Latvia
|
| Basic Facts |
| Country name |
conventional long form: Republic of Latvia
conventional short form: Latvia local long form: Latvijas Republika local short form: Latvija former: Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Gevernment type | parliamentary democracy |
| Capital |
name: Riga
geographic coordinates: 56 57 N, 24 06 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
| Flag description | three horizontal bands of maroon (top), white (half-width), and maroon |
| Currency | Latvian lat (LVL) |
| Internet country code | .lv |
| Ports and terminals | Riga, Ventspils |
| Agriculture products | grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish |
| Industries | buses, vans, street and railroad cars; synthetic fibers, agricultural machinery, fertilizers, washing machines, radios, electronics, pharmaceuticals, processed foods, textiles; note - dependent on imports for energy and raw materials |
| Geography |
| Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania |
| Coordinates | 57 00 N, 25 00 E |
| Continent | Europe |
| Area |
total: 64,589 sq km
land: 63,589 sq km water: 1,000 sq km |
| Boundaries |
total: 1,368 km
border countries: Belarus 167 km, Estonia 343 km, Lithuania 576 km, Russia 282 km |
| Coastline | 531 km |
| Climate | maritime; wet, moderate winters |
| Terrain | low plain |
| Natural resources | peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land |
| Natural hazards | NA |
| People |
| Population | 2,274,735 (July 2006 est.) |
| Ethnic groups | Latvian 57.7%, Russian 29.6%, Belarusian 4.1%, Ukrainian 2.7%, Polish 2.5%, Lithuanian 1.4%, other 2% (2002) |
| Religions | Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox |
| Languages | Latvian (official) 58.2%, Russian 37.5%, Lithuanian and other 4.3% (2000 census) |
