Lithuania: Quick Facts

Written and fact-checked by

The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last updated

Nov. 13, 2026

News •

Germany races to master electronic warfare • Nov. 8, 2026, 3:07 PM ET (Deutsche Welle)

Lithuania seizes major synthetic drugs lab run by Dutch national • Oct. 21, 2026, 3:00 AM ET (Euronews)

Ukraine apologizes after a suspected drone crashes in Lithuania, damaging a moving car. • Oct. 18, 2026, 2:01 PM ET (Deutsche Welle)

Facts

Also Known As	Lietuvos Respublika • Republic of Lithuania
Head Of Government	Prime Minister: Ingrida Šimonytė
Capital	Vilnius
Population	(2026 est.) 2,898,000
Currency Exchange Rate	1 USD equals 0.904 euro
Head Of State	President: Gitanas Nausėda
Form Of Government	unitary multiparty republic with one legislative house (Seimas, or Parliament [141])
Official Language	Lithuanian
Official Religion	none
Official Name	Lietuvos Respublika (Republic of Lithuania)
Total Area (Sq Km)	65,286
Total Area (Sq Mi)	25,207
Monetary Unit	euro (€)¹
Population Rank	(2026) 140
Population Projection 2030	2,409,000
Density: Persons Per Sq Mi	(2026) 115
Density: Persons Per Sq Km	(2026) 44.4
Urban-Rural Population	Urban: (2024) 68.7% • Rural: (2024) 31.3%
Life Expectancy At Birth	Male: (2023) 72.9 years • Female: (2023) 81.7 years
Gni (U.S.$ ’000,000)	(2024) 78,419
Gni Per Capita (U.S.$)	(2024) 27,150
¹The euro (€) replaced the lita (LTL) on January 1, 2015, at an exchange rate of 1 = LTL 3.45280.

Photos

Political map of Lithuania showing national boundaries, major and minor cities, and neighboring countries: Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, and Russia to the west. A small inset locator map highlights Lithuania's position in northern Europe near the Baltic Sea.

Map of northern and eastern Europe highlighting Lithuania in orange, with surrounding countries labeled, including Latvia, Belarus, Poland, and Russia. The capital city, Vilnius, is marked, and major bodies of water such as the Baltic Sea and North Sea are shown.

Klaipėda, Lithuania

Map of Lithuania showing major cities, rivers, uplands, and highlands, along with international borders with Latvia, Belarus, Poland, and Russia. The capital, Vilnius, and other cities such as Kaunas, Klaipeda, and Siauliai are labeled. An inset locator map highlights Lithuania's position in Europe.

Map of the Baltic States-Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania-showing country borders, major uplands and plains, highest points, and the capitals Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. Surrounding countries and bodies of water, including Russia, Belarus, Poland, Finland, Sweden, the Baltic Sea, and the Gulf of Finland, are also labeled.

National anthem of Lithuania

See All Images, Audio and Interactives →

Topics

League of Nations European Union collapse of the Soviet Union North Atlantic Treaty Organization nation-state Battle of Grunwald Council of Europe Baltic War of Liberation Memel dispute Vilnius dispute United States India United Kingdom China Canada Russia Germany Australia Japan France

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

default image

Rolandas Paksas

president of Lithuania

Dalia Grybauskaitė

Dalia Grybauskaitė

president of Lithuania

default image

Valdas Adamkus

president of Lithuania

Smetona, Antanas

Antanas Smetona

president of Lithuania

default image

Vincas Krėvė-Mickievičius

Lithuanian author

default image

Kazys Grinius

Lithuanian statesman

Basanavičius, portrait by A. Varnas; in the Museum of History and Ethnography, Vilnius, Lithuania

Jonas Basanavičius

Lithuanian physician

default image

Mindaugas

ruler of Lithuania

default image

Vincas Kudirka

Lithuanian patriot

default image

Justas Paleckis

prime minister and president of Lithuania

default image

Antanas Merkys

prime minister of Lithuania

default image

Simanas Daukantas

Lithuanian historian

default image

Ivan Semenovich Peresvetov

Russian social critic

Map showing the countries of Europe with national capitals and surrounding bodies of water, including the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Black Sea.

Europe

continent

Map of the Baltic States-Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania-showing country borders, major uplands and plains, highest points, and the capitals Tallinn, Riga, and Vilnius. Surrounding countries and bodies of water, including Russia, Belarus, Poland, Finland, Sweden, the Baltic Sea, and the Gulf of Finland, are also labeled.

Baltic states

region, Europe

Cathedral Square, Vilnius

Vilnius

national capital, Lithuania

Kaunas Castle

Kaunas

Lithuania

Šiauliai

Šiauliai

Lithuania

The port of Klaipėda, Lithuania.

Klaipėda

Lithuania

default image

Mazeikiai

Lithuania

default image

Marijampolė

Lithuania

Panevėžys: St. Peter and Paul's Church

Panevėžys

Lithuania

Alytus, Lith.

Alytus

Lithuania

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, 1922–91

Soviet Union

historical state, Eurasia

default image

Memelland

historical territory, Germany

Map highlighting the Pale of Settlement, the region in the western Russian Empire where Jewish residency was legally allowed from 1835 to 1917. The area is shaded in orange, covering parts of present-day Poland, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, and Moldova, with major cities such as Warsaw, ?odz, Lublin, Bia?ystok, Hrodna, Kyiv, Odesa, and Chisinau marked. An inset map shows the same region within modern European country borders for reference.

Pale of Settlement

Russian history

Map of Europe highlighting the territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania in 1396, shaded in orange. The duchy spans parts of present-day Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, and western Russia, with labeled cities including Vilnius, Smolensk, Kyiv, and Bratslav. Surrounding regions and bodies of water such as the Baltic Sea and Black Sea are also shown, with modern international boundaries indicated for reference.

Grand Duchy of Lithuania

historical state, Europe

Post-World War I and post-World War II boundary changes of the area of former East Prussia and its major towns.

East Prussia

former province, Germany

10:087 Ocean: The World of Water, two globes showing eastern and western hemispheres

You Name It!

Actual continental drift of plates. Thematic map.

Geography Fun Facts

Flags of all nations of the world. Grouping of various country flags on a world map.

Which Country Is Larger? Quiz

Brown globe on antique map. Brown world on vintage map. North America. Green globe. Hompepage blog 2009, history and society, geography and travel, explore discovery

Countries & Their Features

Flags of all countries of the world. Flags of the world. National flags. Country flags. Hompepage blog 2009, history and society, geography and travel, explore discovery

The Country Quiz

Flags of the world against blue sky. Countries, International. Globalization, global relations, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, Poland, Palestine, Japan. Homepage 2010, arts and entertainment, history and society

Which Country Is Larger By Population? Quiz

Brown globe on antique map. Brown world on vintage map. North America. Green globe. Hompepage blog 2009, history and society, geography and travel, explore discovery

Match the Country with Its Hemisphere Quiz

7:023 Geography: Think of Something Big, globe showing Africa, Europe, and Eurasia

Which Country Is Larger By Area? Quiz

Flags of the world. National flags. Country flags. Hompepage blog 2009, history and society, geography and travel, explore discovery

Countries of the World

Opened passport with visas, stamps, seals, world map. (travel, tourism)

Guess the Country by Its Neighbors Quiz