Kupiškis (pronunciation (help·info)) is a city in north-western Lithuania. it is the capital of the Kupiškis district municipality. Kupiškis is situated on the Lėvuo and Kupa Rivers. The name of the city orinates from Kupa River.
History
The exact date of establishment of Kupiškis is unknown. According to archaeological evidence people have been living in this area at least from 3000–2000 BC. There is archaeological evidence of 13th century wooden castle in a local Aukštupėnai hill fort. In written sources Kupiškis was first mentioned in 1529.
Population
According to the Department of Statistics of Lithuania, population of Kupiškis as of January 1, 2005 was 8,243. Ethnic composition of Kupiškis district municipality, according to 2001 census:
- 23,965 (97.3 %) Lithuanians
- 430 (1.7%) Russians
- 64 (0.3%) Poles
- 49 (0.2%) Ukrainians
- 38 (0.2%) Belarusians
- 82 (0.33%) Other nationalities
Jews in Kupiškis
Kupiškis, known in Yiddish as Kupishok, was home to 1,444 Jews before World War II. The Great Synagogue in Kupiškis was built of stone. The red brick portion was a Misnagdim Synagogue. The Great Synagogue was used as the Culture House during the Soviet period. The Misnagdim portion is now used as a boiler room for heating the main building which now contains the Public Library and Wall of Memory Holocaust Memorial erected on July 13, 2004.
Twin cities
Famous people
External links
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