Sambia Peninsula

Baedeker describes Sambia as "a fertile and partly-wooded district, with several lakes, lying to the north of Königsberg"[2] (since 1946 Kaliningrad).

Due to the moderating influence of the Baltic Sea, the climate is more mild than regions of comparable latitude further east.

History and legends tell of the ancient trade routes known as the Amber Road leading from the Old Prussian settlements of Kaup (in Sambia) and Truso (near Elbląg, near the mouth of the Vistula) southwards to the Black and Adriatic seas.

In Imperial Germany, the right to collect amber was restricted to the Hohenzollern dynasty, and visitors to Sambia's beaches were forbidden to pick up any fragments they found.

Based on finds of prehistoric amber carvings, nomadic boat using hunter gatherers were attracted to the area as early as 6,000 years ago,according to archeology.

Settlers from the Holy Roman Empire began colonizing the region, and the Sambian Prussians gradually became assimilated.

In 1454, the region was incorporated by King Casimir IV Jagiellon to the Kingdom of Poland upon the request of the anti-Teutonic Prussian Confederation.

During World War II, the Germans operated two subcamps of the Stutthof concentration camp, and the AGSSt Samland assembly center for Allied POWs in the region.

The Kuršininkai were considered Latvians until after World War I when Latvia gained independence from the Russian Empire, a consideration based on linguistic arguments.