About Estonia

     Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia (Estonian: Eesti or Eesti Vabariik; Germanic languages: Estland), is a country in Northern Europe. Estonia has land borders to the south with Latvia and to the east with Russia. It is separated from Finland in the north by the Gulf of Finland and from Sweden in the west by the Baltic Sea.

     Estonia has been a member of the European Union since 1 May 2004 and of NATO since 29 March 2004.

     The Estonians are a Finnic people closely related to the Finns, with the Estonian language sharing many similarities to Finnish.

     The modern name of Estonia is thought to originate from the Roman historian Tacitus, who in his book Germania (ca. AD 98) described a people called the Aestii. Similarly, ancient Scandinavian sagas refer to a land called Eistland. Early Latin and other ancient versions of the country's name are Estia and Hestia.

About Kardla

      Kärdla is the largest town on the Estonian island of Hiiumaa and the capital of Hiiu County. It is served by Kärdla Airport.

     Kärdla is located on the north-eastern coast of Hiiumaa, by the Gulf of Tareste (Tareste laht). Southeast of the town is the Kärdla meteorite crater, which is 455 million years old. Several small rivers flow through the town. There are also artesian wells in Kärdla.

     Kärdla was first mentioned in 1564 as a village inhabited by Swedes. Its growth was greatly influenced by the cloth factory founded in 1830. A port was built in 1849. Both the port and the factory were destroyed in World War II. Kärdla officially became a borough in 1920 and a town in 1938.