Olaine

Olaine
—  Town  —
Coat of arms
Olaine Location in Latvia
Coordinates: 56°47′N 23°56′E / 56.783°N 23.933°E / 56.783; 23.933Coordinates: 56°47′N 23°56′E / 56.783°N 23.933°E / 56.783; 23.933
Country	Latvia
District	Riga District
Town rights	1967
Government
– Mayor	Jānis Pavlovičs
Area
– Total	6.824 km2 (2.6 sq mi)
Population
– Total	12 719
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
– Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Postal code	LV-2114
Calling code	+371 67
Number of city council members	11

Olaine ( pronunciation (help·info); German: Olai) is a town in Latvia that gained town rights in 1967. The history of Olaine is closely connected to a nearby peat bog that was first taken into use in 1940. Thereafter, more production facilities were built, the increasing numbers of workers needed accommodation and the first dwellings were built in Olaine. Previously, Olaine was the name of a village just two kilometers away. This village now has the name of Jaunolaine (New Olaine).

Olaine is home of Olainfarm, the second largest pharmaceuticals company in Latvia.

Fellowship towns

Through the years Olaine has gained several fellowship towns ("Sister cities) for collaboration in social, educational and cultural matters:

	Ödeshög, Sweden		Vadstena, Sweden		Karlskoga, Sweden		Riihimäki, Finland
	Nowa Sarzyna, Poland		Narva, Estonia		Anykščiai, Lithuania

Notable people

• Gunta Baško - Latvian basketball player
• Dmitrijs Milkevics - Latvian athlete
• Jānis Kuzmins - World champion in slalom skateboarding

Literature

Vilīte, Valda: Olaines pagasts (2008)

See also

• List of cities in Latvia