Lithuania
Lithuania is a republic in northeastern Europe. It is bounded on the north by Latvia; on the east and south by Belarus; on the southeast by Poland and Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia; and on the west by the Baltic Sea. It was formerly the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).
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Land and Resources
Lithuania consists of low-lying plains broken by low hills in the south and west. Almost the entire country is less than 200m (about 655 fit) in elevation. Lithuania contains 3,000 lakes and 22 rivers. The most extensive river is the Nemuns, a major river that supplies the country with hydroelectricity power. It has a lot of marshes and swamps, especially in the north and west. But half of the original wetlands have been drained. Lithuania's longest north-south span is 276 km, and east-west is 373 km. It has a land area of 65,200 sq. km and is slightly larger than Belgium or Switzerland.
The climate is dominated by marine influences, conditions vary more in the eastern portion of the republic. In the west the summers are cooler, and winters are milder. Average annual rainfall is about 20 in. per year in the center of the country and about 35 in. per year in the west. Forests occupy about one-fourth of the total land area. This supports a lot of wildlife, including deer, wolves, foxes, and wild boar. Minor oil and gas deposits are found near the coast and offshore areas contain larger deposits.
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Population
The population of Lithuania is about 3,771,000, giving it a density of about 150 people per-square mile. They speak a Baltic language related to Latvian. Lithuanians consists of eighty percent of the countries population. According to 1994 estimates, Russians accounted for 8.6 percent of the population, and Poles of about 7.7 percent. Other minorities are Ukrainians, Jews, and Belausians. Lithuania is highly urbanized, with about 72 percent of the population living in urban areas. Although Vilnius, the capital, is the largest city (1992estimate), the country contains other medium to large cities, such as Kaunas and Klaipeda.
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Economy
Lithuania has made significant progress in establishing an independent, market-based economy, but it still suffers from the disruption of trade ties with former USSR. Although agriculture dominated the Lithuanian economy before Soviet annexation in 1940, industry has become the leading sector of the economy. Industry accounts for about 40 percent of GDP and nearly 30 percent of total employment. Food processing, shipbuilding, and the manufacture of electrical machinery are the most important industries. Other manufactures include cement, textiles televisions, and paper.
Agriculture accounts for about 18 percent of employment. Livestock breeding and dairy farming are the main agriculture activities. The principal crops are grain, potatoes, sugar beets and flax. Mineral resources are limited to include gypsum, peat, and clay.
After they got independence, Lithuania started making plans to introduce its own currency to replace the Russians rubles. Officials decided to first introduce coupons to supplement rubles, but they were in short supply. The talonas (Lithuania for coupon) was issued freely, because it was thought a wide circulation of the coupons would help consumers with less negative economic consequences. But energy price shocks and a policy of indexing wages and pensions, inflation was huge and the value of the talonas dropped steadily. The Litas was introduced as the sole legal tender in 1993, then the Litas supply fluctuated. In March 1994 the parliament passed legislation that fixed the Litas to the United States dollar at a rate of 4 Litas to 1 U. S. dollar.
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History
Some scholars believe that Lithuanians inhabited the Baltic area in the year 2500 BC. Others believe that they migrated to that area in the beginning of the 1st century AD. The first mention of them by name was in AD 1009 in a medieval Prussian manuscript, the Quedlinburg Chronicle.
Lithuania was constantly subject to invasion and attempted conquest from the medieval lords in Prussia and Russia. So Lithuania formed a loose federation of tribes in the Middle Ages. In the 13th century AD, a German military religious order called Teutonic Knights, tried to exert their power. Lithuania resisted and defeated the order in 1260. A century later a dynasty of grand dukes called the Jagiellons established a Lithuania empire reaching from the Baltic to the Black seas. Prince Gedimin occupied Belarus and western Ukraine. His son, Grand Duke Olgierd, added the territory between Ukraine and the Black Sea. Jagiello, the son of Olgierd, came after his father in 1377. In 1386 he married Jadwiga, queen of Poland, and was crowned Wladyslaw II Jagiello, king of Poland.
Jagiello and his cousin Witold fought in 1390 but later reconciled to defeat the Teutonic Knights in 1410. In 1477, Casimir IV, the son of Jagiello, permanently brought together Lithuania and Poland. From 1501 to 1569 the two countries were ruled together. In 1795 Lithuania became part of Russia, except for a small section that went to Prussia.
