf the Middle Ages
Sovereign political entity
- republicState with elected leaders
- independenceFreedom from external control
- EuropeSmallest inhabited continent
- EUEuropean political-economic bloc
NATO · Schengen · parliamentary · democracy · president · sovereignty · citizenship · diaspora
sea
Saltwater body, not ocean
gulf · dunes · beaches · fishing · maritime · seaport · shipbuilding · sailing · herring · sprats
occupation
One's regular paid work
- deportationsForced removal from country
- USSRFormer communist superpower
- collective farmsJointly worked agricultural land
independence movement · Singing Revolution · 1991 · Soviet era · repressions · memory · restoration · freedom · dissidents
forests
Densely treed land areas
bogs · wetlands · storks · wildlife · national parks · lakes · meadows · mushrooms · berries · nature reserves
folklore
Inherited cultural narratives
- national costumeCountry's traditional garments
- amberHardened ancient tree secretion
- mittensThumbed hand coverings
craftsmanship · ethnography · traditions · Midsummer · oak · linden · mythology · ceramics · folk dance
Old Town
Original settlement area preserved
- Art NouveauCurvilinear decorative movement, 1890s
- spireTapering architectural peak
- cobblestoneRiver-smoothed paving stone
nation
Sovereign political entity
- republicState with elected leaders
- independenceFreedom from external control
- EuropeSmallest inhabited continent
EU · NATO · Schengen · parliamentary · democracy · president · sovereignty · citizenship · diaspora · population
- Cold WarBerlin Wall, Iron Curtain, arms race, Warsaw Pact, Cuban Missile Crisis
- Baltic SeaGulf of Finland, gray seal, Estonia, Lithuania, Finland
- Baltic AffairsEstonia, Lithuania, Riga, Tallinn, Vilnius
- Northern WarsGreat Northern War, Peter the Great, Treaty of Nystad, Livonia, Sweden
- countriesChina, Brazil, France, Germany, India
- NationsChina, France, Japan, Germany, Mexico