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Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukraine to the east, Slovakia and the Czech Republic to the south, and Germany to the west. The territory has a varied landscape, diverse ecosystems, and a temperate climate. Poland is composed of sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 million people, and the fifth largest EU country by land area, covering . The capital and largest city is Warsaw; other major cities include Kraków, Wrocław, Łódź, Poznań, and Gdańsk.
Prehistoric human activity on Polish soil dates to the Lower Paleolithic, with continuous settlement since the end of the Last Glacial Period. Culturally diverse throughout late antiquity, in the early medieval period the region became inhabited by the West Slavs tribal Polans, who gave Poland its name. The process of establishing statehood coincided with the conversion of a Mieszko I to Christianity in 966 under the auspices of the Catholic Church. In 1025, the Kingdom of Poland emerged, and in 1569 it cemented its long-standing association with Lithuania, forming the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. At the time, the Commonwealth was one of Europe's great powers, with an elective monarchy and a Golden Liberty political system. It adopted Europe's first modern constitution in 1791.
With the passing of the prosperous Polish Golden Age, the country was partitioned by neighbouring states at the end of the 18th century. At the end of World War I in 1918, Poland regained its independence with the founding of the Second Polish Republic, which emerged victorious in various conflicts of the interbellum period. In September 1939, the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union marked the beginning of World War II, which resulted in the Holocaust and millions of Polish casualties. Forced into the Eastern Bloc in the global Cold War, the Polish People's Republic was a signatory of the Warsaw Pact. Through the 1980 emergence and contributions of the Solidarity movement, which initiated the fall of the Iron Curtain, the communist government was dissolved and Poland re-established itself as a liberal democracy in 1989, as the first of its neighbours.
Poland is a semi-presidential republic with its Bicameralism comprising the Sejm and the Senate. Considered a middle power, it is a developed market and high-income economy that is the sixth largest in the European Union by nominal GDP and the fifth largest by PPP-adjusted GDP. Poland enjoys a very high standard of living, safety, and economic freedom, as well as free university education and universal health care. It has 17 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, 15 of which are cultural. Poland is a founding member state of the United Nations and a member of the Council of Europe, World Trade Organisation, OECD, NATO, and the European Union (including the Schengen Area).
The country's alternative archaic name is Lechia and its root syllable remains in official use in several languages, notably Hungarian, Lithuanian, and Persian language. The exonym possibly derives from either Lech, a legendary ruler of the Lechites, or from the Lendians, a West Slavic tribe that dwelt on the south-easternmost edge of Lesser Poland. The origin of the tribe's name lies in the Old Polish word lęda (plain). Initially, both names Lechia and Polonia were used interchangeably when referring to Poland by chroniclers during the Middle Ages.
The period spanning the Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age (1300 BC–500 BC) was marked by an increase in population density, establishment of settlements (gords) and the expansion of Lusatian culture. A significant archaeological find from the protohistory of Poland is a fortified settlement at Biskupin, attributed to the Lusatian culture of the Late Bronze Age (mid-8th century BC).
Throughout antiquity (400 BC–500 AD), many distinct ancient populations inhabited the territory of present-day Poland, notably Celts, , Germanic peoples, Sarmatians, Balts and Early Slavs tribes. Furthermore, archaeological findings confirmed the presence of Roman Legions sent to protect the Amber Road. The Polish tribes emerged following the second wave of the Migration Period around the 6th century AD; they were Slavs and may have included assimilated remnants of peoples that earlier dwelled in the area. Beginning in the early 10th century, the Polans would come to dominate other Lechites tribes in the region, initially forming a tribal federation and later a centralised monarchical state.
In 1000, at the Congress of Gniezno, Bolesław obtained the right of investiture from Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor, who assented to the creation of additional bishoprics and an archdioceses in Gniezno. Three new dioceses were subsequently established in Kraków, Kołobrzeg, and Wrocław. Also, Otto bestowed upon Bolesław royal regalia and a replica of the Holy Lance, which were later used at his coronation as the first King of Poland , when Bolesław received permission for his coronation from Pope John XIX.Przemysław Urbańczyk (2025). 9788323138860, Wydawnictwo Naukowe Uniwersytetu Mikołaja Kopernika. ISBN 9788323138860 Bolesław also expanded the realm considerably by seizing parts of German Lusatia, Czech Moravia, Upper Hungary, and southwestern regions of the Kievan Rus'.
