Telšiai

City

Telšiai city centre

Flag

Coat of arms

Telšiai

Location of Telšiai

Coordinates: 55°59′0″N 22°15′0″E / 55.98333°N 22.25000°ECoordinates: 55°59′0″N 22°15′0″E / 55.98333°N 22.25000°E

Country

Lithuania

Telšiai district municipality

Eldership

Telšiai town eldership

Capital of

Samogitia (unofficial)
Telšiai County
Telšiai district municipality
Telšiai town eldership
Telšiai rural eldership

First mentioned

1450

Granted city rights

1791

Area

• City

17 km² (7 sq mi)

Elevation

128 m (420 ft)

Population (2015)

• City

23,964 (12th)

• Metro

45,474

Time zone

EET (UTC+2)

• Summer (DST)

EEST (UTC+3)

Postal code

87xxx

Website

www.telsiai.lt

Telšiai ( pronunciation , known also by several alternative names) including Telsiai and Telschi in English sources, is a city in Lithuania with about 25,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of Telšiai County and Samogitia region, and it is located on the shores of Lake Mastis.

Telšiai is one of the oldest cities in Lithuania, probably dating earlier than the 14th century. Between the 15th and 20th centuries, Telšiai became a district capital and between 1795 and 1802 it was included in the Vilnius region. In 1873, Telšiai was transferred to the Kaunas region.

The name of Telšiai has been recorded in different forms and different languages throughout its history. Most of them are derived from Telšē in Samogitian dialect. Some foreign names for the city include Latvian: Telši; German: Telsche, Telschi; Polish: Telsze; Russian: Тельшяй, Тельши, Тяльшяй. In Yiddish, formerly a primary language of the city, the name is טעלז‎ (Telz).

Lake Mastis is mentioned in various legends and myths. The city was named after a small rivulet, the Telšė, which flows into Lake Mastis. A legend has it that a knight named Džiugas founded the city. Telšiai was first mentioned in written sources around 1450, but the oldest archeological findings in the area of the city are from the Stone Age.

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Wikipedia