This is a list of cities in the Baltic States by population. The population is measured within city limits on a national level, independently, by each statistical bureau: Central Statistic Bureau of Latvia, [1] Statistics Estonia [2] and State Data Agency of Lithuania. [3] Of the top 30 cities by population in the Baltics, 15 are Lithuanian, 10 are Latvian, and 5 are Estonian.
Rank | City | Population | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. | Riga | 609,489 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
2. | Vilnius [lower-alpha 1] | 602,430 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
3. | Tallinn | 457,572 [6] | 2024 | Estonia | |
4. | Kaunas | 304,210 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
5. | Klaipėda | 159,403 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
6. | Šiauliai | 110,463 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
7. | Tartu | 97,759 [6] | 2024 | Estonia | |
8. | Panevėžys | 86,606 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
9. | Daugavpils | 78,850 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
10. | Liepāja | 67,088 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
11. | Jelgava | 54,836 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
12. | Narva | 53,360 [6] | 2024 | Estonia | |
13. | Alytus | 51,353 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
14. | Jūrmala | 51,158 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
15. | Pärnu | 41,520 [6] | 2024 | Estonia | |
16. | Marijampolė | 36,704 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
17. | Kohtla-Järve | 33,434 [6] | 2024 | Estonia | |
18. | Mažeikiai | 33,377 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
19. | Ventspils | 32,948 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
20. | Utena | 27,763 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
21. | Jonava | 26,838 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
22. | Rēzekne | 26,378 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
23. | Kėdainiai | 23,362 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
24. | Ogre | 22,884 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
25. | Valmiera | 22,585 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
26. | Telšiai | 22,024 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
27. | Jēkabpils | 21,436 [4] | 2023 | Latvia | |
28. | Tauragė | 21,216 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
29. | Ukmergė | 20,928 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania | |
30. | Visaginas | 19,584 [5] | 2024 | Lithuania |
Demographic features of the population of the historical territory of Latvia include population density, ethnic background, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.
Tartu is the second largest city in Estonia after Tallinn. Tartu has a population of 97,435. It is 186 kilometres southeast of Tallinn and 245 kilometres northeast of Riga, Latvia. Tartu lies on the Emajõgi river, which connects the two largest lakes in Estonia, Lake Võrtsjärv and Lake Peipus. From the 13th century until the end of the 19th century, Tartu was known in most of the world by variants of its historical name Dorpat.
Pärnu is the fourth-largest city in Estonia and third in terms of the ethnic Estonian population. Situated in southwest Estonia, Pärnu is located 128 kilometres (80 mi) south of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and 176 kilometres (109 mi) west of Estonia's second-largest city, Tartu. The city sits off the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet of the Gulf of Riga, which is a part of the Baltic Sea. In the city, the Pärnu River drains into the Gulf of Riga.
Latvians are a Baltic ethnic group and nation native to Latvia and the immediate geographical region, the Baltics. They are occasionally also referred to as Letts, especially in older bibliography. Latvians share a common Latvian language, culture, history and ancestry.
Vilnius County is the largest of the 10 counties of Lithuania, located in the east of the country around the city Vilnius and is also known as Capital Region or Sostinės regionas by the Lithuanian statistics department and Eurostat. On 1 July 2010, the county administration was abolished, and since that date, Vilnius County remains as the territorial and statistical unit.
Valga is a town in southern Estonia and the capital of Valga County and Valga Parish. Until their separation in 1920, Valga and the town of Valka in northern Latvia were one town. They are now twin-towns. The area of Valga is 16.5 square kilometres and that of Valka is 14.2 km2 (5.5 sq mi). Their populations are respectively 12,261 and 6,164. On 21 December 2007 all border-crossing points were removed and roads and fences opened between the two countries with both countries joining the Schengen Agreement.
Ogre is the state city in the Ogre Municipality in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, 36 kilometres east of the capital Riga, and is situated at the confluence of the Daugava and Ogre rivers. It has been a city since 1928. The population in 2020 was 23,273.
Šiauliai County is one of ten counties in Lithuania. It is in the north of the country, and its capital is Šiauliai. On 1 July 2010, the county administration was abolished, and since that date, Šiauliai County remains as the territorial and statistical unit. It borders Latvia.
Lithuania is divided into three layers of administrative divisions. The first-level division consists of 10 counties. These are sub-divided into 60 municipalities, which in turn are further sub-divided into over 500 smaller groups, known as elderships.
Visaginas is a city in northeastern Lithuania. It is the centre of Lithuania's youngest municipality, located on the north-eastern edge of the country. It was built as a town for workers engaged in the construction of the now decommissioned Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant. Visaginas is the only city in Lithuania where the majority of population speaks Russian as their first language. Originally the aerial view of Visaginas was designed to resemble a butterfly. However, after work on the nuclear power plant was cancelled, so was further construction of the town. Currently Visaginas consists of three residential regions that locals refer to as the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Microdistricts. Visaginas has 14 streets. The city grew up in a pine forest by Lake Visaginas. Tourism is currently an area of great potential, as is the possibility of a new nuclear power plant.
Russians in the Baltic states is a broadly defined subgroup of the Russian diaspora who self-identify as ethnic Russians, or are citizens of Russia, and live in one of the three independent countries — Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania — primarily the consequences of the USSR's forced population transfers during occupation. As of 2021, there were approximately 900,000 ethnic Russians in the three countries, having declined from ca 1.7 million in 1989, the year of the last census during the 1944–1991 Soviet occupation of the three Baltic countries.
Zarasai District Municipality is one of 60 municipalities in Lithuania. It borders with Latvia and Belarus.
The economy of Lithuania is the largest economy among the three Baltic states. Lithuania is a member of the European Union and belongs to the group of very high human development countries and is a member of the WTO and OECD.
Rēzekne Municipality is a municipality in Latgale, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2009 by merging Audriņi parish, Bērzgale parish, Čornaja parish, Dricāni parish, Feimaņi parish, Gaigalava parish, Griškāni parish, Ilzeskalns parish, Kantinieki parish, Kaunata parish, Lendži parish, Lūznava parish, Mākoņkalns parish, Malta parish, Nagļi parish, Nautrēni parish, Ozolaine parish, Ozolmuiža parish, Puša parish, Rikava parish, Sakstagals parish, Silmala parish, Stoļerova parish, Strūžāni parish and Vērēmi parish, town Viļāni. The population in 2020 was 24,127.
Varakļāni Municipality is a municipality in Latgale, Latvia. The municipality was formed in 2009 by merging Varakļāni town, Murmastiene Parish and Varakļāni Parish of the former Madona District. The administrative centre is Varakļāni.
After the dissolution of the Soviet Union (USSR) in December 1991, about 25 million ethnic Russians in post-Soviet states found themselves living outside of Russia.
Riga Region, officially Riga Planning Region and shortened as RPR is one of five planning regions of Latvia, situated in the central part of Latvia, in and around the metropolis of Riga and along the shores of the Gulf of Riga. The state institution was founded on 12 October 2006, based on the creation of the region territory as prescribed by Regulations No. 133 of the Cabinet of Ministers as of 25 March 2003, the "Regulations on Territories of Planning Regions".
Armenians in the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania settled there mostly during the Soviet occupation of the Baltic States, although some of the first settlers arrived during the Russian Empire's rule in the Baltics.
Zemgale Planning Region is a planning region of Latvia located within the south-center of the country. Established in 2002, the planning region contains 22 municipalities: 20 local governments and two major cities, the largest being Jelgava. As of 2020, the region's population was 228,409.
South Kurzeme Municipality is one of the 35 municipalities established in Latvia in 2021. It surrounds Liepāja, Latvia's third largest city. Its first elected municipal council took office on 1 July 2021. Its seat is at Grobiņa.