Ethnic group native to Lithuania (north-central Europe)
Ethnic group
Lithuanians
Lietuviai
|
---|
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/Map_of_the_Lithuanian_Diaspora_in_the_World.svg/220px-Map_of_the_Lithuanian_Diaspora_in_the_World.svg.png) |
|
c.
4.2 million
[1]
|
|
Lithuania
2,857,279 (2021)
[2]
|
United States
| 652,790 (2014)
[a]
[3]
|
---|
United Kingdom
| 212,000 (2018)
[4]
|
---|
Brazil
| 200,000 (2002)
[5]
[6]
|
---|
Russia
| 85,617 (2014)
[6]
|
---|
Germany
| 75,000 (2021)
[7]
|
---|
Poland
| 62,239 (2014)
[6]
|
---|
Canada
| 59,285 (2016)
[8]
|
---|
Norway
| 50,406 (2023)
[9]
|
---|
Ireland
| 42,973 (2022)
[7]
|
---|
Latvia
| 34,846 (2014)
[6]
|
---|
Australia
| 22,012 (2021)
[b]
[c]
[11]
|
---|
Argentina
| 20,000
[d]
[13]
|
---|
Ukraine
| 19,954 (2014)
[6]
|
---|
Belarus
| 19,091 (2014)
[6]
|
---|
Spain
| 17,991 (2022)
[7]
|
---|
Sweden
| 17,396 (2022)
[14]
|
---|
Denmark
| 16,429 (2023)
[15]
|
---|
Netherlands
| 10,119 (2022)
[7]
|
---|
Uruguay
| 10,000
[16]
|
---|
|
Lithuanian
|
|
Roman Catholicism
(majority),
Lutheranism
and
Irreligion
(minority)
|
|
Other
Balts
|
- ^
Including Lithuanians and Lithuanian Americans
- ^
Including Lithuanians and Lithuanian Australians
- ^
Approximately more than 50,000 are of Lithuanian descent
[10]
- ^
Approximately 200,000 are of Lithuanian descent
[12]
|
Lithuanians
(
Lithuanian
:
lietuviai
[a]
) are a
Baltic ethnic group
. They are native to
Lithuania
, where they number around 2,378,118 people.
[2]
Another two millions make up the Lithuanian
diaspora
, largely found in countries such as the
United States
,
United Kingdom
,
Brazil
,
Russia
, and
Canada
. Their native language is
Lithuanian
, one of only two surviving members of the
Baltic language
family along with
Latvian
. According to the
census conducted in 2021
, 84.6% of the
population of Lithuania
identified themselves as Lithuanians, 6.5% as
Poles
, 5.0% as
Russians
, 1.0% as
Belarusians
, and 1.1% as members of other ethnic groups. Most Lithuanians belong to the
Catholic Church
, while the
Lietuvininkai
who lived in the northern part of
East Prussia
prior to World War II, were mostly
Lutherans
.
History
[
edit
]
![[icon]](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg/20px-Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg.png) | This section
needs expansion
. You can help by
adding to it
.
(
September 2023
)
|
Lithuania in the
Mappa mundi
of
Pietro Vesconte
, 1321. The inscription reads:
Letvini pagani
? pagan Lithuanians.
Balts
in the
12th century
Lithuania proper
(in green) and
Samogitia
(in red) within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in a map from 1712
The territory of the Balts, including modern Lithuania, was once inhabited by several Baltic tribal entities (
Auk?taitians
,
Sudovians
, Old Lithuanians,
Curonians
,
Semigallians
,
Selonians
,
Samogitians
,
Skalvians
,
Old Prussians
(
Nadruvians
)), as attested by ancient sources and dating from prehistoric times. Over the centuries, and especially under the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
, some of these tribes consolidated into the Lithuanian nation, mainly as a defence against the marauding
Teutonic Order
and
Eastern Slavs
. The Lithuanian state was formed in the
High Middle Ages
, with different historians dating this variously between the
11th
and
mid-13th
centuries.
