Estonia

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Coordinates: 59°N 26°E / 59°N 26°E / 59; 26
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
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Republic of Estonia
Eesti Vabariik (Estonian)
Anthem: 
Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm
(English: "My fatherland, my happiness and joy")
Location of Estonia (dark green) – in Europe (green & dark grey) – in the European Union (green)  –  [Legend]
Location of Estonia (dark green)

– in Europe (green & dark grey)
– in the European Union (green)  –  [Legend]

Capital
and largest city
Tallinn
59°25′N 24°45′E / 59.417°N 24.750°E / 59.417; 24.750
Official languageEstonian
Ethnic groups (2023)
Religion
(2021
Estonian
GovernmentUnitary parliamentary republic
• President
Alar Karis
Kaja Kallas
Lauri Hussar
Legislature
Independence restored
20 August 1991
1 May 2004
€) (EUR)
Time zoneUTC+02:00 (EET)
• Summer (DST)
UTC+03:00 (EEST)
Driving sideright
Calling code+372
ISO 3166 codeEE
Internet TLD.ee
  1. Soviet occupation, Estonia's de jure
    state continuity was preserved by diplomatic representatives and the government-in-exile.

Estonia,[a] officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Lake Peipus and Russia. The territory of Estonia consists of the mainland, the larger islands of Saaremaa and Hiiumaa, and over 2,200 other islands and islets on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea,[7] covering a total area of 45,339 square kilometres (17,505 sq mi). The capital city Tallinn and Tartu are the two largest urban areas of the country. The Estonian language is the indigenous and the official language of Estonia; it is the first language of the majority of its population, as well as the world's second most spoken Finnic language.

The land of what is now modern Estonia has been inhabited by humans since at least 9000 BCE. The

Papal-sanctioned Livonian Crusade in the 13th century.[8] After centuries of successive rule by the Teutonic Order, Denmark, Sweden, and the Russian Empire, a distinct Estonian national identity began to emerge in the mid-19th century. This culminated in the 24 February 1918 Estonian Declaration of Independence from the then warring Russian and German Empires. Democratic throughout most of the interwar period, Estonia declared neutrality at the outbreak of World War II, however the country was repeatedly contested, invaded and occupied, first by the Soviet Union in 1940, then by Nazi Germany in 1941, and was ultimately reoccupied in 1944 by, and annexed into, the USSR as an administrative subunit (Estonian SSR). Throughout the 1944–1991 Soviet occupation,[9] Estonia's de jure state continuity was preserved by diplomatic representatives and the government-in-exile. Following the bloodless Estonian "Singing Revolution" of 1988–1990, the nation's de facto independence from the Soviet Union was restored on 20 August 1991
.

Estonia is a

press freedom, digitalisation of public services[13][14] and the prevalence of technology companies.[15]

Name

Main article: Name of Estonia

The name Estonia (

Viking runestones[17] referring to Eistland are the earliest known sources that definitely use the name in its modern geographic meaning.[18] From Old Norse the toponym spread to other Germanic vernaculars and reached literary Latin by the end of 12th century.[19][20]

History

Main article: History of Estonia

Prehistory and Viking Age

Main articles: Ancient Estonia and Viking Age in Estonia
Bronze Age stone-cist graves in north Estonia

Human settlement in Estonia became possible 13,000–11,000 years ago, when the ice from the last

Pärnu river in southwest Estonia. According to radiocarbon dating, it was settled around 11,000 years ago.[21]

The earliest human habitation during the Mesolithic period is connected to the Kunda culture. At that time the country was covered with forests, and people lived in semi-nomadic communities near bodies of water. Subsistence activities consisted of hunting, gathering and fishing.[22] Around 4900 BC, ceramics appear of the neolithic period, known as Narva culture.[23] Starting from around 3200 BC the Corded Ware culture appeared; this included new activities like primitive agriculture and animal husbandry.[24] The Bronze Age started around 1800 BC, and saw the establishment of the first hill fort settlements.[25] A transition from hunter-fisher subsistence to single-farm-based settlement started around 1000 BC, and was complete by the beginning of the Iron Age around 500 BC.[21][26] The large amount of bronze objects indicate the existence of active communication with Scandinavian and Germanic tribes.[27]

The

Kievan Rus led by Yaroslav the Wise defeated Estonians and established a fort in modern-day Tartu. This foothold may have lasted until ca 1061 when an Estonian tribe, the Sosols, destroyed it.[29][30][31][32] Around the 11th century, the Scandinavian Viking era around the Baltic Sea was succeeded by the Baltic Viking era, with seaborne raids by Curonians and by Estonians from the island of Saaremaa, known as Oeselians. In 1187 Estonians (Oeselians), Curonians or/and Karelians sacked Sigtuna, which was a major city of Sweden at the time.[33][34]

Estonia could be divided into two main cultural areas. The coastal areas of Northern and Western Estonia had close overseas contacts with Scandinavia and Finland, while inland Southern Estonia had more contacts with Balts and Pskov.[35] The landscape of Ancient Estonia featured numerous hillforts.[36] Prehistoric or medieval harbour sites have been found on the coast of Saaremaa.[36] Estonia also has a number of graves from the Viking Age, both individual and collective, with weapons and jewellery including types found commonly throughout Northern Europe and Scandinavia.[36][37] In the early centuries AD, political and administrative subdivisions began to emerge in Estonia. Two larger subdivisions appeared: the parish (Estonian: kihelkond) and the county (Estonian:

Ugandi, and Virumaa; and six minor, single-parish counties: Alempois, Jogentagana, Mõhu, Nurmekund, Soopoolitse, and Vaiga. Counties were independent entities and engaged only in a loose cooperation against foreign threats.[38][39]

Little is known of medieval Estonians' spiritual and religious practices before

sacred groves, especially groves of oak trees, having served as places of "pagan" worship.[40][41]

Crusades and the Catholic Era

Main articles:
Danish Estonia
Medieval Estonia and Livonia after the crusade

In 1199, Pope

Reval, but the crusaders soon resumed their offensive, and in 1227, Saaremaa was the last maakond (county) to surrender.[45][46]

After the crusade, the territory of present-day Southern Estonia and Latvia was named

St. George's Night Uprising, encompassing the whole area of northern Estonia and Saaremaa. The Teutonic Order finished suppressing the rebellion in 1345, and the next year the Danish king sold his possessions in Estonia to the Order.[49][50] The unsuccessful rebellion led to a consolidation of power for the upper-class German minority.[51] For the subsequent centuries Low German remained the language of the ruling elite in both Estonian cities and the countryside.[52]

Kuressaare Castle, square stone keep with one square corner tower and red tile roof
Kuressaare Castle in Saaremaa dates back to the 1380s

Livonian Confederation Agreement was signed on 4 December 1435.[56]

Post-Reformation Era

Main articles:
Swedish Estonia, Governorate of Estonia, and Governorate of Livonia
"Academia Dorpatensis" (now University of Tartu) was founded in 1632 by King Gustavus as the second university in the kingdom of Sweden. After the king's death it became known as "Academia Gustaviana".

