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Quiz about Estonia  More Than Just Another Baltic State
Quiz about Estonia  More Than Just Another Baltic State

Estonia - More Than Just Another Baltic State Quiz


The three Baltic states are often considered together as a single entity as they're all former USSR states, small in size and population. This quiz explores Estonian identity as a separate cultural entity to its Baltic neighbours.

A multiple-choice quiz by 1nn1. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
1nn1
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
360,995
Updated
Feb 19 24
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Average
Avg Score
8 / 10
Plays
2394
Awards
Top 5% quiz!
Last 3 plays: Guest 78 (9/10), blackandgreen (8/10), Guest 97 (5/10).
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Question 1 of 10
1. The Baltic states are three small countries in Northern Europe. They share a common element of being under Russian control (with some exceptions) from the 1700s to independence in 1991. Which one of the following countries is not a Baltic state? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. The Baltic states have struggled with the Sovietization of their countries. Pro-independence events occurred long before the Berlin Wall came down in 1989. Which option from the following did *NOT* occur as a ground-swell towards independence in the late 1980s? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Being the Baltic states does not mean that the majority of people in each state is a Balt. This may be the case in the southern two states but not Estonia. Armed with this knowledge, which language from the ones offered does the Estonian language most resemble? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. While geographically Estonia is a Baltic state, do Estonians identify culturally themselves as being Balts?


Question 5 of 10
5. Estonia, like its Baltic neighbours, has a horizontal tri-band flag. Estonia's flag of blue, black and white is an almost unique colour combination in the world's national flags. Which is the only other national flag in the world that has the same three colours as Estonia's flag? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. One of the reasons Estonia has progressed economically post-independence is because the Estonian government has provided a broad and accessible telecommunication network. Which of the following electronic communications companies was founded in Estonia? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. Tallinn is an unusual city in that it has a very distinctive old town yet also has a thriving "new" city that is considered one of the top ten digital cities in the world as well as being a global city. What part of Tallinn is listed as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1997? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Estonia, like most of eastern Europe, has not been a land of plenty, and so food is treated with respect at all times. The French may say "Bon appetit" but in Estonia they say "Jätku leiba". What does this mean? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. With four distinct seasons including a cold winter and mild summer, sports in Estonia tend to be either indoors or snow sports. In which one of the following sports did Estonia *NOT* win an Olympic medal in the 20th century? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Today Estonia is recognised as a nation with a fierce independence. It has escaped its past of foreign ownership, yet remains respectful of this fact. Rather than being hindered by its position at the crossroads of western and eastern Europe, it has capitalised on this geography. Which of the following best exemplifies this geographical advantage? Hint



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quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. The Baltic states are three small countries in Northern Europe. They share a common element of being under Russian control (with some exceptions) from the 1700s to independence in 1991. Which one of the following countries is not a Baltic state?

Answer: Belarus

The three Baltic states, in general, have had a similar general history: All had been under Russian control since the 1720s, became independent after the Russian Revolution in 1919-20, stayed independent until the outbreak of World War II when they were occupied by Russia, then by the German Third Reich, then under Russian sovereignty, as Soviet Republics until the Berlin Wall came down in 1989. All three Baltic states have resisted Sovietization and have tried to maintain their individual identities despite control from their larger eastern neighbour.

The three Baltic States are from North to South: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. All have a Baltic Sea coastline. Estonia is the smallest and least populous of the three. Belarus is a landlocked independent nation located south-east of Latvia and Lithuania and has additional borders with Poland, Ukraine and Russia. Belarus, unlike the individual Baltic states, is also a former Soviet Republic but has worked hard to maintain close relations with Russia since independence.
2. The Baltic states have struggled with the Sovietization of their countries. Pro-independence events occurred long before the Berlin Wall came down in 1989. Which option from the following did *NOT* occur as a ground-swell towards independence in the late 1980s?

Answer: The three Baltic states declared war on Russia

Folk singing has been an integral part of Baltic state culture since the early Middle Ages. In 1987, especially in Estonia, where there was civil unrest about the Soviet control of the three Baltic states, mass demonstrations started featuring spontaneous singing of national folk songs (illegal under Soviet rule). The Singing Revolution lasted four years until independence was achieved.

The Baltic Way or Baltic Chain was the formation of a human chain containing an estimated two million people, that stretched from Vilnius in the south, northwards to Riga in Latvia and then on to Tallinn in Estonia on August 23, 1989. The date is significant. it was fifty years after the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was signed. (This was ostensibly a non-aggression pact between Russia and Germany signed prior to WWII. However it contained secret clauses, showing how the countries that were situated between the two countries would be partitioned and divided between the two counties). The chain formed for 15 minutes at seven pm local time. It caught the attention of the West and the United Nations and played a large part in Baltic state independence.

