Editing Klaipėda (section)

==Demographics==
{{See also|Demographics of Lithuania}}
{{Historical populations
|type = LT
|state = collapsed
|source =<ref name="TLE">Tarybų Lietuvos enciklopedija. Vilnius: Vyr. enciklopedijų redakcija, 1986. T.2. P.325.</ref>
|1722 |3400
|1782 |5500
|1790 |6300
|1813 |7230
|1823 |5300
|1837 |9000
|1855 |17000
|1861 |17500
|1875 |20000
|1890 |19282
|1897 |20100
|1905 |20700
|1912 |23500
|1925 |35845
|1931 |37142
|1938 |47189
|1950 |48500
|1959 |89500
|1961 |106243
|1967 |131600
|1970 |140342
|1978 |175200
|1979 |176648
|1985 |195000
|1989 |202929
|1991 |208300
|1992 |207100
|1999 |203300
|2001 |192954
|2007 |185936
|2008 |184657
|2009 |183433
|2010 |182752
|2011 |162360
|2014 |157305
|2017 |162835
|2018 |149015
|2019 |148506
|2020 (est.) |154332
}}
[[File:Klaipeda castle.jpg|thumb|Residents houses (left) and [[Klaipėda Castle]] (right) in {{Circa|1535}}]]
Klaipėda was established as an outpost dedicated for [[Lithuanian Crusade|German crusaders]].<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/> Initially, Klaipėda developed slowly. In the 13th century, it was often attacked by the [[Sambians]] and [[Samogitians]], and in the middle of the 15th century, it was attacked by the [[Gdańsk]]ians (for trading reasons).<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/> Consequently, in the 13th&ndash;15th centuries, Klaipėda was burned or ruined around 20 times.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/>

In the second half of the 15th century, the residents began to settle in a territory of the Klaipėda Old Town, which was on a peninsula of the right bank of the old {{ill|Danė|lt|Akmena (upė)}}.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/> Soon, the reconstruction of the [[Klaipėda Castle]] began, and all residents moved to the peninsula.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/>

The development of Klaipėda was fueled by the increasing trade of the [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]] with the [[Western world|Western countries]]. Around 1503, there were 25 families of full-fledged townspeople, while in 1540, there were 107 families. Eventually, in 1589, there were 143 families in Klaipėda.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/><ref name="KlaipedaMle"/> The [[Lithuanians]] and [[Curonians]] lived alongside the German [[Ostsiedlung|colonists]], but the [[magistrate]] did not allow non-Germans to join [[Corporation (feudal Europe)|artisan corporations]] and did not grant them rights available to townspeople.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/> In the [[State of the Teutonic Order]], [[Old Prussians]] and Western Lithuanians were not allowed to engage in trade, crafts, and settle in cities. Thus, in the [[Duchy of Prussia]], most of the cities' residents were Germans.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle">{{cite web |last1=Matulevičius |first1=Algirdas |last2=Kaunas |first2=Domas |title=Mažoji Lietuva |url=https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/mazoji-lietuva/ |website=Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija |access-date=8 April 2023 |language=lt |archive-date=3 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230203190510/https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/mazoji-lietuva/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Nevertheless, villages in [[Lithuania Minor]] were extensively inhabited by Lithuanians,<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle" /> and Klaipėda developed as one of the most important centres of Lithuania Minor.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija" /> According to the [[Prussia]]n Law, all native citizens were initially called as Prussians, while only in the 16th century classification of the population by nationality began.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle" /> In 1525–1818, Klaipėda was part of the Lithuanian Province (the term was used in state legal documents and Prussian monarchs decrees), which comprised the most Lithuanian territories of Lithuania Minor (the Klaipėda, [[Tilsit]], [[Ragainė]], [[Įsrūtis]] counties).<ref>{{cite web |last1=Matulevičius |first1=Algirdas |title=Lietuvos provincija |url=https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/lietuvos-provincija/ |website=Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija |access-date=8 April 2023 |language=lt |archive-date=8 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408185414/https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/lietuvos-provincija/ |url-status=live}}</ref>

