Hiiumaa ( , ) is the second largest island in Estonia and is part of the West Estonian archipelago, in the Baltic Sea. It has an area of 989 km<sup>2</sup> and is 22 km from the Estonian mainland. Its largest town is Kärdla. It is located within Hiiu County.

<!--Hiiumaa was controlled by the Brothers of the Sword in the early 1200s (known as the Teutonic Knights from 1237). During this time it was first settled by Swedes and Germans. The island was ruled first by the kingdom of Denmark, then by Sweden in the 1500s-1600s, and became part of the Russian Empire in 1721. After the German occupation of Estonia during World War I, Hiiumaa became part of the newly independent country, Republic of Estonia, in 1918. During World War II, the island was first invaded and occupied by the Soviet army in 1940-1941, and then again in 1944. Hiiumaa remained under Soviet control until 1991, when Estonia restored its full independence. These settlements seem to be related mostly to seal hunting and extended into the Neolithic period.

As Hiiumaa is constantly uplifting the local sea level was 20 meters higher than today at this time. For this reason these settlements are located far from the modern coastline. The pottery found at these sites is of the Narva Type and is similar to that found on Saaremaa and the Estonian mainland.

Crusades

The first documented record of the island was as Dageida in 1228, when Hiiumaa and the rest of Estonia were conquered by Germanic crusaders. In 1254, Hiiumaa was divided between the Bishopric of Ösel-Wiek and the Livonian branch of the Teutonic Order, acting partly on behalf of the Hanseatic League.

Swedish and Russian era

thumb|left|200px|[[Kõpu Lighthouse in Kõpu, Hiiumaa is one of the island's landmarks.]]

The island was referred to as Dagö as part of Swedish Estonia. It was a part of Sweden from 1563 to 1721, after which it passed to the Russian Empire as part of the Governorate of Estonia, though Dagö's Swedish population kept most of their privileges. Most of the island's previously numerous Swedish-speaking population emigrated or were "Estonianised" during the period of Imperial Russian rule, although a minority remained until the 20th century. Estonian Swedes are also known as aibofolke ("the island people" in local Swedish) or rannarootslased ("coastal Swedes" in Estonian). Administratively the island of Hiiumaa belonged to Lääne County.

World War I

Hiiumaa was occupied during World War I by the Imperial German Army, in Operation Albion. After the war, in 1918, it became a part of independent Estonia.

World War II

The waters near Hiiumaa were active during World War II:

  • 23 June 1941: The Soviet destroyer Gnevny was sunk by a German seamine.
  • 25 June: the Soviet minesweeper T-208 Shkiv was destroyed by a German seamine.
  • 27 June: Two German motor torpedo boats, S43 and S106, were destroyed by Soviet seamines.
  • 1 July: the Soviet submarine M-81 was destroyed by a German seamine north of Hiiumaa.
  • 7 July: the Soviet minesweeper T-216 was sunk.
  • 30 July: the Soviet minesweeper T-201 Zarjad was sunk.
  • 10 August: the German submarine was sunk by a torpedo from the Soviet submarine SC-307.
  • Hiiumaa Island was occupied by the Stalinist Soviet Union in 1940, by Nazi Germany in 1941, and by the USSR again in 1944.

Soviet occupation

During Soviet occupation (1944–1991) Hiiumaa was closed to travel to foreigners as well as to most mainland Estonia. Hiiumaa remained under Soviet control until Estonia regained independence in August 1991. A number of derelict Soviet forts and communication towers, previously used by the Soviet Border Guard in Estonia, are still present on the island's northern coast.

Natural environment

thumb|[[Tahkuna Nature Reserve]]

Hiiumaa is an island in Estonia located north of Saaremaa in the Baltic Sea. It is the northernmost island in the Muhu archipelago, which includes Saaremaa and Muhu.

Minks were also reintroduced in 2000, after they were exterminated by trappers. Since the end of the 1990s the island shelters a conservation project aimed at restoring populations of European mink, an endangered species of which there is about only 1,000 individual specimens left in Europe as of 2017. This project started with removing from the island all American minks that had escaped from breeding farms, and reintroducing some European minks. The latter started breeding.

