Pärnu County ( et, Pärnu maakond or ''Pärnumaa''; german: Kreis Pernau) is one of 15

counties of Estonia Counties ( et, maakond, plural ') are the first-level administrative subdivisions of Estonia. Estonian territory is composed of 15 counties, including 13 on the mainland and 2 on islands. The government (') of each county is led by a ' (gov ...

. It is situated in the south-western part of the country, on the coast of

Gulf of Riga The Gulf of Riga, Bay of Riga, or Gulf of Livonia ( lv, Rīgas līcis, et, Liivi laht) is a bay of the Baltic Sea between Latvia and Estonia. The island of Saaremaa (Estonia) partially separates it from the rest of the Baltic Sea. The main c ...

, and borders Lääne and

Rapla Rapla (German: ''Rappel'') is a town in central Estonia, the capital of Rapla County and the centre of Rapla Parish. The oldest records date back to 1241 in the Danish Census Book, when it was said that it was a small village with 8 acres ...

counties to the north, Järva and

Viljandi Viljandi (, german: Fellin, sv, Fellin) is a town and municipality in southern Estonia with a population of 17,407 in 2019. It is the capital of Viljandi County and is geographically located between two major Estonian cities, Pärnu and Tartu ...

counties to the east, and

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

to the south. In January 2013 Pärnu County had a population of 81,428 – constituting 6.3% of the total population of Estonia. Pärnu County is the largest county of Estonia in terms of land area.

History

In Pärnu county there is the oldest known human settlement in Estonia, which is the town of

Sindi Sindi may refer to: *Sindi people, an ancient people of the Taman Peninsula, nowadays Russia * Sindi, Estonia, a town in Pärnu County, Estonia * Sindi, Maharashtra, a town and municipal council in Wardha District, Maharashtra, India Persons with ...

, and it is up the

Pärnu River Pärnu () is the fourth largest city in Estonia. Situated in southwest Estonia, Pärnu is located south of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and west of Estonia's second largest city, Tartu. The city sits off the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet ...

, near the village of Pulli. It dates back to 8500 BCE in the Mesolithic historical period.

County Government

The County Government (Estonian: ''Maavalitsus'') is led by a

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

(Estonian: ''maavanem''), who is appointed by the Government of Estonia for a term of five years. Since 1 January 2010, the Governor position is held by Andres Metsoja.

Tourism

The city of Pärnu is a popular

holiday A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or t ...

resort for Estonians and increasingly for non-Estonians, e.g., from Sweden, Finland, Germany, and Russia.

Municipalities

The county is subdivided into

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

. There is one urban municipality (Estonian: ''linnad'' – towns) and six rural municipalities (Estonian: ''vallad'' – parishes) in Pärnu County.

Geography

Gallery

File:Pärnu-Jaagupi kirik.jpg,

Pärnu-Jaagupi Pärnu-Jaagupi is a Populated places in Estonia, borough (') in Põhja-Pärnumaa Parish, Pärnu County, Estonia. It has a population of 1,291 (as of 9 January 2009). Estonian stage and film actress Herta Elviste (1923-2015) was born in Pärnu-Ja ...

church File:Sindi raudteejaama hoone.jpg,

railway station File:Laupa mõisa peahoone jõega.jpg, Laupa manor on the

Pärnu river Pärnu () is the fourth largest city in Estonia. Situated in southwest Estonia, Pärnu is located south of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and west of Estonia's second largest city, Tartu. The city sits off the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet ...

File:Lydia Koidula monument1.jpg, Monument to Estonian poet Lydia Koidula in Pärnu File:Pärnu mudaravila 2.JPG, Pärnu mud baths and spa File:Liu tulepaak.jpg, Liu lighthouse in Audru Parish File:Riisa raba.JPG,

Riisa Riisa is a village in Tori Parish, Pärnu County in southwestern Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Fi ...

bog in

Soomaa National Park Soomaa National Park ( et, Soomaa rahvuspark) is a national park in south-western Estonia. Soomaa ("land of bogs") protects 390 km², the park was created in 1993. Soomaa is Important Bird Area since 1989 and a Ramsar site of protected ...

File:Downtown Parnu at night-PDXdj.jpg, Downtown Pärnu at night File:Häädemeeste kirik 01.jpg,

Häädemeeste Häädemeeste (Estonian for "Good Men", german: Gudmannsbach) is a small borough ( et, alevik) in Pärnu County Pärnu County ( et, Pärnu maakond or ''Pärnumaa''; german: Kreis Pernau) is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is situated in the ...

church File:Pärnu rannapromenaad 2014.jpg, Pärnu beach promenade File:Villageroad.JPG, Country road on the island of Kihnu File:Sauga River.jpg, Sauga river

References

External links

Pärnu County
Official website
Pärnu County Government
(in Estonian)
Town of Pärnu
Official website {{DEFAULTSORT:Parnu County Counties of Estonia