During World War I, the German army occupied Lithuania. At the end of the war nationalists established the country's independence. In August 1922 the Lithuania assembly approved a constitution that proclaimed the country a democratic republic.
When World War II began there was friction in the city of Memel. A pro-Soviet government was installed. They were incorporated with the USSR in 1940. The United States and other democratic powers refused to recognize this government. Large scale anti-Soviet uprisings followed the German invasion of the USSR on June 22, 1941. Unable to deal with both the revolt and the German invasion, the Soviet forces withdrew. The Germans killed more than 200,000 people and pillaged the country.
In the summer of 1944, the Soviets reoccupied Lithuania. The Soviet government deported 350,000 to labor camps in Siberia for holding anti communist beliefs or resisting Soviet rule. The Soviet rule closed most of the churches, deported the priests, and jailed people for possessing religious images. The nation came to accept Soviet rule but the United States never recognized its incorporation into the USSR.
In the late 1980's, rapid political changes in Eastern Europe and the USSR made Lithuania start to think about change. Lithuania claimed independence in March 1990. The USSR used economic, political, and military pressure to keep Lithuania in the union. After the Soviet Communism collapsed in August 1991, the central government granted independence to Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia. All three Baltic republics were admitted to the United Nations later that month.
In 1993, Lithuania became the first of the three Baltic states to be free of a Russian military presence. The last unit of Russian troops left the country on August 31,1993. In Feb. 1994, they joined the Partnership for Peace program, which was set up by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). It was a first step for countries wishing to join the alliance. In June 1995, Lithuania became an associate member of the European Union.
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Government
Lithuania is a presidential republic headed by the Seimas (Parliament), the Executive and the Court. It is composed of 141 members that are elected to four year terms. Seventy-one seats in the Seimas are determined by direct poplar vote. The remaining seats are allocated on a proportional basis to each party that receives 4 percent or more of the total vote. Parties representing ethnic minorities, like the Union of Poles, are exempt from the minimum vote requirement. The president appoints the prime minister, subject to approval by the Seimas. Lithuania is not a member of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).
Local government is executed through a system of territorial and administrative divisions. The country is divided into 44 districts that are further divided into 423 apylinkes (rural government units). There are 11 cities of national jurisdiction. The largest is the capital, Vilnius (pop. 0.6 million). The second largest according to population is Kaunas. The state language is Lithuania.
The official emblem of the Republic of Lithuania is called the Vytis. In it is a picture of a white knight mounted on a steed set against a red background. The charging knight first appeared as the state emblem in 1366 on Algiras's, Grand Duke of Lithuania's seal. The early form of the Vytis depicted the most powerful Lithuania deity of that time the god of thunder, Perkunas, who was visualized in other cultures. During the Soviet rule, displaying the Vytis was considered a protest against the new government and was brutally punishable.
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Baltic Religion
For the Baltic tribes, their ancient religion was not only the foundation of there world, but also the source of strength needed to battle against Christian Crusaders and other invaders. Lithuania was the last pagan state in Europe. It began its religious conversion in 1413.
Ancient Baltic religion is still in use today in customs and folklore. At the top of the Baltic pantheon stood Dievas (God) who lived in the sky. Under him was the most active and powerful Perkunas, god of thunder. Perkunas was always in battle with his enemy Velnias, he ruled the under world. Teliavelis, the black smith god who crafted the sun and set it in the sky, helped Perkunas. The sun, moon, morning star and the stars made up the heavenly family that took part in a mythological wedding. Even today you can see on the roofs of houses a zirgeliai (pairs of wooden carvings in the form of steeds heads) which are relicts of the cult of the twins.
There were also a great number of lesser gods who were for labor cycles and who directed aspects of nature and everyday life. Many spirits are still believed in today. Baltic sorcerers conducted religious ceremonies in sacred oak groves on hills called alkai were holy fires were built within alters. One of the centers of religious activity was located Vilnius in the Sventaragirs vale were the cathedral stands today. The majority of Lithuanian's are Roman Catholic's, but there is also a large numbers of Russian Orthodox, Lutherans, and Baptists. The Church is separate from the State and followers of all religious denominations are treated equal before the law. All schools offer religious studies as an optional subject.