The bird species found on the island include black storks, golden eagles, cranes, avocets and swans. The forests are dominated by pine and deciduous trees, the rest of the uncultivated land is covered by swamps and dunes. The island has about 1000 species of large plants of which 50 are protected. These limestones formed at 30 degrees South and have since been moving North with the rest of the Estonian block. Bore holes have found Cambrian sedimentary rocks and a crystalline basement.

In the Ordovician (c. 455 million years ago) the sea floor was hit by a meteorite forming the 4&nbsp;km wide Kärdla impact structure.

|source 2 = NOAA/NCEI (precipitation day, 1991-2020)

Towns and buildings

The island has several villages, as well a small town of Kärdla (pop. 3,287) and small boroughs of Käina and Kõrgessaare. The oldest surviving church was built in Pühalepa in 1259, though it was rebuilt in the 18th century.

Hiiumaa council agrees to the construction of a wind farm. Recently there has been a trend towards smaller farms and more tourism In the summer weekends, getting car space on the ferry usually requires advance booking. There are about 2 scheduled buses a day between Tallinn (the capital of Estonia) and Kärdla.<!-- the following archived URL doesn't confirm the above-mentioned fact. Checked September 2021 -->

In the winter, the island can be reached, conditions permitting, via a 26.5&nbsp;km ice road (the longest in Europe) across the frozen Baltic Sea. A bridge to the mainland of Estonia has been occasionally proposed.

Hiiumaa is served by Kärdla Airport, with regular flights to Tallinn. Bicycle rental is also available in Kärdla and there is a good bicycle path built from Kärdla towards Kõrgessaare.

Culture and politics

thumb|2007 Estonia election. Social Democratic Party (Red), Estonian Reform Party (yellow), Estonian Center Party (green), Union of Pro Patria and Res Publica (Blue), People's Union of Estonia (brown)

The island is part of the B7 Network, a loose grouping of the major islands of the Baltic Sea. Smoked cooked plaice is a traditional summertime delicacy. There is a friendly rivalry with the neighboring island of Saaremaa.

Notable people

  • Juhan Maaker (1845–1930), Estonian folk musician
  • Rudolf Tobias (1873–1918), Estonian composer
  • Marie Under (1883–1980), Estonian poet, nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature several times
  • Roman von Ungern-Sternberg (1885–1921), Russian White military commander in the Russian Civil War
  • Aleksander Maaker (1890–1968), the last traditional player of the torupill (Estonian bagpipe)
  • Lydia Mei (1896–1965), Estonian artist
  • Ivan Triesault (1898–1980), Estonian-American actor
  • Natalie Mei (1900–1975), Estonian artist
  • Elmar Tampõld (1920–2013), Estonian-Canadian architect
  • Ülo Sooster (1924–1970), Estonian artist
  • Ave Alavainu (1942–2022), Estonian poet
  • Erkki-Sven Tüür (b. 1959), Estonian composer of contemporary classical music
  • Heiki Nabi (b. 1985), Estonian Olympic champion Greco-Roman wrestler

<gallery>

Tahkuna tuletorn Hiiumaal, päikeseloojanguvalguses.jpg|

File:Hiidenmaa-Kassarin kirkko.JPG|

File:Talo Tammelan kylässä.JPG|

File:Sorven museo.JPG|

File:Malvastechapell.jpg|

File:Port of Heltermaa 2.jpg|Cars boarding the ferry to mainland at Heltermaa

Hellamaa panoraam.jpg|Coast of Hiiumaa

Tubala tuulik august 2014.jpg|Tubala windmill

Hiiu-Suuremõisa mõisahoone.jpg|Suuremõisa Manor in Suuremõisa

23623 Suuremõisa mõisa allee.jpg|Avenue at Suuremõisa Park

Orjaku sadam-kohvik.JPG|Café at Orjaku Harbor

Orjaku õpperada.jpg|Nature trail near Orjaku

</gallery>

See also

  • List of islands of Estonia
  • List of islands in the Baltic Sea
  • Estonian Swedes

References

  • Hiiumaa County government Official site
  • Pictures of Coastal batteries World War I and World War II in Hiiumaa Official site