The transition from Slavic paganism in Poland was not instantaneous and resulted in the pagan reaction of the 1030s. In 1031, Mieszko II Lambert lost the title of king and fled amidst the violence. The unrest led to the transfer of the capital to Kraków in 1038 by Casimir I the Restorer. In 1076, Bolesław II re-instituted the office of king, but was banished in 1079 for murdering his opponent, Bishop Stanislaus. In 1138, the country fragmented into five principalities when Bolesław III Wrymouth divided his lands among his sons. These were Lesser Poland, Greater Poland, Silesia, Masovia, and Sandomierz, with intermittent hold over Pomerania. In 1226, Konrad I of Masovia invited the Teutonic Knights to aid in combating the Balts Prussians; a decision that later led to centuries of warfare with the Knights.
In the first half of the 13th century, Henry I the Bearded and Henry II the Pious aimed to unite the fragmented dukedoms, but the Mongol invasion and the death of Henry II in battle hindered the unification. As a result of the devastation which followed, depopulation and the demand for craft labour spurred a migration of German and Flemish settlers into Poland, which was encouraged by the Polish dukes. In 1264, the Statute of Kalisz introduced unprecedented autonomy for the Polish Jews, who came to Poland fleeing persecution elsewhere in Europe.
In 1320, Władysław I the Short became the first king of a reunified Poland since Przemysł II in 1296, and the first to be crowned at Wawel Cathedral in Kraków. Beginning in 1333, the reign of Casimir III the Great was marked by developments in castle infrastructure, army, judiciary and diplomacy.Britannica Educational Publishing (2025). 9781615309917, Britannica Educational Publishing. ISBN 9781615309917 Under his authority, Poland transformed into a major European power; he instituted Polish rule over Ruthenia in 1340 and imposed quarantine that prevented the spread of Black Death. In 1364, Casimir inaugurated the University of Kraków, one of the oldest institutions of higher learning in Europe. Upon his death in 1370, the Piast dynasty came to an end. He was succeeded by his closest male relative, Louis of Anjou, who ruled Poland, Hungary, and Croatia in a personal union. Louis' younger daughter Jadwiga became Poland's first female monarch in 1384.
In the Baltic Sea region, the struggle of Poland and Lithuania with the Teutonic Knights continued and culminated at the Battle of Grunwald in 1410, where a combined Polish-Lithuanian army inflicted a decisive victory against them. In 1466, after the Thirteen Years' War, king Casimir IV Jagiellon gave royal consent to the Peace of Thorn, which created the future Duchy of Prussia under Polish suzerainty and forced the Prussian rulers to pay tributes. The Jagiellonian dynasty also established dynastic control over the kingdoms of Bohemia (1471 onwards) and Hungary. In the south, Poland confronted the Ottoman Empire (at the Varna Crusade) and the Crimean Khanate, and in the east helped Lithuania to combat Russia.
Poland was developing as a feudalism state, with a predominantly agricultural economy and an increasingly powerful landed nobility that confined the population to private manorial farmstead known as folwark. In 1493, John I Albert sanctioned the creation of a bicameral parliament (the Sejm) composed of a lower house, the chamber of deputies, and an upper house, the chamber of senators. The Nihil novi act adopted by the Polish General Sejm in 1505, transferred most of the legislature from the monarch to the parliament, an event which marked the beginning of the period known as Golden Liberty, when the state was ruled by the seemingly free and equal szlachta.
The 16th century saw Protestant Reformation movements making deep inroads into Polish Christianity, which resulted in the establishment of policies promoting religious tolerance, unique in Europe at that time. This tolerance allowed the country to avoid the religious turmoil and wars of religion that beset Europe. In Poland, Nontrinitarian Christianity became the doctrine of the so-called Polish Brethren, who separated from their Calvinism denomination and became the co-founders of global Unitarianism.
The European Renaissance evoked under Sigismund I the Old and Sigismund II Augustus a sense of urgency in the need to promote a cultural awakening. During the Polish Golden Age, the nation's economy and culture flourished. The Italian-born Bona Sforza, daughter of the Duke of Milan and queen consort to Sigismund I, made considerable contributions to architecture, Polish cuisine, language and court customs at Wawel Castle.