[17]
Mindaugas
, Lithuania's only crowned king and its first baptised ruler, is generally considered Lithuania's founder.
[18]
The Lithuanians are the only branch of
Baltic people
that managed to create a
state entity
before the
modern era
.
[19]
[20]
[21]
During the
Late Middle Ages
, Lithuania was ravaged by the
Lithuanian Crusade
, which ended only by the
Treaty of Melno
in 1422. In fact, the crusade persisted after the definite
Christianization of Lithuania
in 1387, when Europe's last
pagan
people were baptised.
[19]
[22]
Simultaneously, the Lithuanian state reached its apogee under the rule of
Vytautas the Great
(
r.
1392?1430), when it ruled the lands between the
Baltic
and
Black
seas. Thereafter, the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
continued existing until 1795, however, since the
Union of Lublin
in 1569, it maintained its independence in the bi-confederal
Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth
.
[23]
There is a current argument that the Lithuanian language was considered non-prestigious enough by some elements in Lithuanian society, meaning that the number of Lithuanian language-speakers decreased with
Polonization
in the
Polish?Lithuanian Commonwealth
, as well as a
Germanisation of Prussia
. The subsequent
imperial Russian
occupation from 1795 until 1915, with some interpositions such as the
French invasion of Russia
in 1812, the
Uprisings of 1831
and
1863
, accelerated this process of Slavicization. While under Russian occupation, Lithuanians endured
Russification
, which included the 40-year-long
ban on public speaking and writing in Lithuanian
(see, e.g.,
Knygne?iai
, the actions against the Catholic Church). In such a context, the
Lithuanian National Revival
began in the 19th century. Some believed at the time that the Lithuanian nation as such, along with its language, would become extinct within a few generations.
Some of the Polish- and Belarusian-speaking persons from the lands of the former Grand Duchy of Lithuania expressed their affiliation with the modern Lithuanian nation in the early 20th century, including
Michał Pius Romer
,
Stanisław Narutowicz
,
Oscar Milosz
and
Tadas Ivanauskas
In February 1918, while
World War I
was ongoing, the
re-establishment of an independent Lithuanian state was declared
, 122 years after it was destroyed. In the
aftermath of World War I
, Lithuanians militarily defended their country's independence from
Poland
,
Whites
and
Soviet Russia
during the
Lithuanian Wars of Independence
. However, a third of Lithuania's lands, namely the
Vilnius Region
, as well as its declared capital, fell under Polish occupation during the
Interwar
. A standardised Lithuanian language was approved. In the lead-up to the World War II, the
Klaip?da Region
was occupied by
Nazi Germany
after the
1939 German ultimatum to Lithuania
.
"We do not know on whose merits or guilt such a decision was made, or with what we have offended Your Lordship so much that Your Lordship has deservedly been directed against us, creating hardship for us everywhere. First of all, you made and announced a decision about the land of
Samogitia
, which is our inheritance and our homeland from the legal succession of the ancestors and elders. We still own it, it is and has always been the same Lithuanian land, because there is
one language
and the same inhabitants. But since the land of Samogitia is located lower than the
land of Lithuania
, it is called as Samogitia, because in
Lithuanian
it is called lower land [
?emaitija
]. And the
Samogitians
call
Lithuania
as
Auk?taitija
, that is, from the Samogitian point of view, a higher land. Also, the people of Samogitia have long called themselves Lithuanians and never ? Samogitians, and because of such identity (
sic
) we do not write about Samogitia in our letter, because everything is one: one country and the same inhabitants."
?
Vytautas the Great
, excerpt from his 11 March 1420
Latin
letter sent to
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
, in which he described the core of the
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
, composed from
?emaitija
(lowlands) and
Auk?taitija
(highlands).
[24]
[25]
Term
Auk?taitija
is known since the 13th century.
