Territorial structure of the confessional space of Latvia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries

Latvia is a multi-confessional country. All three main branches of Christianity are fully represented here: Protestantism, Catholicism and Orthodoxy. The eastern part of Latvia (Latgale) has long been home to Old Believers and adherents of Judaism. These religious groups of the population together form the confessional space of Latvia. The purpose of the study is to identify the main elements of the territorial structure of the confessional space in Latvia based on the results of the 1897 population census and analyze their dynamics until 1920. To achieve this goal, static and cartographic research methods are used. The novelty of the study is associated with the use of original methods for analyzing the dynamics of the territorial structure of the confessional space. As a result of the study, three main elements of the territorial structure of the confessional space of Latvia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries were identified: 1) mono-confessional territories (with the dominance of the Lutheran population) in the north of Vidzeme, east of Kurzeme and west of Selia; 2) vaguely expressed confessional contact zones (with a predominance of the Lutheran population and a noticeable share of Catholics and Orthodox Christians), covering the south of Vidzeme, the west of Kurzeme and the east of Selia; 3) ) a clearly defined confessional contact zone — Latgale (with a preponderance of Catholics, but with a noticeable share of Orthodox, Old Believers and Jews).