| 
          AREA ................................................
       | 
      
            
          64.589 
                kmq 
       | 
     
     
      | 
            POPULATION ..................................
       | 
      
            
          2.306.306 in. 
       | 
     
     
      | 
            DENSITY .........................................
       | 
      
            
          35,7 in/kmq 
       | 
     
     
      | 
            CAPITAL ..........................................
       | 
      
            
          Riga 
       | 
     
     
      | 
            LANGUAGES ....................................
       | 
      
          Latvian (official) 58.2%, Russian 37.5%, Lithuanian and other 4.3% (2000 census)
       | 
     
     
      | 
            RELIGIONS ......................................
       | 
      
          Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Russian Orthodox
       | 
     
     
     | 
            CURRENCY ......................................
      | 
     
          Latvian lat (LVL)
      | 
    
    
     | 
           GDP per CAPITA .............................
      | 
     
          11653 $ (2004)
          
      | 
    
    
     | 
           HUMAN DEVELOPMENT INDEX ..
      | 
     
          0,594 (44th place)
      | 
    
    
     | 
              LOWEST POINT ...............................
      | 
     
          Baltic Sea 0 m
         
      | 
    
    
     | 
            HIGHEST POINT ..............................
      | 
     
          Gaizinkalns 312 m
      | 
    
    
     | 
             INDEPENDENCE ...............................
      | 
     
          21 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
          
      | 
    
    
     | 
             INSTITUTIONAL FORM ...................
      | 
     
          Republic
          
      | 
    
    
      | 
             WEB DOMAIN ..................................
      | 
     
            .lv
      | 
    
    
    | 
                  COUNTRY CODE ..............................
     | 
    
          +371
             |