[26]
The territory inhabited by the ethnic Lithuanians has shrunk over centuries; once Lithuanians made up a majority of the population not only in what is now
Lithuania
, but also in northwestern
Belarus
, in large areas of the territory of the modern
Kaliningrad Oblast
of Russia, and in some parts of modern
Latvia
and Poland.
[27]
In 1940, Lithuania was invaded and occupied by the
Soviet Union
, and forced to join it as the
Lithuanian SSR
. The Germans and their allies attacked the USSR in June 1941, and from 1941 to 1944, Lithuania was occupied by Germany. The Germans retreated in 1944, and Lithuania fell under Soviet rule once again. The long-standing communities of Lithuanians in the Kaliningrad Oblast (
Lithuania Minor
) were almost destroyed as a result.
The Lithuanian nation as such remained primarily in Lithuania, few villages in northeastern Poland, southern
Latvia
and also in the diaspora of emigrants. Some indigenous Lithuanians still remain in Belarus and the Kaliningrad Oblast, but their number is small compared to what they used to be. Lithuania regained its independence in 1990, and was recognized by most countries in 1991. It became a member of the
European Union
on May 1, 2004.
[
citation needed
]
Ethnic composition of Lithuania
[
edit
]
Among the
Baltic states
, Lithuania has the most homogeneous population. According to the census conducted in 2001, 83.45% of the population identified themselves as ethnic Lithuanians, 6.74% as
Poles
, 6.31% as
Russians
, 1.23% as
Belarusians
, and 2.27% as members of other ethnic groups such as
Ukrainians
,
Jews
,
Germans
,
Tatars
,
Latvians
,
Romani
,
Estonians
,
Crimean Karaites
etc.
Poles are mostly concentrated in the
Vilnius County
. Especially large Polish communities are located in the
Vilnius District Municipality
and the
?al?ininkai District Municipality
.
Despite being the capital, Vilnius was not the largest city by number of Lithuanians until mid-2000s. According to the 2011 census Vilnius had 337,000 Lithuanians while
Kaunas
? 316,000.
[28]
Russians, even though they are almost as numerous as Poles, are much more evenly scattered. The most prominent community lives in the
Visaginas Municipality
(52%). Most of them are workers who moved from Russia to work at the
Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant
. A number of ethnic Russians left Lithuania after the declaration of independence in 1990.
In the past, the ethnic composition of Lithuania has varied dramatically. The most prominent change was the extermination of the Jewish population during
the Holocaust
. Before World War II, about 7.5% of the population was Jewish
[
citation needed
]
; they were concentrated in cities and towns and had a significant influence on crafts and business. They were called Litvaks and had a strong culture. The population of Vilnius, which was sometimes nicknamed the northern
Jerusalem
, was about 30% Jewish.
[
citation needed
]
Almost all its Jews were killed during
the Holocaust in Nazi-occupied Lithuania
, some 75,000 alone between the years 1941 ? 1942,
[29]
while others later immigrated to the United States and Israel. Now there are about 3,200 Jews living in Lithuania.
[30]
Historical ethnographic regions
Cultural subgroups
[
edit
]
Apart from the various religious and ethnic groups currently residing in Lithuania, Lithuanians themselves retain and differentiate between their regional identities; there are 5 historic regional groups:
?emai?iai
,
Suvalkie?iai
,
Auk?tai?iai
,
Dz?kai
and
Pr?sai
,
[31]
the last of which is virtually extinct. City dwellers are usually considered just Lithuanians, especially ones from large cities such as
Vilnius
or
Kaunas
.
The four groups are delineated according to certain region-specific traditions, dialects, and historical divisions. There are some stereotypes used in jokes about these subgroups, for example, Sudovians are supposedly frugal while Samogitians are stubborn.
Genetics
[
edit
]
Genetic distance of Balto-Slavs by A (atDNA), B (Y-DNA) and C (mtDNA plot).
