The Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania () is a governmental body of the Republic of Lithuania. Its mission is to formulate and implement state cultural policies supporting professional and amateur art, theatre, music, fine arts, cinema, museums, libraries, and written publications, to guard copyright and copyright-related interests, and to protect cultural values.
The Ministry of Culture was formally established on 8 June 1994, following the government's decision in 1993 to split it off from the Ministry of Culture and Education. Its first minister was Dainius Trinkà «nas.
The ministry awards prizes including Lithuanian National Prize for Culture and Arts for achievements in the arts and culture, the Martynas Maà ¾vydas Award for scholarly research, National Jonas BasanaviÃÂius Award for outstanding achievements related to ethnicity, also awards to young creators, librarians, translators, etc.
The Top Prize of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania is the honorary badge âÂÂNeà ¡k Savo à  viesàIr TikÃÂkâÂÂ. It is an acknowledgment of many years of work in the field of culture and arts, of creativity and its promotion.
Prizes of the Ministry of Culture for the most significant international awards in the field of culture were launched in 2019. Among the first laureates are the group of opera Sun & Sea (Marina) creators RugilàBarzdà ¾iukaitÃÂ, Vaiva GrainytÃÂ, and Lina Lapelytàtogether with curators Rasa AntanaviÃÂià «tàand Lucia Pietrouisti, as well as the group of the documentary Bridges of Time creators and operatic soprano Asmik Grigorian.
The Department of Cultural Heritage is the department of the ministry responsible for protecting and documenting cultural property and maintaining historical preservation.
The Ministry of Culture performs the following functions within the framework of Lithuanian legislation: