Lääne County
county of Estonia
Lääne County (Estonian: Lääne maakond or Läänemaa, literally "Western land"; German: Wiek; Latin: Rotalia) is one of the 15 counties of Estonia. It is located in western Estonia and borders the Baltic Sea to the north, Harju County to the northeast, Rapla County to the east, Pärnu County to the south, and the island counties of Saare and Hiiu to the west. In January 2009, Lääne County had a population of 23,810 – constituting 2.0% of the total population in Estonia.
County government
Until 2017 the County Government (Estonian: maavalitsus) was led by a governor (Estonian: maavanem), who was appointed by the Government of Estonia for a term of five years. Since 15 December 2011, the governorship was held by Innar Mäesalu.
Maavanem 1918–1941
Aleksander Saar 1917–1927
Artur Kasterpalu 1930–1941
Maavanem 1993–2017
Andres Lipstok 14 December 1993 – 12 August 1994
Hannes Danilov 1 November 1994 – 3 January 1999
Arder Väli 23 February 1999 – 20 July 1999
Jaanus Sahk 22 September 1999 – 22 September 2004
Sulev Vare 19 November 2004 – 14 September 2007
Neeme Suur 18 February 2008 – 4 April 2011
Innar Mäesalu 15 December 2011 -
Municipalities
The county is subdivided into municipalities. There is one urban municipality, Haapsalu (Estonian: linn – town) and 2 rural municipalities (Estonian: vallad – parishes) in Lääne County.
Religion
The Lääne deanery of Saare-Lääne Diocese of the Estonian Evangelical Lutheran Church in the county includes the Haapsalu St. John's congregation, Kullamaa St. John's congregation, Lääne-Nigula St.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Lääne County” is county of Estonia. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Lääne, County and county, not as a finished interpretation.
Why this record matters
The phrase “county of Estonia” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 26, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q189968. Authority coordinates are 58.917, 23.750. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2009, 2017, 2011 and 1918.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Lääne County”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Lääne County primary sources, Lääne County archive and Lääne research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Lääne County”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Lääne County” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.