Since the late
Neolithic
period the native inhabitants of the Lithuanian territory have not been replaced by migrations from outside, so there is a high probability that the inhabitants of present-day Lithuania have preserved the genetic composition of their forebears relatively undisturbed by the major demographic movements,
[32]
although without being actually isolated from them.
[33]
The Lithuanian population appears to be relatively homogeneous, without apparent genetic differences among ethnic subgroups.
[34]
A 2004 analysis of
mtDNA
in a Lithuanian population revealed that Lithuanians are close to both
Indo-European
and
Uralic
-speaking populations of Northern Europe.
Y-chromosome
SNP
haplogroup
analysis showed Lithuanians to be closest to fellow
Balts
(
Latvians
),
Estonians
,
Belarusians
and
Finnish people
. This is the result of
Iron Age
.
[35]
Autosomal
SNP analysis situates Lithuanians most proximal to
Latvians
, followed by the westernmost
East Slavs
, furthermore, all
Slavic peoples
and
Germans
are situated more proximal to Lithuanians than Finns and northern Russians.
[36]
Lithuanian
Ashkenazi
Jews also have interesting genetics, since they display a number of unique genetic characteristics; the utility of these variations has been the subject of debate.
[37]
One variation, which is implicated in familial
hypercholesterolemia
, has been dated to the 14th century, corresponding to the establishment of Ashkenazi settlements in response to the invitation extended by
Vytautas the Great
in 1388.
[38]
At the end of the 19th century, the average height of males was 163.5 cm (5 ft 4 in) and the average height of females was 153.3 cm (5 ft 0 in). By the end of the 20th century, heights averaged 181.3 cm (5 ft 11 in) for males and 167.5 cm (5 ft 6 in) for females.
[39]
Diaspora
[
edit
]
Countries with largest Lithuanian populations.
Lithuania
+ 100,000
+ 10,000
+ 1,000
Lithuanian settlement extends into adjacent countries that are now outside the modern Lithuanian state. A small Lithuanian community exists in the vicinity of
Pu?sk
and
Sejny
in the
Suwałki
area of Poland, an area associated with the Lithuanian writer and cleric
Antanas Baranauskas
.
[40]
Although most of the Lithuanian inhabitants in the region of
Lithuania Minor
that formed part of
East Prussia
were expelled when the area was annexed by the
Soviet Union
as the
Kaliningrad Oblast
, small groups of Lithuanians subsequently settled that area as it was repopulated with new Soviet citizens. Small groups of
Lithuanians are still present in Belarus
within the
Grodno
and
Vitebsk regions
.
[41]
Apart from the traditional communities in Lithuania and its neighboring countries, Lithuanians have emigrated to other continents during the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries.
- Communities in the United States make up the largest part of this
diaspora
; as many as one million Americans can claim Lithuanian descent. Emigration to America began in the 19th century, with the generation calling itself the "grynoriai" (derived from "
greenhorn
" meaning new and inexperienced).
[42]
The migration flow was interrupted during the Soviet occupation, when travel and emigration were severely restricted. The largest concentrations of
Lithuanian Americans
are in the
Great Lakes
area and the Northeast;
Chicago
in particular is noted as
the primary center of the diaspora
. Nearly 33,000 Lithuanians have immigrated to the United States since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
[43]
- Lithuanian communities in Canada are among the largest in the world along with the United States (See
Lithuanian Canadian
).
- Lithuanian communities in Mexico and South America (
Argentina
,
Brazil
,
Colombia
, Uruguay and
Venezuela
) developed before World War II, beginning in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Currently, there is no longer a flow of emigrants to these destinations, since economic conditions in those countries are not better than those in Lithuania (see
Lithuanians in Brazil
).
- Lithuanian communities were formed in South Africa during the late 19th and 20th century, the majority being Jewish.
- Lithuanian communities in other regions of the former Soviet Union were formed during the Soviet occupation; the numbers of Lithuanians in
Siberia
and Central Asia increased dramatically when a large portion of Lithuanians were involuntarily deported into these areas. After
de-Stalinization
, however, most of them returned. Later, some Lithuanians were relocated to work in other areas of the Soviet Union; some of them did not return to Lithuania, after it became independent.
