Pärnu Explained

Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Estonia
Subdivision Type1:County
Subdivision Name1:Pärnu County
Utc Offset:+2
Timezone Dst:EEST
Utc Offset Dst:+3
Pushpin Map:Estonia#Baltic Sea#Europe
Pushpin Relief:1
Official Name:Pärnu
Settlement Type:City
Other Name:Pärnu linn
City of Pärnu
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Romek Kosenkranius
Established Title:Founded
Established Date:1251
Area Total Km2:32.22
Population Total:50643
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Rank:4th
Population As Of:2019
Population Density Km2:auto
Demographics Type1:Ethnicity
Demographics1 Title1:Estonians
Demographics1 Info1:83%
Demographics1 Title2:Russians
Demographics1 Info2:12%
Demographics1 Title3:other
Demographics1 Info3:5%
Elevation M:10
Area Code:(+372) 44
Registration Plate:F
Coordinates:58.3833°N 54°W

Pärnu (in Estonian pronounced as /ˈpærˑnu/; German: Pernau) is the fourth largest city in Estonia. Located in southwestern Estonia on the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet of the Gulf of Livonia in the Baltic Sea. It is a popular summer holiday resort with many hotels, restaurants, and large beaches. The Pärnu River flows through the city and drains into the Gulf of Riga. The city was served by Pärnu Airport.


Perona (German: Alt-Pernau|links=no, Estonian: Vana-Pärnu|links=no) was founded by the bishop of Ösel–Wiek ca. 1251, suffered heavily under pressure of the concurrent town, and was finally destroyed ca. 1600. Another town, Embeke (later German: Neu-Pernau, Estonian: Uus-Pärnu) was founded by the Livonian Order, who began building an Ordensburg nearby in 1265. The latter town, then known by the German name of Pernau, was a member of the Hanseatic League and an important ice-free harbor for Livonia. The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took control of town between 1560–1617; the Poles and Lithuanians fought the Swedes nearby in 1609. Sweden took control of the town during the 16th-century Livonian War, but it was subsequently taken by the Russian Empire in the 1710 Capitulation of Estonia and Livonia and the 1721 Treaty of Nystad, following the Great Northern War. It belonged to Imperial Russian Governorate of Livonia then. The city is occasionally referred to as Pyarnu, an incorrect reverse-transliteration from Russian Пярну.

The town became part of independent Estonia in 1918 following World War I.

The city was occupied by the Soviet Red Army along with the rest of Estonia in 1940 during World War II, and its German population left the town. It was then occupied by Germany from 1941 until 1944 before it was reoccupied by the Soviet Union as part of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic from 1944-1991.

During the Great Northern War, the University of Dorpat (Tartu) was relocated to Pernau from 1699–1710. The university has a branch campus in Pärnu today (1,000 students in the 2004/2005 school year).[2]



Pärnu lies within the temperate humid continental climate zone.


Pärnu jõgi, Sauga jõgi, Reiu jõgi, Pärnu moat, Pärnu bay.


Population change

Year 188118971922193419591970197919892000201120122017
Population12,96612,89818,49920,33422,36750,22454,05153,88545,500 39,72840,40140,700

Ethnic groups

Population of Pärnu by ethnicity
Nationality2000 census2011 census[3]
Ukrainians966 2.126711.69
331 0.732540.64
Population of Pärnu by first language
Language2000 census[4] 2011 census
Estonian35,92878.9632,762 82.47
Russian8,36018.376,263 15.77
Ukrainian426 0.942450.62
Finnish163 0.361290.33


Local administration consists of the town council and the town government. Town council elections take place every four years. The number of councillors depends on the population. The current number of councillors is 33.


Today Pärnu is an economically balanced region with a comprehensive range of industries. Foreign investments and new businesses with up-to-date technologies have enhanced job creation and higher competitiveness of the businesses in the world markets. Several enterprises of Pärnu region stand out as the best in Estonia.

Significant flows of exports from Pärnu region and South-Estonia pass through the Port of Pärnu which lies at the mouth of the Pärnu River. In recent years, the port has developed into an important regional harbour for south-western and southern Estonia.

Pärnu’s fame as a rehabilitation and holiday resort dates back to the middle of the 19th century. The foundation of the first bathing facility in 1838 is considered the birth date of Pärnu resort. Today Pärnu has all desirable qualities of a modern holiday resort – it has spas and rehabilitation centres, hotels, conference and concert venues, golf courses and tennis courts, restaurants and pubs. Long tradition of as a resort has made Pärnu well known in Finland and other Scandinavian countries.


Majority of the tourists in Pärnu are Finns, Swedes and Russians.

In 1837, a tavern near the beach was made into a bathing establishment. The establishment accommodated 5–6 bathrooms that provided hot seawater baths in summer and operated as a sauna in winter. The wooden building was burnt down in the course of World War I. In 1927, the present stone building of Pärnu Mud Baths was erected at the same site.

Since 1996 Pärnu has been known as Estonia's Summer Capital.[5] [6]

Starting from 2015 the city of Pärnu hosts the annual Weekend Festival, the largest dance music festival in the Nordic and Baltic region. Stages are headlined by DJs from across the electronic dance music spectrum, with audiovisual support. Some of the past and upcoming artists to perform include Martin Garrix, David Guetta, Avicii, Steve Aoki, The Chainsmokers, Tiësto, Armin van Buuren, Hardwell, Robin Schulz, Afrojack, deadmau5, Knife Party and many more.Pärnu is also known for its seawall. According to legend, if a couple holds hands while journeying along the wall and kisses at its endpoint they will stay together forever.[7]

Twin towns and sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Estonia. Pärnu is twinned with:[8]

Citizens of honour

Notable residents


Maxim D. Shrayer. Dunes of Happiness: Fifteen Summers in Estonia. Baltic Worlds (September 2013).

External links

Notes and References

  1. http://pub.stat.ee/px-web.2001/Dialog/varval.asp?ma=PO0240&lang=1 Population by sex, age and place of residence after the 2017 administrative reform, 1 January
  2. https://www.pc.ut.ee/en University of Tartu Pärnu College
  3. http://pub.stat.ee/px-web.2001/I_Databas/Population_census/PHC2011/01Demographic_and_ethno_cultural_characteristics/04Ethnic_nationality_Languages_Dialects/04Ethnic_nationality_Languages_Dialects.asp
  4. http://pub.stat.ee/px-web.2001/I_Databas/Population_census/PHC2000/08Ethnic_nationality._Mother_tongue._Command_of_foreign_languages/08Ethnic_nationality._Mother_tongue._Command_of_foreign_languages.asp
  5. http://www.suvepealinn.ee/ suvepealinn
  6. http://www.visitparnu.ee/en/short-history Short history – VisitPärnu.com
  7. https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/parnu-seawall
  8. Web site: Sõpruslinnad. Pärnu linn. Estonian. 14 February 2017.
  9. Web site: Internationella frågor och vänorter. 2013-07-25. Lindquist. Ted. Oskarshamn Municipality. Swedish. yes. https://web.archive.org/web/20130812100450/http://oskarshamn.se/templates/Page.aspx?id=218. 2013-08-12.
  10. http://www.parnu.ee/index.php?id=1720 Pärnu linn: Pärnu aukodanik