VIĻYAKA Viļaka is a small town in the eastern part of Latvia, in the Balvi region. Until 2009, it was part of the Balvi district, then until 2021 it was the administrative center of the former Viļaka region. The town is located in the north-east of the republic, on the southern shore of Lake Viļaka, 246 km from the capital of the country - Riga and only 6.5 km from the border with the Russian Federation. Viļaka is located in the upper reaches of the Kira River (the Velikaya River basin). The area around is swampy, wooded, with lakes and ponds built on the river. The town has a flax processing and butter factory, and in Soviet times, knitwear production was also established. It was first mentioned in the Livonian chronicles at the beginning of the 13th century under the name Mariengauzen. Until 1920, Mariengauzen was the center of the Mariengauzen volost, Lutsinsky district, Vitebsk province. In 1920-1925, Vilyaka was in the Ludza district of Latvia, in 1925-1944 it was part of the Jaunlatgale (Abrene) district of Latvia as the center of the Vilyaka volost. On October 8, 1945, Vilyaka received the status of a city. In 1945-1949, it was the center of the Vilyaka district of the Latvian SSR. In 1949-1956, it was the center of the Abrene district of the Latvian SSR. After its abolition, it was part of the Balvi district. It was the center of the Susai village council, and the Vilyaka state farm was located here. Since 2009, the city has been the center of the Vilyaka region. After the administrative reform of 2021 and the abolition of the Vilyaksky region, it became part of the Balvi region. In 1969, the city had 2.8 thousand residents. Since 1990, the population has been declining due to natural and migration population decline. According to the 2000 census, the city's population was 1,850 people, more than half of whom were Russian-speaking residents. By nationality: Latvians - 880 people. (47.6%), Russians - 818 people. (44.2%), others (Ukrainians, Belarusians, Poles, etc.) - 152 people. (8.2%). As of the beginning of 2024, Viļaka had 1,172 residents, of which 789 were Latvians, 290 were Russians, and 93 were others (including those who did not indicate their nationality). My telegram: t.me/igorjzdesjbil For channel development: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/kasin...