Telà ¡iai (; Samogitian: Telà ¡ÃÂ) is a city in Lithuania with about 21,499 inhabitants. It is the capital of Telà ¡iai County and Samogitia region, and it is located on the shores of Lake Mastis.
Telà ¡iai is one of the oldest cities in Lithuania, probably dating earlier than the 14th century. Between the 15th and 20th centuries, Telà ¡iai became a district capital. Until 1795, Telà ¡iai County formed the Duchy of Samogitia within the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Between 1795 and 1802 it was included in the Vilnius Governorate. In 1873, Telà ¡iai was transferred to the Kovno Governorate.
The name Telà ¡iai is a variant of the same Lithuanian language root (-telà ¡-, -tilà ¾-) as Tilà ¾Ã or Talsi with the meaning connected to water. The name Telà ¡iai or Telà ¡Ã in Samogitian dialect of Lithuanian is derived from a verb telkà ¡oti (literally, to be flooded with water, to splash, etc.). It is a cognate to the Greek thalassa - sea, compare the river Jà «ra - a sea flowing in the same longitude territory. It may also relate to the sum of 45ð longitude of Greenwich as the core of Europe or also all western side or one fourth in the West of The Eastern Hemisphere.
The name of Telà ¡iai has been recorded in different forms and different languages throughout its history. Most of them are derived from Telà ¡Ã in Samogitian dialect. Some foreign names for the city include ; ; ; . In Yiddish, the name is (Telz). In English sources, Telà ¡iai are known also by several alternative names, including Telsiai, Telshi and Telschi.
Lake Mastis is mentioned in various legends and myths. The city was named after a small rivulet, the Telà ¡ÃÂ, which flows into Lake Mastis. A legend has it that a knight named Dà ¾iugas founded the city. First mentions of Telà ¡iai date back to 1398, but the oldest archeological findings in the area of the city are from the Stone Age. In the 15th century, Telà ¡iai already had a state-owned manor. It and the parish were governed by Samogitian elders. Telà ¡iai was at the centre of an uprising of Samogitian peasants.
At the end of the 17th century Telà ¡iai became the centre of culture and politics of Samogitia. Local parliaments known as Sejmiks composed of noblemen were organised in the city and a court was established. Magdeburg rights were granted to Telà ¡iai in the 17th century. Until the Third Partition of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in 1795, Telà ¡iai County formed the Duchy of Samogitia in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania within the PolishâÂÂLithuanian Commonwealth.
During the November uprising of 1831 Telà ¡iai became a sanctuary for PolishâÂÂLithuanian partisans fighting the Russians. A revolutionary government of insurrectionists was formed and schools for the preparation of military officers and noncommissioned officers were opened. During the Uprising of 1863, Telà ¡iai was one of the main centres of uprise in Samogitia since insurrectionist forces massed there.
At the end of the 19th century Telà ¡iai started to grow. A team of firemen formed, and a pharmacy and a theater were opened. In 1908 the very first Lithuanian concertâÂÂperformance was organised. Telà ¡iai was the birthplace and residence of famous Samogitian noble brothers: Stanisà Âaw Narutowicz (member of the Council of Lithuania) and Gabriel Narutowicz (the first President of Poland, who was assassinated).
The city survived two Polish revolutions, was conquered by the Germans in World War I, and occupied by the Red Army for a short time in 1918.
During the years of Lithuanian independence, 1918 to 1940, Telà ¡iai grew rapidly. Several girls' and boys' high schools, a crafts school and a teacher's seminary were established. The Alka museum was built, and several cultural societies were operated. In 1935, Telà ¡iai became the centre of county administration.
During the first Soviet occupation, as a result of the MolotovâÂÂRibbentrop Pact, Telà ¡iai became infamous for the nearby Rainiai massacre, a mass murder of 76 Lithuanian political prisoners perpetrated by the Red Army during the night of 24âÂÂ25 June 1941.
Nowadays Telà ¡iai is the 12th largest city in Lithuania. It is the centre of Telà ¡iai County and Telà ¡iai district municipality. The city has four high schools, four secondary schools, and five primary schools. Department of Vilnius Academy of Art, College of Social Sciences and College of Samogitia are also established in Telà ¡iai.
On 22 January 2013, the Ministry of Culture officially announced that Telà ¡iai will be named the Lithuanian Capital of Culture in 2016.
In 1897, the Jewish population numbered 3088, 51% of the total population. Jews were expelled during World War I, but by 1939, only 2800 had returned, out of a general population of 8000. Many were involved in trade which included produce, wood, and crafts.
