Šiauliai

Names

Šiauliai is referred to by various names in different languages: Samogitian Šiaulē; Latvian Saule (historic) and Šauļi (modern); Polish Szawle [ˈʂavlɛ]; German Schaulen pronounced [ˈʃaʊ̯lən] ; Belarusian Шаўляй [ʂau̯ˈlʲaj]; Russian Шавли Shavli [ˈʂavlʲɪ] (historic) and Шяуляй Shyaulyay [ʂɐʊˈlʲaj] (modern); Yiddish: שאַװל, romanized: Shavl.

History

The city was first mentioned in written sources as Soule in chronicles of the Livonian Order describing the Battle of Saule. Thus, the city's founding date is now considered to be 22 September 1236, the same date when the battle took place near Šiauliai. At first, Šiauliai was developed as a defence post against raids by the Teutonic and Livonian Orders. After the Battle of Grunwald in 1410, the raids stopped and Šiauliai developed as an agricultural settlement. In 1445, a wooden church was built. It was replaced in 1625 with the brick church that can be seen in the city center today.

Šiauliai was granted Magdeburg city rights in the 16th century when it also became an administrative centre of the area. However, in the 16th to 18th centuries, the city was devastated by the Deluge and epidemics of the Bubonic plague.

The credit for the city's rebirth goes to Antoni Tyzenhaus (1733–1785) who introduced reforms after a violent revolt of peasants of the Crown properties in Northern Lithuania (so-called in Polish: Powstanie Szawelskie 1769),. This refers to the Peasant uprising of 1769, against the Polish-Lithuanian introduction of economic reforms which endeavoured to enforce serfdom and unpaid labour on the peasants. The uprising was finally quelled by both polish and Russian Forces which resulted in radical economic and urban reforms.

Antoni Tyzenhaus decided to rebuild the city according to Classicist ideas; at first, houses were built randomly in a radial shape, but was rebuilt in an orderly rectangular grid. Šiauliai grew to become a well-developed city, with several prominent brick buildings, like a post office, hotel, and court house. In 1791, Stanisław August Poniatowski, king of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, once again confirmed the city's rights and granted it a coat of arms. It depicted a bear, the symbol of Samogitia, the Eye of Providence, and a red bull, the symbol of the Poniatowski family. The modern coat of arms has been modelled after this version.

After the Partitions of Poland, Šiauliai received a new coat of arms. The city grew and became an important educational and cultural centre. Also, infrastructure was rapidly developing; in 1836–1858, a road connecting Riga and Tilsit was built, while in 1871, a railroad connecting Liepāja with Romny was built. Šiauliai, being at the crossroads of important merchant routes, started to develop as an industrial town. In 1897, it was the third-largest city in Lithuania, with a population of about 16,000. The demographics changed also; 56.4% of the inhabitants were Jewish in 1909.

World War I and independent Lithuania

During World War I, about 85% of the buildings were burned down and the city centre was destroyed. After the war and re-establishment of Lithuania, the importance of Šiauliai grew. Before Klaipėda was attached to Lithuania, the city was second after Kaunas by population size. By 1929, the city centre was rebuilt. Modern utilities were also included; streets were lit and there was public transportation, telephone and telegraph lines, a water supply network and a sewer.

The first years of independence were difficult because the industrial city lost its markets in Russia. It needed to find new clients in Western Europe. In 1932, a railroad to Klaipėda was built and it connected the city to the Western markets. In 1938, the city produced about 85% of Lithuania's leather, 60% of footwear, 75% of flax fibre, and 35% of candies. Culture also flourished: new periodicals such as the Šiaulių Metraštis, a prominent annual publication featuring articles about local history and culture, started.

World War II

In 1939, one-fifth of the city's population was Jewish. German soldiers entered Šiauliai on June 26, 1941. The first mass murder of Šiauliai Jews was perpetrated in the Kužiai forest, about 12 kilometres outside Šiauliai, on June 29, 1941. According to one of the Jewish survivors of Šiauliai, Nesse Godin, some 700 people were shot in nearby woods during the first weeks of occupation after having been forced to dig their own graves. Beginning on July 29, 1941, and continuing throughout the summer, the Germans murdered about 8,000 Jews from Šiauliai and the Šiauliai region in the Kužiai forest. One hundred twenty-five Jews from Linkuva were also murdered there, along with ethnic Lithuanian and Russian members of the Communist Party and the Communist Youth.

The Šiauliai Ghetto was established in July 1941. There were two Jewish ghetto areas in Šiauliai, one in the Kaukas suburb, and one in Trakų. During World War II, the Jewish population was reduced from 8,000 to 500. Approximately 80% of the buildings were destroyed.

Soviet era

The city was largely rebuilt anew in a typical Soviet fashion during the years of subsequent Soviet occupation.