- The Lithuanian communities in
United Kingdom
and
Ireland
began to appear after the restoration of independence to Lithuania in 1990; this emigration intensified after Lithuania became part of the
European Union
in 2004. London and
Glasgow
(especially the
Bellshill
and
Coatbridge
areas of
Greater Glasgow
) have long had large Catholic and Jewish Lithuanian populations. The Republic of Ireland probably has the highest concentration of Lithuanians relative to its total population size in Western Europe; its estimated 45,000 Lithuanians (about half of whom are registered) form over 1% of Ireland's total population.
- The Lithuanian communities in other countries of
Northwestern Europe
(Norway, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Iceland) as well as in Spain are very new and began their growth spurts as Lithuanian was accepted into the EU. In Norway there are 45,415 Lithuanians living in the country and it has in a short time become the second largest ethnic minority in the country, making up 0.85% of Norway's total population, and 4.81% of all
foreign residents
in
Norway
.
[44]
There are around 3,500 Lithuanians in
Iceland
, making around 1% of the total population.
- Lithuanian communities in Germany began to appear after World War II. In 1950 they founded the Lithuanian High School in
Diepholz
, which was a private school for children of Lithuanian refugees. For decades the Lithuanian High School was the only full-time high school outside the Eastern Bloc offering courses in Lithuanian history, language, and culture. In 1954, the Lithuanian Community acquired Rennhof Manor House with its twelve-acre park in the town of Lampertheim-Huttenfeld. The school was relocated there and still exists today.
- Lithuanian communities in Australia
exist as well; due to its great distance from Europe, however, emigration there was minuscule. There are Lithuanian communities in
Melbourne
,
Geelong
, Sydney,
Adelaide
,
Brisbane
,
Hobart
and
Perth
.
Culture and traditions
[
edit
]
The Lithuanian national sport is usually considered to be
basketball
(
krep?inis
), which is popular among Lithuanians in Lithuania as well as in the diasporic communities. Basketball came to Lithuania through the
Lithuanian-American community
in the 1930s. Lithuanian basketball teams were bronze medal winners in the
1992
,
1996
, and
2000 Summer Olympics
.
[
citation needed
]
Jonin?s
(also known as
Rasos
) is a traditional national holiday, celebrated on the summer solstice. It has pagan origins.
U?gav?n?s
(
Shrove Tuesday
) takes place on the day before
Ash Wednesday
, and is meant to urge the retreat of winter. There are also national traditions for Christian holidays such as
Easter
and
Christmas
.
[
citation needed
]
Cuisine
[
edit
]
Lithuanian cuisine has much in common with other European cuisines and features the products suited to its cool and moist northern climate: barley, potatoes, rye, beets, greens, and mushrooms are locally grown, and dairy products are one of its specialties. Nevertheless, it has its own distinguishing features, which were formed by a variety of influences during the country's rich history.
[
citation needed
]
Since shared similarities in history and heritage, Lithuanians, Jews and Poles have developed many similar dishes and beverages: dumplings (
kold?nai
), doughnuts (
spurgos
), and crepes (
lietiniai blynai
). German traditions also influenced Lithuanian cuisine, introducing pork and potato dishes, such as potato pudding (
kugelis
) and potato sausages (
v?darai
), as well as the
baroque
tree cake known as
?akotis
. Traditional dishes of
Lithuanian Tatars
and
Lithuanian Karaites
like
Kibinai
and
?eburekai
, that are similar to
pasty
, are popular in Lithuania.
[
citation needed
]
For Lithuanian Americans both traditional Lithuanian dishes of
virtinukai
(cabbage and noodles) and
baland?liai
(rolled cabbage) are growing increasingly more popular.