On November 16, 1989, the Estonian Sovereignty Declaration was issued declaring financial independence for Estonia, possession of its own mineral and natural resources, and probably most important, re-establishment of Estonian as the official national language. This was followed by a referendum on independence. This was considered a gamble as under Sovietization, many Estonians had been deported to other parts of the Soviet Union and conversely 27% of people who were now living in Estonians were ethnic Russians. However a decision was made to let all citizens to vote not just the registered Estonians and the result was a 64% vote in favour of independence with only 17% registering a "No" vote.
3. Being the Baltic states does not mean that the majority of people in each state is a Balt. This may be the case in the southern two states but not Estonia. Armed with this knowledge, which language from the ones offered does the Estonian language most resemble?

Answer: Finnish

The Estonian language is closely related to the Finnish language (as evidenced by the propensity of double vowels in both languages). It is a Finnish-Uralic language and is one of the few European languages that is not Indo-European in origin. (Helsinki is only a three-hour ferry ride across the Gulf of Finland from Tallinn). Estonian though, does have many Germanic origin words due to the presence of Germanic language-speaking people living in Estonia.

These Germans were the merchant class that stayed (and prospered) in Estonia without challenging for sovereignty and working alongside the foreign power that did have control.
4. While geographically Estonia is a Baltic state, do Estonians identify culturally themselves as being Balts?

Answer: No

Estonians are culturally and linguistically descended from the Baltic Finns, whereas Latvians and Lithuanians are culturally and linguistically Balts, primary due to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which stretched as far north as Southern Estonia up to the early 1700s.

Estonians, culturally are a Finnic people. They were part of Denmark (Tallinn actually means Danish Town; Estonia's coat of arms is similar to Denmark's and features three purple lions) from the fourteenth century to the seventeenth when they became part of the Swedish Empire in 1645 (The Estonians have a phrase: "The good old Swedish times"). The Russians took over in 1721 and remained in control until independence in 1991 (except for a brief independence 1920-1939 and Nazi occupation in 1941-44).

In 1999, Thomas Ilves, who went on to become President of Estonia in 2005, gave a very important speech in 1999 when Foreign Minster. His speech's title was "Estonia as a Nordic Country". In this speech he stated, "...since what the three Baltic states have in common almost completely derives from shared unhappy experiences imposed upon us from outside: occupations, deportations, ..., [and] sovietization. ...What these countries do not share is a common identity". Today, most Estonian identify themselves as Nordic, recognising their cultural roots.
5. Estonia, like its Baltic neighbours, has a horizontal tri-band flag. Estonia's flag of blue, black and white is an almost unique colour combination in the world's national flags. Which is the only other national flag in the world that has the same three colours as Estonia's flag?

Answer: Botswana

Estonia's flag is called the "sinimustvalge" which means literally blue, black, white. While there are 51 countries with a three colour horizontal tri-band national flag, having a central black band is unusual as is the bottom band being white. There are many interpretations of the meaning of each band but the most popular explanation is one attributed to Martin Lipp, an Estonian poet: the blue band represents the "vaulted sky above the native earth"; black represents the soil of the homeland and the "fate of Estonians with struggles in the past" and white is for "purity, hard work and commitment". In 2001, an Estonian politician suggested that the flag be re-designed to reflect Estonia as a Nordic nation by using the same three colours but making them into a white Scandinavian Cross with black edging, on a blue field.

The only other national flag with the same colours is Botswana's flag which has a field of blue with a thin black stripe in the middle, which in turn is bordered by two thinner white stripes.

Latvia's tri-color flag is red, white, red. Lithuania's is yellow, green, red.
6. One of the reasons Estonia has progressed economically post-independence is because the Estonian government has provided a broad and accessible telecommunication network. Which of the following electronic communications companies was founded in Estonia?

Answer: Skype

In 2012, Estonia had a population of 1.3 million people yet had over two million cellular phones, a further 450 thousand land-lines and over 1.0 million internet users. Internet usage is extremely widespread with wifi network being almost ubiquitous.

Skype was invented in Estonia in 2003. It is an electronic application that facilitates video and phone calls from computers, tablets and mobile phones to other electronic devices.
7. Tallinn is an unusual city in that it has a very distinctive old town yet also has a thriving "new" city that is considered one of the top ten digital cities in the world as well as being a global city. What part of Tallinn is listed as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1997?

