Nearly 1.3 million people live in the Republic of Estonia, which is located in Northern Europe along the Baltic Sea. Tallinn, Estonia's capital, is just 60 kilometers (40 miles) south of Helsinki, across the Gulf of Finland, on the coast of the Baltic Sea.
Tallinn has approximately 435 thousand people living there. Tartu, Narva, and Pärnu are three additional larger towns. Estonian is the official language. However, the majority of people also speak English, Russian, or both. Russian and English versions of most government services are also available.
1.Estonia is as flat as it gets!
The highest point of all the Baltics is Suur Munamägi (Big Egg Hill) in South Estonia. It’s only 318 m high!
2.We are singing people
Not only did we sing ourselves free during the Singing Revolution, we also have the largest collection of folk songs in the world with over 133k songs. The Estonian Song Festival, which takes place every five years, is known for having the most choral singers on stage at once. Over 200,000 people attend the event, 34,000 people sing there, and up to 18,000 people can be on stage at the same time.
3.Estonian composer is the most performed living composer in the world
According to the classical music event database Bachtrack, the Estonian composer Arvo Pärt has regained his position as the living composer with the most performances worldwide. From 2012 to 2018, Pärt was the most performed living composer. In 2019, he came in second, behind John Williams, who composed themes for Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Jurassic Park.
4.Our language is very difficult to learn
Estonian alphabet has 6 more letters than English alphabet and we pronounce out every letter in the world. Furthermore, there are 14 cases in Estonian language, which means that a single verb can have 14 different endings. Although Estonia is regarded as a member of the Baltics, it has no cultural or linguistic connection to Latvia or Lithuania; rather, the country's culture and language are very similar to those of Finland. However, this does not mean that Estonian's can get by with Estonian in Finland and vice versa.
5.There are over 2,200 islands in Estonia
The biggest one is Saaremaa, where town of Kuressaare is holding the world record of having 1,200 spabeds for 15,000 people. We in Estonia sure know how to take time off! (link to visitestonia)?
6. Our faith lies mostly in ourselves.
With only 16% of the population indicating that religion plays significant role in their lives, Estonia ranks among the world's least religious nations. Even though we are not very religious people, we are very accepting of people who are and respect their views beliefs. In addition, 69% of people believe that trees have souls.
7. The Kaali crater is in 8th place among the world's youngest giant craters.
The Kaali meteorite fell somewhere between 7500 and 7600 years ago.
The impact of the meteorite, which was compared to the atomic bomb's detonation, caused significant damage to the already inhabited Saaremaa. The meteorite broke up and fell in pieces. Eight smaller craters were created and the largest fragment caused a crater, which has a depth of 22 meters and a diameter of 110 meters.
8.We have lots of space
Estonia has a population density of 30.3 people per km2. Estonia is the third EU member state with the lowest population density, coming in at 116.7 people per km2, nearly four times lower than the EU average.
9. Winters here show no mercy
January and February are the coldest months in Estonia, with temperatures as low as -35°C. The coldest temperature ever measured in Estonia was -43.5°C on January 17, 1940, in eastern Estonia. So when you come to visit us during these months, better bring a coat!
10.Estonia has considerably more women than men
For every 100 women in Estonia, there are 84 men.
11.Our country is one of the smallest in Europe.
Estonia has the eighth-smallest land area and the fourth-smallest population in the European Union.
12. We have 5 seasons!
In addition to the traditional four seasons, there is also a fifth season in some parts of Estonia: the natural flood, which occurs at the end of March or the beginning of April. Canoeing is possible because water levels can rise as much as five meters.
13.Estonia has the best-preserved medieval City
The best-preserved medieval city in Northern Europe is Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. Tallinn is also the biggest City in Estonia with over 400k people. It is located on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea.
14.Estonia has the most unicorns per capita
Have you heard of Skype, Bolt (formerly Taxify), Wise, Zego or Pipedrive? They are some of Estonian start-ups
15. Estonia won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2001
This was a proud moment for our nation since no-one saw it coming, and it was the first time for Estonia to win the contest. The song was ’’Everybody’’ by Dave Benton and Tanel Padar.
16.Our days are shorter in winter and longer in summer
The 21st of December marks Pööripäev, or the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year in Estonia. There are only six hours of daylight on the solstice, but summer has 18 hours of daylight on the longest day of the year.
17. We have a lot of green
Forest covers more than half of Estonia's land area. Furthermore, the territory of Estonia is covered by approximately 7,000 swamps, or 22.3% of the country's total area.
18.Estonians are tall
Estonian men and women rank third on the planet, according to the largest ever study of height around the world.
19.We are the world champions in wife-carrying (Yes, it’s a thing)
Estonians hold the title of world champions in the international sport of wife carrying, which has a category in the Guinness Book of Records.
20. Estonia has the most supermodels per capita in the world
It's hard to pick just a few of Estonia's most well-known models because the country has the highest number of international supermodels per capita in the world. Let's just say that among others, Karmen Pedaru and Carmen Kass are both from Estonia.
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