Valka

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Valka



City rights	1584

Location of Valka within Latvia
Location	57°46′N, 26°0′E
Other names	German: Walk
Mayor	Unda Ozoliņa
Number of city council members	11
District	Valka District
Area	14.36 km² (6 sq mi)
Population	6,286
Density	458 /km² (1,186 /sq mi)
Postal code	LV-470(1-2)
Calling code	+371 47
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Homepage of Valka

Valka (pronunciation (help·info)) is a town in northern Latvia, on the border with Estonia.

Valka and the Estonian town Valga are twins, separated by the Estonian/Latvian border but using the slogan "One Town, Two States". The border was marked out in 1920 by an international jury headed by British Colonel Tallents. With the expansion of the Schengen Agreement and abolition of the Estonian/Latvian border in 2007, it was announced that common public bus transport would be established between Valka and Valga.^[1] Also, all border crossing-points were removed and roads and fences opened.

1 History
2 Education
3 See also
4 External links
5 References

[edit] History

The town of Walk (in German) was first mentioned in 1286 but the city rights were granted by the Polish king Stefan Batory in 1584. However, the town gained its importance only at the end of the 19th century when the Vidzeme teacher's seminary was operating here.

On November 15, 1918 the decision to proclaim the independent Republic of Latvia was made in Valka. The red-white-red flag of Latvia was raised here for the first time . On July 1, 1920 the town was divided between the newly-born Latvian and Estonian states.

[edit] Education

There is one primary school and a gymnasium in Valka. The University of Latvia has a branch here. The Institute of Latvia-Estonia provides further education.