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The Ethnic Aspects Of Population Change In Latvia After Independence, Ilmars Mezs
The Ethnic Aspects Of Population Change In Latvia After Independence, Ilmars Mezs
Masters Theses
This study examines current and historic ethnic and demographic trends and their spatial and cultural contexts within Latvia. Comparisons with the other two Baltic states are also presented and discussed. The Latvian population underwent fifty years of Soviet rule, with deliberate policies to dilute the homogeneity of Latvians through Russification, in-migration, and political dominance. The period from 1940 to 1991 greatly impacted Latvians and immigrants, who were mainly Russians, by placing stresses on the spatial structure of the ethnic groups and their cultural relationship.
Latvians in particular feared ethnic and cultural extinction. The process of ethnic dilution and mixing under …