The Reformation began in central Europe in 1517, and soon spread northward to Livonia despite some opposition by the Livonian Order.[57] Towns were the first to embrace Protestantism in the 1520s, and by the 1530s the majority of the landowners and rural population had adopted Lutheranism.[58][59] Church services were now conducted in vernacular language, which initially meant Low German, but already from the 1530s onward the regular religious services were held in Estonian.[58][60]

During the 16th century, the expansionist monarchies of

Muscovy, Sweden, and Poland–Lithuania consolidated power, posing a growing threat to decentralised Livonia weakened by disputes between cities, nobility, bishops, and the Order.[58][61]

In 1558, Tsar

defeated in 1560. The majority of Livonia accepted Polish rule, while Reval and the nobles of Northern Estonia swore loyalty to the Swedish king, and the Bishop of Ösel-Wiek sold his lands to the Danish king. Russian forces gradually conquered the majority of Livonia, but in the late 1570s the Polish-Lithuanian and Swedish armies started their own offensives and the bloody war finally ended in 1583 with Russian defeat.[61][62] As a result of the war, Northern Estonia became Swedish Duchy of Estonia, Southern Estonia became Polish Duchy of Livonia, and Saaremaa remained under Danish control.[63]

In 1600, the

Polish–Swedish War broke out, causing further devastation. The protracted war ended in 1629 with Sweden gaining Livonia, including the regions of Southern Estonia and Northern Latvia.[64] Danish Saaremaa was transferred to Sweden in 1645.[65] The wars had halved the population of Estonia from about 250–270,000 people in the mid 16th century to 115–120,000 in the 1630s.[66]

While many peasants remained in the status of

Printing presses were also established in both towns. In the 1680s the beginnings of Estonian elementary education appeared, largely due to efforts of Bengt Gottfried Forselius, who also introduced orthographical reforms to written Estonian.[68] The population of Estonia grew rapidly until the Great Famine of 1695–97 in which 70,000–75,000 people died – about 20% of the population.[69]

During the 1700–1721 Great Northern War, the Tsardom of Russia (Muscovy) conquered the whole of Estonia by 1710.[70] The war again devastated the population of Estonia, with the 1712 population estimated at only 150,000–170,000.[71] In 1721, Estonia was divided into two governorates: the governorate of Estonia, which included Tallinn and the northern part of Estonia, and the southern governorate of Livonia, which extended to the northern part of Latvia.[72] Russian administration restored all the political and landholding rights of Baltic Germans.[73] The rights of local farmers reached their lowest point, as serfdom completely dominated agricultural relations during the 18th century.[74] Serfdom was formally abolished in 1816–1819, but this initially had very little practical effect; major improvements in farmers' rights started with reforms in the mid-19th century.[75]

National Awakening

Main article: Estonian national awakening
Carl Robert Jakobson played a key role in the Estonian national awakening.

The Estonian national awakening began in the 1850s as several leading figures started promoting an Estonian national identity among the general populace. Widespread farm buyouts by Estonians and the resulting rapidly growing class of land-owning farmers provided the economic basis for the formation of this new "Estonian identity". In 1857 Johann Voldemar Jannsen started publishing the first Estonian language daily newspaper and began popularising the denomination of oneself as eestlane (Estonian).[76] Schoolmaster Carl Robert Jakobson and clergyman Jakob Hurt became leading figures in a national movement, encouraging Estonian farmers to take pride in their ethnic Estonian identity.[77] The first nationwide movements formed, such as a campaign to establish the Estonian language Alexander School, the founding of the Society of Estonian Literati and the Estonian Students' Society, and the first national song festival, held in 1869 in Tartu.[78][79][80] Linguistic reforms helped to develop the Estonian language.[81] The national epic Kalevipoeg was published in 1862, and 1870 saw the first performances of Estonian theatre.[82][83] In 1878 a major split happened in the national movement. The moderate wing led by Hurt focused on development of culture and Estonian education, while the radical wing led by Jakobson started demanding increased political and economical rights.[79]

At the end of the 19th century, Russification began, as the central government initiated various administrative and cultural measures to tie Baltic governorates more closely to the empire.[78] The Russian language replaced German and Estonian in most secondary schools and universities, and many social and cultural activities in local languages were suppressed.[83] In the late 1890s, there was a new surge of nationalism with the rise of prominent figures like Jaan Tõnisson and Konstantin Päts. In the early 20th century, Estonians started taking over control of local governments in towns from Germans.[84]

During the

1905 Revolution, the first legal Estonian political parties were founded. An Estonian national congress was convened and demanded the unification of Estonian areas into a single autonomous territory and an end to Russification. The unrest was accompanied by both peaceful political demonstrations and violent riots with looting in the commercial district of Tallinn and in a number of wealthy landowners' manors in the Estonian countryside. The Tsarist government responded with a brutal crackdown; some 500 people were executed and hundreds more jailed or deported to Siberia.[85][86]

Independence

Main articles: Estonian Declaration of Independence, Estonian War of Independence, and History of Estonia § Interwar period (1920–1939)
photograph of crowd around flag raising
The tricolour flags of Estonia on display during the public announcement of the Declaration of Independence of Estonia in Pärnu on 23 February 1918. One of the very first images of the independent republic.

In 1917, after the

The Bolsheviks seized power in Estonia in November 1917, and the Provincial Assembly was disbanded. However, the Provincial Assembly established the Salvation Committee, and during the short interlude between Russian retreat and German arrival, the committee declared independence on 24 February 1918, and formed the Estonian Provisional Government. German occupation immediately followed, but after their defeat in World War I, the Germans were forced to hand over power back to the Provisional Government on 19 November 1918.[88][89]

On 28 November 1918

Tartu Peace Treaty was signed by Estonia and Soviet Russia, with the latter pledging to permanently give up all sovereign claims to Estonia.[91][93]

In April 1919, the

era of silence", when the parliament did not reconvene and the newly established Patriotic League became the only legal political movement.[100] A new constitution was adopted in a referendum, and elections were held in 1938. Both pro-government and opposition candidates were allowed to participate, but only as independents.[101] The Päts régime was relatively benign compared to other authoritarian régimes in interwar Europe, and the régime never used violence against political opponents.[102]

Estonia joined the League of Nations in 1921.[103] Attempts to establish a larger alliance together with Finland, Poland, and Latvia failed, with only a mutual-defence pact being signed with Latvia in 1923, and later was followed up with the Baltic Entente of 1934.[104][105] In the 1930s, Estonia also engaged in secret military co-operation with Finland.[106] Non-aggression pacts were signed with the Soviet Union in 1932, and with Germany in 1939.[103][107] In 1939, Estonia declared neutrality, but this proved futile in World War II.[108]

World War II

Main articles: Estonia in World War II and Occupation of the Baltic states
The Red Army troops moving into military bases in Estonia in October 1939, after the Soviet Union had forced Estonia to sign the Bases Treaty.

A week before the outbreak of

Estonian SSR.[113]

The capital Tallinn after bombing by the Soviet Air Force during the war on the Eastern Front in March 1944

The USSR established a repressive wartime regime in occupied Estonia. Many of the country's high-ranking civil and military officials, intelligentsia and industrialists were arrested. Soviet repressions culminated on 14 June 1941 with

Forest Brothers"[116]) began against the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941 in the form of the "Summer War" (Estonian: Suvesõda), around 34,000 young Estonian men were forcibly drafted into the Red Army, fewer than 30% of whom survived the war. Soviet destruction battalions initiated a scorched earth policy. Political prisoners who could not be evacuated were executed by the NKVD.[117][118] Many Estonians went into the forest, starting an anti-Soviet guerrilla campaign. In July, German Wehrmacht reached south Estonia. The USSR evacuated Tallinn in late August with massive losses, and capture of the Estonian islands was completed by German forces in October.[119]

Initially, many Estonians were hopeful that Germany would help to restore Estonia's independence, but this soon proved to be in vain. Only a puppet

Soviet prisoners of war perished.[121] German occupation authorities started recruiting men into small volunteer units but, as these efforts provided meagre results and the military situation worsened, forced conscription was instituted in 1943, eventually leading to formation of the Estonian Waffen-SS division.[122] Thousands of Estonians who did not want to fight in the German military secretly escaped to Finland, where many volunteered to fight together with Finns against Soviets.[123]

sailing ship filled with refugees
A ship with Estonian Swedes fleeing west from the Soviet invasion (1944)

The Red Army reached the Estonian borders again in early 1944, but its advance into Estonia was stopped in

a major offensive from the south, forcing the Germans to abandon mainland Estonia in September and the Estonian islands in November.[124] As German forces were retreating from Tallinn, the last pre-war prime minister Jüri Uluots appointed a government headed by Otto Tief in an unsuccessful attempt to restore Estonia's independence.[126] Tens of thousands of people, including most of the Estonian Swedes, fled westwards to avoid the new Soviet occupation.[127]

Overall, Estonia lost about 25% of its population through deaths, deportations and evacuations in World War II.

