Estonia was first ruled by the Danish, Swedish, Russians and Germans. The country became independent in 1918 on February 24. However, Estonia was forced to be part of the former USSR in 1940. Estonia then gained independence from Russia (USSR) in 1991 on August 20. Bordering the Baltic Sea, this eastern European country brings together an eclectic mix of medieval and morden architecture.

BACKGROUND
Estonia has a total population of 1,324,333 people. Estonia’s ethnic composition consists of Estonian – 67.9%, Russian – 25.6%, Ukrainian – 2.1%, Belarusian – 1.3%, Finn – 0.9% and other – 2.2%. The Religious make up comprises Evangelical Lutheran – 13.6%, Orthodox – 12.8%, other Christian denominations – 1.4%, unaffiliated – 34.1%, other/unspecified – 32%, none – 6.1%. The official language in Esonia is Estonian, other languages spoken are Russian which is also widely spoken, and other languages like English are spoken to a much lesser extent.

GEOGRAPHY
Estonia is 45,226 sq kilometers in total size. Estonia shares only two land borders and is sandwiched between Latvia and Russia. Estonia has a maritime climate that features wet, moderate winters and cool summers. Estonian terrain is a blend of marshy, lowlands and they are flat in the north and hilly in the south. On the offshore lie more than 1,500 islands. Estonia’s natural resources consist of oil shale, peat, phosphorite, clay, limestone, sand, dolomite and arable land. The natural hazard in Estonia is flooding and this occurs mainly in spring. Estonia falls in the GMT +0200 time zone.