Väike-Maarja
Väike-Maarja (Klein-Marien) is a small borough (alevik) in Lääne-Viru County, Estonia. It is the administrative centre of Väike-Maarja Parish. The population of Väike-Maarja in January 2023 was 2,155 people.
Väike-Maarja
- Name
- Väike-Maarja
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In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Väike-Maarja • Settlement Type — Small borough • Subdivision Type — Country • Subdivision Name — Estonia • Subdivision Type1 — County • Subdivision Name1 — Lääne-Viru County • Subdivision Type2 — Municipality • Subdivision Name2 — Väike-Maarja Parish • Population Total — 2005 • Population As Of — 01.01.2008
Name
Name
Väike-Maarja was attested in historical sources as Weike-Maarja in 1826 and Wäikse-Maarja in 1883. It was known as Klein-Marien in German and as Nienkerken in Low German. The Estonian name Väike-Maarja and the German name Klein-Marien literally mean 'little Mary', and the Low German name Nienkerken means 'new church'. When the area of what is now Väike-Maarja was transferred from ancient Järva County to Virumaa County in the early 15th century, a new parish was established, referred to as the 'new church' (thus the Low German name Nienkerken). The new church was dedicated to the Virgin Mary and, because there was already a church dedicated to Mary in nearby Ambla in Järva County, the parish was referred to as Väike-Maarja 'little Mary' to distinguish it from the former. A similar differentiation was applied to the settlements of Suure-Jaani (big John) and Väike-Jaani (little John, now Kolga-Jaani) in Viljandi County.
Church
Church
• Illustration — Väike-Maarja church Väike-Maarja Church was initially built as a fortress church.
Notable people
Notable people
• Georg Lurich (1876–1920), wrestler and strongman • A. H. Tammsaare (1878–1940), writer, studied at Väike-Maarja parish school • Alar Kotli (1904–1963), architect • Maie Kalda (1929–2013), literary scholar and critic • Priit Raik (1948–2008), composer, conductor and pedagogue • Vello Jürna (1959–2007), opera singer • Aile Asszonyi (born 1975), opera singer • Kaido Höövelson (born 1984), sumo wrestler, known as Baruto Kaito
Gallery
Gallery
• Illustration — Väike-Maarja society house • Illustration — Väike-Maarja, main street • Illustration — Monument to the poet Jakob Liiv • Illustration — Monument to the strongman and wrestler Georg Lurich
Licensing
Text attribution
Part of the biographical narrative on this page reuses licensed material. Its origin, revision and licence are recorded here.
The biographical narrative on this page is based on the Wikipedia article Väike-Maarja, revision 1372819516 (EN edition), by its contributors. VALÉORINE has edited that text and built its own documentary record around it. The reused material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0, and this page's reuse of it is offered under the same licence. Everything else on this page — the chronology, the holdings, the evidence, the plates and the connections — is VALÉORINE's own record. Sources and licences.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 26 September 2026.
Elsewhere in General
22,760 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
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