Pärnu () is a
city in southwestern
Estonia on the coast of Pärnu Bay, an inlet of the
Gulf of Riga in the
Baltic Sea. It is a popular summer
vacation resort with many
hotels,
restaurants, and large
beaches. The
Pärnu River flows through the city. The city is served by
Pärnu Airport.
The city is occasionally referred to as
Pyarnu, an incorrect reverse-
transliteration from Russian
Пярну.
History
Perona, (, ) was founded by the bishop of
Ösel-Wiek ca. 1251, suffered heavily under pressure of the concurrent town, and was finally destroyed ca. 1600. Another town, Embeke (later , ) was founded by the
Livonian Order, who began building an
Ordensburg nearby in 1265. The latter town, then known by the German name of
Pernau, was a member of the
Hanseatic League and an important ice-free harbor for
Livonia. The
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took control of town between 1560-1617; the
Poles fought the
Swedes nearby in 1609. Sweden took control of the town during the 16th century
Livonian War, but it was subsequently taken by the
Russian Empire in the 1721
Treaty of Nystad following the
Great Northern War.
The town became part of independent Estonia in 1918 following
World War I.
During the Great Northern War, the
University of Dorpat (
Tartu) was relocated to Pernau from 1699-1710. The university has a branch campus in Pärnu today (1,000 students in the 2004/2005 school year).
Population
Administration
Local administration consists of the town council and the town government. Town council elections take place every three years. The current town council was elected in October 2005. The number of councillors depends on the population. The current number of councillors is 33.
Tourism
The beach in Pärnu.
A street in the historic center of Pärnu at night.
Pärnu is a health resort of international stature. In addition to guests arriving from around fifty countries, it is also proved by its membership in the
European Spas Association (since 2000) and the
European Flag that has been flying at the beach of Pärnu since 2000. Many tourists in Pärnu are
Finns and
Estonians. Hotel and restaurant staff speak English, Russian and some
Finnish in addition to
Estonian.
In 1837, a few business-minded entrepreneurs decided to rebuild a lone tavern near the beach into a bathing establishment, thus preparing the ground for the development of the resort of Pärnu. This wooden building was the predecessor of the present-day
mud baths. The establishment, which was opened in 1838, accommodated 5-6 bathrooms that provided hot seawater baths in summer and operated as a sauna in winter. The wooden building was burnt down in the course of
World War I. In 1927, the present stone building of Pärnu Mud Baths was erected at the same site. Later, the wings were attached to the building to accommodate a bath unit and a pool.
Today, disorders of the joints, spinal column and
peripheral nervous system, gynaecological problems and dysfunction of the central nervous system are treated at Pärnu Mud Baths. The therapies include
hydrotherapy, mud and ozocerite therapies,
massage, laser and electrotherapies, lymph and inhalation therapies,
aromatherapy and
ECG. There are 130 rooms in the hotel of the Mud Baths. Today, Pärnu is the most popular health tourism destination in Estonia.
Since 1996 Pärnu has been known as
Notable residents