Politics

Mayors

The mayor of Šiauliai, officially the mayor of the municipality of the city of Šiauliai (Lithuanian: Šiaulių miesto savivaldybės meras), is the head of the Lithuanian municipality of the city of Šiauliai. The current incumbent is Artūras Visockas, who has been mayor since 2015.

1990–1991: Kazimieras Šavinis

1991–1995: Arvydas Salda

1995–2000: Alfredas Lankauskas

2000–2002: Vida Stasiūnaitė

2002–2003: Vaclovas Volkovas

2003–2007: Vytautas Juškus

2007–2011: Genadijus Mikšys

2011–2015: Justinas Sartauskas

2015–present: Artūras Visockas

Geography

Šiauliai is located in the eastern part of the northern plateau, near the Mūša, Dubysa, and Venta rivers. There is a distance of 210 kilometres (130 miles) to get to Vilnius, 142 km (88 mi) to Kaunas, 161 km (100 mi) to Klaipėda, 128 km (80 mi) to Riga, and 250 km (155 mi) to Kaliningrad. The total city area is 81.13 square kilometres (31.32 sq mi), with the green areas making up 18.87 square kilometres (7.29 sq mi) and water covering 12.78 square kilometres (4.93 sq mi). Urban land outside the perimeter of the administrative 70,317 kilometres (43,693 miles).

Altitude: Lake Rėkyvos water level – 129.8 m (425.85 ft) above sea level, Talsos lake level – 103.0 m (337.93 ft) in the city center – 128.4 m (421.26 ft), Salduvės Hill – 149.7 m (491.14 ft) above sea level.

Water

The total water area – 1,280 ha, 15.7% in urban areas.

Šiauliai Lakes

Lake Rėkyva, 1,179 ha

Lake Talkša, 56.2 ha

Lake Ginkūnai, 16.6 ha

Rivers

Kulpė

Rūdė

Vijolė

Švedė

Šimša

Tilžė

Šventupis

Climate

Under the Köppen climate classification, Šiauliai has a warm-summer humid continental climate (Dfb). The average temperature in January; −3 °C (27 °F) in July; +18 °C (64 °F). The amount of precipitation in a year – 620 mm (24.4 in).

In 1942, the city recorded the lowest Lithuanian year mean temperature (+3.6 °C).

Demographics

In 1795, there were 3,700 people living in Šiauliai, rising to 16,128 by 1897. The Jewish population of Šiauliai rose steadily through the second half of the nineteenth century, from 2,565 in 1847 to around 7,000 by the century's end.[1] By the outbreak of World War I, 12,000 of the town's inhabitants were Jews, making Šiauliai majority Jewish. A battlefield during World War I, Šiauliai saw thousands of its Jewish citizens flee, never to return. In 1923, Šiauliai population's was third to that of Kaunas and Klaipėda.

According to the population census of 2001, ethnic Lithuanians comprise 93%, Russians – 5%, and the remaining 2% consist of Ukrainians, Belarusians, Jews, Roma, Latvians, Armenians, and other ethnic groups. About 94% of the city's population consider Lithuanian their native language, 5% are Russian speakers and the remainder speak Ukrainian, Belarusian, Latvian, Roma, Armenian etc. About 80% of those older than 20 have a command of the Russian language, while only 17% can speak English and 7% – German.

According to the 2021 census, the city population was 100,653 people, of which:

Lithuanians – 94.12% (94,735)

Russians – 3.15% (3,173)

Ukrainians – 0.43% (436)

Belarusians – 0.25% (249)

Poles – 0.14% (138)

Others / did not specify – 1.92% (1936)

Economy

Beginning in the 19th century, Šiauliai became an industrial centre. During the Russian Empire period, the city had the largest leather factory in the whole empire, owned by Chaim Frenkel. Šiauliai contributed to around 85% of all leather production in Lithuania, 60% of the footwear industry, 75% of the flax fibre industry, and 35% of the candy industry.

During the Soviet years, the city produced electronics (Nuklonas), mechanical engineering, wood processing, construction industry. Most of the industrial enterprises were concentrated in urban areas.

According to 2005 data, the city has:

Manufacturing and service companies – 3195

Commercial enterprises – 781

Shopping centres – 30, including

Akropolis, opened March 2009

Saulės Miestas, opened March 2007

Bruklinas, opened November 2007

Tilžė, opened February 2008

Arena, opened November 2007.

In 2020, construction of Europe's largest aircraft maintenance and repair centre began on the territory of Šiauliai International Airport. The related company repairs Airbus A320, Boeing 737 Classic, and Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft and also provides aircraft administration and parking services. It is planned that the centre will create 1000 new jobs.

