Utena

This article is about the city in north-east Lithuania. For the manga and/or anime series, see Revolutionary Girl Utena.
Utena
City

Coat of arms
Utena

Location of Utena, Lithuania

Coordinates: 55°30′N 25°36′E / 55.500°N 25.600°ECoordinates: 55°30′N 25°36′E / 55.500°N 25.600°E
Country  Lithuania
Ethnographic region Aukštaitija
County Utena County
Municipality Utena district municipality
Eldership Utena town eldership
Capital of Utena district municipality
Utena town eldership
Utena rural eldership
First mentioned 1261
Granted city rights 1599
Government
 • Mayor Alvydas Katinas
Area
 • City 15.1 km2 (5.8 sq mi)
Elevation 113 m (371 ft)
Population (2014)
 • City 27,484
 • Density 1,800/km2 (4,700/sq mi)
 • Metro 48,378
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Postal code 28xxx
Area code(s) (+370) 349
Website www.utena.lt

Utena ( pronunciation ) is a city in north-east Lithuania. It is the administrative center of Utena district and Utena County. Utena is one of the oldest settlements of Lithuania. The name of the city is most probably derived from a hydronym.[1] The name of the settlement has been known since 1261.[1]

Utena is an industrial city. It is known for its clothing, food and beverage factories. In recent years, however, streets, public squares and large areas of the parks in the city were reconstructed and Utena is more attractive for recreation and tourism now. In 2007, Utena had won a Silver Award in category B (towns with a population 10,001 - 50,000) of the International Awards for Liveable Communities, held in London.

Anniversary of Utena City used to be held the last weekend of September each year. However since year 2013 anniversary was moved to the first weekend of September due to better weather conditions.

Geography

Map of the City

Utena is located in the northeastern Lithuania. Utena covers 15,1 km² and is the 8th largest city by size in Lithuania. Four rivers crosses the territory: Vyžuona, Krašuona, Vieša and Utenėlė. There are two lakes: Dauniškis and Vyžuonaitis.

The lowest temperature record in Lithuania belongs to Utena (-42,9 °C in 1956-02-01).

Districts

The city is divided into 10 districts:

Parks and Gardens

City Garden
City Garden
Dauniškis park
Dauniškis park
Krašuona Park
Krašuona Park

History

Nazi Germany army commanders meeting in Utena (June 30, 1941)

Utena was first mentioned in historical documents in 1261. It was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania until 1795, when it fell under Czarist Russian rule. From 1802 it belonged to the Vilna Governorate until 1843 when it became a part of the Kovno Governorate. The town grew when the St.Petersburg-Warsaw road was constructed in the years 1830-1835. In 1899 a narrow gauge railway line, connecting Panevėžys-Utena-Švenčionys, was constructed. At the end of the 19th century two big fires devastated the town.

Germany occupied Utena from 1915-1918, until Soviet Bolsheviks took over. In June 1919, Utena became a district center in independent Lithuania.[2]

Utena, known as the shtetl Utyan in Yiddish, had a historic Jewish population. In 1941, approximately 2,000 Jews were ejected from the town under the Nazi occupation and shot in the Rašė Forest about 2 km north.[3]

Demography

Population

Utena church
Utena stadium
Population of Utena city[4][5]
Year Population
1939 6,276
1959 7,066
1979 23,461
1989 34,430
1999 36,100
2005 33,086
2006 32,881
2007 32,789
2008 32,572
2009 32,476
2010 31,940

International cooperation

Agreements on cooperation have been signed with 6 cities:

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Utenos Enciklopedija (English summary)". Utenos Enciklopedija. Utenos A. ir M. Miškinių viešoji biblioteka. 2002. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
  2. ↑ http://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/utena/utena1.html
  3. ↑ http://kehilalinks.jewishgen.org/utena/utena3.html
  4. ↑ "Gyventojų skaičius Utenos apskrityje ir savivaldybėse 2005 - 2009 metų pradžioje". Department of Statistics to the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-29.
  5. ↑ "Gyventojų skaičius metų pradžioje. Požymiai: miestas - Rodiklių duomenų bazėje". Department of Statistics to the Government of the Republic of Lithuania. 2009. Retrieved 2010-01-01.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Utena.