# Jõgeva County

Jõgeva County (Estonian: Jõgeva maakond or Jõgevamaa) is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is situated in eastern part of the country and borders Ida-Viru County to the north-east, Lake Peipus to the east, Tartu County to the south, Viljandi County to the south-west, Järva County to the north-west and Lääne-Viru County to the north.

## History

Jõgeva County or Jõgevamaa was created January 1, 1990 from a parts of Viljandimaa and Tartumaa counties.

## County government

The County government (Estonian: Maavalitsus) was led by a governor (Estonian: maavanem), who was appointed by the Government of Estonia for a term of five years. Since 2009 until 2018, the Jõgeva County governor position was held by Viktor Svjatõšev. From 01.01.2018 County governments were shut down in Estonia.

## Municipalities

The county is subdivided into municipalities. There are three rural municipalities (Estonian: vallad – parishes) in Jõgeva County.
| Rank | Municipality | Type | Population (2018) | Area km$^2$ | Density |
| 1 | Jõgeva Parish | Rural | 13,889 | 1,038 | 13.4 |
| 2 | Mustvee Parish | Rural | 5,643 | 615 | 9.2 |
| 3 | Põltsamaa Parish | Rural | 10,012 | 891 | 11.2 |

## Religion

The following congregations of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church (EELC) operate in Jõgeva County: Jõgeva, Kursi, Laiuse, Lohusuu, Avinurme, Maarja-Magdaleena, Mustvee, Palamuse and Torma congregation under EELC's Tartu Deanery and Põltsamaa congregation under EELC's Viljandi Deanery.
Regarding Eastern Orthodoxy, there are under the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church congregations in Põltsamaa and Kaarepere. An Orthodox congregation in Mustvee operates under the jurisdiction of the Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate The congregation of Mercy and the Holy Trinity, which operates in Mustvee, is an independent Orthodox congregation that does not belong to the canonical jurisdiction of either the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church or the Moscow Patriarchate. Old Believer congregations operate in Mustvee, Raja and Kükita.
There are three Baptist congregations in the county, and Adventists and other Christians also have their congregations.
Religious affiliations in Jõgeva County, census 2000–2021* :
| Religion | 2000 | 2000 | 2011 | 2011 | 2021 | 2021 |
| Religion | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % |
| Christianity | 7,815 | 25.8 | 5,504 | 20.5 | 4,640 | 19.3 |
| —Orthodox Christians | 954 | 3.2 | 1,081 | 4.0 | 1,160 | 4.8 |
| —Lutherans | 5,982 | 19.7 | 3,686 | 13.8 | 2,690 | 11,2 |
| —Catholics | 37 | 0.1 | 34 | 0.1 | 140 | 0.5 |
| —Baptists | 58 | 0.2 | 59 | 0.2 | 80 | 0.3 |
| —Jehovah's Witnesses | 95 | 0.3 | 110 | 0.4 | 100 | 0.4 |
| —Pentecostals | 14 | 0.04 | 29 | 0.1 | 30 | 0.1 |
| —Old Believers | 600 | 2.0 | 404 | 1.5 | 360 | 1.5 |
| —Methodists | 11 | 0.04 | 7 | 0.02 | - | - |
| —Adventists | 64 | 0.3 | 57 | 0.2 | 40 | 0.1 |
| —Other Christians | - | - | 37 | 0.1 | 40 | 0.1 |
| Islam | 7 | 0.02 | 8 | 0.02 | - | |
| Buddhism | - | - | 16 | 0.05 | 10 | 0.04 |
| Other religions** | 106 | 0.3 | 186 | 0.7 | 260 | 1.0 |
| No religion | 12,838 | 42.4 | 17,505 | 65.5 | 16,370 | 68.3 |
| Not stated*** | 9,514 | 31.4 | 3,497 | 13.1 | 2,630 | 11.0 |
| Total population* | 30,280 | 30,280 | 26,721 | 26,721 | 23,940 | 23,940 |
| *The censuses of Estonia count the religious affiliations of the population older than 15 years of age. ". |||||||