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Culture
Songs:
Lithuania's culture plays an important part of their everyday life, work and play. The variety of Lithuanian verbal folk art is quite large. Even though it is a small country, it is traditionally divided into four main ethnic regions. These divisions are based on dialects, traditions and other cultural elements. These ethnic regions are Aukstaitija (east), Zemaitija (west), Dzukija (southeast) and Suvalkija (southwest).
The largest archive of Lithuanian folklore contains over 400,000 collected songs. A really accomplished singer will know as many as 400 songs. Often, people sang more than they spoke. Songs were handed down from generation to generation and exchanged among villages. Lithuanians are not known for outwardly expressing themselves, but their folk songs reflect their moods. The songs depict aspects of family and community relationships and contacts with nature.
From ancient times, the guardians and creators of Lithuanian songs have been women. The songs are full of metaphor and mythological symbolism. The characters in the songs are few and simple, mother, girl, ploughman, reapers and so on. Most songs are connected to specific moments or actions.
Musical instruments:
Lithuanian folk instruments can be classified into four groups: string, wind, percussion and idiophonic. Kankles are the oldest and most archaic of Lithuanians instruments. They were thought to be associated with death. Lithuaninas believed that in order to make sonorous kankles, the wood that they were crafted from had to be cut from a mature forest on the day that a loved one died. As the household mourned the wood acquired depth and soul. It is thought that the musician who plays the kanles is protected from death, disease and accidents.
The ancient string instrument is the pusline. It is made from a tree branch bowed by a catgut or waxed string. A dried, inflated pig's bladder containing a handful of dried peas is fitted between the branch and string. A bow is drawn across the string to produce a bass sound. There were also svilpas (simple flutes) and sekminiu ragelis (reed-pipes).
The most popular percussion instrument was the drum. It was used to convey news, invite people to gatherings, at burials, and to accompany dances.
Idiophonic instruments also conveyed messages. Tabalas consisted of one to three boards hung from trees or bath house walls. Signals beat on these devices announced herding times, emergencies and village gatherings. The dzingulis was used at weddings to summon the guests. This instrument was a one or two-forked branch decorated with rue springs and ribbons and were hung with bells. It was struck on the floor to produce a sound.
eastern borders.
The bagpipe appeared in Lithuania in the 16th century and today survives near the
Dances:
Lithuanians have always loved to dance. Young people gathered to dance in the fields in the summer. Or in farmers houses in the winter. Dance was also a part of the ancient Lithuanian calendar celebrations and rituals.
Specific steps and movements of paired dancers differ little from neighboring countries. But the character and spirit of Lithuanian dancers is very unique. The dancers have great emotional energy that is never expressed extemally. Since traditional lyrical folklore originated among farmers and peasants, it still has their outlook. There are no war or hunting dances and no high jumps or kicks. The traditional dances are dominated by subdued ring dances and games that centers around growing crops and livestock or relations between young people and matchmaking. The choreography of the dances are classified into 4 groups. They are sutartines (ancient polyphonic songs with dances), rateliai (ring dances), zaidimai (games) and sokiai (ordinary dances).
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Calendar Holidays
Ancient Lithuanian celebrations, work customs and ceremonies corresponds with most significant days of the year. Like solstices, equinoxes and others. Many of these traditions date back to pagan times. After they had converted to Christianity the church began to determine when holidays would occur, but a lot of them coincided with the older pagan ones because of the agricultural cycle.
Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve is an occasion full of mysticism and secrecy. It is richer and more meaningful in customs and rituals than Christmas Day. It is thought that spirits return to their homes on Christmas Eve, so no one went very far from home because they were afraid of meeting spirits. At sunset a ceremonial dinner is served and before sitting down to dinner everyone had to make sure they were clean. That means no angry thoughts, at peace with their neighbors and without debts. The table was covered with hay and set with 12 meatless dishes. Places are set at the table for recently deceased family members. After they eat, people pulled hat stalks from under the tablecloth to forecast their fortunes. A long stem means a long life and a short one means that the person might not live till the next Christmas. After dinner, the table is not cleared off so that the souls of dead family members could gather around it during the night. Christmas Eve was also a time for fortune telling, especially about weddings. The unmarried girls
would take as many fence pickets as they could hold. If they counted an even numbers that meant that they would marry in the next year. If they had an odd number that meant that they would remain single the next year.
