Proclamation Day of the Republic of Latvia of the city centre traditionally starts at the monument of Kārlis Ulmanis, the first prime minister of Latvia, and ends at the Freedom Monument. Another tradition with a long history is the Latvian National Armed Forces parade, which nowadays is held at 11 November Embankment in Riga. A popular modern tradition established in 2009, is for people all over the world to sing the Latvian national anthem "Dievs, svētī Latviju!" at the same time (21:00 EET). Proclamation Day of the Republic of Latvia Proclamation Day of the Republic of Latvia is celebrated annually on 18 November. It marks the anniversary
Culture of Latvia Culture of Latvia The culture of Latvia combines traditional Latvian and Livonian heritage with influences of the country's varied historical heritage. The area of Latvia has been inhabited since 9000 BC. Baltic tribes, the ancestors of present-day Latvians, arrived around 3000 BC. In the 13th century after conquest of today's Latvia, Baltic Germans settled here and gradually became the upper class and rulers of Latvia, while Latvians and Livonians lost their positions finally becoming serfs in the 16th century. This caused the Germanisation of the educated inhabitants of other nationalities, yet preserved some local traditions. In the 19th century, when