A major source of income was the famous Telà ¡iai Yeshiva, (a school for Talmudic study, sometimes called a rabbinical college). It was the largest and most famous yeshiva in Lithuania between 1875 and 1941, establishing Telà ¡iai as a center of Torah studies (the entire body of religious law and learning, including both sacred literature and oral tradition). There was also an Orthodox Jewish rabbinical seminary and a Jewish day school providing secular and religious instruction for younger children.
Following World War I and the expulsion of the JewsâÂÂwhich decimated the Telà ¡iai Jewish communityâÂÂthe city again became a center of traditional Jewish learning. There were also charitable institutions, including a Chevra Kadisha (burial society), a hospital, a loan society, a public kitchen, a clinic, special summer camps, and a women's association for support of the sick and poor. There were also two Jewish newspapers, published in Yiddish.
In June 1940, following the Soviet occupation of Lithuania, Russians quickly closed down the yeshiva. Most of the students dispersed with only about a hundred students remaining in Telshe. Learning was done in groups of 20âÂÂ25 students studying in various batai medrashim ("small synagogues") led by the rosh yeshivas.
The Holocaust in Telà ¡iai (in Yiddish Telz) was carried out by the local Lithuanian leadership with occasional supervision by Nazi German units. The Jewish population in 1939 was 2,800 some 35 percent of the town's population. Further Jews found refuge in Telà ¡iai following the 1939 German ultimatum to Lithuania. Telà ¡iai was conquered by German troops on 25 June 1941. Jews were subjected to terror by the Germans and their Lithuanian collaborators and on 15âÂÂ16 July all Jewish men were shot. The women were moved to a camp in Geruliai, and with the exception of 500âÂÂ600 young women, were all shot on 30 August 1941. The 500âÂÂ600 young women were moved back to a ghetto in Telà ¡iai, and with the exception of some escapees, were shot on 30âÂÂ31 December 1941. 64 Jewish survived after they escaped.
Telà ¡iai has a rare surviving wooden synagogue.
The original Telà ¡iai yeshiva building still stands. However, during the Soviet occupation it was transformed for industrial purposes and eventually neglected. It was renovated and opened as a Jewish museum in 2023.
The yeshiva was transplanted to the United States in 1941, during World War II, when two of its roshei yeshiva ("deans") who had escaped the Holocaust chose to re-establish it in Cleveland, Ohio, where it still remains. The yeshiva was opened in the house of Yitzchak & Sarah Feigenbaum on 20 Cheshvan 5702 (1941). This yeshiva again became a well-respected center of Talmudic study, incorporating the distinct methods of the historic institution, and it is still going strong today.
A Roman Catholic Diocese of Telà ¡iai was established in 1926 with its centre in Telà ¡iai. Justinas Staugaitis, one of the twenty signatories to the Act of Independence of Lithuania, became the first bishop of the diocese.
In 1927, a Priest Seminary was established. It was closed in 1946 after the occupation of Lithuania by the Soviet Union but re-established at the end of the Cold War.
Present day architectural monuments include Telà ¡iai Cathedral and the Church of The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven, Telà ¡iai.
Samogitian Museum Alka was established in 1932 by the Society of Ancient Samogitians' Fans Alka. The museum operated in a house specially rented for it until the current museum palace was built in 1938. Currently, Museum Alka is famous in Samogitia for its accumulation of over 62 thousand showpieces, 70 thousand pieces of estate archives, a 12 thousand book scientific library, and 15 thousand film negatives. The museum has a large historical exposition of Samogitia as well as a large collection of paintings of famous Lithuanian and foreign artists.
In the southern part of the city close to the Lake Mastis there is a city park with the Open-Air Museum of Rural Life of Samogitia. It was opened in 1983 and has an exposition of typical homesteads of 19th century Samogitia. Currently there are 16 authentic buildings. The museum exhibition is arranged in homestead sections: a rich farmer's grange; a barn; a poor farmer's grange, and a simple peasant's grange. Museum visitors can also get acquainted with a windmill, smithy, threshing barn and associated equipment.
The Drama Theater of à ½emaitÃÂ, named after famous Lithuanian author à ½emaitÃÂ, is one of the oldest theaters in Lithuania. The origins of the theater in Telà ¡iai starts in the beginning of the 20th century when student of arts and medicine Vaseris came back to Telà ¡iai from Kyiv and presented two performances in the empty barracks of the town. The Theater is a member of the International Amateur Theatre Association. Nowadays it has two troupes of actors: adult actors (director K. Brazauskas) and youth Savi actors (director L. PoceviÃÂienÃÂ). The head of the theater is Artà «ras Butkus.
Telà ¡iai also has a Culture centre. It was established in 1946. Current building of the centre was built in 1974. Since 2007 the building is under reconstruction. Currently it has 13 art collectives.
