Aizsargi (lit. 'Defenders' or 'Guards'; officially – Latvian: Latvijas Aizsargu organizācija, lit. 'Guards Organization of Latvia', or LAO) was a volunteer paramilitary organization, militia with some characteristics of a military reserve force in Latvia during the interbellum period (1918–1939).
The Aizsargi was created on March 30, 1919, by the Latvian Provisional Government as a self-defense force - a kind of National Guard - during the Latvian War of Independence. In 1921, it was reorganized to follow the example of the Finnish Suojeluskunta (known as the "White Guard").
