Lithuania Facts, Lithuania Flag -- National Geographic

Fast Facts

Population:: 3,415,000
Capital:: Vilnius; 549,000
Area:: 65,300 square kilometers (25,212 square miles)
Language:: Lithuanian, Polish, Russian
Religion:: Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant
Currency:: Litas
Life Expectancy:: 72
GDP per Capita:: U.S. $8,400
Literacy Percent:: 100

Lithuania is in northern Europe, on the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. The landscape consists of gently rolling plains and extensive forests. Beginning at about the same time as movements in the other Baltic republics of Estonia and Latvia, Lithuania quickly surged ahead. In March 1990 democratically elected representatives voted for independence, lost in 1940 with annexation by the Soviet Union. Lithuania, embracing market reform since independence, joined both the European Union and NATO in 2004.

ECONOMY

Industry: Metal-cutting machine tools, electric motors, television sets, refrigerators and freezers
Agriculture: Grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax; beef; fish
Exports: Mineral products, textiles and clothing, machinery and equipment, chemicals

—Text From National Geographic Atlas of the World, Eighth Edition

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