Põlva

Põlva (Estonian pronunciation: [ˈpɤlˑˈʋɑ]) is a town in southeastern Estonia, the capital of Põlva County, and the centre of Põlva Parish.

Põlva Church
Põlva, Estonia
Town
Põlva, Estonia is located in Estonia
Põlva, Estonia
Põlva, Estonia
Location in Estonia
Coordinates: 58°03′14″N 27°03′16″E
CountryEstonia
CountyPõlva County
MunicipalityPõlva Parish
Area
[1]
 • Total55 km2 (21 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)
 • Total5,115
 • Rank19th
 • Density93/km2 (240/sq mi)
Ethnicity
 • Estonians97%
 • other3%
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
Postal code
63308

Põlva is home for the Intsikurmu Music Festival Grounds, which regularly hosts concerts and summer activities, situated in a small forested area on the west side of the town.

History

The name "Põlva" appears in the historical record in 1452. The name seems to derive from the Estonian word for "knee" (põlv). Legend has it that a girl was immured in a kneeling position in St. Mary's Church to keep the devil away. This is reputedly how the town was named.

Põlva was an old military crossroad between the north and south of Livonia. Around 1240, shortly after the Christianization of Estonia, the Bernardine monks built a church, which they dedicated to the Virgin Mary. The church was subordinate to the Bishopric of Dorpat. The same parish was the result of the Livonian War under Russian domination in the 16th century. In 1582 it became part of Dorpat Voivodeship under Polish sovereignty, and later it belonged to Sweden. In 1721, in the Treaty of Nystad, Estonia and Livonia were then ceded to Russia. Then Põlva and its church parish belonged first to Tartu County and from 1783 to newly established Võru County, part of the Governorate of Livonia.

The town was developed around St. Mary's Church, which lay in ruins for a long time until it was rebuilt after the Great Northern War. In 1931, a railway from Tartu to Petseri through Põlva was completed. The population of Põlva began to grow rapidly and the town began to develop when Põlva became the center of the Põlva raion formed in 1950. The town grew around its artificial lake, whose sandy shores teem with vacationers during the summer. On 10 August 1993 Põlva gained town rights.

Demographics
Ethnic composition 1934, 1970-2021
Ethnicity 1934[2] 1970[3] 1979[4] 1989[4] 2000[5] 2011[6] 2021[7]
amount % amount % amount % amount % amount % amount % amount %
Estonians 392 94.7 2858 92.8 4446 92.3 6560 93.2 6234 96.4 5594 97.0 5303 97.2
Russians 6 1.45 81 2.63 234 4.86 291 4.13 132 2.04 99 1.72 79 1.45
Ukrainians - - 3 0.10 30 0.62 74 1.05 36 0.56 32 0.55 25 0.46
Belarusians - - 5 0.16 10 0.21 9 0.13 9 0.14 2 0.03 3 0.06
Finns - - 19 0.62 39 0.81 47 0.67 21 0.32 16 0.28 10 0.18
Jews - - 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 0.00 1 0.02 3 0.06
Latvians 1 0.24 3 0.10 5 0.10 3 0.04 1 0.02 1 0.02 3 0.06
Germans 7 1.69 - - 42 0.87 18 0.26 2 0.03 1 0.02 0 0.00
Tatars - - - - 0 0.00 4 0.06 3 0.05 2 0.03 0 0.00
Poles - - - - 1 0.02 5 0.07 0 0.00 1 0.02 0 0.00
Lithuanians - - 0 0.00 1 0.02 1 0.01 1 0.02 1 0.02 6 0.11
unknown 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 0.00 11 0.17 2 0.03 10 0.18
other 8 1.93 111 3.60 9 0.19 26 0.37 17 0.26 15 0.26 15 0.28
Total 414 100 3080 100 4817 100 7038 100 6467 100 5767 100 5454 100.1

Education

The importance of education is indicated by the town's coat of arms, which features a rooster with a pointer from an ABC primer. There are eight educational institutions in Polva, including the following:

  • Põlva Coeducational Gymnasium, which has 737 students;
  • Põlva Secondary School, which has 387 students;
  • Põlva Roosi School, which has 28 students. This school is for mentally impaired children.

