Lithuanians, along with Latvians and ancient Prussians, are descendants of the Balts, an Indo-European ethnic group that settled on the Baltic coast 4,000 years ago.

The name Lithuania dates back to 1009 AD. Grand Duke Mindaugas is recognised as the founder of Lithuania, a territory which included Minsk and later stretched as far as the Black Sea.

Lithuania was able to withstand the advance of the Teutonic Knights, merging with Poland in 1569 to create the Joint Republic of the Polish Kingdom and Lithuanian Grand Duchy. Russia then took possession of part of Lithuania in 1795 (Prussia claimed the western region). The German army drove out the Russians during World War I. The Lithuanian Council then declared independence in February 1918. In 1921, Lithuania joined the League of Nations. Poland continued to occupy Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. Lithuania was occupied by the German Army in 1941 and remained under German control until its re-annexation by the Soviets three years later. Despite occupying radio, TV and other key installations, the Soviet forces were forced to back down. This period in Lithuanian history concluded with the effective end of the Soviet Government, followed immediately by Lithuanian independence.

The country was recognised and rapidly gained admission to the United Nations, the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Council of Europe, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. 

Present-day Lithuania joined the European Union on 1 May 2004 and today has one of the fastest-growing economies in the bloc.