10 Things You Might Not Know About Lithuania

Lithuania joined the European Union (EU) on 1 May 2004 and is also a member of the United Nations (UN) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

In March 1990, Lithuania became the first Soviet republic to declare its independence from Moscow.

The official language of Lithuania is Lithuanian. 84% of the Lithuanian population are ethnic Lithuanians who speak the Lithuanian language. However, it is common for the people to speak Russian or English also.

Lithuania is divided into 10 counties, 60 municipalities, and 500 elderates.

Basketball is the most popular sport in Lithuania. Lithuania won the bronze medal in three consecutive Olympic games (1992, 1996, 2000) and are currently ranked 6th in the FIBA Men's World Rankings.

Lithuania has a total population of 3,575,439, only 600,000 of that total live in the capital city Vilnius.

Lithuania is relatively flat with Juozapine Hill it's highest point in with an elevation of only 292,7 meters (957 feet).

At the end of the fourteenth century, Lithuania was the largest country in Europe.

Approximately 93% of the Lithuanian military is in the army with 4% in the navy and 3% in the air force.

Lithuania has one of the highest inflation rates of countries within the European Union (EU). The 2009 annual inflation rate of 11.1% is only lower than Latvia (15.3%) and Bulgaria (12.0%).