There were few German colonists in [[Royal Prussia]] when [[List of monarchs of Prussia|Prussian monarchs]] were [[vassal]]s of the [[List of Polish monarchs|Polish kings]] (1466–1660), and they mostly moved to cities and towns.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/> During the [[Second Northern War]] in 1656–1657, Lithuania Minor was damaged by [[Tatars]] detached from the [[Military of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Army of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]].<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/> Following the [[Treaty of Oliva]] in 1660, Klaipėda become part of the [[Brandenburg-Prussia|Brandenburg-Prussia constituent state]], which led to strengthened oppression of the locals of Lithuania Minor.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/>

[[File:Der Preussische Litthau (1744).jpg|thumb|Prussian Lithuanians in 1744]]
In 1701 the [[Kingdom of Prussia]] was created and Prussian officials and intellectuals propagated a political direction which claimed that a new nation formed from [[Prussian Lithuanians]] (''Lietuvininkai''), Old Prussians, and German colonists.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/> In the beginning of the 18th century 300,000 residents lived in the core of Lithuania Minor and up to 100% of peasant farms in the [[Klaipėda Region]] were Lithuanian, however cities in Lithuania Minor become centres of [[Germanisation]], [[cultural assimilation]], and colonization.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Matulevičius |first1=Algirdas |title=Prūsijos lietuviai |url=https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/prusijos-lietuviai/ |website=Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija |access-date=8 April 2023 |language=lt |archive-date=8 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408185500/https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/prusijos-lietuviai/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="LietuvininkaiMle">{{cite web |title=Lietuvininkai |url=https://www.mle.lt/straipsniai/lietuvininkai |website=Mažosios Lietuvos enciklopedija |access-date=10 April 2023 |language=lt |archive-date=8 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208200703/https://www.mle.lt/straipsniai/lietuvininkai |url-status=live}}</ref> In 1700–1721 the Prussian Lithuanians population was dramatically decreased in Klaipėda and other Lithuanian counties by the [[Great Northern War plague outbreak]] which killed 160,000 (53%) of residents in Lithuania Minor (more than 90% of the deceased were Prussian Lithuanians).<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/><ref>{{cite web |last1=Gruodytė |first1=Stefanija |last2=Matulevičius |first2=Algirdas |title=Maras Lietuvoje |url=https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/maras-lietuvoje/ |website=Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija |access-date=8 April 2023 |language=lt |archive-date=8 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408185541/https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/maras-lietuvoje/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Following it, the Prussian authorities organized a large-scale German colonization of Lithuania Minor.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/><ref name="Kolonizacija">{{cite web |last1=Jasas |first1=Rimantas |last2=Kairiūkštytė |first2=Nastazija |last3=Matulevičius |first3=Algirdas |title=Kolonizacija |url=https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/kolonizacija/ |website=Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija |access-date=8 April 2023 |language=lt |archive-date=8 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408185733/https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/kolonizacija/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The colonists received various privileges, however they constituted for only 13.4% of residents and quite a few of them later departed to other countries.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/><ref name="Kolonizacija"/> In 1736–1818 Klaipėda was part of Lithuanian Department which had over 340,000 residents.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Matulevičius |first1=Algirdas |title=Lietuvos departamentas |url=https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/lietuvos-departamentas/ |website=Visuotinė lietuvių enciklopedija |access-date=8 April 2023 |language=lt |archive-date=8 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408185907/https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/lietuvos-departamentas/ |url-status=live}}</ref> The recovering population was ravaged by the [[Imperial Russian Army]] during the [[Seven Years' War]] in 1756–1763.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/> In 1782 Klaipėda had 5500 residents, in 1790 – 6300.<ref name="KlaipedaMle"/>

