Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia (
Estonian
:
Eesti or Eesti Vabariik
) is a
country
in
Northern Europe
in the
Baltic region
. It is bordered to the north by
Finland
across the
Gulf of Finland
, to the west by
Sweden
, to the south by
Latvia
, and to the east by the
Russian Federation
. The territory of Estonia covers , km² and is influenced by a
temperate seasonal climate
.
The
Estonians
are a
Finnic people
closely related to the
Finns
, with the
Estonian language
sharing many similarities to
Finnish
. The modern name of Estonia is thought to originate from the
Roman
historian
Tacitus
, who in his book
Germania
(ca. AD) described a people called the
Aestii
. Similarly, ancient
Scandinavian
sagas
refer to a land called Eistland. Early
Latin
and other ancient versions of the name are Estia and Hestia. Until the late s, the name was often written as "Esthonia" in most western countries.
Estonia is a
democratic
parliamentary republic
and is divided into
fifteen
counties
(Maakonnad). The capital and largest city is
Tallinn
. Estonia has been a member of the
United Nations
since
September
,
of the
European Union
since
May
,
and of
NATO
since
March
.
Estonia has also signed the
Kyoto protocol
. With only . million
inhabitants
, it comprises one of the smallest populations of the
European Union
countries.
The area was settled immediately after the
Ice Age
, beginning from around
BC
. After the
Northern Crusades
, being conquered by
Danes
and
Germans
in
, Estonia was ruled by
Denmark
in the north and by
Livonian Order
in the south. From
-
the whole Estonia was a part of
Livonian Confederation
. Estonia became a part of the
Swedish Empire
from the
th
century to
, when it was ceded to the
Russian Empire
. The
Estophile Enlightenment Period
in
-
led to the
Estonian national awakening
in the mid-th century. In
the
Estonian Declaration of Independence
was issued. The
Estonian War of Independence
ensued on two fronts between the
Bolshevist Russia
and the
German Empire
, resulting in the
Tartu Peace Treaty
recognising Estonian independence in perpetuity. Shortly after
World War II
began, Estonia was occupied and annexed by the
Soviet Union
, subsequently occupied by
Third Reich
during
Operation Barbarossa
, then re-occupied by the Soviet Union in
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