Russian SFSR.[129]

Second Soviet occupation

Main articles: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic, Occupation of the Baltic states, and Baltic states under Soviet rule (1944–1991)
Estonian partisans, the "Forest Brothers".

Thousands of Estonians opposing the second Soviet occupation joined a guerrilla movement known as the "Forest Brothers". The armed resistance was heaviest in the first few years after the war, but Soviet authorities gradually wore it down through attrition, and resistance effectively ceased to exist in the mid-1950s.[130] The Soviets initiated a policy of collectivisation, but as farmers remained opposed to it a campaign of terror was unleashed. In March 1949 about 20,000 Estonians were deported to Siberia. Collectivization was fully completed soon afterwards.[114][131]

The Russian-dominated occupation authorities under the Soviet Union began

Finnish television in the northern parts of the country, thus getting a better picture of the way of life behind the Iron Curtain.[139]

The majority of Western countries

diplomatic representatives which Western governments continued to recognise.[141][142]

Independence restored

Main article: Singing Revolution
In the Baltic Way on 23 August 1989, two million people formed a human chain across three countries in a mass demonstration against the Soviet occupation.

The introduction of

declared restoration of independence on 20 August 1991.[150]

Soviet authorities recognised Estonian independence on 6 September 1991, and on 17 September Estonia was admitted into the

Russian army left Estonia in 1994.[152]

On 28 September 1994, the MS Estonia sank as the ship was crossing the Baltic Sea, en route from Tallinn, Estonia, to Stockholm, Sweden. The disaster claimed the lives of 852 people (501 of them were Swedes[153]), being one of the worst maritime disasters of the 20th century.[154]

In 1992 radical economic reforms were launched for switching over to a market economy, including privatisation and currency reform.[155] Estonia has been a member of the WTO since 13 November 1999.[156]

Since regaining independence in 1991, Estonian foreign policy has been aligned with other

UN Security Council from 2020 to 2021.[160]

Geography

Main article: Geography of Estonia
Satellite image of Estonia

Estonia is situated in

territorial sea, the Estonian border encompasses 70,177 km2 (27,095 sq mi).[165]

Estonia has a 3,794 kilometres (2,357 mi) long coastline, notable for its

mires cover 23.2% of the land. Generally the terrain is flat, average elevation above the sea level being about 50 metres (164 ft). Only 10% of the country's terrain is greater than 100 metres (328 ft) in height, with Haanja Upland containing the highest peak, Suur Munamägi, at 318 metres (1,043 ft).[161]

Climate

Main article: Climate of Estonia

Estonia is situated in the

maritime and continental climate, characterized by warm summers and fairly mild winters. Primary local differences are caused by the Baltic Sea, which warms the coastal areas in winter, and cools them in the spring.[161][162] Average temperatures range from 17.8 °C (64.0 °F) in July, the warmest month, to −3.8 °C (25.2 °F) in February, the coldest month, with the annual average being 6.4 °C (43.5 °F).[167] The highest recorded temperature is 35.6 °C (96.1 °F) from 1992, and the lowest is −43.5 °C (−46.3 °F) from 1940.[168] The annual average precipitation is 662 millimetres (26.1 in),[169] with the daily record being 148 millimetres (5.8 in).[170] Snow cover varies significantly on different years.[162] Prevailing winds are westerly, southwesterly, and southerly, with average wind speed being 3–5 m/s inland and 5–7 m/s on coast.[162] The average monthly sunshine duration ranges from 290 hours in August, to 21 hours in December.[171]

Biodiversity

Main articles: Fauna of Estonia and Protected areas of Estonia
The barn swallow (H. r. rustica) is the national bird of Estonia.

Due to varied climatic and soil conditions, and plethora of sea and internal waters, Estonia is one of the most biodiverse regions among the similar sized territories at the same latitude.[162] Many species extinct in most other European countries can be still found in Estonia.[172]

Recorded species include 64 mammals, 11 amphibians, and 5 reptiles.[161] Large mammals present in Estonia include the grey wolf, lynx, brown bear, red fox, badger, wild boar, moose, roe deer, beaver, otter, grey seal, and ringed seal. The critically endangered European mink has been successfully reintroduced to the island of Hiiumaa, and the rare Siberian flying squirrel is present in east Estonia.[172] The red deer, once extirpated, has also been successfully reintroduced.[173] In the beginning of the 21st century, an isolated population of European jackals was confirmed in Western Estonia, much further north than their earlier known range. The number of jackals has grown quickly in coastal areas of Estonia and can be found in Matsalu National Park.[174][175] Introduced mammals include sika deer, fallow deer, raccoon dog, muskrat, and American mink.[161]

Over 300 bird species have been found in Estonia, including the

national bird of Estonia.[177]

The Tarvasjõgi flowing through Põhja-Kõrvemaa Nature Reserve

bryophytes. Forests cover approximately half of the country. 87 native and over 500 introduced tree and bush species have been identified, with most prevalent tree species being pine (41%), birch (28%), and spruce (23%).[161] Since 1969, the cornflower (Centaurea cyanus) has been the national flower of Estonia.[179]

Protected areas cover 19.4% of Estonian land and 23% of its total area together with territorial sea. Overall there are 3,883 protected natural objects, including 6 national parks, 231 nature conservation areas, and 154 landscape reserves.[180]

Politics

Main articles: Politics of Estonia, List of political parties in Estonia, and Elections in Estonia
Alar Karis
President
since 2021
Kaja Kallas
Prime Minister
since 2021

Estonia is a unitary parliamentary republic. The unicameral parliament Riigikogu serves as the legislative and the government as the executive.[181]

Estonian parliament Riigikogu is elected by citizens over 18 years of age for a four-year term by proportional representation, and has 101 members. Riigikogu's responsibilities include approval and preservation of the national government, passing legal acts, passing the state budget, and conducting parliamentary supervision. On proposal of the president Riigikogu appoints the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the chairman of the board of the Bank of Estonia, the Auditor General, the Legal Chancellor, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Defence Forces.[182][183]

The Government of Estonia is formed by the Prime Minister of Estonia at recommendation of the President, and approved by the Riigikogu. The government, headed by the Prime Minister, carries out domestic and foreign policy. Ministers head ministries and represent its interests in the government. Sometimes ministers with no associated ministry are appointed, known as ministers without portfolio.[184] Estonia has been ruled by coalition governments because no party has been able to obtain an absolute majority in the parliament.[181]

Toompea Castle pink stucco three-story building with red hip roof
The seat of the Parliament of Estonia in Toompea Castle

The head of the state is the President who has a primarily representative and ceremonial role. There are no referendums on the election of the president, but the president is elected by the Riigikogu, or by a special electoral college.[185] The President proclaims the laws passed in the Riigikogu, and has the right to refuse proclamation and return law in question for a new debate and decision. If Riigikogu passes the law unamended, then the President has right to propose to the Supreme Court to declare the law unconstitutional. The President also represents the country in international relations.[181][186]

