|
Polish
Mutual Benefit and Friendly Society
BRANTFORD
POLISH HALL, 154 Pearl St.
519-753-0414
|
|
| The Coat of
Arms of Poland
consists of a White Eagle on a red shield. The Eagle is wearing a
crown.
In Poland, the Coat of Arms is usually called simply White Eagle
(Orzeł
Biały), and it is always capitalized. MORE... |
|
|
| Browse our
collection of Polish
Recipes, some of them are original from Old Country and some of
them are influenced by Canadian and other International blend... |
|
| We have just
the right place
for your next Super Bowl Party, Soccer Party or any other Theme Night.
Affordable rental for your entertainment needs. Please CLICK
HERE for more info. |
|
|
 |
About
Poland
|
| The
Republic of Poland,
a country in Central Europe, lies between Germany (456 km) to the west,
the Czech Republic (658 km) and Slovakia (444 km) to the south, Ukraine
(526 km) and Belarus (407 km) to the east, and the Baltic Sea,
Lithuania
(91 km) and Russia - Kaliningrad Oblast exclave (206 km) to the
north. |
|
| Poland's
official name in
Polish is Rzeczpospolita Polska. Poland belongs to medium size
countries
(by size 9th place in Europe and the 63th in the world) and covers
total
area of 312,685 sq. km (Land: 304,465 sq. km; Water: 8,220 sq. km;
Coastline:
491 km; Terrain: mostly flat plain; mountains along southern border;
lowest
elevation point: near Raczki Elblaskie -2 m; highest elevation point:
Rysy
2,499 m). The longest Polish river, the Vistula (1,047 km), runs
through
the centre of the country. |
|
|
Administrative
divisions:
Poland has 16
provinces
(wojewodztwa, singular - wojewodztwo); Dolnoslaskie,
Kujawsko-Pomorskie,
Lodzkie,
Lubelskie,
Lubuskie,
Malopolskie,
Mazowieckie,
Opolskie,
Podkarpackie,
Podlaskie,
Pomorskie,
Slaskie,
Swietokrzyskie,
Warminsko-Mazurskie,
Wielkopolskie,
Zachodniopomorskie. |
|
|
Population:
The country
has some 38,536,869
(July 2006 est.) inhabitants placing it seventh in Europe and 25th in
the
world. In European terms, Poland is a country of average population
density
- 123 persons per square kilometer. A dozen or so million Poles and
people
of Polish origin live outside Poland, including the bigger groups in
the
United States, Brazil, France, Canada, Germany, Belarus, Lithuania, the
Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, and the Czech Republic.
National
minorities (Belarusian,
Lithuanian, German, Ukrainian, Jewish) account for 2 to 3% of the
country's
overall population.
Capital
City: Warsaw
and its largest city. It is located on the Vistula river roughly 350 km
from both the Baltic coast and the Carpathian Mountains. Its population
as of 2004 was estimated at 1,676,600, with an urban agglomeration of
approximately
2,400,000.
Warshaw
is also also the capital of Masovian Voivodship, is home to many
industries
(manufacturing, steel, electrical engineering, automotive industry),
comprises
66 higher learning institutions incl. (Warsaw University, Warsaw
University
of Technology, Higher School of Business and Medical Academy) and over
30 Theaters incl. the National Theatre and Opera and the Philharmonic
National
Orchestra.
Most Polish
people (62%)
live in towns. The biggest of them are: Warsaw (1,676,600 inhabitants),
Lodz (842,000), Cracow (751,000), Wroclaw (644,000), Poznan (589,000),
Gdansk (467,000), Szczecin (415,000), Bydgoszcz (384,000), Katowice
(366,000)
and Lublin (352,000).
There are
124 institutions
of higher learning in Poland with the total number of students in the
range
of 495,000. Most of them, nearly 180,000, study at various university
departments.
There are more than 100,000 students of technical universities. Higher
school of pedagogic, agriculture and medical academies are further down
the list. It is worth noting that the Cracow Academy established in
1364
was the first Polish institution of higher learning and one of the
oldest
universities in Europe.
|
|
|
Government
and Related:
The supreme
legislative
organ of state authority in Poland is the bi-cameral parliament
composed
of the Sejm and the Senate elected for a four-year term. There are 460
MPs and 100 Senators.
The
President elected in
a general ballot for the period of five years is the head of state.
