Introduction to Poland
Poland, officially Republic of Poland, a country of eastern Europe. It is bounded by the Baltic Sea, Russia, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Germany.
Facts in brief about Poland Capital: Warsaw. Official language: Polish. Official name: Rzeczypospolita Polska (Republic of Poland). Area: 120,728 mi2 (312,685 km2). Greatest distances—east-west, 430 mi (692 km); north-south, 395 mi (636 km). Coastline—277 mi (446 km). Elevation: Highest—Rysy peak, 8,199 ft (2,499 m) above sea level. Lowest—sea level. Population: Current estimate—38,077,000; density, 315 per mi2 (122 per km2); distribution, 62 percent urban, 38 percent rural. 2002 census—38,230,100. Chief products: Agriculture—barley, hogs, potatoes, rye, sugar beets, wheat. Manufacturing—chemicals, food products, iron and steel, machinery, ships, textiles. Mining—coal, copper, silver, sulfur. Flag and coat of arms: Poland's national flag, flown by the people, has two horizontal stripes of red and white. The state flag, used by the government, includes the coat of arms. An eagle has been used on the Polish coat of arms since the 1200's. National anthem: "Jeszcze Polska nie Zginela" ("Poland Has Not Yet Perished"). Money: Basic unit—zloty. One hundred groszy equal one zloty.Physical Geography
Poland is a country in central Europe.LandPoland has two main regions—the Polish Plain and the Southern Uplands and Mountains. They run roughly east-west and become progressively higher from north to south.
The Polish Plain covers the northern two-thirds of the country. It is part of the Great European Plain, which spans the continent from France to Russia. Making up the plain are thick deposits of debris left by retreating glaciers during the last Ice Age. Some of the land is marshy and poorly drained.
Lagoons, sandy beaches, and dunes fringe much of the Baltic coast. Inland, the surface rises to a broad tract of level to rolling land, sometimes called the Baltic Heights. It contains numerous lakes, moraines, and glacial hills, which in places rise to elevations of 1,000 feet (300 m). The southern part of the plain spans central Poland and is a wide, almost level lowland. The lowest point in Poland is near Elbląg in the north of the country at 7 feet (2 m) below sea level.
The Southern Uplands and Mountains cover the southern third of Poland. Except for the Carpathian Mountains, the region is part of an old, worn-down, mountainous belt, sometimes called the Hercynian Uplands. It is a region of escarpments, mountain ranges, low-lying plateaus, and partly enclosed basins. Chief among surface features are the Sudeten Mountains, in the southwest along the Polish-Czech border, and the adjacent coal-rich Silesian Basin. Other features include the Swiětokrzyskie Mountains and the Lubelska Upland.
The Carpathians are a chain of young folded mountains stretching along the Polish-Slovakian border in the southeast. They include the Beskid ranges and the rugged Tatra Mountains. Rysy, the highest mountain in Poland, rises 8,199 feet (2,499 m) in the Tatras.
WaterMost of Poland is drained by two large rivers—the Oder (Odra in Polish) and the Vistula (Wisla). Both flow northward in S-shaped courses to the Baltic. Other rivers include the Bug, San, Narew, and Pilica—tributaries of the Vistula—and the Warta, Noteć, and Nysa Luzycka—tributaries of the Oder.
Nearly all of Poland's lakes are in the north in the Baltic Heights; the largest ones are Lakes Śniardwy and Mamry.
ClimatePoland's climate is transitional between the tempered, oceanic climate of northwestern Europe and the severe, continental type of Russia. Weather is extremely changeable; seasons are well marked.
Along the Baltic coast, where the sea's influence is strongest, summers are cool and winters are relatively mild for the latitude. Temperatures average about 63° F. (17° C.) in July and 31° F. (-1° C.) in January. The interior of the country, especially the southeast, has slightly warmer summers and colder winters. At Warsaw, for example, the average for the warmest month is 67° F. (19° C.) and for the coldest month, 27° F. (-3° C.). The Carpathian and Sudeten mountains, because of their elevation, have relatively low temperatures throughout the year.
Precipitation averages about 20 to 25 inches (510 to 640 mm) on the plain and in the upland areas. It is 60 inches (1,520 mm) or more in the Carpathians. Normally, snow covers the ground from one to three months, depending on location.
The Economy
Until after World War II Poland was primarily an agricultural country. Manufacturing was little developed except in Silesia and Warsaw. After the war, which left the country ravaged, Poland's government modeled the economy after that of the Soviet Union. The development of heavy industries, such as steelmaking and chemical manufacturing, was emphasized at the expense of the production of consumer goods. Ownership of most industries was taken over by the government and the economy became centrally planned, with little concern for market forces. Collectivization of agriculture was begun in the late 1940's but was abandoned in the 1950's.
Major industrial gains were made during 1945–75 and the economy grew steadily. However, a major economic decline occurred during the 1980's, causing widespread social unrest.
In 1989, after the fall of Poland's Communist government, economic reforms were introduced to transform Poland's centrally planned economy into one based on private enterprise and market forces. By the mid-1990's, many of Poland's state-owned industries had been returned to private ownership and the economy once again began to grow.
Manufacturing is Poland's leading economic activity, accounting for roughly a third of the nation's total output of goods and services and engaging about 25 per cent of the labor force. Many goods formerly imported are now produced in Poland, and some of them are exported.