Education

1851 - Boys' Gymnasium (now Julius Janonis Gymnasium) was opened

1898 - Girls' Gymnasium (now Didždvaris Gymnasium) was opened

1920 - Jewish Gymnasium was opened

1920 - Šiauliai Teachers seminary was founded

1928 - Primary education became compulsory

1930 - Vincas Kudirka primary school was opened

1939 - The Institute of trade was moved from Klaipėda, it was the first Higher Education school in Šiauliai

1948 - Šiauliai Teachers Institute was founded. In 1954, it became the Pedagogical Institute, and since 1996, when the Šiauliai faculty of Kaunas Polytechnic Institute was connected, it is Šiauliai University. In 2021, Šiauliai University was reorganised to Vilnius University Šiauliai Academy.

Students in the city (in 2006):

In Šiauliai Academy – 10,440

In Šiauliai College – 2,770

In Northern Lithuania College – 700

In Šiauliai College of Management and Languages – 517

In Šiauliai Conservatory – 149

In Šiauliai Vocational Training Center – 2,663

There are 8 gymnasiums, 7 high schools, 16 secondary schools, 7 primary schools, 9 children's non-formal education schools, and 29 kindergartens. 21,000 students studied in general education schools in 2006.

Transport

The following highways pass through Šiauliai:

A9 / E272 Šiauliai – Panevėžys (79 km)

A11 / E272 Šiauliai – Palanga (147 km)

A12 / E77 Riga – Šiauliai – Sovetsk (186 km).

The city's western bypass, A18.

In 2006, Šiauliai had 297 km (185 mi) of roads, of which 32% had a gravel surface. The longest streets are Tilžės street, which is 9.72 km (6.04 mi) long, and Vilnius street, which is 5.67 km (3.52 mi) long, of which 1.28 km (0.80 mi) is a pedestrian boulevard.

Trains

The Tilžė–Riga and Šiauliai–Klaipėda railways were completed in 1916 and 1931, respectively. The city has a railway station.

As of 2026, the services calling at Šiauliai Railway Station are the following:

Vilnius–Klaipėda

Vilnius–Ryga

Šiauliai–Panevėžys

Kaunas–Šiauliai

Radviliškis–Klaipėda

Šiauliai–Mažeikiai

Air Transport

In 1930, an air strip was developed. It was expanded in 1961 during the Soviet period and developed into a large VVS base. It is now a military base for NATO, and home to the Šiauliai International Airport.

Buses

The first passenger transport company in Šiauliai, Autotrestas, was founded in 1940 and operated 29 buses. Since 1955, Šiauliai bus and taxi operations were managed by one single entity, but in 1972, bus and taxi operations within the city were restructured to establish the dedicated Šiauliai Bus Depot. Since 1995, the bus operations have been managed by Busturas, UAB. As of 2026, the operator provides 37 urban and six feeder services.

Regional, national, and international services are calling or terminating at Šiauliai Bus Station (Tilžės g. 107) by the shopping mall Saulės miestas. The combined shopping mall and bus station complex opened in 2007.

Sport

The most popular sports in the city are rugby, basketball, football, athletics, and cycling. The local rugby clubs Vairas and Baltrex are multi-time Lithuanian champions and are the main academies of Lithuanian rugby players.

BC Šiauliai, a basketball club established in 1984, has won seven consecutive Lithuanian Basketball League bronze medals sets between 2004–2010 and three consecutive Baltic Basketball League Elite Division titles between 2014–2016.

On July 25, 2007, to host the 37th men's European Basketball Championship, a modern Šiauliai Arena was opened to the public.

Twin towns and sister cities

Šiauliai is twinned with:

The city was previously twinned with:

Baranavichy, Belarus

Kaliningrad, Russia

Notable people

People who were born in or near Šiauliai include:

Regimantas Adomaitis, movie and stage actor

André Andrejew, a classic Russian and French movie art director

Šarūnas Bartas, film director

Ligia B. Bieliukas, WWII underground member, clubwoman

Tobias Dantzig, American mathematician and author.

Yosef Shalom Eliashiv, rabbi

Jacob Gens, self-proclaimed Vilnius Ghetto police commander under the Nazi occupation (1941–1943)

Nesse Godin, Holocaust survivor and Holocaust awareness advocate in the United States.

Robertas Javtokas, professional basketball player

Olga Jegunova, classical pianist

Veniamin Kagan, mathematician specializing in geometry

Anton Luckievič, Belarusian publisher, journalist and politician who served as the Prime Minister of the Belarusian People's Republic in 1918.

Ivan Luckievič, leading figure of the Belarusian independence movement in the early 20th century, publicist and archaeologist.

Virgilijus Noreika, opera singer,

Albrycht Stanisław Radziwiłł, magnate, noble, a duke and a politician. He held the post of Starosta (city foreman) of the city.

Depictions in popular culture

Šiauliai is one of the starting towns of Lithuania in the turn-based strategy game Medieval II: Total War: Kingdoms.

The Pietinis residential district is the setting of the 2016 novel Pietinia Kronikas by Rimantas Kmita. The novel has been adapted into a 2024 coming-of-age drama film The Southern Chronicles by Ignas Miškinis. The film has become one of the highest-grossing Lithuanian productions.