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    Vilnius, Lithuania
    Vilnius, Lithuania

    Lithuania, a Baltic nation in Northern Europe, has a rich and complex history. Established in the 13th century, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania became one of Europe's most extensive and influential realms, spanning present-day Belarus, Ukraine, and parts of Poland and Russia, as well as parts of Latvia, Estonia, Slovakia and Moldova through the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Key figures in Lithuania's history include Grand Duke Gediminas, who expanded the kingdom and established Vilnius as the capital in the early 14th century; Vytautas the Great, who led the country to its greatest territorial extent in the late 14th and early 15th centuries; and Jonas Basanavičius, a prominent figure in the Lithuanian National Revival movement that contributed to the nation's declaration of independence from Russia in 1918. Lithuania endured several occupations throughout the 20th century, ultimately regaining its independence in 1990.

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    Researching family history in Lithuania

    Hill of the Crosses, Lithuania
    Hill of the Crosses, Lithuania

    A variety of record types are available to help trace your ancestors in Lithuania. Key resources include civil registration records, which document births, marriages, and deaths, and church records, which may contain baptism, marriage, and burial information. Additionally, census records can provide a snapshot of family units and their living conditions during specific time periods, while land and property records offer insights into land ownership and inheritance patterns. Military records can help you trace the service history of ancestors who served in the armed forces. As with any genealogical research, it is essential to start with known family information and work backward in time, consulting various record types to build a comprehensive understanding of your Lithuanian family history.

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    Lithuanian ethnicity

    Traditional Lithuanian clothing
    Traditional Lithuanian clothing

    Lithuania is predominantly ethnically homogeneous, with the majority of the population identifying as Lithuanian. However, there are also several minority ethnic groups present in the country, including Poles, Russians, Belarusians, Ukrainians, and others. Although these minority groups represent a smaller percentage of the overall population, their presence contributes to the cultural diversity of Lithuania.

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    Lithuanian surnames

    Lithuanian surnames can be an essential aspect of researching family history in the country, as they often carry valuable information about an individual's ancestry, geographic origin, or occupation. In the Lithuanian language, surnames usually exhibit grammatical gender agreement, meaning that male and female members of the same family may have slightly different forms of the same surname. Understanding the structure and patterns of Lithuanian surnames can help genealogists more effectively locate relevant records and uncover connections among family members.

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