Latvia Trivia Quiz

Answer: Poland

Latvia lies between Estonia (to the north) and Lithuania (to the south). It also borders on Russia and Belarus. The border with Russia has not been ratified following independence from former Soviet Union.

Answer: Riga

The Gulf of Riga is an inlet of the Baltic Sea. The Gulf of Bothnia separates Sweden from Finland - and the other two gulfs don't exist.

Answer: Russians

The Russian minority makes up about 30 per cent of the population. The Belorussian minority is about four per cent and the Ukrainian minority just under three per cent. (Until 1944-45 there was also a small but influential German minority, too).

Answer: Riga

Riga, with a population of about 705,000 (2011 figure), is the country's main port. The city center shows signs of German architectural influence and it is also well known for its splendid art nouveau heritage.

Answer: 24,900 sq miles

It's smaller than Lithuania and slightly larger than Estonia.

Answer: The Daugava (Dvina)

The Latvian name is the Daugava. This river is also known as the Dvina River, which is sometimes called the West Dvina. It rises to the west of Moscow and flows through Russia, Belarus and Latvia before reaching the Gulf of Riga. It should *not* be confused with the North Dvina, which is wholly in Russia and flows into the White Sea at Archangel.

Answer: 2.0 million

The population has been falling since the middle of the decade of the 21st century, largely as a result of net emigration. By European standards, the country is sparsely populated.

Answer: Klaipeda

Klaipeda (German: Memel) is a Lithuanian port. Ventspils and Liepaja are on the coast, while Daugavpils is inland, in the southeast of the country on the Dvina River. All these cities are ports.

Answer: Courland

In the Middle Ages the area was colonized by the Livonian Order, a sub-division of the Teutonic Knights. In the second half of the sixteenth century it was ruled by Russia, then from 1629-1721 by Sweden. In 1721 it reverted to Russia, which governed the country till 1918.

Independent from 1918-40, it was annexed by the Soviet Union in 1940, together with the other Baltic Republics. From 1941-44 it was under German rule and was re-incorporated into the Soviet Union at the end of WWII. The country has had a turbulent history.

Answer: 1991

The last Russian troops didn't leave the country till 1994 and for many years after that Latvia was still economically dependent on Russia - for example, for its electricity supply. Overcoming such dependence was a very high priority of the newly independent Latvia. The country was admitted to the European Union in 2004.