The main newspaper in the city and the region of Telà ¡iai is Kalvotoji à ½emaitija (Hilly Samogitia), which was established on 19 April 1941. It is published three times a week and is available online. The second largest newspaper of Telà ¡iai is Telà ¡ià ³ à ¾inios (The News of Telà ¡iai) established on 1 October 1999. It is published twice a week and is also available online.
The main online portal for the city is www.telsiai.info, which is part of the group of portals miestunaujienos.info.
The main library is the Telà ¡iai Karolina PraniauskaitàRegional Public Library, located in the city centre. It was established in 1922. In 1967 it was named as the best district library in Lithuania. In 1997, the library was named after Karolina PraniauskaitÃÂ, the first female poet of Samogitia.
Telà ¡iai is famous for its Samogitian food and rich gastronomical traditions.
The old town of the city of Telà ¡iai is one of seven protected old towns in Lithuania. The main tourist attractions are:
A Tourist Information Center can be found in the city centre. Telà ¡iai was announced as tourists destination by EDEN in 2013.
Telà ¡iai is located in the middle of the Samogitian Heights. The city was built on seven hills on the shores of Lake Mastis. The nearby à  atrija hill and hillfort is cultural monument and part of a nature preserve.
According to the Law on the Territorial Administrative Units and Their Boundaries of the Republic of Lithuania, Telà ¡iai is the centre of Telà ¡iai County as well as the centre of Telà ¡iai district municipality.
The city of Telà ¡iai is also the centre of Telà ¡iai town eldership. It was established in 1997. Its area is . According to 2006 statistics, the density of the eldership is 1862 à ¾m./km<sup>2</sup>. Telà ¡iai city eldership has six sub-elderships, whose purpose is to represent communities of inhabited places. The sub-elderships are: Germantas; Karalius Mindaugas (King Mindaugas), LuokÃÂ, Mastis, Naujamiestis and Senamiestis.
Telà ¡iai is an important economic centre of Samogitia. Affiliates of major Lithuanian banks, shopping centers, etc. operate there, and some industrial companies have also been established. The largest company operating in the city is AB à ½emaitijos pienas, one of the largest milk processing companies in Lithuania.
In Telà ¡iai the "Incubator of Business of Telà ¡iai County" was established in order to help new businessmen who want to start their own business as well as to stimulate the establishment of new workplaces.
In September 2012 it was announced that according to the data of the Lithuanian Department of Statistics the average salary of Lithuania grew the most rapidly in Telà ¡iai in the second quarter of 2012.
Telà ¡iai is one of three Lithuanian cities where a Roman Catholic Priest Seminary operates (the other two cities are Vilnius and Kaunas).
The football club FK Mastis Telà ¡iai played in the Lithuanian Football Federation's II league's western zone. The team won silver medals in 2012 and qualified for the I Lyga. In 2014 team was renamed FK Dà ¾iugas. The same year the team finished second in the LFF II league's western zone. FK Dà ¾iugas now plays in the I Lyga. Telà ¡iai has a football stadium with a capacity of about 3000. It was under reconstruction since 2010 until 2016 in order to meet international requirements. The reconstructed stadium was opened on 15 May 2016. The LFF Cup final between FK à ½algiris and FK Trakai was the first game in the renewed stadium.
Telà ¡iai basketball club "Telà ¡iai" was founded in 2012. In 2015 the club won the third tier Regional Basketball League title and since 2015âÂÂ2016 season the team plays in the National Basketball League, in Telà ¡iai Arena for Sports (since 2017). The team finished third in 2016âÂÂ2017 National Basketball League regular season but lost in the quarter-finals. In 2017âÂÂ2018 the team lost in the first round of playoffs. One year after in 2019 Telà ¡iai qualified to the League's playoffs and finished third winning bronze medals for the first time in club's history.
From 1992 until 1998 Telà ¡iai also had men's ice hockey team Germantas which played in the Lithuania Hockey League which is the premier men's ice hockey league in Lithuania. In 1996 the team finished first in the regular season but lost in the playoff finals.
An important highway passing through Telà ¡iai is the route A11 highway from à  iauliai to Palanga. Trains going on the routes VilniusâÂÂKlaipÃÂda and Radvilià ¡kisâÂÂKlaipÃÂda pass through the Telà ¡iai railway station. Telà ¡iai can also be reached by bus from many Lithuanian cities and smaller towns in Telà ¡iai county. Telà ¡iai bus station is located near the city centre.
Telà ¡iai has a municipal public bus system with seven routes. Buses run from 6 am until 8 pm and tickets are sold directly in buses, although there is also an opportunity to buy monthly tickets. Telà ¡iai also has shuttle taxis.
According to the 2021 census, the city population was 22,642 people, of which:
Telà ¡iai is twinned with:
In chronological order by their birth year: