# Estonia

| Republic of Estonia*Eesti Vabariik*  (Estonian) |
| --- |
|
Flag

 Coat of arms

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| **Anthem:Mu isamaa, mu õnn ja rõõm* (English: "My Fatherland, My Happiness and Joy")  |
| Location of  Estonia  (dark green)– on the European continent  (green & dark grey) – in the European Union  (green)  —  [Legend] |
| Capitaland largest city | Tallinn ﻿ / ﻿ |
| Official language | Estonian |
| Ethnic groups (2025) | * 68.5% Estonians
* 21.0% Russians
* 5.4% Ukrainians
* 5.1% other
 |
| Religion (2021) | * 58.4% no religion
* 26.7% Christianity
	+ 16.3% Eastern Orthodoxy
	+ 7.7% Lutheranism
	+ 2.7% other Christian
* 12.7% undeclared
* 2.1% other religion
 |
| Demonym(s) | Estonian |
| Government | Unitary parliamentary republic |
|  |
| • President  | Alar Karis |
| • Prime Minister  | Kristen Michal |
|  |
| Legislature | Riigikogu |
| Independence from Russian and German Empires |
|  |
| • Declaration of Independence  | 24 February 1918 |
| • German and Soviet occupations  | 1940–1991 |
| • Restoration of Independence  | 20 August 1991 |
|  |
| Area |
| • Total | 45,335 km2 (17,504 sq mi) (129thd) |
| • Water (%) | 4.6 |
| Population |
| • 2024 estimate |  1,373,101 |
| • 2021 census | 1,331,824 |
| • Density | 30.3/km2 (78.5/sq mi) (148th) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2025 estimate |
| • Total |  $68.240 billion (119th) |
| • Per capita |  $49,670 (42nd) |
| GDP (nominal) | 2025 estimate |
| • Total |  $45.00 billion (99th) |
| • Per capita |  $32,760 (37th) |
| Gini (2021) |  30.6 medium |
| HDI (2023) |  0.905> very high · 36th |
| Currency | Euro (€) (EUR) |
| Time zone | UTC+02:00 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+03:00 (EEST) |
| Calling code | +372 |
| ISO 3166 code | EE |
| Internet TLD | .ee |

**Estonia** /isˈtoʊniə/ (listen) (Estonian: *Eesti*), officially the **Republic of Estonia** (Estonian: *Eesti Vabariik*) is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. The capital city is Tallinn. Estonia has borders with Sweden, Finland, Russia and Latvia. Its population is 1,332,893.

The territory includes the mainland and 2,222 islands in the Baltic Sea.

## History

People have lived in Estonia since at least 9,000 BC. The oldest known settlement in Estonia is the Pulli settlement, which was on the banks of the Pärnu River.

At the end of World War I (1914-1918) Estonia became an independent country in 1918. Estonia won the War of Independence (1918-1920) against Soviet Russia. During World War II (1939–1945), Estonia lost its independence as it was invaded and occupied by the Soviet Union in June 1940, then by Nazi Germany in 1941, and occupied again by the Soviet army in 1944. The occupied country was called the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic by the Soviets.

Estonia restored independence from the Soviet Union in August 1991. It became a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on 29 March 2004. It joined the European Union on 1 May 2004.

## Politics

In January 2021, Estonia became the only country in the world led by women by having a female president (Kersti Kaljulaid) and female prime minister (Kaja Kallas). A few months later, Alar Karis replaced Kaljulaid as president and in 2024 Kristen Michal replaced Kallas as Prime minister.

As of 2025, Estonia plans to spend each year more than 5% of GDP on defence.

## Geography

Estonia is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland with Finland on the other side, to the west by the Baltic Sea with Sweden on the other side, to the south by Latvia (343 km), and to the east by Lake Peipus and Russia (338.6 km).

Average elevation reaches only 50 metres (164 ft). The country's highest point is the Suur Munamägi in the southeast at 318 metres (1,043 ft).

Estonia has many forests, almost 50% of the land is covered with forests. The most common tree species are pine, spruce and birch. Estonia has over 1,400 lakes and over 2,000 islands. The longest rivers are Võhandu (162 km or 101 mi), Pärnu (144 km or 89 mi), and Põltsamaa (135 km or 84 mi).

## Biodiversity

Mammals in Estonia include the grey wolf, lynx, brown bear, red fox, badger, wild boar, moose, red deer, roe deer, beaver, otter, grey seal, and ringed seal. The critically endangered European mink has been successfully reintroduced to the island of Hiiumaa. The rare Siberian flying squirrel is present in east Estonia.

Over 300 bird species have been found in Estonia. These include the white-tailed eagle, lesser spotted eagle, golden eagle, western capercaillie, black and white stork, many species of owls, waders, geese and many others. The Barn swallow is the national bird of Estonia.

Protected areas cover 18% of Estonian land and 26% of its sea territory. There are 5 national parks, 159 nature reserves, and many other protection areas.

## Government

The Riigikogu is the name of the parliament in Estonia.

### Administrative regions

Administrative divisions of Estonia
Since administrative reform in 2017, there are in total 79 local governments. This includes 15 towns and 64 rural municipalities. All municipalities have equal legal status and form part of a county, which is a state administrative unit.

The counties are:

* Harju County
* Hiiu County
* Ida-Viru County
* Jõgeva County
* Järva County
* Lääne County
* Lääne-Viru County
* Põlva County
* Pärnu County
* Rapla County
* Saare County
* Tartu County
* Valga County
* Viljandi County
* Võru County

## Culture

According to speedtest.net, Estonia has one of the fastest Internet download speeds in the world with an average download speed of 27.12 Mbit/s.

Estonia won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2001 with the song "Everybody" performed by Tanel Padar and Dave Benton. In 2002, Estonia hosted the event.

The Estonian National Day is the Independence Day celebrated on 24 February. This is the day the Estonian Declaration of Independence was issued. As of 2013, there are 12 public holidays and 12 national holidays celebrated each year.

In June 2023, the Estonian government passed a bill legalising same-sex marriage and same-sex adoption in Estonia. The bill went into effect on 1 January 2024, making Estonia the first Baltic state and country formerly occupied by the Soviet Union to legalise same-sex marriage and adoption.

## International rankings

The following are links to international rankings of Estonia.

| Index | Rank | Countries reviewed |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Freedom House Internet Freedom 2016 | 1 | 65 |
| International Tax Competitiveness Index 2023 | 1 | 38 |
| Environmental Performance Index 2016 | 8 | 180 |
| Index of Economic Freedom 2017 | 6 | 180 |
| Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index 2011–2012 | 11 | 187 |
| State of World Liberty Index 2006 | 1 | 159 |
| Human Development Index 2019 | 30 | 189 |
| Corruption Perceptions Index 2016 | 22 | 176 |
| TRACE Matrix business bribery risk 2016 | 3 | 199 |
| Networked Readiness Index 2014 | 21 | 133 |
| Ease of Doing Business Index 2017 | 12 | 190 |
| State of The World's Children's Index 2012 | 10 | 165 |
| State of The World's Women's Index 2012 | 18 | 165 |
| World Freedom Index 2014 | 8 | 165 |
| Legatum Prosperity Index 2019 | 21 | 149 |

## Related pages

* Estonia at the Olympics
* Estonia national football team
* List of rivers of Estonia

## Other websites

* Official State Website