The Constitution of Estonia also provides possibility for direct democracy through referendum, although since adoption of the constitution in 1992 the only referendum has been the referendum on European Union membership in 2003.[187]

Estonia has pursued the development of the e-government, with 99 percent of the public services being available on the web 24 hours a day.[188] In 2005 Estonia became the first country in the world to introduce nationwide binding Internet voting in local elections of 2005.[189] In 2023 parliamentary elections 51% of the total votes were cast over the internet, becoming the first time when more than half of votes were cast online.[190]

In the most recent

formed the government together with Estonia 200 and Social Democratic Party, while Conservative People's Party, Centre Party and Isamaa became the opposition.[191][192]

Law

Main articles: Law of Estonia and Constitution of Estonia
See also: LGBT rights in Estonia
Building of the Supreme Court of Estonia in Tartu

The Constitution of Estonia is the fundamental law, establishing the constitutional order based on five principles: human dignity, democracy, rule of law, social state, and the Estonian identity.[193] Estonia has a civil law legal system based on the Germanic legal model.[194] The court system has a three-level structure. The first instance are county courts which handle all criminal and civil cases, and administrative courts which hear complaints about government and local officials, and other public disputes. The second instance are district courts which handle appeals about the first instance decisions.[195] The Supreme Court is the court of cassation, conducts constitutional review, and has 19 members.[196] The judiciary is independent, judges are appointed for life, and can be removed from office only when convicted of a crime.[197] The justice system has been rated among the most efficient in the European Union by the EU Justice Scoreboard.[198] As of June 2023, gay registered partners and married couples have the right to adopt. Gay couples will gain the right to marriage in Estonia in 2024. Estonia is the first of the former Soviet republics to legalize same-sex marriage.[199][200]

Foreign relations

Main articles:
Diplomatic missions of Estonia
US President Barack Obama giving a speech in Tallinn (2014)

Estonia was a member of the

European Union Agency for large-scale IT systems is based in Tallinn, and started operations at the end of 2012.[203] Estonia held the Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of 2017.[204]

Since the early 1990s, Estonia has been involved in active trilateral

Nordic Battle Group, and in 2011 were invited to co-operate with Nordic Defence Cooperation in selected activities.[212][213][214][215]

The beginning of the attempt to redefine Estonia as "Nordic" was seen in December 1999, when then Estonian foreign minister (and

Swedish Institute for International Affairs,[216] with the potential political calculation behind it being the wish to distinguish Estonia from its more slowly progressing southern neighbours, which could have postponed early participation in European Union enlargement.[217] Andres Kasekamp argued in 2005, that relevance of identity discussions in Baltic states decreased with their entrance into EU and NATO together, but predicted, that in the future, attractiveness of Nordic identity in Baltic states will grow and eventually, five Nordic states plus three Baltic states will become a single unit.[217]

Other Estonian international organisation memberships include

IMF, the Council of the Baltic Sea States,[202][218][219] and on 7 June 2019, was elected a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for a two-year term that began on 1 January 2020.[220]

Since the

Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Estonia has very actively supported Ukraine during the war, providing highest support relative to its gross domestic product.[222][223]

Military

Main articles: Estonian Defence Forces and Estonian Defence League
Estonian soldiers during a NATO exercise in 2015

The Estonian Defence Forces consist of land forces, navy, and air force. The current national military service is compulsory for healthy men between ages of 18 and 28, with conscripts serving 8- or 11-month tours of duty, depending on their education and position provided by the Defence Forces.[224] The peacetime size of the Estonian Defence Forces is about 6,000 persons, with half of those being conscripts. The planned wartime size of the Defence Forces is 60,000 personnel, including 21,000 personnel in high readiness reserve.[225] Since 2015 the Estonian defence budget has been over 2% of GDP, fulfilling its NATO defence spending obligation.[226]

The Estonian Defence League is a voluntary national defence organisation under management of Ministry of Defence. It is organised based on military principles, has its own military equipment, and provides various different military training for its members, including in guerilla tactics. The Defence League has 17,000 members, with additional 11,000 volunteers in its affiliated organisations.[227][228]

Estonia co-operates with Latvia and Lithuania in several trilateral Baltic defence co-operation initiatives. As part of Baltic Air Surveillance Network (BALTNET) the three countries manage the Baltic airspace control center, Baltic Battalion (BALTBAT) has participated in the NATO Response Force, and a joint military educational institution Baltic Defence College is located in Tartu.[229]

Estonia joined

Russian war in Ukraine, since 2017 a NATO Enhanced Forward Presence battalion battle group has been based in Tapa Army Base.[232] Also part of NATO Baltic Air Policing deployment has been based in Ämari Air Base since 2014.[233] In European Union Estonia participates in Nordic Battlegroup and Permanent Structured Cooperation.[234][235]

Since 1995 Estonia has participated in numerous international security and peacekeeping missions, including: Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Kosovo, and Mali.[236] The peak strength of Estonian deployment in Afghanistan was 289 soldiers in 2009.[237] 11 Estonian soldiers have been killed in missions of Afghanistan and Iraq.[238]

Administrative divisions

Main articles:
Boroughs of Estonia, and Populated places in Estonia
Administrative divisions of Estonia

Estonia is a unitary country with a single-tier local government system. Local affairs are managed autonomously by local governments. Since administrative reform in 2017, there are in total 79 local governments, including 15 towns and 64 rural municipalities. All municipalities have equal legal status and form part of a maakond (county), which is an administrative subunit of the state.[239] Representative body of local authorities is municipal council, elected at general direct elections for a four-year term. The council appoints local government. For towns, the head of the local government is linnapea (mayor) and vallavanem for parishes. For additional decentralization the local authorities may form municipal districts with limited authority, currently those have been formed in Tallinn and Hiiumaa.[240]

Separately from administrative units, there are also settlement units: village, small borough, borough, and town. Generally, villages have less than 300, small boroughs have between 300 and 1000, boroughs and towns have over 1000 inhabitants.[240]

Economy

Main article: Economy of Estonia

As a member of the European Union and OECD, Estonia is considered a high-income economy by the World Bank. The GDP (PPP) per capita of the country was $46,385 in 2023 according to the International Monetary Fund, ranked 40th.[4]

Estonia ranks highly in international rankings for

press freedom, digitalisation of public services[243][244] and the prevalence of technology companies.[245]

Because of its rapid growth, Estonia has often been described as a Baltic Tiger beside Lithuania and Latvia. Beginning 1 January 2011, Estonia adopted the euro and became the 17th eurozone member state.[246]

According to Eurostat, Estonia had the lowest ratio of government debt to GDP among EU countries at 6.7% at the end of 2010.[247] A balanced budget, almost non-existent

e-Services
and even mobile-based services are all hallmarks of Estonia's market economy.

Estonia produces about 75% of its consumed electricity.

Muuga, near Tallinn, is a modern facility featuring good transhipment capability, a high-capacity grain elevator, chill/frozen storage, and new oil tanker off-loading capabilities.[253]

aerial view of high rises at sunset
The central business district of Tallinn

Because of the

global economic recession that began in 2007, the GDP of Estonia decreased by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter of 2008, over 3% in the 3rd quarter of 2008, and over 9% in the 4th quarter of 2008. The Estonian government made a supplementary negative budget, which was passed by Riigikogu. The revenue of the budget was decreased for 2008 by EEK 6.1 billion and the expenditure by EEK 3.2 billion.[254] In 2010, the economic situation stabilised and started a growth based on strong exports. In the fourth quarter of 2010, Estonian industrial output increased by 23% compared to the year before. The country has been experiencing economic growth ever since.[255]

According to Eurostat data, Estonian PPS GDP per capita stood at 67% of the EU average in 2008.[256] In 2017, the average monthly gross salary in Estonia was €1221.[257]

However, there are vast disparities in GDP between different areas of Estonia; currently, over half of the country's GDP is created in Tallinn.[258] In 2008, the GDP per capita of Tallinn stood at 172% of the Estonian average,[259] which makes the per capita GDP of Tallinn as high as 115% of the European Union average, exceeding the average levels of other counties.

