2. The Legend of the Founding of VilniusThe Legend of the Founding of Vilnius
This legend relates to Gediminas, the Grand Duke of Lithuania,
whose monument stands in the Cathedral Square.
3. Grand Duke, Gediminas, was
on a hunting trip in the
forests around the mouth of
the River Vilnia. When night
fell, the party, feeling tired
after a long and successful
hunt, decided to set up a
camp and spend the night
there.
4. While he was asleep,
Gediminas had an unusual
dream in which he saw an
iron wolf at the top of the
mountain. The iron wolf was
standing on the top of a hill
with its head raised proudly
towards the moon, howling
as loud as a hundred wolves.
5. The pagan priest Lizdeika told the Duke that the dream
was a direction to found a city among these hills. The
howling of the wolf, explained the priest, represented the
fame of the future city: that city will be the capital of
Lithuanian lands, and its reputation would spread far and
wide, as far as the howling of the mysterious wolf…
6. LithuanianLithuanian is the official language of
Lithuania.
It’s an Indo-European language, closely
resembling the ancient Sanskrit, and is written
using the Latin alphabet.
7. There are 65 churches in Vilnius.
Like most medieval towns, Vilnius was developed
around its Town Hall.
8. The Old Town, the historical centre of Vilnius,
is one of the largest in Europe. The most
valuable historic and cultural sites are
concentrated here.
9. The buildings in the old town were built over several
centuries, creating a blend of many different
architectural styles.
Although Vilnius is known as a Baroque city, there
are examples of Gothic, Renaissance, and other
styles.
12. The Vilnius Castle Complex, a group of defensive,
cultural, and religious buildings that includes Gediminas
Tower, Cathedral Square, the Palace of Lithuania and
several medieval castles, is a part of the National
Museum of Lithuania.
13. Lithuania is a parliamentary representative
democratic republic, whereby the Prime
Minister of Lithuania is the head of the
government, and of a multi-party system.
The current president of Lithuania is Dalia
Grybauskaitė.
14. Today Lithuania has the most homogeneous
population in the Baltic States.
Lithuanian 83.5%
Polish 6.7%
Russian 6.3%
Belarussian 1.2%
Ukrainian 0.7%
Jew 0.1%
15. Religion in Lithuania
Catholic 70%
Orthodox 3%
Protestant 1%
Old Believers 0.8%
Jewish 0.1%
16. FOLK
Lithuanian folk music is based around songs, which
include romantic, wedding songs, as well as work
songs and more archaic war songs.
Traditional vocal music is held in high esteem on a
world scale: Lithuanian song fests and SUTARTINĖS
multipart songs are on the UNESCO's list.
19. MUSIC
Lithuanian folk music
is based around
polyphonic music
played on flutes and
zithers (kanklės).
Violeta Urmanavičiūtė
- one of the finest
soprano voices in the
world
20. CINEMA AND THEATRE
Lithuania has a lively drama scene.
Many film festivals are held and the most popular is
“Kino Pavasaris” (“Film Spring”).
A major theater in Lithuania is the Lithuanian
National Drama Theater.
Famous directors: Oskaras Koršunovas, Eimuntas
Nekrošius.
23. BASKETBALLBASKETBALL
The most popular and successful team sport in
Lithuania.
"Basketball is the only sport the 3 million Lithuanians
truly care about—it is their second religion, after
Catholicism—and their success is proportionately
stunning."
24. Famous basketball players:
Arvydas Sabonis;
Šarūnas Marčiulionis;
Žydrūnas Ilgauskas;
Darius Songaila;
Linas Kleiza.
25. Virglijus Alekna
Famous Lithuanian athlete discus thrower;
Two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time
world champion.
26. Rūta Meilutytė
At the age of 15, she
had already broken
eleven Lithuanian
women's swimming
records.
At the 2012 Summer
Olympics in
London, Meilutytė
won the gold medal.
27. Lithuania at the Paralympics
In Summer Paralympics (1992, 1996,
2000, 2004, 2008, 2012) Lithuania won
4 gold, 11 silver and 30 bronze medals.