Christmas Day
Christmas Day was the opposite of Christmas Eve. It is a very public celebration involving entire communities. The high point of the festival happened when costumed revelers visit farmsteads wishing everyone good harvest. The visitors are showered with gifts. The main figure is Kaledu sends (Father Christmas), he is dressed in an inside-out fur coat and flaxen beard with a bag and a stick. He scatters grain from his bag onto each household table and gives nuts to the children.
Stork Cal (March 25th)
The stork is central to many Lithuanian agarian beliefs. It is thought to bring luck to homes and horses. Stork day's rituals revolve around grain. On this day farmers stirred their planting seeds to increase their germinating power. It was said that snakes came out of their burrows on this day, so on one cut wood or even picked up a branch on this day.
St. Johns Day (June 24th)
In ancient times, this day was on occasion to pay homage to water, fire and plants. It was also time to cleanse your soul and celebrate the summer solstice. Over time this holiday lost most of it sacral meaning, but the festive elements remain. Traditionally, people gathered in beautiful spots like hilltops or by rivers, to feast and honor men named John. A large bonfire and wheel hub on a post were set on fire. It is thought that the wider the area that is illuminated by the fire, the better the harvest would be. Girls wore wreaths and later set them afloat in the water. Unmarried men and women sang, danced and jumped over the remains of the fire until daybreak. St. John's Day dew was thought to have magical healing powers. The dew was also used by village sorceresses for mean purpose, like preventing cows from giving milk.
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Family Celebrations
Weddings:
Weddings are community affairs joining not only two people by two families. So it is the duty of the two families and other villages to make it as festive and grand as possible. Lithuanian wedding rituals follow a rigid fixed form. They have three parts, matchmaking, the wedding and atgraztai (coming back). The first stage is the official offer of marriage to the brides parents. This includes discussion of terms, examination of the grooms farm and finally the ziedynos ( the pair's decision to marry).
The wedding ceremony itself could take place then. The first part of the wedding takes place in the bride's home, marking the end of the bride's life with her family and separation from her parents home. The bride's farewell is dramatic and sorrowful. Farewell songs are sung by family and guests. Then the bride arrive at her husbands house. The kraitvezaia (dowry drivers) arrive with the dowry in chests filled with the many years of the brides handiwork. Rolls of fabric, clothing, bedclothes, sashes and more. The first act upon entering her betrothed home is to place a colorful sash or towel on the hearth or by the stove. The husbands family received woven sashes or towels as gifts also.
The young pair are showered with grain and water and clothed in furs to insure that they would be rich and successful.
The third part is the atgraztai ( coming back). It is quiet and simple. A week after the wedding the bride drove back to her parent's house for a brief visit. For the first time they take her into their home as a guest instead of as a member of the family.
Childbirth:
In Lithuania it is thought that evil spirits and improper behavior can harm an expectant mother. So women had to observe some restrictions while they were pregnant. It is also the responsibility of the entire village to protect them. Childbirth is shrouded in secrecy. After the birth only women visit the mother and baby. Each guest brings a symbolic gift. In many areas it was customary to bring an omelet or a buckwheat loaf as a present. Two or more weeks after the birth the christening is held. There are several pairs of godmothers and godfathers and they play an important role. They were chosen with the thought that the child would inherit their temperaments and habits.
Deaths and Funerals
Lithuanian's foretold impending death using things like odd behavior of animals, dreams and other things. Even after death noise was kept to a minimum because it was thought that the spirit separated from the person at death, but did not leave until the corpse had left the house. The wake was always held in the family's living room. The deceased was dressed in his best clothes. The body was not buried for three days or more during which friends and family stayed by its side day and night. In the evenings neighbors gathered to pray and sing hymns. The mourners recalled all of the deceased's good deeds and invited them to continue visiting them in order to protect and defend them. They always honor the memory of their dead. Graveyards are considered sacred places whose peacefulness is not to be disturbed. They believe that spirits of the dead return to visit during holidays. That is why they clean their houses and set them a place at the table. Leftover food from holidays is divided among beggars because it is thought that they had mysterious ties with the dead.