The supreme
executive organ
of state authority is the Council of Ministers (the Government), headed
by the Prime Minister.
|
|
|
Government
Executive Branch:
Chief Of
State: President
Lech KACZYNSKI (since 23 December 2005)
Head Of
Government: Prime
Minister Jaroslaw KACZYNSKI (since 10 July 2006);
Deputy Prime
Ministers:
Ludwik DORN (since 23 November 2005), Roman GIERTYCH (since 5 May
2006),
Zyta GILOWSKA (since 22 September 2006)
Cabinet:
Council of Ministers
responsible to the prime minister and the Sejm; the prime minister
proposes,
the president appoints, and the Sejm approves the Council of
Ministers
Elections:
president elected
by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term);
election
last held 9 and 23 October 2005 (next to be held October 2010); prime
minister
and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by
the Sejm |
|
|
| Two
national holidays are
celebrated in Poland in an especially festive way: May 3 (the
anniversary
of the adoption of Europe's first, and the second in the world
Constitution
on May 3, 1791) and November 11 (Independence Day). |
|
|
| The
origins of the names
of the country, Polska, and of the nationality, the Poles, remain
unclear.
A common opinion holds that the name Polska comes from the Polanes
tribe
who established the Polish state in the 10th century (Greater Poland).
Their name may derive from the Slavic word pole (field), or it may come
from the tribal name Goplanie - people living around Lake Goplo - the
cradle
of Poland mentioned as Glopeani having 400 strongholds circa 845.
Conventional
etymology of the ethnic name of the Poles relates it more widely to the
Polish Polanie, "dwellers of the field"; pol, "field". |
|
|
| Poland's
location and accessible
terrain has meant that the land has seen many wars fought over it, and
its borders have shifted considerably over the centuries. |
|
|
| Poland is
an ancient nation
that was conceived near the middle of the 10th century. Its golden age
occurred in the 16th century. During the following century, the
strengthening
of the gentry and internal disorders weakened the nation. In a series
of
agreements between 1772 and 1795, Russia, Prussia, and Austria
partitioned
Poland amongst themselves. Poland regained its independence in 1918
only
to be overrun by Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II. It
became
a Soviet satellite state following the war, but its government was
comparatively
tolerant and progressive. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of
the independent trade union "Solidarity" that over time became a
political
force and by 1990 had swept parliamentary elections and the presidency.
A "shock therapy" program during the early 1990s enabled the country to
transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe,
but
Poland still faces the lingering challenges of high unemployment,
underdeveloped
and dilapidated infrastructure. Solidarity suffered a major defeat in
the
2001 parliamentary elections when it failed to elect a single deputy to
the lower house of Parliament, and the new leaders of the Solidarity
Trade
Union subsequently pledged to reduce the Trade Union's political role.
Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004. With its
transformation
to a democratic, market-oriented country largely completed, Poland is
an
increasingly active member of Euro-Atlantic organizations. |
|
|
Climate:
Poland has a
temperate climate
with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent
precipitation,
not very frosty, only in the north-eastern region temperatures drop
below
-20 degrees C; the first spring buds and leaves usually appear early in
April; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers, and the
recently
increasingly dry summers are warm and sometimes even hot (record +38
degrees
C); greenery become yellow, golden, red, then fall in October and
November.
The average annual rainfall is about 600 mm.
Natural
hazards: flooding |
|
|
| Browse
Related Links: |
 Poland
Official Site from the Polish Government |
| KPRM
- Official Prime Ministerial Site |
| Prezydent
- Official Presidential Site |
| Senat
- Official site of the Senate |
| Sejm
- Official site of the Sejm |
| Trybunal
Konstytucyjny - Official site of the Constitutional Tribunal |
| Sad
Najwyzszy - Official site of the Supreme Court |
| The
Coat of Arms of Poland |
| The
Flag Of Poland |
| Polish
Traditions |
| Polish
History |
| Polish
Proverbs |
| Poland
Tourism Information Portal |
| Weather
in Poland |
| Information
About
Poland From The CIA Factbook |
| Poland
- From Wikipedia |
| Onet
Web Portal |
| Wirtualna
Polska |
| Interia
Web Portal |
| Gazeta
Wyborcza |
| Photos
of the Polish Nature, Cities, Relics and Folklore |
|
|
|
|
|
Advertise
your business
in our Business Directory...
CLICK
HERE for more info. |
|
| Our Polish
School is a wonderful place for all kids (grand kids) to learn
Polish language and traditions. Our students are children from Polish
and
“mixed” families. The school teaches literacy skills in Polish (reading
and writing) and offers a solid grounding in Polish history, culture,
and
traditions. The classes are age appropriate, the atmosphere is very
friendly
and warm. We invite all parents and grandparents to enroll their
children
in our school program and join us. The more the merrier! |
|
| Learn Polish
Proverbs, they are available in Polish and English language. |
|
| Find great
selection of
online Fairy
Tales for
your kids and read them for
free. |
|
|
Get
on a team NOW!
Become part of
dart or pool leagues,
organize your own game or league, rent game room for social, family or
corporate games or just come out and have a good time. We feature great
food, friendly atmosphere and fully stocked bar when you need to relax.
Click on the image for info. |
|
 |
