Description

Bank of Lithuania in 2019 started "Lithuanian Ethnographic Regions" series of coins dedicated to Lithuanian ethnographic regions. The coin of Samogitia (Žemaitija) was the first one.

Lithuania can be divided into historical and cultural regions (called ethnographic regions). The exact borders are not fully clear, as the regions are not official political or administrative units. They are delimited by culture, such as country traditions, traditional lifestyle, songs, tales, etc. No region, except for Samogitia, has ever been a political or an administrative entity. Despite the fact that the regions are not political/administrative entities, most regions have their "capitals" (cities which are commonly considered to be capitals). These cities are not necessarily the largest in the region.

Samogitia or Žemaitija is one of the five ethnographic regions of Lithuania. Žemaitija is located in northwestern Lithuania. Its largest city is Šiauliai. The town of Telšiai is considered to be the capital. The formation of a separate Žemaičiai tribe in the central part of current Žemaitija ended around the 5th century. Žemaitija was first mentioned in Volhynian (Ipat'evskaya) Chronicle in 1219 in the description of the Peace Treaty between Lithuanian and Volhynian Dukes. Of all Lithuanian ethnic groups in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania only Žemaitija enjoyed independent eldership rights that remained valid for almost 400 years. The turn of the 20th century saw the formation of the notion of Žemaitija based on the Žemaičiai dialect and the territory inhabited by them.