In 1573, Henry de Valois of France, the first elected king, approbated the Henrician Articles which obliged future monarchs to respect the rights of nobles. When he left Poland to become King of France, his successor, Stephen Báthory, led a successful campaign in the Livonian War, granting Poland more Livonia of the Baltic Sea. State affairs were then headed by Jan Zamoyski, the Crown Chancellor. Stephen's successor, Sigismund III, defeated a rival Habsburg electoral candidate, Archduke Maximilian III, in the War of the Polish Succession (1587–1588). In 1592, Sigismund succeeded his father John Vasa, in Sweden. The Polish-Swedish union endured until 1599, when he was deposed by the Swedes.
In 1609, Sigismund invaded Russia which was engulfed in a civil war, and a year later the Polish Polish hussars units under Stanisław Żółkiewski occupied Moscow for two years after defeating the Russians at Klushino. Sigismund also countered the Ottoman Empire in the southeast; at Khotyn in 1621 Jan Karol Chodkiewicz achieved a decisive victory against the Turks, which ushered the downfall of Sultan Osman II. Sigismund's long reign in Poland coincided with the Silver Age. The liberal Władysław IV effectively defended Poland's territorial possessions but after his death the vast Commonwealth began declining from internal disorder and constant warfare.
In 1648, the Polish hegemony over Ukraine sparked the Khmelnytsky Uprising, followed by the decimating Swedish Deluge during the Second Northern War, and Prussia's independence in 1657. In 1683, John III Sobieski re-established military prowess when he halted the advance of an Ottoman Army into Europe at the Battle of Vienna. The Saxon era, under Augustus II and Augustus III, saw neighboring powers grow in strength at the expense of Poland. Both Saxon kings faced opposition from Stanisław Leszczyński during the Great Northern War (1700) and the War of the Polish Succession (1733).
In 1772, the First Partition of the Commonwealth by Prussia, Russia, and Austria took place, an act which the Partition Sejm, under considerable duress, eventually ratified as a fait accompli. Disregarding the territorial losses, in 1773 a plan of critical reforms was established, in which the Commission of National Education, the first government education authority in Europe, was inaugurated. (2025). 9780415354912, RoutledgeFalmer. ISBN 9780415354912 Corporal punishment of schoolchildren was officially prohibited in 1783. Poniatowski was the head figure of the Enlightenment, encouraged the development of industries, and embraced republican neoclassicism. For his contributions to the arts and sciences, he was awarded a Fellowship of the Royal Society.
In 1791, the Great Sejm adopted the 3 May Constitution, the first set of supreme national laws, and introduced a constitutional monarchy. The Targowica Confederation, an organisation of nobles and deputies opposing the act, appealed to Catherine and caused the 1792 Polish–Russian War. Fearing the reemergence of Polish hegemony, Russia and Prussia arranged and, in 1793, executed the Second Partition, which left the country deprived of territory and incapable of independent existence. On 24 October 1795, the Commonwealth was partitioned for the third time and ceased to exist as a territorial entity. Stanisław Augustus, the last King of Poland, abdicated the throne on 25 November 1795.
In 1806, an insurrection organised by Jan Henryk Dąbrowski liberated western Poland ahead of Napoleon's advance into Prussia during the War of the Fourth Coalition. In accordance with the 1807 Treaty of Tilsit, Napoleon proclaimed the Duchy of Warsaw, a client state ruled by his ally Frederick Augustus I of Saxony. The Poles actively aided French troops in the Napoleonic Wars, particularly those under Józef Poniatowski who became Marshal of France shortly before his death at Leipzig in 1813. In the aftermath of Napoleon's exile, the Duchy of Warsaw was abolished at the Congress of Vienna in 1815 and its territory was divided into Russian Congress Kingdom of Poland, the Prussian Grand Duchy of Posen, and Austrian Poland with the Free City of Kraków.