The manufacture of machinery, transportation equipment, metals, and chemicals are the leading heavy industries. Since the introduction of economic reforms, the production of consumer goods has increased
Silesia, particularly the Katowice area, is Poland's main manufacturing region. Metallurgy is the primary endeavor there. Much manufacturing is also done elsewhere, especially in the cities of Warsaw, Lódz, Kraków, and Poznań.
Agriculture remains a significant, though declining, part of the Polish economy. In the early 1990's it provided about 7 per cent of the nation's total output of goods and services and engaged roughly 20 per cent of the labor force. About half of Poland's total area is farmland.
About 80 per cent of the nation's farmland is privately held; state and cooperative farms account for the rest. Many of the state farms are former German estates that were taken over after World War II.
Most of the private farms are small, averaging about 13 acres (5.2 hectares), and produce both crops and livestock. Potatoes, sugar beets, cabbages, rye, wheat, barley, and oats are the chief crops. Excluding poultry, hogs are the most numerous livestock. Ham and bacon are important exports. Cattle and sheep are also raised.
Economic production and workers in PolandEconomic activities% of GDP producedNumber of workers% of all workers Trade, restaurants, & hotels 222,260,00016 Manufacturing & mining 203,104,00022 Government 162,607,00018 Finance & insurance 15967,0007 Construction 7958,0007 Transportation & communication 7852,0006 Agriculture & forestry 42,720,00019 Community, social, & personal services 4459,0003 Utilities 4269,0002 Total 10014,196,000100Mining, Lumbering, and FishingCoal, mined primarily in Upper Silesia, is the leading mineral resource of Poland. It provides about 80 per cent of the nation's electric power and is exported in large amounts. Copper, lead, zinc, silver, sulfur, salt, petroleum, and natural gas are among other minerals produced.
Roughly one-fourth of Poland is covered by forests. Most of the trees are pines, spruces, and other conifers; a few broad leaved species grow in the south. Much of the annual cut is used for pulp to make paper and paper products.
Commercial fishing is done mainly in the Baltic and North seas and in the open North Atlantic waters. The catch is mainly herring and cod.
TransportationSince the early 1970's Poland's highway system has been greatly expanded and the use of motor vehicles has greatly increased. About 65 per cent of the road network is paved. Railways link the larger cities and most of the country's freight is moved by rail.
The Polish airline, LOT, provides both domestic and international service. Warsaw's airport is the nation's busiest air terminal. The chief ports are at Gdańsk, Gdynia, Swinovjscie, and Szczecin. The Vistula and the Oder are the only navigable rivers.
TradePoland's principal trading partners are other eastern European countries. Also important is trade with countries of the European Union, especially Germany, Great Britain, and Italy. Poland's basic currency unit is the zloty.
The People
Poland has a very homogeneous population, with 98 per cent of the people being ethnic Polish. There are small groups of Jews, Germans, Ukrainians, and Belarusians. Polish is the primary language.
ReligionNearly all Poles are Roman Catholics, and the Catholic church is a powerful institution exerting a strong influence on Polish life. There are small Russian Orthodox, Protestant, and Jewish minorities.
Education and CultureEducation is free, and attendance compulsory, for students from age 7 to 14. Four additional years of secondary education are also free, as is attendance at the state universities. In addition to primary and secondary schools, there are special schools for adult education and for the disabled.
Poland has an extensive state-operated system of higher learning. Institutions include general and technical universities, teacher-training schools, and colleges of medicine, economics, agriculture, and the arts. The oldest is the Jagiellonian University, founded in 1364 in Kraków. There is also a Catholic university in Lublin. The Polish Academy of Sciences was established in Warsaw in 1951.
Of numerous libraries, the most important are the National Library in Warsaw and the Jagiellonian University Library in Kraków. The National Museum in Warsaw is the nation's largest art gallery. The National Museum in Kraków is noted for its Far Eastern art, and the National Museum in Poznań for its collection of musical instruments. Most of the largest cities have at least one symphony orchestra, and there are several opera houses. The Frédéric Chopin International Piano Competition is a renowned contest held every five years in Warsaw.
Poland's cultural heritage is especially notable in music and literature. The musical forms known as the mazurka and the polonaise originated here. Among the many acclaimed Polish musicians and composers are Frédéric Chopin, Theodor Leschetizky, Moritz Moszkowski, Ignace Jan Paderewski, and Henri Wieniawski. Several Polish writers have also achieved international fame, including the Nobel laureates Czeslaw Milosz, Wladislaw Reymont, Henryk Sienkiewicz, and Wislawa Szymborska.
Government
Poland's constitution has been in place since 1997. The country is a republic with an elected president. Legislative authority resides in the National Assembly, which consists of two houses. The Sejm (parliament), or lower house, is composed of 460 members. The senate, or upper house, has 100 seats. Members of both houses are elected to four-year terms.
The president is the head of state and is elected by the people to a five-year term. The president has broad executive powers, including the authority to conduct foreign policy and oversee internal security. The president can veto laws passed by the legislature, which can overturn presidential vetoes by a two-thirds vote in the Sejm. The prime minister, who is the head of government, is appointed by the president, subject to the approval of the Sejm.
Poland is subdivided into 16 provinces. Each province has a governor and an elected legislature.
The judicial system is headed by the Supreme Court. There are also provincial, district, family, and special courts.