[[File:Memel, Borussia Denkmal.jpg|thumb|''Borussia'' (Prussia in [[Latin]]) Monument in Klaipėda circa 1920]]
In the [[General State Laws for the Prussian States]] (completed in 1794) the [[serfdom]] and privileged position of landlords and [[Drang nach Osten|colonists]] was consolidated.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/> During the [[Napoleonic Wars]] [[Napoleon I]] occupied most of the Kingdom of Prussia, thus in 1807–1808 Klaipėda was a residence of Prussian monarchs and in 1807 [[Frederick William III of Prussia|Frederick William III]] abolished serfdom. Following the abolishment of serfdom Prussian Lithuanians migrated to Klaipėda, especially its outskirts, and in 1837 they constituted 10.1% of the residents. In 1825 Klaipėda had 8,500 residents.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/><ref name="KlaipedaMle"/> Moreover, after the [[January Uprising|Uprising of 1863–1864]] part of the Lithuanian insurgents retreated to Lithuania Minor.<ref name="MazojiLietuvaVle"/> In 1855 {{ill|Vitė|lt|Vitė}} was added to the city of Klaipėda, thus the number of population increased to over 17,000 and in 1875 reached ~20,000. Before [[World War I]], the majority of Lithuanians in [[Königsberg (region)|Königsberg Region]] (which included Klaipėda) integrated into the German nation. In March 1915 the population of Klaipėda was yet again ravaged by the Imperial Russian Army.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/><ref name="KlaipedaMle"/>

[[File:TrhTeatroAikšBznJonoReformatųKlp.jpg|thumb|Theatre Square before 1930]]
Following the [[Klaipėda Revolt]] in 1923, Klaipėda Region was incorporated into [[Lithuania]] and Lithuanian population in Klaipėda increased due to migration (Lithuanians constituted 30.3% and Germans 57.3% of Klaipėda's 35,845 population in 1925).<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/><ref name="Kolonizacija"/><ref name="KlaipedaMle"/> German politicians promoted a Memellander ideology and argued that Germans and local Lithuanians were "two ethnicities (''Volkstümer''), yet one cultural community (''Kulturgemeinschaft'')".<ref name="Safronovas">{{Cite book |last=Safronovas |first=Vasilijus |title=Identities In-Between in East-Central Europe |date=31 March 2021 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9780367784393 |editor-last=Fellerer |editor-first=Jan |pages=229–232 |chapter=11: A War Experience in a Bilingual Border Region: The Case of the Memel Territory |access-date=8 April 2023 |editor-last2=Pyrah |editor-first2=Robert |editor-last3=Turda |editor-first3=Marius |chapter-url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/335255837}}</ref> Lithuania ceded Klaipėda Region to [[Nazi Germany]] due to the [[1939 German ultimatum to Lithuania]], however soon [[World War II]] started and residents of Klaipėda were evacuated to Germany.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/> In the aftermath of World War II almost all the new residents moved to Klaipėda from Lithuania, Russia, [[Belarus]] and [[Ukraine]], replacing the former German-speaking population (after the war only six old residents remained in the city).<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/> Over the years the Lithuanian population in the city continued to grow and constituted: 55.2% in 1959, 60.9% in 1970, 61.5% in 1979, 63.0% in 1989, 71.3% in 2001, 73.9% in 2011.<ref name="KlaipedosIstorija"/>

{{As of|2020}}, the population of Klaipėda was 154,332.<ref name="GyventojuSkaicius">{{cite web |title=Gyventojų skaičius (administraciniai duomenys) |url=https://osp.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/3defd422781648089cc1ca2dfd37a548 |website=Osp.maps.arcgis.com |language=lt |access-date=8 April 2023 |archive-date=8 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408183158/https://osp.maps.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/3defd422781648089cc1ca2dfd37a548 |url-status=live}}</ref> The latest data shows that there are more women in the city: females make up 54.89% (84,717), males make up 45.11% (69,615).<ref name="GyventojuSkaicius"/> In 2022, Lithuanians constituted 80% of the population in Klaipėda.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Končius |first1=Vytenis |title=Klaipėdoje 80 proc. gyventojų – lietuviai |url=https://www.atviraklaipeda.lt/2022/03/15/klaipedoje-80-proc-gyventoju-lietuviai/ |website=AtviraKlaipeda.lt |access-date=8 April 2023 |language=lt |date=15 March 2022 |archive-date=8 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230408183159/https://www.atviraklaipeda.lt/2022/03/15/klaipedoje-80-proc-gyventoju-lietuviai/ |url-status=live}}</ref>