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Country Guide > Europe > Estonia | |
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General Information Area 45,227 sq km (17,462 sq miles).
Population 1,356,045 (official estimate 2003). Population Density 30 per sq km. Capital Tallinn. Population: 397,150 (official estimate 2003). Geography Estonia is the most northerly of the three Baltic Republics and is bordered to the north and west by the Baltic Sea, to the east by the Russian Federation and to the south by Latvia. The country is one of great scenic beauty with many forests, more than 1400 lakes and 1500 islands. Smaller than Lithuania and Latvia, it has nevertheless the longest coastline of all the Baltic States. Government Republic since 1918. Regained independence in 1991. Head of State: President Arnold Rüütel since 2001. Head of Government: Prime Minister Juhan Parts since 2003. Language Estonian is the official language. Most people also speak Russian, which is the mother tongue of around 30 per cent of the population. However, since independence the indiscriminate use of Russian could on occasion cause offence. In addition to Russian, the most common foreign languages are English, Finnish and German. Religion Predominantly Protestant (Lutheran). Time GMT + 2. Electricity 220 volts AC, 50Hz. European-style two-pin plugs are in use. Communications Telephone IDD service is available. Country code: 372. To make international calls, dial 8, wait for the long tone and then dial 00. An English directory enquiries service is available (tel: 8 1182). Public telephones, which are plentiful, are operated by phonecards, available from kiosks. Mobile telephone GSM 900 and 1800 networks cover the whole country. Main operators include AS EMT (website: www.emt.ee), Radiolinja Eesti (website: www.radiolinja.ee) and TELE2 (website: www.tele2.ee). Fax Services are available at telephone offices and some post offices, as well as in hotels. Internet Public access is available at Internet cafes and libraries in main towns and cities. There is free Internet access at Tallinn Airport. Local ISPs include Delfi Online (website: www.delfi.ee) and Sünerkom (website: www.zzz.ee). Post Post to Western Europe takes up to six days. Post office hours: Mon-Fri 0930-1800, Sat 0900-1500. Poste Restante is available at the central post office in Tallinn located at Narva 1. Press Newspapers are published in Estonian, the most popular being Eesti Ekspress, Postimees and SL Ōhtuleht. The English-language newspaper The Baltic Times is published in Latvia and available weekly. There are a growing number of city guides published in English. Radio BBC World Service (website: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice) and Voice of America (website: www.voa.gov) can be received. From time to time the frequencies change and the most up-to-date can be found online. |
