P OLA

ND
POLAND
 POL A ND I N
BR IE F
Flag: two horizontal stripes
of equal width the upper
one white and the lower
one red

Emblem: white eagle with

a golden crown on the red
shield
Official language: Polish
Currency: złoty, PLN (1€=4,55zł)
Government: Parliamentary Republic
Economy: free market economy since 1990
Major cities: Warszawa, Wrocław, Kraków, Łódź,
Poznań, Gdańsk, Rzeszów
Location: Central Europe
 CAPITAL: WARSZAWA (WARSAW)

IS BIIGEST CIITY IN CETRANL POLAND WITH POPULATION AROUND 1.7 MILLON.

Area: 312,685 sq km
(9th largest country in
Europe)

Population: 38,5 mln , out of

which: 95% are Poles;
biggest
national minorities are: Ukrainians and
Bielarusians
Religion: 80% Roman Catholic Church

Time zone: GMT+ 1hour

Polish people touch frequently by
shaking hands
Politeness requires an attention to status.
The act of holding a door open for a woman
or someone of higher status is really
common
Punctuality is important to Poles
Polish people are usually Catholic

The elderly are respected and help

maintain traditions.
Poles enjoy sharing hospitality to the point
of having a phrase „Gość W Dom, Bóg W
Dom” meaning „Guest in the house, God in
the house”
Poles do not shake hands in the
doorway
 CUST OMS A ND
R E L I G I OUS
H O L I D AY

• FAT THURSDAY (TŁUSTY CZWARTEK) –

THE DAY OF EATING TRADITIONAL
POLISH DOUGHNUTS (PĄCZKI) AND
ANGEL WINGS (FAWORKI); CELEBRATED
ON THE LAST THURSDAY BEFORE THE
RELIGIOUS PERIOD OF LENT
• The First Day of Spring - "sinking of Marzanna".
Kids made a doll from old grass and tree branches
and take it to the river. They burn the doll and
throw her into the river. The symbolic meaning of
this ceremony is to get rid of winter.
• Easter (Wielkanoc) – one of the most
important public holidays, which is full of
traditions. People decorate eggs (pisanki),
which they take in the Easter basket to
church on Holy Saturday. On Easter Monday
(lany poniedziałek) people play tricks on their
family and friends by pouring some water on
them.
• Eve of St. Andrew’s day (Andrzejki) is a
magical night of future – telling, when
people pour hot wax into cold water
through a key hole and try to read their
fate from the shape of congealed wax (29th
November)
• Christmas (Boże Narodzenie) probably the most
celebrated holiday, mainly because of the
Christmas Eve dinner on 24th December (Wigilia).
On this day families meet at tables filled with
typical Christmas dishes, such as beetroot soup
served with small dumplings, dumplings with
cabbage and mushrooms, fried Karp, and for
dessert: poppy seed cake.
• There are many rituals connected with this
evening such as sharing Christmas wafer
before dinner, singing corals and
exchanging presents, which lie hidden
under the Christmas tree till the end of the
meal
 N AT I O N A L
H O L I D AY S
• 3rd May (Constitution
Day) on this day on
1791 Poland as the first
country in Europe and
the second in the world
proclaimed its modern
codified constitution
(Konstytucja 3go Maja)

Jan Matejko "Konstytucja 3 maja

1791 roku"
• 11th November (National independence
Day) on this day in 1918 Poland regained
independence after 123 years of partitions

Marshal Józef
Piłsudski
• Women’s day (Dzień Kobiet) is traditionally
celebrated on 8th March. It was a public
holiday and one of the most importants
dates in the Polish calendar during the
communist regime.
• Juwenalia – is an annual students’ festival in Poland,
usually celebrated for 3 days in late May, or at the
beginning of June, just before summer exams.
During the celebrations students organise parades,
concertes and parties at univeristy campuses, clubs
and pubs
Poles also celebrate the
•April Fool’s Day (Prima Aprilis; 1st April)
•Child’s Day (Dzień Dziecka; 1st June)
•St. Nicholas Day (Mikołajki; 6th
December)
 POLISH
C U
Barszcz (beetroot soup)
I S I N E
Bigos (stew of cabbage and meat)
Pierogi (dumplings stuffed with cottage cheese, potatoes and
onion; meat; cabbage and mushrooms or fruit)
Kotlet schabowy (breaded pork cutlet)
 Placki Ziemniaczane (potatoes pancakes)
 Oscypek (cheese produced in the mountains from
ewe’s milk, which is the most famous Polish regional
delicacy
 Pastries and cakes: apple pie (szarlotka), ginger bread
(piernik), popy seed cake (makowiec), cheesecake
(sernik)
TRADITONAL FOLK
CLOTHES
Thank you for your attention!
