Pärnu County (Estonian: Pärnu maakond or Pärnumaa; German: Kreis Pernau) is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is located in the southwestern part of the country, on the coast of the Gulf of Riga, and it borders Lääne and Rapla counties to the north, Järva and Viljandi counties to the east, and Latvia to the south. In 2022, Pärnu County had a population constituting 6.4% of the total population of Estonia.
Pärnu County is the largest county of Estonia in terms of land area.
Contents
History
In Pärnu County, there is the oldest known human settlement in Estonia, which is located near the village of Pulli on the banks of the Pärnu River, known as the Pulli settlement. It dates back to 8500 BCE in the Mesolithic historical period.
County government
The administrative reform in Estonia abolished county governments by the end of 2017. Before that, counties were led by a governor, who was appointed by the Government of Estonia for a term of five years.
Previous county governors:
1993–2009: Toomas Kivimägi
2010–2015: Andres Metsoja
2015–2017: Kalev Kaljuste
Tourism
The city of Pärnu is a popular holiday resort for Estonians and also for non-Estonians, e.g., from Finland, Latvia, Germany, Sweden, Lithuania and other countries.
Municipalities
The county is subdivided into municipalities. There is one urban municipality (Estonian: linnad – towns) and six rural municipalities (Estonian: vallad – parishes) in Pärnu County.
Religion
The following congregations of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church (EELC) operate in Pärnu County under Pärnu Deanery of EELC: Pärnu, Audru, Häädemeeste, Pärnu-St. Jacob's, Saarde, Sindi, Tahkuranna, Tori, Tõstamaa, Treimani, and Vändra. The congregations of Hanila, Karuse, Kirbla, Lihula, Mihkli, and Varbla are under the administration of the Lääne Deanery of the EELC.
Regarding Eastern Orthodoxy, there is under the administration of the Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church Kergu, Uduvere, Uue-Virtsu, and Vändra congreations. An Orthodox congregation in the city of Pärnu operates under the jurisdiction of the Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
Baptist congregations operating in Pärnu County: Pärnu Salem, Pärnu Immanuel's, Pärnu Salt and Light Congregation, Suigu, and Kilingi-Nõmme.
A congregation belonging to the Catholic Church in Estonia operating in Pärnu County is the Congregation of St. John the Apostle in the city of Pärnu.
There are also congregations of other Christian churches in the county.