Lativa

Lativa

AREA	64,589 sq km (24,938 sq miles).
POPULATION	2,439,800 (1999).
POPULATION DENSITY	37.8 per sq km.
CAPITAL	Riga
CAPITAL POPULATION	815,851 (1997).
GEOGRAPHY	Latvia is situated on the Baltic coast and borders Estonia in the north, Lithuania in the south, the Russian Federation in the east and Belarus in the southeast. The coastal plain is mostly flat, but inland to the east the land is hilly with forests and lakes. There are about 12,000 rivers in Latvia, the biggest being the River Daugava. The ports of Riga, Liepaja and Ventspils never freeze over during the winter.
GOVERNMENT	Republic. Gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. Head of State: President Guntis Ulmanis since 1993. Head of Government: Prime Minister Guntars Krasts since 1997.
LANGUAGE	Latvian is the official language. It is an Indo-European, non-Slavic and non-Germanic language and is similar only to Lithuanian. Russian and, increasingly, English are widely spoken. German may also be understood.
RELIGION	Predominantly Protestant (Lutheran) with Roman Catholic communities in the east of the country. There is also a Russian Orthodox minority.
STANDARD TIME	GMT + 2 (GMT + 3 from last Sunday in March to Saturday before last Sunday in October).
ELECTRICITY	220 volts AC, 50Hz. European-style 2-pin plugs are in use.

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