Editing Lithuania Minor (section)

{{Short description|Lithuanian ethnographic region in former Prussia}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{More citations needed|date=April 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement <!-- See Template:Infobox settlement for additional fields and descriptions -->
| name = Lithuania Minor
| native_name = Mažoji Lietuva
| native_name_lang = lt
| settlement_type = [[Cultural regions of Lithuania|Ethnographic region of Lithuania]]
| image_skyline = {{Photomontage
| color = #ffffff
| photo1a = Quite summer evening in the port city Klaipeda.jpg{{!}}Port of Klaipėda
| photo1b = Мост королевы Луизы на Немане.jpg{{!}}Queen Louise Bridge between Panemunė and Sovetsk
| photo2a = Ventes svyturys.jpg{{!}}Ventė Cape lighthouse
| photo2b = Hugo Šojaus dvaro įėjimas su veranda iš kiemo.jpg{{!}}Old manor in Šilute
| photo3a = Typical house in Nida, Lithuania, 2004.jpg{{!}}Traditional fisherman houses in Nida
| photo3b = Curonian Spit. Kuršių nerija.Kuršu kāpas - panoramio (4).jpg{{!}}View of the Curonian Spit from Nida
| spacing = 1
| border = 0
| size = 260
}}
| image_caption = {{hlist|From top, left to right: Port of [[Klaipėda]]|[[Queen Louise Bridge]] between [[Panemunė]] and [[Sovetsk, Kaliningrad Oblast|Sovetsk]]|Lighthouse at [[Ventė Cape]]|Old manor in [[Šilute]]|Traditional fisherman house in [[Nida, Lithuania|Nida]]|[[Curonian Spit National Park (Lithuania)|Curonian Spit National Park]]}}
| image_flag = Flag of Lithuania Minor (2024, v2).svg
| flag_size = 
| image_shield = Greater coat of arms of Lithuania Minor.svg
| shield_size = 
| motto = 
| image_map = Mažoji Lietuva location Lithuania.svg
| map_caption = Location of part of Lithuania Minor within modern Lithuania
| subdivision_type = Countries
| subdivision_name = [[Lithuania]], [[Russia]]
| seat_type = Capital
| seat = [[Tilžė]] (Tilsit)
| seat1_type = Largest city
| seat1 = [[Klaipėda]]
| unit_pref = Metric
| area_footnotes = <ref name="vle">{{cite web | url=https://www.vle.lt/straipsnis/klaipedos-krastas/ | title=Klaipėdos kraštas }}</ref>
| area_note = area on the right-bank of the [[Neman]] river ([[Klaipėda Region]]), excluding [[Kaliningrad Oblast]] side
| area_total_km2 = 2848
| area_land_km2 = 
| population_footnotes = <ref name="vle" />
| population_total = 141650
| population_as_of = 1925
| population_density_km2 = auto
| population_demonym = 
| population_note = population on the right-bank of the [[Neman]] river ([[Klaipėda Region]]), excluding [[Kaliningrad Oblast]] side
| timezone1 = CET (GMT +2)
| utc_offset1 = 2
| timezone1_DST = 
| utc_offset1_DST = 
| postal_code_type = 
| postal_code = 
| area_code_type = 
| area_code = 
| website = 
| footnotes = 
}}
[[File:Etnoregionai.png|thumb|right|upright=1.2|Lithuania Minor and the other [[Regions of Lithuania|historical ethnographic regions of Lithuania]]]]
'''Lithuania Minor''' ({{langx|lt|Mažoji Lietuva}}; {{langx|pl|Litwa Mniejsza}}; {{langx|de|Kleinlitauen}}) or '''Prussian Lithuania''' ({{langx|lt|Prūsų Lietuva}}; {{langx|pl|Litwa Pruska}}; {{langx|de|Preußisch-Litauen}}) is one of five [[ethnographic]] [[regions of Lithuania]]. It is a historical region of [[Prussia (region)|Prussia]], where [[Prussian Lithuanians]] (or Lietuvininkai) lived, now located in [[Lithuania]] and the [[Kaliningrad Oblast]] of [[Russia]]. Lithuania Minor encompassed the northeastern part of the region and got its name from the territory's substantial [[Lithuanian language|Lithuanian-speaking]] population. Prior to the [[Northern Crusades|invasion of the Teutonic Knights]] in the 13th century, the main part of the territory later known as Lithuania Minor was inhabited by the tribes of [[Scalovians|Skalvians]] and [[Nadruvians]]. The land depopulated during the incessant war between [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania|Lithuania]] and the [[Monastic state of the Teutonic Knights|Teutonic Order]]. The war ended with the [[Treaty of Melno]] and the land was repopulated by Lithuanian newcomers, returning refugees, and the remaining indigenous Baltic peoples; the term Lithuania Minor appeared for the first time between 1517 and 1526.

With the exception of the [[Klaipėda Region]], which became a mandated territory of the [[League of Nations]] in 1920 by the [[Treaty of Versailles]] and was [[Klaipėda Revolt|unified with Lithuania]] from 1923 to 1939, the area was part of Prussia until 1945, which at various times was under sovereignty of the [[Crown of the Kingdom of Poland|Kingdom of Poland]], the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]] and Germany. Since 1945, a small portion of Lithuania Minor has been retained within the borders of modern-day Lithuania and [[Poland]] while most of the territory is part of the [[Kaliningrad Oblast]] of [[Russia]], which was part of the [[Soviet Union]] until December 1991.

Although hardly anything remains of the original culture due to the [[Expulsion of Germans after World War II|expulsion of Germans]] after World War&nbsp;II, Lithuania Minor has contributed significantly to Lithuanian culture overall. The standard written form of Prussian-Lithuanian provided the basis for modern Lithuanian,<ref>{{cite web |title=FOROST Sprachdatenbank > Litauisch > Kodifikation > Kodifikationsgeschichte |url=https://www.forost.uni-muenchen.de/sprachdatenbank/sprachdatenbank.php?display=Litauisch:kodifikation:kodifikationsgeschichte |website=forost.uni-muenchen.de |access-date=6 March 2025 |language=de-DE}}</ref> evolved from people close to [[Stanislovas Rapalionis]] and graduates from Lithuanian-language schools established in Vilnius, who were expelled from the Grand Duchy during [[Counter-Reformation]] years. Those include notable names like [[Abraomas Kulvietis]] and [[Martynas Mažvydas]]. During the years of the [[Lithuanian press ban|19th-century Lithuanian press ban]], most of the Lithuanian books printed using the Latin alphabet were published in Lithuania Minor.