Salantai

City

Coat of arms

Salantai

Location of Salantai

Coordinates: 56°4′0″N 21°34′0″E / 56.06667°N 21.56667°ECoordinates: 56°4′0″N 21°34′0″E / 56.06667°N 21.56667°E

Lithuania

Kretinga district municipality

Eldership

Salantai eldership

Capital of

Salantai eldership

First mentioned

1556

Granted city rights

1746

Population (2005)

• Total

1,887

Time zone

EET (UTC+2)

• Summer (DST)

EEST (UTC+3)

Salantai ( pronunciation ) is a small city in Lithuania. It is located in the Klaipėda County, Kretinga district.

Salantai is named after the Salantas River, which runs through the town. Both of their names are derived from the Lithuanian word "salantais" meaning "freezing."

This town is known for three famed rabbis: Rabbi Yisrael Lipkin Salanter and his teacher Rabbi Zundel Salant, rabbi Shmuel Salant, who spent most of his life in Salantai. Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Jerusalem between 1866 and 1910, also lived here before immigration. Aleksandras Bendikas, the Lithuanian book smuggler settled in Salantai. During the summer 1941, 95 Jews of the city were massacred in a mass execution by Lithuaniens nazis in the nearby forest.

The Orvydas Farmstead located on the outskirts of Salantai is a sculpture park created by the Lithuanian artist Vilius Orvydas.

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Wikipedia