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Clothing
Lithuanian villages still wear traditional folk costumes. They are unique to each region and express that areas individual character. Men's clothing worn on Sunday's and festive occasions are soberly colored. They wear greatcoats and short jackets of dark or undyed wool. In most regions, trousers and vests are of the same color as the rest of their suits. Bright woven sashes and felt hats with peacock or rooster feathers are common all over.
Women's clothing are more colorful. A typical woman's costume consisted of a white linen shirt, a skirt, a decorated bodice, and an apron. They also wore large shawls draped over their shoulders. They also wore elaborate headdresses jewelry and accessories.
Patterns and colors differ from region to region, but all regions prided themselves on their sashes. Since ancient times, sash making was one of the most practiced folk weaving craft in Lithuania. They were used to tie garments, swaddle infants, perform rituals and given as gifts and sacrifices. The patterns woven onto these sashes were meaningful and displayed a unique symbolic language passed down from ancient times.
Traditional sashes were woven of brightly dyed linen, cotton and wool threads. They are classified into three groups according to crafting technique. There is plaited, twined or woven. Some of these technique are ancient and only survived into this century in isolated regions. Plaited sashes were worked from wool threads by hand without any tools. Twined sashes are woven on wooden square cards. Woven or pick-up patterned sashes were most popular in 19th century. They were common though out the region. These decorations were geometric in nature, usually red, green, violet, blue or rose. Ancient symbols, most often the sun, heavenly bodies, earth and vegetation were depicted in sash patterns. By examining the patterns and colors scheme you could determine what region the sash came from.
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Dining Etiquette
Lithuanian dining customs were unique, rigid and strictly observed.table. Each family member had an assigned place at the table. The head of the household sat at the end along the wall, in the place of honor. The other men sat along the wall and the women sat opposite them. Families always invited quests or beggars to their table if they were visiting that day. Important guests were seated in the father's place or along side it.
The meal began with the slicing of the bread. This was a sacred duty of the head of the household. First he broke off one corner of the loaf and gave it to his eldest married son, wishing him good fortune and someday having sons. Then he cut slices for the other family members. The remaining loaf was placed with its cut face towards the place of honor or the sun. Putting the bread on the table upside-down was considered insulting and that the bread could take revenge for such treatment by causing death of one of the household. Slices were always broken off using both hands because producing the bread required two hands. To leave a knife lying with the sharp edge up was to invite misfortune. Children were taught that if they dropped a bread crumb on the floor, they were to pick it up, cross themselves, kiss and eat it. Also, a loaf of bread was always placed in the foundation of a building as it was being built.
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Applied Art
Applied art reveals ways of living that are passed down from generation to generation. But most of this applied art exists only in museums today. Women's working tools were artfully crafted. Weaving tools were graced with geometric patterns and interwoven with plant, tree, bird and other things from nature.
Most women knew how to spin and weave from girlhood. They made white linen towels, tablecloths, bedspreads, and pillow covers. The edges would have hand-worked bands on them in red and blue.
Archaeological finds revealed unique artifacts crafted by ancient Baltic people. Some of them were Neolithic amber amulets, fastening brooches, brass and silver horns.
Ceramics, basket weaving, and Easter eggs are some of the other crafts that used to be made by hand, but are now mass produced.
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Festivals
Jonines is a festival celebrated on June 24th. It marks the summer solstice. It was the first recorded to have taken place in the 14th century. It was believed that on this day, the shortest night of the year, plants and water took on special powers for healing illness or to increase the fertility of farmland. Bonfires are lit, wreaths are floated on water and every year people search the forest for the legendary blooming flower of the fern. The festival ends with the rising of the sun the following day.
Every 4 years there is an International Folk Dance festival that brings dance groups from all over the world. A new place is picked each time. In 1996 it was held in Chicago at the Rosemont Horizon. There were groups from Canada, Venezuela, Michigan, Brazil, Lithuania, and all over. These groups are all dressed in their unique costumes and all dance together to the same dances. The dances create patterns that can be seen if you are high enough to look down on them.
I attended the Dance festival with my Mom and my sister when it was here. It was really neat to see all the different kinds of costumes that each group wore. But the neatest thing was to see how that many people out on the dance floor could make a pattern and not mess up.