Klaipėda

Klaipėda
City municipality
Flag Coat of arms
Nickname:  Uostamiestis (port city)
Location of Klaipėda
Coordinates: 55°42′N 21°08′E
Country	Lithuania
Ethnographic region	Lithuania minor
County	Klaipėda County
Municipality	Klaipėda city municipality
Capital of	Klaipėda County Klaipėda city municipality
First mentioned	1252
Granted city rights	1254
Elderships	Melnragė and Giruliai
Area
• Total	110 km2 (40 sq mi)
Population  (2011)
• Total	161,300
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Website	www.klaipeda.lt

Klaipėda is a city in Lithuania. It is where the Nemunas River flows into the Baltic Sea. Klaipėda is the third largest city in Lithuania and the capital of Klaipėda County. The German name of the city is Memel. Until 1920, this city was the northernmost city of the German Empire.

The city's history is complicated. The Port of Klaipėda is important in the area. It is a usually ice-free port on the Baltic Sea. It has been controlled by the Teutonic Knights, the Duchy of Prussia, the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire, the Entente States, Lithuania, and the Third Reich. The city became part of Lithuania while it was a Soviet Socialist Republic. Klaipėda remained part of Lithuania after it again became independent state.

The population shrank from 207,100 in 1992 to 177,823 in 2011. Popular seaside resorts found close to Klaipėda are Nida to the south on the Curonian Spit, and Palanga to the north.

Sister cities and areas

Mannheim, Germany, since 1915/2002 Debrecen, Hungary, since 1970/1989 Kuji, Japan, since 1989 Karlskrona, Sweden, since 1989 Lübeck, Germany, since 1990 Cleveland, Ohio, United States, since 1992 Cherepovets, Russia, since 1992 Gdynia, Poland, since 1993 Rügen, Germany, since 1993

Kaliningrad, Russia, since 1993 Kotka, Finland, since 1994 Køge, Denmark, since 1995 North Tyneside, United Kingdom, since 1995 Liepāja, Latvia, since 1997 Mogilev, Belarus, since 1997 Szczecin, Poland, since 2002 Leipzig, Germany, since 2002 Odesa, Ukraine, since 2004 Qingdao, People's Republic of China, since 2004 Merida, Venezuela, since 2010