The unemployment rate in March 2016 was 6.4%, which is below the EU average,[257] while real GDP growth in 2011 was 8.0%,[260] five times the euro-zone average. In 2012, Estonia remained the only euro member with a budget surplus, and with a national debt of only 6%, it is one of the least indebted countries in Europe.[261]

Economic indicators

Estonia's economy continues to benefit from a transparent government and policies that sustain a high level of

Ease of Doing Business Index by the World Bank Group places the country 16th in the world.[265] The strong focus on the IT sector through its e-Estonia program has led to much faster, simpler and efficient public services where for example filing a tax return takes less than five minutes and 98% of banking transactions are conducted through the internet.[266][267] Estonia has the 13th lowest business bribery risk in the world, according to TRACE Matrix.[268]

Estonia is a

maternity leave in the OECD.[275] One of the world's most digitally-advanced societies,[276]
in 2005 Estonia became the first state to hold elections over the
e-residency.[277]

Historic development

Real GDP per capita development of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania

In 1928, a stable currency, the kroon, was established. It is issued by the Bank of Estonia, the country's central bank. The word kroon (Estonian pronunciation: [ˈkroːn], "crown") is related to that of the other Nordic currencies (such as the Swedish krona and the Danish and Norwegian krone). The kroon succeeded the mark in 1928 and was used until 1940. After Estonia regained its independence, the kroon was reintroduced in 1992.

After

Land Value Tax is levied which is used to fund local municipalities. It is a state-level tax, but 100% of the revenue is used to fund Local Councils. The rate is set by the Local Council within the limits of 0.1–2.5%. It is one of the most important sources of funding for municipalities.[284] The Land Value Tax is levied on the value of the land only with improvements and buildings not considered. Very few exemptions are considered on the land value tax and even public institutions are subject to the tax.[284] The tax has contributed to a high rate (~90%)[284] of owner-occupied residences within Estonia, compared to a rate of 67.4% in the United States.[285]

In 1999, Estonia experienced its worst year economically since it regained independence in 1991, largely because of the impact of the

OECD in 2010.[287]

Transport

Main article: Transport in Estonia

The

Tallinn Stock Exchange. It was the first time in nearly 20 years in Estonia when a state-owned company went public in Estonia. It was also the 2nd largest IPO in Nasdaq Tallinn in the number of retail investors participating. The Republic of Estonia remains the largest shareholder and holds 67% of the company.[288]

Owned by

Pärnu Highway (E67
).

The

Lennart Meri Tallinn Airport in Tallinn is the largest airport in Estonia and serves as a hub for the national airline Nordica, as well as the secondary hub for AirBaltic[289] and LOT Polish Airlines.[290] Total passengers using the airport has increased on average by 14.2% annually since 1998. On 16 November 2012 Tallinn Airport has reached two million passenger landmark for the first time in its history.[291]

Resources

total primary energy and accounted for 4% of Estonia's gross domestic product.[293][294]

Although Estonia is in general resource-poor, the land still offers a large variety of smaller resources. The country has large oil shale and limestone deposits. In addition to oil shale and limestone, Estonia also has large reserves of phosphorite, pitchblende, and granite that currently are not mined, or not mined extensively.[295]

Significant quantities of

loparite mining at Sillamäe.[296] Because of the rising prices of rare earths, extraction of these oxides has become economically viable. The country currently exports around 3000 tonnes per annum, representing around 2% of world production.[297]

Estonia had forests that covered 48% of the land.[298] However recent years have seen a substantial increase in logging, and logging occurs not only nationwide in private land, but even in supposedly protected national parks.[299] Estonia needs to cut significantly less forest to retain biodiversity and meet the country's carbon sequestration goal,[300] but it is increasing, and in 2022 the government ministry responsible for forestry, the RMK, reported a record profit of 1.4 billion euros.[301]

Industry and environment

See also: Oil shale in Estonia, Narva Power Plants, and Wind power in Estonia
Rõuste wind turbines next to wetland
Rõuste wind farm in Lääneranna Parish

Food, construction, and electronic industries are currently among the most important branches of Estonia's industry.

Ida-Viru county
and around Tallinn.

The oil shale-based

sulphur dioxide from the mining industry the Soviet Union rapidly developed in the early 1950s. In some areas, coastal seawater is polluted, mainly around the Sillamäe industrial complex.[306]

Estonia is dependent on other countries for energy. In recent years, many local and foreign companies have been investing in renewable energy sources.

MW; another roughly 399 MW worth of projects are currently being developed and more than 2800 MW being proposed in the Lake Peipus area and coastal areas of Hiiumaa.[310][311][312]

Currently[when?], there are plans to renovate some older units of the Narva Power Plants, establish new power stations, and provide higher efficiency in oil shale-based energy production.[313] Estonia liberalised 35% of its electricity market in April 2010; the electricity market as whole was to be liberalised by 2013.[314]

Together with Lithuania, Poland, and Latvia, the country considered participating in constructing the

Fukushima disaster and bad example of Olkiluoto plant), Eesti Energia shifted its main focus to shale oil production, seen as far more profitable.[317]

The Estonian electricity network forms a part of the

Nord Pool Spot network.[318]

Estonia has a strong information technology

e-residency program
began offering those services to non-residents in Estonia.

Wise (formerly known as TransferWise). It has been reported that Estonia has the highest startups per person ratio in the world.[321] As of January 2022, there are 1,291 startups from Estonia, seven of which are unicorns, equalling nearly 1 startup per 1,000 Estonians.[322][323]

Trade

Main article:
Tallinn Stock Exchange
graph of exports in 2010 showing $10,345,000,000 2.8 percent cars, 12 percent lubricating oil, 3.8 percent telephone
Graphical depiction of Estonia's product exports in 28 colour-coded categories

Estonia has had a

public debt
.

In 2007, however, a large current account deficit and rising inflation put pressure on Estonia's currency, which was pegged to the Euro, highlighting the need for growth in export-generating industries. Estonia exports mainly machinery and equipment, wood and paper, textiles, food products, furniture, and metals and chemical products.[326] Estonia also exports 1.562 billion kilowatt hours of electricity annually.[326] At the same time Estonia imports machinery and equipment, chemical products, textiles, food products and transportation equipment.[326] Estonia imports 200 million kilowatt hours of electricity annually.[326]

Between 2007 and 2013, Estonia received 53.3 billion kroons (3.4 billion euros) from various European Union Structural Funds as direct supports, creating the largest foreign investments into Estonia.[327] Majority of the European Union financial aid will be invested into the following fields: energy economies, entrepreneurship, administrative capability, education, information society, environment protection, regional and local development, research and development activities, healthcare and welfare, transportation and labour market.[328] Main sources of foreign direct investments to Estonia are Sweden and Finland (As of 31 December 2016 48.3%).[329]

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Estonia

Residents of Estonia by ethnicity (2021)[330]

  Estonians (69.1%)
  Russians (23.7%)
  Ukrainians (2.1%)
  Belarusians (0.9%)
  other (4.2%)
The population of Estonia, from 1960 to 2019, with a peak in 1990.
Population of Estonia 1960–2019. The changes are largely attributed to Soviet immigration and emigration.[331]

Before World War II, ethnic

Jews, Poles, and Finns
.

