Category: Estonia

Estonia is a country in Northern Europe and the capital of the country is Tallinn. Estonia is bordered by Baltic Sea, Latvia, Gulf of Finland, Lake Peipsi and Russia. According to evidences, human inhabitation in Estonia started about 11,000 – 13,000 years back. Pulli settlement is the oldest known human settlement of Estonia. The present day Estonia is initially inhabited is Aestii tribe. Reformation made great changes in Baltic region. Mainland of Estonia came under the rule of Sweden in 1629. Swedish Empire lost the country to Russia through the Treaty of Nystad. Autonomy of the country was declared in 1917 after the Russian revolution and the country got completed independence from Russia in 1918.

Soviet occupied Estonia again in 1940, but Germans occupied the country in 1941. The country was re-occupied by Soviet Union in the year 1944 and Estonia restored its independence in the year 1991. Estonia is a democratic republic with parliamentary system. Head of the state is the President and the head of the government is the prime minister. Executive power is vested on the prime minister and legislative power is executed by the state council which consists of 101 members. The supreme judiciary power is vested on Supreme Court.

Estonia has a market economy and the characteristic feature of the economy are balanced budget, flat-rate income tax, non-existence of public debt, competitive banking sector, free trade, e-services and mobile-based services. The total population of the country is 1.3 million and 88% of the people are ethnic Estonians. Other minor ethnic groups are Germans, Russians, Swedish, Jews, Latvians, Ingrians, Poles and Finns. Evangelical Lutheranism is the largest religion of Estonia which constitutes 14.8% of total population. About 75.7% of the Estonian population are said to be irreligious. Other religions of the country are Orthodox Christians, Roman Catholics, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Taaraism. Estonian is the official language of the country. Other languages are Russian, German, Swedish, Finnish and English.

Estonia has several beautiful tourist destinations that can satisfy the tourists. Tallinn which is the capital city of Estonia has numerous attractions. Tallinn is an ancient city that has the aura of 14th and 15th centuries as the town has preserved the chivalric walls, towers and paved street of ancient times. Some of the attractions of Tallinn are Lutheran Cathedra, Russian Orthodox Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, tall tower constructed in 1475, Estonian Art Museum, Kiek-in-de-kok, Olaeviste Church, Tall Hermann tower, Fat Margaret tower and Guild House and Great Guildhall.

Tartu is an important place as it is considered as the intellectual capital of Estonia. Some of the attractions of Tartu are Town Hall, Vyshgorod Cathedral, Town Hall, galleries and museums. Narva is a town where you can find several attractions like Baroque town hall of 17th century, Herman castle, textile mill and fortifications of Erik Dahlberg. Parnu is a town famous for long sandy beach and theatre. Soomaa National Park and Lahema national park are the two famous national parks in Estonia. Hiiumaa and Saaremma are the islands in Estonia famous for their windmills, churches and fishing villages.