Latvians (Latvian: latvieši) are a Baltic ethnic group and nation native to Latvia and the immediate geographical region, the Baltics. They are occasionally also referred to as Letts,^[42][43] especially in older bibliography. Latvians share a common Latvian language, culture, history and ancestry.

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Quick Facts latvieši, Total population ...

Latvians

latvieši
Total population
c. 1.7 million[1]
Regions with significant populations
Latvia 1,187,891 (2021)[2][3] Other significant population centers:
United Kingdom	124,000 (2020)[4][5][6]
United States	85,723(2019)[7]
Germany	53,000(2021)[8]
Canada	30,725 (2016)[9]
Brazil	25,000 (2002)[10][11][12]
Australia	23,233 (2021)[13]
Ireland	19,933 (2016)[14]
Russia	18,979 (2010)
Norway	11,723 (2019)[15]
Sweden	10,323 (2022)[16]
Other countries (fewer than 10,000)  Ukraine 5,079 (2001)[17]  Luxembourg 4,000  Denmark 3,799 (2012)[18]  Spain 3,711 (2011)[19]  Estonia 3,329 (2020)[20]  Finland 3,232 (2020)[21]  Italy 2,689 (2014)[22]  France 2,602 (2016)[23][24]  Lithuania 2,300 (2012)[25]  Belarus 1,549 (2009)  Portugal 1,502 [26]  Netherlands 1,400 (2002)[27]  Kazakhstan 1,123 (2009)[28]   Switzerland 736 (2006)[29]  Belgium 679 (2008)[30]  Iceland 654 (2013)[31]  Venezuela 300[32]  Poland 293 (2011)[33]  Czech Republic 193 (2011)[34]  Austria 152 (2002)[35]  Uzbekistan 1,800[36]  Greece 69 (2006)[37]  Kyrgyzstan 82 (2009)[38]  Croatia 14 (2011)[39]  Israel 4,000[40]  Chile 3,000
Languages
Latvian and its dialects
Religion
Predominantly Lutheran,[41] Roman Catholic and Latvian Orthodox minorities
Related ethnic groups
Other Balts

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A Balto-Finnic-speaking tribe known as the Livs settled among the northern coast of modern day Latvia. The Germanic settlers derived their name for the natives from the term Liv. They referred to all the natives as "Letts" and the nation as "Lettland", naming their colony Livonia or Livland.

The Latin form, Livonia, gradually referred to the whole territory of modern-day Latvia as well as southern Estonia, which had fallen under a minimal Germanic influence. Latvians and Lithuanians are the only surviving members of the Baltic branch of the Indo-European family.

Paternal haplogroups R1a and N1a1-Tat are the two most frequent, reaching 39.9% each among ethnic Latvians.^[44] R1a has originated in Eastern Europe and is associated with spread of Indo-European languages. R1a of Latvians is predominantly M558 and compared to other populations also has the highest concentration of M558 among R1a. N1a1-Tat mutation originated in East Asia and had spread through the Urals into Europe where it is currently most common among Finno-Ugric, Baltic and Eastern-Slavic peoples. Latvians and Lithuanians have a predominance of the L550 branch of N1a1-Tat.

N1c1a was present in 41.5%, R1a1a-M558 in 35.2% and I1 (M253) in 6.3% of the samples analyzed.^[45] In lower levels, 2.5% of I2b (M223) and 0.6% I2a (P37.2) was found as well.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to People of Latvia.

• List of Latvians
• Demographics of Latvia
• Latvian Americans
• Latvian Australians
• Latvian Canadians
• Baltic people in the United Kingdom
• Latvian Swedes
• Latvian mythology