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Background:
After centuries of Danish, Swedish, German, and Russian rule, Estonia attained independence in 1918. Forcibly incorporated into the USSR in 1940, it regained its freedom in 1991, with the collapse of the Soviet Union. Since the last Russian troops left in 1994, Estonia has been free to promote economic and political ties with Western Europe. It joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.
Location:
Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Finland, between Latvia and Russia
Area:
total: 45,226 sq km
land: 43,211 sq km
water: 2,015 sq km
note: includes 1,520 islands in the Baltic Sea
Land boundaries:
total: 633 km
border countries: Latvia 339 km, Russia 294 km
Coastline:
3,794 km
Population:
1,341,664 (July 2004 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 16% (male 110,452; female 104,363)
15-64 years: 67.5% (male 431,493; female 474,255)
65 years and over: 16.5% (male 72,819; female 148,282) (2004 est.)
Ethnic groups:
Estonian 65.3%, Russian 28.1%, Ukrainian 2.5%, Belarusian 1.5%, Finn 1%, other 1.6% (1998)
Religions
Evangelical Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Estonian Orthodox, Baptist, Methodist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Word of Life, Jewish
Languages:
Estonian (official), Russian, Ukrainian, Finnish, other
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Estonia
conventional short form: Estonia
local long form: Eesti Vabariik
local short form: Eesti
former: Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic
Government type:
parliamentary republic
Capital:
Tallinn
Independence:
20 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Independence Day, 24 February (1918); note - 24 February 1918 is the date Estonia declared its independence from Soviet Russia; 20 August 1991 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union
Flag description:
pre-1940 flag restored by Supreme Soviet in May 1990 - three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), black, and white
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