Saare County (Estonian: Saare maakond), or Saaremaa, is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It consists of Saaremaa (Ösel), the largest island of Estonia, and several smaller islands near it. The county borders Lääne County to the east and Hiiu County to the north.

History

Main article: History of Saaremaa

According to archeological findings, the territory of Saaremaa has been inhabited at least five thousand years.

County Government

The County Government (Estonian: Maavalitsus) is led by Governor (Estonian: maavanem), who is appointed by the Republican Government for a term of five years. Currently the Governor position is held by Hans Teiv.

Municipalities

The county is subdivided into municipalities. There is 1 urban municipality (Estonian: linn - town) and 13 rural municipalities (Estonian: vallad - communes) in Saare County.

-Urban municipality:1 Kuressaare

-Rural municipalities:2 Kaarma ;3 Kihelkonna ;4 Kärla ;5 Laimjala ;6 Leisi ;7 Lümanda ;

8 Muhu ;9 Mustjala ;10 Orissaare ;11 Pihtla ;12 Pöide ;13 Ruhnu ;14 Salme ;15 Torgu ;

16 Valjala .

Geography

The largest islands of the county are Saaremaa, Muhu, Ruhnu, Abruka and Vilsandi. Arable land is 570 km² and it has a mild maritime climate. The mean annual air temperature is 6.0 °C and the mean annual precipitation is 509 mm.