[
citation needed
]
There are also regional cuisine dishes, e.g. traditional
kastinys
in
?emaitija
, Western Lithuania,
Skilandis
in Western and Central Lithuania,
Kindziukas
in Eastern and Southern Lithuania (
Dz?kija
).
[
citation needed
]
Lithuanian
?akotis
Cepelinai
, a stuffed potato creation, is the most popular national dish. It is popular among Lithuanians all over the world. Other national foods include dark
rye bread
,
cold beet soup
(?altibar??iai), and
kugelis
(a baked potato pudding). Some of these foods are also common in neighboring countries.
Lithuanian cuisine
is generally unknown outside Lithuanian communities. Most Lithuanian restaurants outside Lithuania are located in cities with a heavy Lithuanian presence.
[
citation needed
]
Lithuanians in the early 20th century were among the thinnest people in the developed countries of the world.
[45]
In Lithuanian cuisine there is some emphasis on attractive presentation of freshly prepared foods.
Lithuania has been brewing
midus
, a type of Lithuanian
mead
for thousands of years.
[46]
Locally brewed
beer
(
alus
),
vodka
(
degtin?
), and
kvass
(
gira
) are popular drinks in Lithuania. Lithuanian traditional beer of Northern Lithuania,
Bir?ai
,
Pasvalys
regions is well appreciated in Lithuania and abroad.
[47]
Starka
is a part of the Lithuanian heritage, still produced in Lithuania.
Language
[
edit
]
Among
Indo-European languages
, Lithuanian is
conservative
in its grammar and phonology, retaining archaic features otherwise found only in ancient languages such as
Sanskrit
(particularly its early form,
Vedic Sanskrit
) or
Ancient Greek
.
[48]
Thus, it is an important source for the reconstruction of the
Proto-Indo-European language
despite its late attestation (with the earliest texts dating only to
c.
1500 A.D.
, whereas Ancient Greek was first written down in
c.
1450 B.C.
).
[49]
There was fascination with the Lithuanian people and their language among the late 19th-century researchers, and the philologist
Isaac Taylor
wrote the following in his
The Origin of the Aryans
(1892):
"Thus it would seem that the Lithuanians have the best claim to represent the primitive
Aryan race
, as their language exhibits fewer of those phonetic changes, and of those grammatical losses which are consequent on the acquirement of a foreign speech."
[50]
Map of Lithuanian language in the early 21st century
The
Proto-Balto-Slavic
language branched off directly from Proto-Indo-European, then sub-branched into
Proto-Baltic
and
Proto-Slavic
. Proto-Baltic branched off into Proto-West Baltic and Proto-East Baltic.
[48]
Baltic languages passed through a
Proto-Balto-Slavic
stage, from which Baltic languages retain numerous exclusive and non-exclusive lexical, morphological, phonological and accentual isoglosses in common with the
Slavic languages
, which represent their closest living Indo-European relatives. Moreover, with Lithuanian being so archaic in phonology, Slavic words can often be deduced from Lithuanian by regular
sound laws
; for example, Lith.
vilkas
and
Polish
wilk
←
PBSl.
*wilkas
(cf.
PSl.
*vьlkъ
) ←
PIE
*w??k?os
, all meaning "
wolf
".
Literature
[
edit
]
First Lithuanian book (1547)
The Simple Words of Catechism
by
Martynas Ma?vydas
When the
ban against printing the Lithuanian language
was lifted in 1904, various European literary movements such as
Symbolism
,
impressionism
, and
expressionism
each in turn influenced the work of Lithuanian writers. The first period of Lithuanian independence (1918?1940) gave them the opportunity to examine themselves and their characters more deeply, as their primary concerns were no longer political. An outstanding figure of the early 20th century was
Vincas Kr?v?-Mickevi?ius
, a novelist and dramatist. His many works include
Dainavos ?alies sen? ?moni? padavimai
(Old Folks Tales of
Dainava
, 1912) and the historical dramas
?ar?nas
(1911),
Skirgaila
(1925), and
Mindaugo mirtis
(The Death of
Mindaugas
, 1935).