Culture and sport

In summertime, interesting music festivals are held in Põlva. 2011 was the first time for harmonica players to get together and play music. Intsikurmu Music Festival is mostly targeted to young people - good music and visuals on the walls, taking place in tender August nights.

The inhabitants of Põlva have always been positive, youthful and fond of sports. In and outside the town one can practise many activities, from swimming to riding. The new gymnasium provides excellent opportunities for sports and the shooting gallery of Põlva has been the hothouse of top sportsmen who hit targets at various competitions. Handball, which can be practised in the local sports school, has been undoubtedly popular in Põlva. The professional players from the Serviti Handball Club have become the masters of Estonia four times and the club is also a serious competitor outside Estonia.

Põlva Kultuurikeskus
The Estonian War of Independence monument in Põlva
Võru street in Põlva
Põlva
Põlva County administration building

The varied landscape offers inexhaustible opportunities for those who like running, orienteering or cycling. This surely facilitates the success of the sportsmen of the Kobras Orienteering Club at competitions and urges them to organise sports events. Football club Põlva FC Lootos was founded 1994. One of the biggest sport clubs in county more than 30 players for Estonian national team was grown up within club history. Lootospark is a football stadium which is a cooperative project between Põlva Town, Estonian Football Federation and Põlva FC Lootos. This stadium is covered with a third-generation synthetic lawn and its lighting and underheating systems are equipped according to international requirements. The stadium was officially opened on November 7, 2004.

In addition to sports the inhabitants of Põlva are engaged in art and music. In the Põlva Art School one can learn painting, graphic arts and ceramics; the works of various artists are displayed in the Maarja Gallery. The Music School provides musical education and the E STuudio, an ensemble of young people, the brass band, the small symphony orchestra and a number of choirs also practise actively.

Politics

In October 2013, after the municipal elections, Põlva merged with the surrounding Põlva Parish and therefore lost its municipal status.

Before that, the town council consisted of 17 members elected on 18 October 2009. The government consisted of five members that were elected by the council on 20 November 2009. Tarmo Tamm, who was the mayor of Põlva for more than 11 years, went to the parliament in April 2011.[8][9] Since 11 May 2011 the mayor was Georg Pelisaar.[10]

Twin towns

The former municipality of Põlva was twinned with:

References
  1. "Population by sex, age group and place of residence after the 2017 administrative reform, 1 January". Statistics Estonia. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  2. Valdade rahvastik. 1. III 1934 rahvaloenduse andmed. Vihk I. II rahvaloendus Eestis (in Estonian and French). Tallinn: Riigi Statistika Keskbüroo. 1934. p. 45. hdl:10062/4438.
  3. Население районов, городов и поселков городского типа Эстонской ССР : по данным Всесоюзной переписи населения на 15 января 1970 года (in Russian). Tallinn: Eesti NSV Statistika Keskvalitsus. 1972. p. 77.
  4. Eesti Vabariigi maakondade, linnade ja alevite rahvastik. 1. osa, Rahvaarv rahvuse, perekonnaseisu, hariduse ja elatusallikate järgi : 1989. a. rahvaloenduse andmed (in Estonian). Tallinn: Eesti Vabariigi Riiklik Statistikaamet. 1990. pp. 29, 34. ISBN 978-9949-7193-2-7 – via Digar.
  5. "RL222: RAHVASTIK ELUKOHA JA RAHVUSE JÄRGI". Estonian Statistical Database (in Estonian).
  6. "RL0429: RAHVASTIK RAHVUSE, SOO, VANUSERÜHMA JA ELUKOHA JÄRGI, 31. DETSEMBER 2011". Estonian Statistical Database. Retrieved 4 February 2021.
  7. "RL21429: Rahvastik Rahvuse, Soo, Vanuserühma Ja ELukoha (Haldusüksus) Järgi, 31. DETSEMBER 2021". Estonian Statistical Database (in Estonian).
  8. Official site of the parliament of Estonia, Retrieved 24.04.11 (in Estonian)
  9. An interview with Tarmo Tamm, where he states that he worked as mayor for 11,5 years, Retrieved 24.04.11 (in Estonian)
  10. "Georg Pelisaar was elected as the mayor of Põlva", Retrieved 12.05.11 (in Estonian)
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