Interesting Facts About Poland

Here are a few fun facts that you might enjoy knowing about Poland.

The word “Poland” is the Anglicized version of Polska, which is ultimately derived from the word pole or “field.” Thus, Poland means “land of the Poles”—which could be a reference to the Polans, Polanies, or Polonians, who were to eventually unite the territories of Poland and establish the first Polish national dynasty, the Piast.

Poland has 120,562 square miles (312,255 km2) of area, which makes the country slightly smaller than New Mexico.

Poland shares its borders with no less than seven countries! These are Russia, Lithuania, Belarus, Slovakia, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, and Germany.

Geographically, Poland is not actually in Eastern Europe – it is in fact in the very centre of Europe.

The Polish flag has two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red; the colors derive from the Polish emblem, which is a white eagle on a red field. Poland’s flag is similar to the flags of Indonesia and Monaco, which are red (top) and white

There are 23 national parks in Poland, 1,269 nature reserves, and a hundred bird sanctuaries.

Kraków was the headquarters and the place of coronation of Polish kings and the nation's capital from 1038 until the move to Warsaw in 1596.

It was "stolen" between 1772 and 1795 when the country was divided between Russia, Prussia and Austria and erased from the map. In 1807, Poland was reborn as the Duchy of Warsaw under Napoleon Bonaparte but his defeat in 1815 ended with Poland being partitioned by Austria and Prussia.

Under communism, Poland became a highly industrialized country. Mining, steelworks, and machinery production are still the major industries there.

Changing from communism to a free market economy in the 1980s caused much upheaval in Poland. Even today, though most people are better off than they were under Soviet rule, wages are low and unemployment is high. Since joining the European Union in 2004 Poland's economy has grown rapidly.

The Polish Diaspora is one of the most significant in the world, with 20 million people of Polish descent living outside of Poland. To put that into perspective, only about 40 million people live inside Poland, meaning 1/3 of the entire population are expats. This has been due to Poland’s harsh history under communist rule, Soviet occupation, Nazi occupation, and, further back in history, when it simply didn’t exist on the map. Though its economy has come a long way, it’s still a very popular option to move abroad for work.

It was famous for its amber, transported along the Amber Route from the Baltic Sea to the Adriatic coast for over 1000 years. Gdansk on the northern tip of Poland holds the world famous Amber Market.

Pierogi, or Polish dumplings, are one of the most recognizable Polish dishes outside of Poland.

Krąków’s Jagiellonian University was established by King Casimir III the Great in 1364 and is the oldest university in Poland and second oldest in Central Europe.

The highest mountain in Australia was named in 1840 by Polish explorer Paul Edmund Strzeleck as Mount Kosciuszko because of the mountain's resemblance to the Kosciuszko Mound in Krakow.

It adopted the first constitution of its type in Europe and the second ever in the world after that of the United States on 3 May 1791 and was in effect for only 14 months and 3 weeks. It was referred to as "the last will and testament of the expiring Country" and of Polish sovereignty before Poland entered into 123 years of partition.

During World War II, the Polish town of Oświeçim was the site of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camps, where at least 1.1. million Nazi prisoners were killed by gassing with the pesticide Zyklon-B and many more died in other ways. Ninety percent of the prisoners killed were Jewish. The first exterminations of prisoners took place in September 1941.

Poland contributed 144 fighter pilots to the Allied effort during World War II, most notably in the RAF 302 and 303 squadrons. It is claimed they are responsible for shooting down 204 German planes and probably another 35, which was 12%–14% of German losses during the Battle of Britain in 1940

Poles are well educated. 90% of Poland's youths complete at least secondary education and 50% have an academic degree.

The most popular dog’s name in Poland is “Burek” which is actually the Polish word for a brown-grey colour.

On November 11, 1918, Poland declared itself a republic, independent of Russia. Poles have celebrated their Independence Day as a national holiday on November 11th since 1937. However, public celebration of the holiday was forbidden from 1939–1989, while Poland was under a Communist government. Since the collapse of that government, Independence Day has become the most important Polish national holiday.

 In addition to birthdays, Poles celebrate their name day or "imieniny", which is the day commemorating the saint they are named after. The names associated with each day is listed in all calendars in Poland. Just like birthdays, there are parties with food, drinks, presents and the singing of the traditional birthday song, "sto lat". And if you want to wish someone on their name day, just say "Wszystkiego najlepszego z okazji imienin!"

It boasts 17 Nobel prize winners, including four Peace Prizes and five in Literature.

Nicolaus Copernicus, the famous 16th century astronomer who first suggested the sun was the center of our universe was born in Thorn, Royal Prussia, part of the Kingdom of Poland.

Frédéric François Chopin (Fryderyk Franciszek Szopen), is Poland’s most famous composer. Chopin was born in Żelazowa Wola, Poland, in 1810. In the summer of 1830, he left Poland, never to return. He died in Paris in 1849 in his home at Place Vendôme 12 and is buried in Père-Lachaise Cemetery in Paris.

Famous physicist, chemist and Nobel laureate Marie Curie (or Maria Sklodowska) was Polish however she lived much of her life in France.

Polish-born Mariusz Pudzianowski is a five-time winner of the “World’s Strongest Man” title.

Polish people marry the youngest within the European Union (24 years old for women and 26.5 years old for men in average).

Related Topic(s):
6 big Polish stereotypes that are kinda silly

Eyewitness: The Polish Transformation