Petras Vai?i?nas
was another popular playwright, producing one play each year during the 1920s and 1930s.
Vincas Mykolaitis-Putinas
wrote lyric poetry, plays, and novels, including the novel
Altori? ?e??ly
(In the Shadows of the Altars, 3 vol., 1933), a remarkably powerful autobiographical novel.
Keturi v?jai
movement started with publication of
The Prophet of the Four Winds
by talented poet
Kazys Binkis
(1893?1942). It was rebellion against traditional poetry. The theoretical basis of
Keturi v?jai
initially was
futurism
which arrived through Russia from the West and later
cubism
,
dadaism
,
surrealism
,
unanimism
, and German
expressionism
. The most influensive futurist for Lithuanian writers was Russian poet
Vladimir Mayakovsky
.
[51]
Oskaras Mila?ius (1877?1939) is a paradoxical and interesting phenomenon in Lithuanian culture. He never lived in Lithuania but was born and spent his childhood in Cereja (near
Mogilev
,
Belarus
) and graduated from
Lycee Janson de Sailly
in Paris. His longing for his fatherland was more metaphysical. Having to choose between two conflicting countries ? Lithuania and Poland ? he preferred Lithuania which for him was an idea even more than a fatherland. In 1920 when France recognized the independence of Lithuania, he was appointed officially as Charge d'Affaires for Lithuania. He published: 1928, a collection of 26 Lithuanian songs; 1930,
Lithuanian Tales and Stories
; 1933,
Lithuanian Tales
; 1937,
The origin of the Lithuanian Nation
.
Religion
[
edit
]
The Roman Catholic
Vilnius Cathedral
in the center of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania
Since the
Christianization
of parts of
Lithuania proper
in 1387 and of
Samogitia
in 1413, the majority of Lithuanians have been members of the Roman
Catholic Church
. According to the 2021 census, 74% of Lithuanians are Roman Catholic.
[
citation needed
]
Under Article 26 of the
Constitution of Lithuania
, persons can freely practice a religion of their choosing.
[52]
Catholicism played a significant role in Lithuanian anti-communist resistance under the
Soviet Union
. Several Catholic priests were leaders of the anti-communist movements, and thousands of
Latin crosses
were placed on the
Hill of Crosses
near
?iauliai
, despite its being bulldozed in 1961.
[
citation needed
]
Folk music
[
edit
]
Lithuanian folklore band
Kulgrinda
performing in Vilnius
Lithuanian
folk music
is based around songs (
dainos
), which include romantic and wedding songs, as well as work songs and archaic war songs. These songs used to be performed either in groups or alone, and in parallel
chords
or
unison
.
Duophonic
songs are common in the renowned
sutartin?s
tradition of
Auk?taitija
. Another style of Lithuanian folk music is called
rateliai
, a kind of
round dance
. Instrumentation includes
kankl?s
, a kind of
zither
that accompanies sutartin?s, rateliai,
waltzes
,
quadrilles
and
polkas
, and
fiddles
, (including a bass fiddle called the
basetle
) and a kind of
whistle
called the
Lamzdeliai
lumzdelis
; recent importations, beginning in the late 19th century, including the
concertina
,
accordion
and
bandoneon
. Sutartin? can be accompanied by
skudu?iai
, a form of
panpipes
played by a group of people, as well as wooden
trumpets
(
ragai
and
dandyt?s
). Kankl?s is an extremely important folk instrument, which differs in the number of
strings
and performance techniques across the country. Other traditional instruments include
?vilpas
whistle, drums and
tabalas
(a percussion instrument like a
gong
),
sekmini? ragelis
(
bagpipe
) and the
p?slin?
, a
musical bow
made from a pig's bladder filled with dried peas.
[53]
See also
[
edit
]
Notes
[
edit
]
- ^
singular male:
lietuvis
, singular female:
lietuv?
References
[
edit
]
- ^
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.
External links
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edit
]
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