The share of Baltic Germans in Estonia had fallen from 5.3% (~46,700) in 1881 to 1.3% (16,346) by 1934,[332][333] mainly due to emigration to Germany in the light of general Russification at the end of the 19th century[citation needed] and the independence of Estonia in the 20th century.

Between 1945 and 1989, the share of ethnic Estonians in the population resident within the currently defined boundaries of Estonia dropped to 61%, caused primarily by the Soviet occupation and programme promoting mass immigration of urban industrial workers from Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus, as well as by wartime emigration and Joseph Stalin's mass deportations and executions.[334] By 1989, minorities constituted more than one-third of the population, as the number of non-Estonians had grown almost fivefold.

At the end of the 1980s, Estonians perceived their demographic change as a

russify Estonia.[citation needed] In the decade after the reconstitution of independence, large-scale emigration by ethnic Russians and the removal of the Russian military bases in 1994 caused[citation needed
] the proportion of ethnic Estonians in Estonia to increase from 61% to 69% in 2006.

Modern Estonia is a fairly ethnically homogeneous country, but this historical homogeneity is a feature of 13 of the country's 15 maakond (counties). The mostly Russian-speaking immigrant population is concentrated in urban areas which administratively belong to two counties. Thus 13 of Estonia's 15 counties are over 80% ethnic Estonian, the most homogeneous being

Russian
immigrant minority makes up about 24% of the country's total population now, but accounts for 35% of the population in Harju county and for a near 70% majority in Ida-Viru county.

The Estonian Cultural Autonomy law that was passed in 1925 was unique in Europe at that time.

Soviet occupation, the Germans and Jewish minorities managed to elect a cultural council. The Law on Cultural Autonomy for National Minorities was reinstated in 1993. Historically, large parts of Estonia's northwestern coast and islands have been populated by the indigenous ethnic group of rannarootslased
("Coastal Swedes").

In recent years the number of Swedish residents in Estonia has risen again, numbering in 2008 almost 500 people, owing to the property reforms at the beginning of the 1990s. In 2004, the

Ingrian Finnish minority in Estonia elected a cultural council and was granted cultural autonomy. The Estonian Swedes minority similarly received cultural autonomy in 2007.[336]
During the Russo-Ukrainian war of 2022, tens of thousands of Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Estonia.

There is also a Roma community in Estonia. Approximately Roma 1,000-1,500 live in Estonia.[337]

Society

See also: Human rights in Estonia, Nordic identity in Estonia, and Estonian alien's passport
Estonian folk dancers

Among post-communist states, Estonia is one of the most Westernised countries and the Estonian society has undergone considerable changes since the country had restored full independence in 1991.[338] Some of the more notable changes have taken effect in the level of stratification and distribution of family income. The Gini coefficient has held steadily higher than the European Union average (31 in 2009),[339] although it has clearly dropped. The registered unemployment rate in January 2021 was 6.9%.[340]

Estonia is a multinational country in which over a hundred languages are spoken, according to data from one previous census held in 2000. In 2000, 67.3% of the country's adult population spoke

quota refugees under the migrant plan agreed upon by EU member states in 2015.[344]

Ethnic distribution in Estonia is very homogeneous at a county level; in most counties, over 90% of residents are ethnic Estonians. In contrast, in the capital city Tallinn and the urban areas of Ida-Viru county (which neighbours Russia) ethnic Estonians account for around 60% of the population and the remainder is mostly composed of Russian and Ukrainian immigrants, who mostly arrived in Estonia during the period of Soviet occupation (1944–1991), however now also includes over 62,000 (ca 6% of total population) war refugees from Ukraine who have settled in Estonia in 2022.[345]

A Russian Old Believer village with a church on Piirissaar island

The 2008 United Nations Human Rights Council report called "extremely credible" the description of the citizenship policy of Estonia as "discriminatory".[346] According to surveys, only 5% of the Russian community have considered returning to Russia in the near future. Estonian Russians have developed their own identity – more than half of the respondents recognized that Estonian Russians differ noticeably from the Russians in Russia. When compared with results from a 2000 survey, Russians had a more positive attitude toward the future.[347]

Estonia was the first former Soviet republic to legalize civil unions for same-sex couples, with a law approved in October 2014.

cohabitation agreements
until January 1, 2016.

Urbanization

For a more comprehensive list, see List of cities and towns in Estonia.

Tallinn is the capital and the largest city of Estonia, and lies on the northern coast of Estonia, along the Gulf of Finland. There are 33 cities and several town-parish towns in the country. In total, there are 47 linna, with "linn" in English meaning both "cities" and "towns". More than 70% of the population lives in towns.

 
 
Largest cities or towns in Estonia
Rank
Name
 County Pop. Rank
Name
 County Pop.
1 Tallinn Harju 438,341 11 Sillamäe Ida-Viru 12,230
2 Tartu Tartu 95,430 12 Valga Valga 11,792
3 Narva Ida-Viru 53,424 13 Võru Võru 11,533
4 Pärnu Pärnu 40,228 14 Paide Järva 10,285
5 Kohtla-Järve Ida-Viru 32,577 15 Jõhvi Ida-Viru 10,130
6 Viljandi Viljandi 16,875 16 Keila Harju 10,078
7 Maardu Harju 15,284 17 Saue Harju 5,831
8 Rakvere Lääne-Viru 14,984 18 Elva Tartu 5,616
9 Haapsalu Lääne 12,883 19 Tapa Lääne-Viru 5,168
10 Kuressaare Saare 12,698 20 Põlva Põlva 5,115

Religion

Main article: Religion in Estonia

Religion in Estonia (2011)[350][351]

  Unaffiliated (64.87%)
  
Lutheran (12.02%)
  Other Christian (1.20%)
  Pentecostal
and other neoprotestant denominations (0.93%)
  Other religions (1.10%)

Estonia has a diverse religious history, but in recent years it has become increasingly secular, with either a plurality or a majority of the population declaring themselves nonreligious in recent censuses, followed by those who identify as religiously "undeclared". The largest minority groups are the various Christian denominations, principally Lutheran and Orthodox Christians, with very small numbers of adherents in non-Christian faiths, namely Judaism, Islam and Buddhism. Other polls suggest the country is broadly split between Christians and the non-religious / religiously undeclared.

Before the

Lutheran,[352][353][354] followed by Calvinism and other Protestant branches. Many Estonians profess not to be particularly religious because religion through the 19th century was associated with German feudal rule.[355] There has historically been a small but noticeable minority of Russian Old-believers near the Lake Peipus area in Tartu county
.

Today, Estonia's constitution guarantees freedom of religion, separation of church and state, and individual rights to privacy of belief and religion.

Gallup poll found similar results, with only 16% of Estonians describing religion as "important" in their daily lives, making Estonia the most irreligious of the nations surveyed.[358]

Ruhnu stave church, built in 1644, is the oldest surviving wooden building in Estonia

New polls about religiosity in the

Atheist accounts for 15%, and undeclared accounts for 15%.[359]

The most recent

Nothing in Particular.[362]

Traditionally, the largest religious denomination in the country was Lutheranism, which was adhered to by 160,000 Estonians (or 13% of the population) according to the 2000 census, principally ethnic Estonians. According to the Lutheran World Federation, the historic Lutheran denomination has 180,000 registered members.[363] Other organisations, such as the World Council of Churches, report that there are as many as 265,700 Estonian Lutherans.[364] Additionally, there are between 8,000 and 9,000 members abroad. However, the 2011 census indicated that

Eastern Orthodoxy
had surpassed Lutheranism, accounting for 16.5% of the population (176,773 people).