In 1830, non-commissioned officers at Warsaw's Officer Cadet School rebelled in what was the November Uprising. After its collapse, Congress Poland lost its constitutional autonomy, army and legislative assembly. During the European Spring of Nations, Poles took up arms in the Greater Poland Uprising of 1848 to resist Germanisation, but its failure saw duchy's status reduced to a mere province; and subsequent integration into the German Empire in 1871. In Russia, the fall of the January Uprising (1863–1864) prompted severe political, social and cultural reprisals, followed by deportations and pogroms of the Polish-Jewish population. Towards the end of the 19th century, Congress Poland became heavily industrialised; its primary exports being coal, zinc, iron and textiles.
The Second Polish Republic reaffirmed its sovereignty after a series of military conflicts, most notably the Polish–Soviet War, when Poland inflicted a crushing defeat on the Red Army at the Battle of Warsaw.
The inter-war period heralded a new era of Polish politics. Whilst Polish political activists had faced heavy censorship in the decades up until World War I, a new political tradition was established in the country. Many exiled Polish activists, such as Ignacy Jan Paderewski, who would later become prime minister, returned home. A significant number of them then went on to take key positions in the newly formed political and governmental structures. Tragedy struck in 1922 when Gabriel Narutowicz, inaugural holder of the presidency, was assassinated at the Zachęta Gallery in Warsaw by a painter and right-wing nationalist Eligiusz Niewiadomski.
In 1926, the May Coup, led by the hero of the Polish independence campaign Marshal Józef Piłsudski, turned rule of the Second Polish Republic over to the nonpartisan Sanacja ( Healing) movement to prevent radical political organisations on both the left and the right from destabilising the country. By the late 1930s, due to increased threats posed by political extremism inside the country, the Polish government became increasingly heavy-handed, banning a number of radical organisations, including communist and ultra-nationalist political parties, which threatened the stability of the country.
Poland made the fourth-largest troop contribution in Europe, and its troops served both the Polish Government in Exile in the west and Soviet leadership in the east. Polish troops played an important role in the Normandy, Italian, North African Campaigns and Netherlands and are particularly remembered for the Battle of Britain and Battle of Monte Cassino. Polish intelligence operatives proved extremely valuable to the Allies, providing much of the intelligence from Europe and beyond, Polish code breakers were responsible for cracking the Enigma cipher and Polish scientists participating in the Manhattan Project were co-creators of the American atomic bomb. In the east, the Soviet-backed Polish 1st Army distinguished itself in the battles for Warsaw Uprising and Berlin.
The wartime resistance movement, and the Armia Krajowa ( Home Army), fought against German occupation. It was one of the three largest resistance movements of the entire war, and encompassed a range of clandestine activities, which functioned as an underground state complete with degree-awarding universities and a court system. The resistance was loyal to the exiled government and generally resented the idea of a communist Poland; for this reason, in the summer of 1944 it initiated Operation Tempest, of which the Warsaw Uprising that began on 1 August 1944 is the best-known operation.
Nazi German forces under orders from Adolf Hitler set up six German extermination camps in occupied Poland, including Treblinka, Majdanek and Auschwitz. The Germans Holocaust train from across occupied Europe to be murdered in those camps. (2025). 9780803213272, University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 9780803213272 Altogether, 3 million Polish Jews Quote: Liczba Żydów i Polaków żydowskiego pochodzenia, obywateli II Rzeczypospolitej, zamordowanych przez Niemców sięga 2,7- 2,9 mln osób. Translation: The number of Jewish victims is estimated at 2,9 million. This was about 90% of the 3.3 million Jews living in prewar Poland. Source: IPN. – approximately 90% of Poland's pre-war Jewry – and between 1.8 and 2.8 million ethnic Poles Quote: Łączne straty śmiertelne ludności polskiej pod okupacją niemiecką oblicza się obecnie na ok. 2 770 000. Translation: Current estimate is roughly 2,770,000 victims of German occupation. This was 11.3% of the 24.4 million ethnic Poles in prewar Poland. were killed during the German occupation of Poland, including between 50,000 and 100,000 members of the Polish intelligentsia – academics, doctors, lawyers, nobility and priesthood. During the Warsaw Uprising alone, over 150,000 Polish civilians were killed, most were murdered by the Germans during the Wola massacre and Ochota massacre massacres. Around 150,000 Polish civilians were killed by Soviets between 1939 and 1941 during the Soviet Union's occupation of eastern Poland (Kresy), and another estimated 100,000 Poles were murdered by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA) between 1943 and 1944 in what became known as the Wołyń Massacres.Grzegorz Motyka, Od rzezi wołyńskiej do akcji "Wisła". Konflikt polsko-ukraiński 1943–1947. Kraków 2011, p. 447. See also: Book review by Tomasz Stańczyk: "Grzegorz Motyka oblicza, że w latach 1943–1947 z polskich rąk zginęło 11–15 tys. Ukraińców. Polskie straty to 76–106 tys. zamordowanych, w znakomitej większości podczas rzezi wołyńskiej i galicyjskiej." Of all the countries in the war, Poland lost the highest percentage of its citizens: around 6 million perished – more than one-sixth of Poland's pre-war population – half of them Polish Jews. Holocaust: Five Million Forgotten: Non-Jewish Victims of the Shoah. Remember.org. About 90% of deaths were non-military in nature.Bureau odszkodowan wojennych (BOW), Statement on war losses and damages of Poland in 1939–1945. Warsaw 1947
In 1945, Poland's borders were shifted westwards. Over two million Polish inhabitants of Kresy were expelled along the Curzon Line by Joseph Stalin.Bogumiła Lisocka-Jaegermann (2006). "Post-War Migrations in Poland". In: Mirosława Czerny. Poland in the geographical centre of Europe. Hauppauge, New York: Nova Science Publishers. pp. 71–87. . The western border became the Oder-Neisse line. As a result, Poland's territory was reduced by 20%, or . The shift forced the migration of millions of other people, most of whom were Poles, Germans, Ukrainians, and Jews.
Accessed 21 April 2025 In 1944, Stalin had made guarantees to Churchill and Roosevelt that he would maintain Poland's sovereignty and allow democratic elections to take place. However, upon achieving victory in 1945, the elections organised by the occupying Soviet authorities were falsified and were used to provide a veneer of legitimacy for Soviet hegemony over Polish affairs.Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p1491 The Soviet Union instituted a new communist state government in Poland, analogous to much of the rest of the Eastern Bloc. As elsewhere in Communist Europe, the Soviet influence over Poland was met with Cursed soldiers from the outset which continued into the 1950s.
Despite widespread objections, the new Polish government accepted the Soviet annexation of the pre-war eastern regions of Poland (in particular the cities of Wilno and Lwów) and agreed to the permanent garrisoning of Red Army units on Poland's territory. Military alignment within the Warsaw Pact throughout the Cold War came about as a direct result of this change in Poland's political culture. In the European scene, it came to characterise the full-fledged integration of Poland into the brotherhood of communist nations.
The new communist government took control with the adoption of the Small Constitution on 19 February 1947. The Polish People's Republic ( Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa) was officially proclaimed in 1952. In 1956, after the death of Bolesław Bierut, the régime of Władysław Gomułka became temporarily more liberal, freeing many people from prison and expanding some personal freedoms. Collectivisation in the Polish People's Republic failed. A similar situation repeated itself in the 1970s under Edward Gierek, but most of the time persecution of anti-communist opposition groups persisted. Despite this, Poland was at the time considered to be one of the least oppressive states of the Eastern Bloc.
Labour turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union "Solidarity" (" Solidarność"), which over time became a political force. Despite persecution and imposition of martial law in 1981 by General Wojciech Jaruzelski, it eroded the dominance of the Polish United Workers' Party and by 1989 had triumphed in Poland's first Contract Sejm since the end of the Second World War. Lech Wałęsa, a Solidarity candidate, eventually won the presidency in 1990. The Solidarity movement heralded the collapse of communist regimes and parties across Europe.
Poland joined the Schengen Area in 2007, as a result of which, the country's borders with other member states of the European Union were dismantled, allowing for full freedom of movement within most of the European Union. On 10 April 2010, the President of Poland Lech Kaczyński, along with 89 other high-ranking Polish officials died in a plane crash near Smolensk, Russia.
