Page last modified 19 August 2023
130) Latvia
Community
Area 64,589 square kilometres (land area 62,249 square kilometres)
Population,
1,883,000 (1930)
1,950,502 (1935)*
1,936,500 (1950)
2,115,200 (1960) +9.2%
2,361,000 (1970) +11.6%
2,525,000 (1980) +6.9%
2,666,567 (1990) +5.6%
2,377,383 (2000) -10.8%
2,097,000 (2010) -11.8%
1,901,500 (2020) -9.3%
*During the course of World War Two
the population of Latvia fell from an estimated 1,995,000 (1939) to a low of
1,700,000 in 1946. This is accounted for by the Nazi massacre of 90,000 Latvian
Jews, the departure of the 50,000 German community in
1940, and the deportation of workers to Germany and to forced Soviet labour
camps at different times between 1940 and 1945. Soviet deportations from Latvia
continued into 1947.
Ethnicity, %
|
|
Belarus |
German |
Latvia |
Lithuania |
Poland |
Russia |
Ukraine |
|
1925 |
2.1 |
3.8 |
73.4 |
1.3 |
2.8 |
10.5 |
0.0 |
|
1935 |
1.4 |
3.2 |
75.5 |
1.2 |
2.5 |
10.6 |
|
|
1959 |
2.9 |
0.1 |
62.0 |
1.6 |
2.9 |
26.6 |
|
|
1970 |
4.0 |
0.2 |
56.8 |
1.7 |
2.7 |
29.8 |
|
|
1979 |
4.5 |
0.1 |
53.7 |
1.5 |
2.5 |
32.8 |
|
|
1997 |
4.0 |
0.1 |
55.3 |
1.3 |
2.2 |
32.5 |
2.9 |
|
2006 |
3.8 |
0.1 |
59.0 |
1.4 |
2.4 |
28.5 |
2.5 |
|
2009 |
3.6 |
0.1 |
59.3 |
1.3 |
2.4 |
27.8 |
2.5 |
|
2013 |
3.5 |
0.1 |
61.1 |
1.3 |
2.2 |
26.2 |
2.3 |
|
2017 |
3.3 |
0.1 |
62.0 |
1.2 |
2.1 |
25.4 |
2.2 |
Religion, %
|
|
Christian Lutheran |
Christian Orthodox |
Christian R C |
Jewish |
No Religion |
|
1935 |
68.0 |
|
26.0 |
5.4 |
|
|
1947 |
56.6 |
8.9 |
23.7 |
4.9 |
|
|
1990 |
22.0 |
|
7.0 |
|
|
|
2006 |
19.6 |
15.3 |
|
|
|
|
2011 |
34.3 |
14.4 |
15.1 |
|
22.0 |
Birth and death rates Below replacement rate = 2.1
|
|
Fertility Rate |
Birth Rate |
Infant Mortality |
Death Rate |
% Aged Under 15 |
% Aged Over 65 |
% Urban |
|
1935 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
36.4 |
|
1960 |
1.9 |
16.7 (+6.7) |
|
10.0 |
22.0 |
10.6 |
52.9 |
|
1970 |
1.9 |
14.6 (+3.3) |
21.0 |
11.3 |
21.6 |
12.0 |
60.7 |
|
1980 |
1.9 |
14.0 (+1.2) |
15.2 |
12.8 |
20.3 |
13.1 |
67.1 |
|
1990 |
2.0 |
14.0 (+0.9) |
13.1 |
13.1 |
21.5 |
11.9 |
69.3 |
|
2000 |
1.3 |
8.3 (-5.3) |
11.5 |
13.6 |
17.9 |
15.0 |
68.1 |
|
2010 |
1.3 |
9.4 (-4.9) |
6.6 |
14.3 |
14.1 |
18.2 |
67.7 |
|
2015 |
1.7 |
11.1 (-3.3) |
4.3 |
14.4 |
15.1 |
19.3 |
67.4 |
|
2017 |
1.7 |
10.7 (-4.1) |
3.6 |
14.8 |
|
|
|
|
2018 |
|
|
3.3 |
|
16.0 |
20.0 |
68.1 |
Life expectancy,
69.7 (1960); 66.3 (M), 73.5 (F)
69.8 (1970); 65.7 (M), 74.2 (F)
68.8 (1980); 63.8 (M), 74.1 (F)
69.3 (1990); 64.2 (M), 74.6 (F)
70.3 (2000); 64.9 (M), 76.0 (F)
73.5 (2010); 68.8 (M), 78.4 (F)
74.1 (2015); 69.1 (M), 79.4 (F)
75.3 (2020); 70.2 (M), 80.0 (F)
Population of principal cities, 1,000s
|
|
Daugavpils |
Jelgava |
Liepaja |
RIGA1 |
Ventspils |
|
1638 |
|
|
1 |
|
|
|
1800 |
|
|
4.5 |
|
|
|
1860 |
|
|
|
74 |
|
|
1867 |
|
|
|
103 |
|
|
1881 |
|
|
29.6 |
169 |
|
|
1900 |
|
|
|
285 |
|
|
1910 |
|
|
93 |
320 |
|
|
1935 |
45 |
34 |
57 |
345 |
16 |
|
1950 |
|
|
64 |
490 |
|
|
1959 |
65 |
|
71 |
|
20 |
|
1969 |
94 |
51 |
88 |
700 |
|
|
1980 |
122 |
69 |
100 |
830 |
|
|
1990 |
129 |
74 |
112 |
890 |
50 |
|
1996 |
118 |
71 |
98 |
820 |
46 |
|
2000 |
115 |
64 |
89 |
764 |
44 |
|
2006 |
109 |
66 |
86 |
727 |
44 |
|
2009 |
|
|
83 |
723 |
|
|
2013 |
|
63 |
|
|
|
|
2017 |
942 |
|
692 |
6412 |
382 |
1Riga joined the Hanseatic League in 1282 AD.� It became part of Poland in 1582, of Sweden in 1621, and of Russia in 1710.� Occupied by Germany in 1917,it became capital of independent Latvia, 1919-41.� Again occupied by Germany,1941-44, it fell under the control of the USSR until 1991, after which� Latvia again became independent with Riga as its capital.