Answer: The Old Town of Tallinn including Toompea Castle

Tallinn is a city of around 450,000 people. It is situated on the northern coastline of Estonia on the Gulf of Finland 80km south of Helsinki. The city comprises three parts. Toompea is the fortified upper town and is the traditional administrative centre of the city. It includes Toompea Castle. Adjoining this is the lower town or old town. As Tallinn has never been razed or pillaged it has very well preserved architecture dating back to the thirteenth century. It includes St Olaf's Church which with its spire reaching 520ft, was thought to be the tallest building in the world between 1549 and 1625.

The main Estonian education center is in Tartu, 185 km south east of Tallinn. The University of Tartu is considered Estonia's most prestigious University. The Kernavė Archaeological Site and Fortress of Suomenlinna are both UNESCO Cultural Heritage Sites in Lithuania and Finland respectively.
8. Estonia, like most of eastern Europe, has not been a land of plenty, and so food is treated with respect at all times. The French may say "Bon appetit" but in Estonia they say "Jätku leiba". What does this mean?

Answer: "May your bread last"

In some ways Estonian cuisine is similar to that of temperate Northern Europe: The staples are built around meat (usually pork or fish if near the sea) and potatoes with seasonal vegetables. Rye bread (leib) is ubiquitous and is served with nearly every meal. (White bread is quite rare and is called "Sai"). Bread in Estonia takes on an almost spiritual property. At the very least it is a symbol of life and/or sustainability. This is illustrated by the many Estonian sayings about (rye) bread:

"Bread is the head of the household otherwise the head of the household ends up in the fields".

"Let's put our bread into one cabinet" (a wedding proposal).

"Salt and Bread" The food basics. A traditional gift when attending a housewarming.

"Liebkond", literally - Bread ties - a clan.

If a piece of bread is dropped, it must be picked up and kissed to show respect to the bread.

If bread goes stale, it is never discarded, it is used in bread soup (leivasupp), a desert with bread and jam (taluneiu) or bread pudding (saiavorm).
9. With four distinct seasons including a cold winter and mild summer, sports in Estonia tend to be either indoors or snow sports. In which one of the following sports did Estonia *NOT* win an Olympic medal in the 20th century?

Answer: Beach volleyball

Estonia has had little chance to compete as an individual country in the Olympics: five Olympics (between 1920 and 1936) when independent and 1992 onwards after re-establishment of independence in 1991. By the time the London Olympics had concluded in 2012, Estonia had won 49 (summer) Olympic medals and 25 (winter) Olympic medals. The most successful sports were wrestling, (eleven medals, five gold), cross country skiing, (seven medals, four gold), athletics (six medals, two gold) and weightlifting (seven medals, one gold).

In London in 2012, Estonia did not qualify for Olympic beach volleyball and had not qualified for the event since its inclusion as a medal sport in 1996.
10. Today Estonia is recognised as a nation with a fierce independence. It has escaped its past of foreign ownership, yet remains respectful of this fact. Rather than being hindered by its position at the crossroads of western and eastern Europe, it has capitalised on this geography. Which of the following best exemplifies this geographical advantage?

Answer: 5 Kroon note depicts Ivangorod Fortress and Herman Castle overlooking Narva River

The five Kroon note features the Russian fortress and the Herman castle built by the Danes in 1246, overlooking the Narva River, economically Estonia's most important river. This depiction shows Estonia as the crossroads of Eastern and Western Europe. This has always been a disadvantage in the past as Estonia was situated between two powerful nations (Russia / Soviet Union and Germany and its predecessors), both of which coveted Estonia's (and the other Baltic states') land. Now Estonia is turning that into an advantage: its economy makes Estonia the "Baltic Tiger" with its ability to trade with Russia and key Western European countries like Germany, Sweden, Finland and France.

Konrad Magi is indeed Estonia's most famous artist, and he is famous for his landscapes but most of these are of other countries' landscapes. ("Veneetsia" is "Venice" in Estonian).

The fact that Estonia changed its currency from the Kroon to the Euro in 2011 (It joined the EU in 2004) was an indication of how they wanted to prosper as part of the Eurozone. The Estonian Euro coins all feature the word "Esti" (Estonia), a silhouette of the country and twelve stars to demonstrate Estonia's commitment to Europe.

Erki Nool is perhaps Estonia's most famous athlete. He won the Olympic gold medal in Sydney in 2000 for the decathlon.
Source: Author 1nn1

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor trident before going online.
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