In 2011, the ruling Civic Platform won parliamentary elections. In 2014, the Prime Minister of Poland, Donald Tusk, was chosen to be President of the European Council, and resigned as prime minister. The 2015 and 2019 elections were won by the national-conservative Law and Justice Party (PiS) led by Jarosław Kaczyński, resulting in increased Euroscepticism and increased friction with the European Union. In December 2017, Mateusz Morawiecki was sworn in as the Prime Minister, succeeding Beata Szydlo, in office since 2015. President Andrzej Duda, supported by Law and Justice party, was re-elected in the 2020 presidential election.
, the Russian invasion of Ukraine had led to 17 million Ukrainian refugees crossing the border to Poland. , 0.9 million of those had stayed in Poland. In October 2023, the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party won the largest share of the vote in the election, but lost its majority in parliament. In December 2023, Donald Tusk became the new Prime Minister leading a coalition made up of Civic Coalition, Third Way, and The Left. Law and Justice became the leading opposition party.
The country has a coastline spanning ; extending from the shores of the Baltic Sea, along the Bay of Pomerania in the west to the Gulf of Gdańsk in the east. The beach coastline is abundant in sand dunes or Beach ridge and is indented by spits and lagoons, notably the Hel Peninsula and the Vistula Lagoon, which is shared with Russia. The largest Polish island on the Baltic Sea is Wolin, located within Wolin National Park. (2025). 9783319717883, Springer. ISBN 9783319717883 Poland also shares the Szczecin Lagoon and the Usedom island with Germany.
The mountainous belt in the extreme south of Poland is divided into two major mountain ranges; the Sudetes in the west and the Carpathians in the east. The highest part of the Carpathian massif are the Tatra Mountains, extending along Poland's southern border. Poland's highest point is Mount Rysy at in elevation, located in the Tatras. The highest summit of the Sudetes massif is Mount Śnieżka at , shared with the Czech Republic. The lowest point in Poland is situated at Raczki Elbląskie in the Vistula Delta, which is below sea level.
Poland's longest rivers are the Vistula River, the Oder River, the Warta, and the Bug River. The country also possesses one of the highest densities of lakes in the world, numbering around ten thousand and mostly concentrated in the north-eastern region of Masuria, within the Masurian Lake District. The largest lakes, covering more than , are Śniardwy and Lake Mamry, and the deepest is Lake Hańcza at in depth.
There is a considerable fluctuation in day-to-day weather and the arrival of a particular season can differ each year. Climate change and other factors have further contributed to interannual thermal anomalies and increased temperatures; the average annual air temperature between 2011 and 2020 was , around 1.11 °C higher than in the 2001–2010 period. Winters are also becoming increasingly drier, with less sleet and snowfall.
The flora and fauna in Poland is that of Continental Europe, with the European bison, white stork and white-tailed eagle designated as national animals, and the Papaver rhoeas being the unofficial floral emblem. Among the most protected species is the European bison, Europe's heaviest land animal, as well as the Eurasian beaver, the Eurasian lynx, the gray wolf and the Tatra chamois. The region was also home to the extinct aurochs, the last individual dying in Poland in 1627. Game animals such as red deer, roe deer, and wild boar are found in most woodlands. Poland is also a significant breeding ground for migratory birds and hosts around one quarter of the global population of white storks.
Around , equivalent to 1% of Poland's territory, is protected within 23 Polish national parks, two of which – Białowieża and Bieszczady – are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. There are 123 areas designated as landscape parks, along with numerous and other protected areas under the Natura 2000 network.
Poland's Legislature assembly is a bicameralism parliament consisting of a 460-member lower house (Sejm) and a 100-member upper house (Senate). The Sejm is elected under proportional representation according to the d'Hondt method for vote-seat conversion. The Senate is elected under the first-past-the-post electoral system, with one senator being returned from each of the one hundred constituencies. The Senate has the right to amend or reject a statute passed by the Sejm, but the Sejm may override the Senate's decision with a majority vote. (2025). 9789041189332, Kluwer Law International. ISBN 9789041189332
With the exception of ethnic minority parties, only candidates of political parties receiving at least 5% of the total national vote can enter the Sejm. Both the lower and upper houses of parliament in Poland are elected for a four-year term and each member of the Polish parliament is guaranteed parliamentary immunity. (2025). 9789403513249, Kluwer Law International. ISBN 9789403513249 Under current legislation, a person must be 21 years of age or over to assume the position of deputy, 30 or over to become senator and 35 to run in a presidential election.