Eastern Orthodoxy is practised chiefly by the Russian minority, as well as by the small

Ecumenical Patriarchate, claims another 28,000 members.[citation needed
]

Catholics are a small minority in Estonia. They are organised under the Latin Apostolic Administration of Estonia and two Greek Catholic parishes.

According to the census of 2000 (data in table to the right), there were about 1,000 adherents of the

atheists.[368]

Languages

Main article: Languages of Estonia
Distribution of Finnic languages in Northern Europe

The official language,

Indo-European origin. Unlike Estonian and Finnish, the languages of their nearest geographical neighbouring countries, Swedish, Latvian
, and Russian, are all Indo-European languages.

Although the Estonian and

High German (including standard German
). The percentage of Low Saxon and High German loanwords can be estimated at 22–25 percent, with Low Saxon making up about 15 percent.

Seto. The languages are spoken in South-Eastern Estonia, are genealogically distinct from northern Estonian: but are traditionally and officially considered as dialects and "regional forms of the Estonian language", not separate language(s).[369]

Russian is the most spoken minority language in the country. There are towns in Estonia with large concentrations of Russian speakers and there are towns where Estonian speakers are in the minority (especially in the northeast, e.g.

Estonian SSR from 1944 to 1990 and was taught as a compulsory second language during the Soviet era. In the period between 1990 and 1995, the Russian language was granted an official special status according to Estonian language laws.[370] In 1995 it lost its official status. In 1998, most first- and second-generation industrial immigrants from the former Soviet Union (mainly the Russian SFSR) did not speak Estonian.[371] However, by 2010, 64.1% of non-ethnic Estonians spoke Estonian.[372] The latter, mostly Russian-speaking ethnic minorities, reside predominantly in the capital city of Tallinn and the industrial urban areas in Ida-Viru county
.

From the 13th to the 20th century, there were Swedish-speaking communities in Estonia, particularly in the coastal areas and on the islands, which today have almost disappeared. From 1918 to 1940, when Estonia was independent, the small Swedish community was well treated. Municipalities with a Swedish majority, mainly found along the coast, used Swedish as the administrative language and Swedish-Estonian culture saw an upswing. However, most Swedish-speaking people fled to Sweden before the end of World War II, before the invasion of Estonia by the Soviet army in 1944. Only a handful of older speakers remain. Apart from many other areas the influence of Swedish is distinct in the

Lääne county where there are many villages with bilingual Estonian or Swedish names and street signs.[373][374]

The most common foreign languages learned by Estonian students are English, Russian, German, and French. Other popular languages include Finnish, Spanish, and Swedish.[375]

Lotfitka Romani is spoken by the Roma minority in Estonia.[376]

Education and science

gray stucco building three-story building with grey slate hip roof, central portico and pediment
The University of Tartu is one of the oldest universities in Northern Europe and the highest-ranked university in Estonia. According to the Top Universities website, the University of Tartu ranks 285th in the QS Global World Ranking.[377]
Main article: Education in Estonia
See also: List of universities in Estonia, Space science in Estonia, and Tiigrihüpe

The history of formal education in Estonia dates back to the 13th and 14th centuries when the first

Gustav II Adolf in 1632. In 1919, university courses were first taught in the Estonian language. From 2024 all schools will begin to transition to educating solely in the Estonian language.[379]

Today's education in Estonia is divided into general, vocational, and hobby. The education system is based on four levels: pre-school, basic, secondary, and higher education.[380] A wide network of schools and supporting educational institutions have been established. The Estonian education system consists of state, municipal, public, and private institutions. There are currently 589 schools in Estonia.[381]

Estonia started connecting all its schools to the internet very early. Tiigrihüpe (Estonian for Tiger Leap) was a project undertaken by the state to heavily invest in the development and expansion of computer and network infrastructure in Estonia, with a particular emphasis on education.[382]

In the 2018 Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) report, Estonia's students rank 1st in Europe. In the world, Estonia's students rank 5th in reading, 8th in mathematics and 4th in sciences.[383][384] Additionally, around 89% of Estonian adults aged 25–64 have earned the equivalent of a high-school degree, one of the highest rates in the industrialised world.[385]

House of the Estonian Students' Society, built in 1901–1902 in Tartu, and considered the first example of the Estonian style of urban architecture.[386]

Academic higher education in Estonia is divided into three levels: bachelor's, master's, and doctoral studies. In some specialties the bachelor's and master's levels are integrated into one unit.[387] Estonian public universities have significantly more autonomy than applied higher education institutions. In addition to organising the academic life of the university, universities can create new curricula, establish admission terms and conditions, approve the budget, approve the development plan, elect the rector, and make restricted decisions in matters concerning assets.[388] Estonia has a moderate number of public and private universities. The largest public universities are the University of Tartu, Tallinn University of Technology, Tallinn University, Estonian University of Life Sciences, Estonian Academy of Arts; the largest private university is Estonian Business School.

ESTCube-1 micro satellite orbiting globe and beaming light to Estonia
ESTCube-1 is the first Estonian satellite.

The

Research and Development, compared to an EU average of around 2.0%.[391] Estonia was ranked 16th in the Global Innovation Index in 2023.[392]

Some of the best-known scientists related to Estonia include astronomers

Jakob von Uexküll, chemists Wilhelm Ostwald and Carl Schmidt, economist Ragnar Nurkse, mathematician Edgar Krahn, medical researchers Ludvig Puusepp and Nikolay Pirogov, physicist Thomas Johann Seebeck, political scientist Rein Taagepera, psychologist Endel Tulving and Risto Näätänen, semiotician Juri Lotman
.

According to New Scientist, Estonia will be the first nation to provide personal genetic information service sponsored by the state. They aim to minimise and prevent future ailments for those whose genes make them extra prone to conditions like adult-onset diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. The government plans to provide lifestyle advice based on the DNA for 100,000 of its 1.3 million citizens.[393]

Culture

Main article: Culture of Estonia
See also: List of Estonians
The Estonian National Museum in Tartu.

The culture of Estonia incorporates indigenous heritage, as represented by the Estonian language and the sauna, with mainstream Nordic and European cultural aspects. Because of its history and geography, Estonia's culture has been influenced by the traditions of the adjacent area's various Finnic, Baltic, Slavic and Germanic peoples as well as the cultural developments in the former dominant powers Germany, Sweden and Russia, for this reason it aspires more to be considered a Nordic state.[394][395]

Today, Estonian society encourages liberty and liberalism, with a popular commitment to the ideals of the limited government, discouraging centralised power and corruption. The

summer cottage
).

The Estonian Academy of Arts (Estonian: Eesti Kunstiakadeemia, EKA) is providing higher education in art, design, architecture, media, art history and conservation while the University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy has an approach to popularise native culture through such curricula as native construction, native blacksmithing, native textile design, traditional handicraft and traditional music, but also jazz and church music. In 2010, there were 245 museums in Estonia whose combined collections contain more than 10 million objects.[396]

Music

Main article: Music of Estonia
See also: Estonian national awakening, Estonian Song Festival, and Estonia in the Eurovision Song Contest
The Estonian Song Festival is UNESCO's Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

The earliest mention of Estonian singing dates back to

Baltic Finns. Runic singing was widespread among Estonians until the 18th century, when rhythmic folk songs began to replace them.[398]

Traditional wind instruments derived from those used by shepherds were once widespread, and are now becoming more commonly played once more. Other instruments, including the fiddle, zither, concertina, and accordion are used to play polka or other dance music. The kannel is a native instrument that is again becoming more popular in Estonia. A Native Music Preserving Centre was opened in 2008 in Viljandi.[399]

Arvo Pärt bearded balding man facing left
Arvo Pärt was the world's most performed living composer from 2010 to 2018.

