Polish historical regions
Polish historic regions are regions that were related to a former Polish state, or are within present-day Poland without being identified in its administrative division.
There are several historic and cultural regions in Poland that are called ethnographic regions. Their exact borders cannot be drawn, as the regions are not official political or administrative units. They are delimited by culture, such as country traditions, traditional lifestyle, songs, tales, etc. To some extent, the regions correspond to the zones of Polish language dialects. The correspondence, however, is by no means strict.
Modern regions of the current Polish state
Within Poland's modern borders are the following historic regions:
- Greater Poland (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Lesser Poland (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Red Ruthenia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la, only partially in modern Poland)
- Prussia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, only partially in modern Poland, also a German historical region)
- Lithuania Minor (Template:Lang-pl; (Template:Lang-lt; Template:Lang-de; Template:Lang-ru) or Prussian Lithuania (Template:Lang-pl); (Template:Lang-lt, Template:Lang-de) only part in Poland, also a Lithuanian land and German historical region now mostly within the Kaliningrad Oblast of Russia
- Masovia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Kuyavia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Lusatia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, only partially in modern Poland, also a German historical region)
- Podlasie (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Southern Podlasie (Template:Lang-pl)
- Pomerania (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, only partially in modern Poland, also a German historical region)
- Pomerelia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la)
- Silesia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-szl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-cs, Template:Lang-la), only part in Poland, also a Czech land and German historical region
Historic regions of former Polish states outside current Polish borders
Outside Poland are several historic regions which were once part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, a confederal part of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, or the Second Polish Republic. While these regions are important for Polish history, calling them Polish is controversial, as they were never predominantly populated by ethnic Poles and now lie beyond the borders of Poland. They are:
- Aukštaitija, Lithuania (Template:Lang-pl)
- Black Ruthenia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Smolensk Land (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Livonia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Podolia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Samogitia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Ukraine (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Volhynia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- White Ruthenia, Belarus (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
Historic regions inside the borders of the current Polish state
Modern Poland is rich in history, including major border and population shifts. It comprises many historic regions:
- Chelmno Land (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, also a German historical region)
- East Prussia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, see Prussia, also a German historical region, only partially in modern Poland)
- Farther Pomerania (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, see Pomerania, also a German historical region)
- Kashubia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-csb, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la)
- Lower Lusatia (Template:Lang-pl,Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, also a German historical region)
- Lower Silesia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, also a German historical region)
- Lubusz Land (Template:Lang-pl, only partially in modern Poland - during the high Middle Ages absorbed into the region of Neumarkt)
- Mazovia (Template:Lang-pl, Masovian: Mazofse, Template:Lang-la)
- Neumark (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, also a German historical region)
- Polesia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-la)
- Upper Lusatia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, also a German historical region)
- Upper Silesia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, also a German historical region)
- Warmia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, Template:Lang-la, also a German historical region)
- West Prussia (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, see Pomerelia, also a German historical region)
- Western Pomerania (Template:Lang-pl, Template:Lang-de, see Pomerania, also a German historical region, only partially in modern Poland)
Bibliography
- Norman Davies, God's Playground: A History of Poland, vol. 1: The Origins to 1795; vol. 2: 1795 to the Present, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1981, ISBN 0-19-925339-0, ISBN 0-19-925340-4. [1] Chapter two: "The Polish Land", pp. 23–52.