Members of the Sejm and Senate jointly form the National Assembly of the Republic of Poland. (2025). 9789403533001, Kluwer Law International. ISBN 9789403533001 The National Assembly, headed by the marshal of the Sejm, or marshal of the Senate in their absence, is formed on three occasions – when a new president takes the oath of office; when an indictment against the president is brought to the State Tribunal; and in case a president's permanent incapacity to exercise his duties due to the state of his health is declared.
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The judiciary in Poland is composed of the Supreme Court as the country's highest judicial organ, the Supreme Administrative Court for the judicial control of public administration, Common Courts (District Court, Regional, Appellate court) and the Court-martial. (2025). 9789403529615, Kluwer Law International. ISBN 9789403529615 The Constitutional and State Tribunals are separate judicial bodies, which rule the constitutional liability of people holding the highest offices of state and supervise the compliance of statutory law, thus protecting the Constitution. Judges are nominated by the National Council of the Judiciary and are appointed for life by the president. With the approval of the Senate, the Sejm appoints an ombudsman for a five-year term to guard the observance of social justice.
Poland has a low homicide rate at 0.7 murders per 100,000 people, as of 2018. Rape, assault and violent crime remain at a very low level. The country has imposed strict regulations on abortion, which is permitted only in cases of rape, incest or when the woman's life is in danger; congenital disorder is not covered by the law, prompting some women to seek abortion abroad.
Historically, the most significant Polish legal act is the Constitution of 3 May 1791. Instituted to redress long-standing political defects of the federation Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and its Golden Liberty, it was the first modern constitution in Europe and influenced many later democratic movements across the globe. In 1918, the Second Polish Republic became one of the first countries to introduce universal women's suffrage.
In recent years, Poland significantly strengthened its relations with the United States, thus becoming one of its closest alliance and strategic partners in Europe. Historically, Poland maintained strong cultural and political ties to Hungary; this special relationship was recognised by the parliaments of both countries in 2007 with the joint declaration of 23 March as "The Day of Polish-Hungarian Friendship".
Poland ranks 14th in the world in terms of military expenditures; the country allocated 4.12% of its total GDP on military spending, equivalent to approximately US$35 billion in 2024. From 2022, Poland initiated a programme of mass modernisation of its armed forces, in close cooperation with American, South Korean and local Polish Arms industry. Also, the Polish military is set to increase its size to 250,000 enlisted and officers, and 50,000 defence force personnel. According to SIPRI, the country exported €487 million worth of arms and armaments to foreign countries in 2020.
Compulsory Conscription for men, who previously had to serve for nine months, was discontinued in 2008. Polish military doctrine reflects the same defensive nature as that of its NATO partners and the country actively hosts NATO's military exercises.International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) (2025). 9781000619720, Routledge. . ISBN 9781000619720 Since 1953, the country has been a large contributor to various United Nations peacekeeping missions, and currently maintains military presence in the Middle East, Africa, the Baltic states and southeastern Europe. Moreover, there are approximately 10,000 troops from the United States Armed Forces stationed across Poland. From 2024, Poland also provides mandatory firearms training for pupils in primary and secondary schools.
The Internal Security Agency (ABW, or ISA in English) is the chief counterintelligence instrument safeguarding Poland's internal security, along with Agencja Wywiadu (AW) which identifies threats and collects secret information abroad. The Central Investigation Bureau of Police (CBŚP) and the Central Anticorruption Bureau (CBA) are responsible for countering organised crime and corruption in state and private institutions.
Emergency services in Poland consist of the emergency medical services, search and rescue units of the Polish Armed Forces and State Fire Service. Emergency medical services in Poland are operated by local and regional governments, but are a part of the centralised national agency – the National Medical Emergency Service ( Państwowe Ratownictwo Medyczne). Thanks to its location, Poland is a country essentially free from the threat of natural disasters such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tornadoes and tropical cyclones. However, have occurred in low-lying areas from time to time during periods of extreme rainfall, for example during the 2010 Central European floods.
