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Lithuania is a country in Eastern Europe located between Latvia
and Russia and bordering on the Baltic Sea, which separates
Lithuania from her northern neighbors (Sweden, Finland and
Norway). It covers an area of 25.174 sq. miles and its population
is about 3.6 million. Lithuanian is an Indo-European language
belonging to the Baltic group of languages comprising Lithuanian,
Latvian, and the extinct Prussian languages. Literary Lithuanian
was formed in the middle of the 16th century. The first Lithuanian
book, a catechism by M. Mazvydas,was published in Königsberg
in 1547. Lithuanians are neither Slavic nor Germanic, although
Polish, Russian and Germanic colonization and settlement have
left marked cultural and religious influences. Because of
its geopolitical situation Lithuania has often been considered
as a bridge between East and West. Lithuania's past is rich
and complex. During the period 1236-63, Duke Mindaugas united
the Lithuanian ethnic lands and established the state of Lithuania.
In 1251 he embraced Christianity for political reasons and
in 1253 he accepted the crown from the Pope. Thus he became
the first and only king in Lithuanian history. Grand Duke
Gediminas, who ruled the country from 1316 to 1341, founded
the modern capital city of Vilnius and the Gediminaiciai dynasty,
whose representatives became members of many European monarchies.
Grand Duke Vytautas, who ruled from 1392 to 1430, brought
the greatest military and political prosperity to the country.
In 1410 Vytautas, along with his cousin Jogaila, won the Battle
of Grünwald, against the might of the German Order. He also
annexed many Belorussian, Russian and Ukrainian territories
to Lithuania and extended the state border all the way to
the shores of the Black Sea.
By the end of the 18th century, Lithuania had been brought
under Russian rule. Lithuanians supported the anti-Russian
rebellions that broke out in 1830 and 1863. The Russians responded
by trying to erase Lithuanian national identity but the people
resisted and preserved their strong identity based on separate
ethnicity, religion, and language. In 1918 Lithuania declared
its independence, which lasted until 1940, when the Soviets
invaded Lithuania; shortly thereafter they declared it a Soviet
Socialist Republic. World War II was extremely painful for
Lithuanian not only because of the loss of its independent
state, but also because of Soviet mass deportations and Nazi
extermination of its Jewish population. As communism began
to crumble in the Soviet Union, Lithuania declared its independence
in 1990. The Russians resisted this action, first through
an economic blockade and, later, by sending in troops and
tanks. In September 1991, Russia recognized Lithuania as an
independent country. Today Lithuania is a modern and democratic
country. The beautiful Baroque Old Town of its capital Vilnius
attracts many Western tourists. One of the most beautiful
sites is Vilnius University, which is located in the heart
of the Old Town and which was founded in 1579.
The names of the poets Marcelijus Martinaitis, Sigitas Geda,
Sigitas Parulskis and Gintaras Grajauskas, as well as the
novelists Ricardas Gavelis, Jurgis Kuncinas and Jurga Ivanauskaite,
are well known not only in Lithuania, but also in Sweden,
Latvia and Germany and other countries.
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Lithuanian Program 