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 is located in Lithuania Utena Location of Utena, Lithuania
Coordinates:
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 (<phonos file="Utena.ogg">pronunciation</phonos>, Polish: Uciana) 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. The name of the settlement has been known since 1261.

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 now a more attractive for recreation and tourism. In 2007, Utena 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.

The anniversary of Utena City used to be held on the last weekend of September each year. However, since 2013 the anniversary has been moved to the first weekend of September to take advantage of better weather conditions.

Geography

Map of the City

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

The lowest temperature ever recorded in Lithuania occurred in Utena (-42,9 °C in 1956-02-01).

Districts

The city is divided into 10 districts:

• Aukštakalnis
• Ąžuolija
• Centras (Center)
• Dauniškis
• Pramonės rajonas (Industrial district)
• Rašė
• Vyturiai
• Šilinė
• Grybeliai
• Krašuona

Parks and Gardens

City Garden

Dauniškis park

Krašuona Park

• City Garden
• Vyžuona Park
• Dauniškis Park
• Krašuona Park
• Aukštakalnis Pine Forest
• Rašė Park
• Utenėlė Park
• Vieša Park
• Monkey park

History

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

Utena was first mentioned in historical documents dating back to 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 rapidly after the St.Petersburg-Warsaw road was constructed between 1830 and 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 the Soviet Bolsheviks took over. In June 1919, Utena became a district center in independent Lithuania.

Utena, known as the shtetl Utyan in Yiddish, historically had a Jewish population. In 1941, approximately 2,000 Jews were rounded up in the town, which was then under the Nazi occupation and shot in the Rašė Forest about 2 km to the north.

Demography

Population

Utena church

Utena stadium

Population of Utena city

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:

• Chełm, Poland
• Kovel, Ukraine
• Lidköping, Sweden
• Pontinia, Italy
• Preiļi, Latvia
• Třeboň, Czech Republic

External links

• Official site
• Encyclopedia of Utena: Summary