Germans in Latvia

From the beginning of the 13^th century to 1939, a considerable number of Germans lived in the territory of Latvia. At the beginning of the 14^th century, approximately 15,000 Germans lived in the Latvian part of Livonia - that is, about 5% of the local inhabitants. Discover more >

Jews in Latvia

In the latter half of the nineteenth century, manufacturing and a market economy started to develop in Latvia. Supply and demand increased. These conditions significantly enhanced the role of Jews. They became the chief intermediaries between the city and the farming community by supplying farmers with needed goods. Discover more >

Poles in Latvia

Poles have been directly involved with Latvian-inhabited lands since 1562, when the weakened Livonian states, under threat of an invasion by the troops of Russia's tsar Ivan the Terrible, sought protection from the Polish king. Thus began the so-called �Polish Era,� which lasted in Riga and Vidzeme until 1621, in Latgale until 1772, and in the Duchy of Kurzeme (under the vassalage of the Polish king), until 1795. Discover more >

Russians in Latvia

The history of Russians in Latvia is quite long - about a thousand years. Russian and Livonian chronicles state that the first Russian merchants came here as early as the 12^th - 13^th centuries. But up to the time of Latvia's complete incorporation into Russia in 1795, the Russians made up a very small part of the population here. Discover more >

Eastern Minorities

In Latvia, Muslim presence was for a long time only intermittent. Initially, Muslims arrived in the territory of Latvia against their will, for example in 1877 a large number of Turkish soldiers were taken prisoner during the Russo-Turkish War. Discover more >

� The Latvian Institute
This fact sheet can be freely printed from homepage of the Latvian Institute, distributed and cited, on condition that the Latvian Institute is acknowledged as the source. The Latvian Institute promotes knowledge about Latvia abroad. It produces publications, in several languages, on many aspects of Latvia.