The tradition of

the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds (Lauluväljak) have hosted the event every five years in July. The last festival took place in July 2019. In addition, Youth Song Festivals are also held every four or five years, the latest taking place in 2017.[400]

Professional Estonian musicians and composers such as Aleksander Eduard Thomson, Rudolf Tobias, Miina Härma, Mart Saar, Artur Kapp, Juhan Aavik, Aleksander Kunileid, Artur Lemba and Heino Eller emerged in the late 19th century. Currently, the most well-known Estonian composers are Arvo Pärt, Eduard Tubin, and Veljo Tormis.[401] In 2014, Arvo Pärt was the world's most performed living composer for the fourth year in a row.[402]

In the 1950s, Estonian

Kerli Kõiv has become popular in Europe, also gaining in popularity in North America.[citation needed
]

Estonia won the

Rändajad" by Urban Symphony was the first song in Estonian to chart in the UK, Belgium and Switzerland.[citation needed
]

Estonian country guitar player

Grammy Award with the country singer Sturgill Simpson in 2017 for the Best Country Record of the year, A Sailor's Guide to Earth.[404]

Literature

Main article:
Literature of Estonia
See also:
Estophile
Jaan Kross is the most translated Estonian writer.

Liber Census Daniae (1241) contains Estonian place and family names.[406] Many folk tales are told to this day and some have been written down and translated to make them accessible to an international readership.[407] ABD ehk Luggemise-Ramat Lastele, an Estonian-language alphabet book by Otto Wilhelm Masing, was published in 1795.[408][409]

The cultural stratum of Estonian was originally characterised by a largely lyrical form of folk poetry based on syllabic quantity. Apart from a few, albeit remarkable, exceptions, this archaic form has not been widely employed in later times. One of the most outstanding achievements in the field is the national epic Kalevipoeg. At a professional level, the traditional folk song reached its new heyday during the last quarter of the 20th century, primarily thanks to the work of composer Veljo Tormis.

Oskar Luts was the most prominent prose writer of early Estonian literature and is still widely read today, particularly his lyrical school novel Kevade (Spring).[410] A. H. Tammsaare's social epic and psychological realist pentalogy, Truth and Justice, captured the evolution of Estonian society from a poor farmer community to an independent nation.[411][412] In modern times, Jaan Kross and Jaan Kaplinski are Estonia's best-known and most-translated writers.[413] Among the most popular writers of the late 20th and early 21st centuries are Tõnu Õnnepalu and Andrus Kivirähk, who uses elements of Estonian folklore and mythology, deforming them into the absurd and grotesque.[414]

Media

See also:
List of Estonian films and List of Estonian war films

The

Gustav V's visit to Tallinn.[415]
The first public TV broadcast in Estonia was in July 1955. Regular, live radio broadcasts began in December 1926. Deregulation in the field of electronic media has brought radical changes compared to the beginning of the 1990s. The first licences for private TV broadcasters were issued in 1992. The first private radio station went on the air in 1990.

The most internationally known Estonian films include Those Old Love Letters, The Heart of the Bear, Names in Marble, The Singing Revolution, Autumn Ball, 1944, The Fencer and November. Internationally known Estonian film actors include Lembit Ulfsak, Jaan Tätte, and Elmo Nüganen, who also known as a film director.

Estonian media sector has a large number of weekly newspapers and magazines, and Estonians have a choice of nine domestic TV channels and a host of radio stations. Estonia has been internationally recognised for its high rate of press freedom, having been ranked 3rd in the 2012

Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders.[416]

Estonia has two news agencies. The Baltic News Service (BNS), founded in 1990, is a private regional news agency covering Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The ETV24 is an agency owned by Eesti Rahvusringhääling which is a publicly funded radio and television organisation created on 30 June 2007 to take over the functions of the formerly separate Eesti Raadio and Eesti Televisioon under the terms of the Estonian National Broadcasting Act.[417][418]

Freedom of speech

According to the rating of the international organization Reporters Without Borders, in 2013, Estonia dropped from 3rd to 11th place in the world in terms of freedom of speech.[419] The American non-governmental organization Freedom House shares a similar opinion about the high level of freedom of speech in Estonia.[420]

In March 2011, the European Parliament adopted a resolution expressing serious concern about media pluralism and freedom in several EU countries, including Estonia.[421][422] In 2008, the Estonian Journalists' Union named Ansip the main opponent of freedom of speech in Estonia.[423]

Architecture

Main article: Architecture of Estonia
A traditional farmhouse built in the Estonian vernacular style

The architectural history of Estonia mainly reflects its contemporary development in northern Europe. Worth mentioning is especially the architectural ensemble that makes out the medieval old town of Tallinn, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

hill forts dating from pre-Christian times,[425][426] a large number of still intact medieval castles and churches,[427][428][429]
while the countryside is still shaped by the presence of a vast number of wooden manor houses from earlier centuries.

Holidays

Main article: Public holidays in Estonia

The Estonian

National Day is the Independence Day celebrated on 24 February, the day the Estonian Declaration of Independence was issued. As of 2013, there are 12 public holidays (which come with a day off) and 12 national holidays celebrated annually.[430][431]

Cuisine

Main article: Estonian cuisine
See also:
Verivorst

Historically, the cuisine of Estonia has been dependent on seasons and the simple food from the local farms and the sea. Today, it also includes many "global" foods. The most typical foods in modern Estonia are black bread, pork, potatoes, and dairy products.[432] Traditionally in summer and spring, Estonians like to eat everything fresh – berries, herbs, vegetables, and everything else that comes straight from the garden. Hunting and fishing have also been very common, although currently hunting and fishing are enjoyed mostly as hobbies. Today, it is also very popular to grill outside in summer.

A cardamom-spiced bread roll with almond paste vastlakukkel is a traditional Estonian sweet roll, especially popular from Christmas to Easter.[433]

Traditionally in winter, jams, preserves, and pickles are brought to the table. Gathering and preserving fruits, mushrooms, and vegetables for winter has always been popular, but today gathering and preserving is becoming less common because everything can be bought from stores. However, preparing food for winter is still very popular in the countryside.[clarification needed]

Sports

Main article: Sport in Estonia
large crowd of skiers participating in the marathon
Tartu Ski Marathon in 2006

Estonia first competed as an independent nation at the 1920 Summer Olympics. Estonian athletes took part in the 1952–1988 Olympic Games under the Soviet flag, as the country had been occupied and annexed by the Soviet Union in 1940. The 1980 Summer Olympics Sailing regatta was held in the capital city Tallinn. After regaining independence in 1991, Estonia has participated in all Olympics. Estonia has won most of its medals in athletics, weightlifting, wrestling, and cross-country skiing. Estonia has been one of the most successful nations at the Olympics in terms of medals won per capita.[434] Estonia's best results were being ranked 13th in the total medals' table at the 1936 Summer Olympics, and 12th at the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Estonia has many indoor and outdoor facilities dedicated to various sports branches.[435]

Kiiking, a relatively new sport, was invented in 1993 by Ado Kosk in Estonia. Kiiking involves a modified swing in which the rider of the swing tries to go around 360 degrees.[436]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ /ɛsˈtoʊniə/ ess-TOH-nee-ə, Estonian: Eesti [ˈeːsʲti] ⓘ

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59°N 26°E / 59°N 26°E / 59; 26

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