2Considerable emigration from the 1990s onward, both of Russian citizens to Russia and since 2004 of workers westwards into higher-wage areas of the EU.
Wealth; Gross Domestic Product (nominal values)
|
|
GDP, US$ million |
Total GDP, % of USA |
GDP per capita, US$ |
GDP per capita % of USA |
|
1990 |
20,020 |
0.34 |
7,358 |
30.72 |
|
1995 |
4,470 |
0.06 |
2,330 |
7.75 |
|
2000 |
6,830 |
0.07 |
3,350 |
9.19 |
|
2005 |
15,800 |
0.12 |
7,550 |
17.04 |
|
2010 |
23,390 |
0.16 |
11,325 |
23.41 |
|
2015 |
27,000 |
0.15 |
13,666 |
24.31 |
|
2016 |
27,700 |
0.15 |
14,120 |
24.57 |
GDP by primary sector
|
|
Agriculture % GDP |
Agriculture % employed |
Industry % GDP |
Industry % employed |
Services % GDP |
Services % employed |
|
1993 |
10.6 |
18.0 |
27.9 |
23.0 |
48.3 |
50.0 |
|
2000 |
4.0 |
|
24.7 |
|
70.6 |
|
|
2010 |
3.7 |
12.0 |
21.5 |
25.8 |
74.8 |
61.8 |
|
2016 |
3.2 |
7.7 |
21.9 |
24.1 |
74.9 |
68.1 |
Communications
Language, % Official; Latvian (Lettish)� Latgalian also spoken.
|
|
Belarusian |
Latvian |
Russian |
|
1990 |
5.0 |
54.0 |
34.0 |
|
2000 |
|
58.2 |
37.5 |
|
2012 |
|
|
27.0 |
Literacy
98.0% (1990)
99.9% (2003 and subsequent years)
Physical communications � roads
|
|
Roads (km) |
Surfaced (km) |
Motor vehicles |
Cars |
Commercial Vehicles |
Railways (km) |
% electrified |
|
1938 |
|
|
|
|
|
3,200 |
|
|
1960 |
|
5,500 |
|
|
|
3,100 |
|
|
1968 |
24,100 |
10,100 |
|
|
|
2,710 |
|
|
1985 |
27,600 |
19,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1990 |
58,600 |
|
|
|
|
2,406 |
5.1 |
|
1995 |
60,046 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1996 |
|
|
|
379,875 |
|
|
|
|
2000 |
|
|
598,000 |
556,771 |
97,081 |
2,331 |
11.1 |
|
2005 |
66,319 |
|
|
742,447 |
113,114 |
|
|
|
2010 |
73,074 |
|
|
|
|
2,298 |
|
|
2013 |
|
|
826,500 |
|
|
|
|
Electronic communications, TV broadcasting began 1954 (colour from 1974)
|
|
Telephones (landlines) |
Mobile Telephones |
Radios |
Televisions |
PCs |
Internet Users |
|
1938 |
70,524 |
|
118,269 |
|
|
|
|
1975 |
250,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1980 |
410,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1990 |
620,000 |
|
1,400,000 |
800,000 |
|
|
|
1992 |
|
1,027 |
|
|
|
|
|
1994 |
|
|
|
|
8,000 |
|
|
1995 |
|
15,000 |
1,720,000 |
1,210,000 |
20,000 |
|
|
2000 |
734,700 |
401,000 |
1,650,000 |
1,900,000 |
340,000 |
|
|
2002 |
|
|
|
|
|
310,000 |
|
2004 |
|
|
|
2,000,000 |
501,000 |
|
|
2005 |
|
1,871,600 |
|
|
|
1,030,000 |
|
2009 |
644,000 |
2,243,000 |
|
|
|
1,504,000 |
|
2016 |
367,195 |
2,650,300 |
|
|
|
1,570,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1,663,750 |
Tourism: Visitors to Latvia,
539,000 (1995)
509,000 (2000)
1,116,000 (2005)
1,373,000 (2010)
2,024,000 (2015)