# Rapla

Rapla (German: Rappel (the name Rappel was also used in other languages in the past) is a town in north-central Estonia, the capital of Rapla County and the centre of Rapla Parish.

## History

The oldest records date back to 1241 in the Danish Census Book, when it was said that it was a small village with 8 acres of cultivated fields. By the end of the 13th century, the village centre was firmly established. At around the same time, a Cistercian monastery was built.
Rapla's ambitious period of fast growth began only in the late 19th century. In 1866, a pharmacy was built, in 1868 a school, and in 1888 a hospital. In 1898, a brick factory was opened, and in 1900, a railway line was built between Rapla and Viljandi. The old stone church was demolished in the late 19th century and a new one was built in a Romanesque style, one of the purest examples of this style in all of Estonia.
In 1913, Rapla consisted of around 20 stone and 60 wooden houses. During this time period, a number of social societies were established, such as the Volunteer Fire Company, the Song and Music Society, the Society of Agriculture, a Mutual Fire Insurance Company, a Consumer Association, and the Deposit Insurance Fund.
It has a railway station on the Tallinn–Viljandi railway line operated by Elron. In 1931, a narrow gauge railway from Rapla to Virtsu opened and remained in use until 1968.
Rapla received town rights in 1993.

## Demographics

| Ethnicity | 1934 | 1934 | 1959 | 1959 | 1970 | 1970 | 1979 | 1979 | 1989 | 1989 | 2000 | 2000 | 2011 | 2011 | 2021 | 2021 |
| Ethnicity | amount | % | amount | % | amount | % | amount | % | amount | % | amount | % | amount | % | amount | % |
| Estonians | 975 | 98.1 | 2462 | 80.1 | 3998 | 91.0 | 5070 | 90.6 | 5647 | 90.0 | 5387 | 93.6 | 4981 | 95.8 | 5022 | 95.6 |
| Russians | 8 | 0.80 | - | - | 210 | 4.78 | 345 | 6.16 | 391 | 6.24 | 233 | 4.05 | 139 | 2.67 | 106 | 2.02 |
| Ukrainians | - | - | - | - | 21 | 0.48 | 32 | 0.57 | 40 | 0.64 | 33 | 0.57 | 17 | 0.33 | 19 | 0.36 |
| Belarusians | - | - | - | - | 26 | 0.59 | 22 | 0.39 | 21 | 0.33 | 11 | 0.19 | 4 | 0.08 | 3 | 0.06 |
| Finns | - | - | - | - | 75 | 1.71 | 72 | 1.29 | 89 | 1.42 | 39 | 0.68 | 25 | 0.48 | 25 | 0.48 |
| Jews | - | - | - | - | 0 | 0.00 | 3 | 0.05 | 2 | 0.03 | 2 | 0.03 | 1 | 0.02 | 3 | 0.06 |
| Latvians | 3 | 0.30 | - | - | 2 | 0.05 | 4 | 0.07 | 1 | 0.02 | 2 | 0.03 | 2 | 0.04 | 8 | 0.15 |
| Germans | 5 | 0.50 | - | - | - | - | 32 | 0.57 | 41 | 0.65 | 9 | 0.16 | 8 | 0.15 | 8 | 0.15 |
| Tatars | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 0.02 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Poles | - | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 0.05 | 1 | 0.02 | 2 | 0.03 | 0 | 0.00 | 3 | 0.06 |
| Lithuanians | - | - | - | - | 16 | 0.36 | 6 | 0.11 | 6 | 0.10 | 6 | 0.10 | 1 | 0.02 | 0 | 0.00 |
| unknown | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 | 0.00 | 10 | 0.17 | 2 | 0.04 | 19 | 0.36 |
| other | 3 | 0.30 | 611 | 19.9 | 43 | 0.98 | 9 | 0.16 | 32 | 0.51 | 24 | 0.42 | 22 | 0.42 | 37 | 0.70 |
| Total | 994 | 100 | 3073 | 100 | 4391 | 100 | 5599 | 100 | 6271 | 100 | 5758 | 100 | 5202 | 100 | 5254 | 99.9 |

## Gallery

* Rapla Maria Magdalena Lutheran Church
* Rapla railway station
* Rapla cultural centre
* Central square of Rapla
* Bank in Rapla