| + Economic indicators ! scope="row" | GDP (PPP) | $2.018 trillion (2025) |
Poland has a social market economy and is a regional economic power in East-Central Europe. , the country's gross domestic product (GDP) is the sixth largest in the European Union by nominal standards, and the fifth largest by purchasing power parity. It is one of the fastest growing within the Union and reached a developed market status in 2018. The unemployment rate published by Eurostat in 2023 amounted to 2.8%, which was the second-lowest in the EU. , around 62% of the employed population works in the service sector, 29% in manufacturing, and 8% in the agricultural sector, thus manifesting a highly diversified economy. Although Poland is a member of the European single market, the country has not adopted the Euro as legal tender and maintains its own currency – the Polish złoty (zł, PLN).IMF Monetary and Capital Markets Department (2025). 9798400235269, International Monetary Fund. . EAN 9798400235269
Poland is a regional European leader in terms of foreign direct investment and possesses around 40 percent of the 500 biggest companies in the region by revenues whilst maintaining a high globalisation rate and relatively high economic competitiveness. The country's largest firms compose the WIG20 and WIG30 stock market indexes, which are traded on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. The Central Statistical Office estimated that in 2014 there were 1,437 Polish corporations with interests in 3,194 foreign entities. Poland also has the largest banking sector in Central Europe,Thomas White International (September 2011), Prominent Banks in Poland. Emerging Market Spotlight. Banking Sector in Poland (Internet Archive). Retrieved 6 November 2014. with 32.3 branches per 100,000 adults.Worldbank.org, Global Financial Development Report 2014. Appendix B. Key Aspects of Financial Inclusion (PDF file, direct download). Retrieved 6 November 2014. The monetary policy is determined by the National Bank of Poland (NBP), which controls the issuing of the national currency. It was the only European economy to have avoided the Great Recession. Since 2019, workers under the age of 26 are exempt from paying the income tax.
The country is the 19th largest exporter of goods and services in the world. Exports of goods and services are valued at approximately 58% of GDP, as of 2023. Poland's largest trade partners are Germany, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, France, Italy, the Netherlands, and the United States. Among its lead exports are motor cars, buses, and vehicle-related accessories, machinery, electronics, electric batteries, , furniture, cosmetics, military equipment, and tobacco as well as materials such as silver, copper, steel, coal, zinc, tar, and coke. In 2023, the country produced 1300 tonnes of silver and was the 5th largest silver producer globally. As of 2025, Poland holds the world's 12th largest gold reserve, estimated at 509 tonnes.
Tourist attractions in Poland vary, from the mountains in the south to the beaches in the north, with a trail of rich architectural and cultural heritage. Among the most recognisable landmarks are Old Towns in Kraków, Warsaw, Wrocław (dwarf statues), Gdańsk, Poznań, Lublin, Toruń and Zamość as well as museums, zoological gardens, theme parks and the Wieliczka Salt Mine, with its labyrinthine tunnels, underground lake and chapels carved by miners out of rock salt beneath the ground. There are over 100 castles in the country, largely within the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, and also on the Trail of the Eagles' Nests; the largest castle in the world by land area is situated in Malbork Castle. (2025). 9781740595223, Lonely Planet. ISBN 9781740595223 The German Auschwitz concentration camp in Oświęcim, and the Skull Chapel in Kudowa-Zdrój constitute dark tourism. Regarding nature based travel, notable sites include the Masurian Lake District and Białowieża Forest in the east; on the south Karkonosze, the Table Mountains and the Tatra Mountains, where Rysy and the Eagle's Path trail are located. The Pieniny and Bieszczady Mountains lie in the extreme south-east.
Seaports exist all along Poland's Baltic coast, with most freight operations using Świnoujście, Police, Szczecin, Kołobrzeg, Gdynia, Gdańsk and Elbląg as their base. The Port of Gdańsk is the only port in the Baltic Sea adapted to receive oceanic vessels. Polferries and Unity Line are the largest Polish ferry operators, with the latter providing roll-on/roll-off and train ferry services to Scandinavia.
The new Energy Policy of Poland until 2040 (EPP2040) would reduce the share of coal and lignite in electricity generation by 25% from 2017 to 2030. The plan involves deploying new nuclear plants, increasing energy efficiency, and decarbonising the Polish transport system in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prioritise long-term energy security.
Poland's tertiary education institutions; traditional universities, as well as technical, medical, and economic institutions, employ around tens of thousands of researchers and staff members. There are hundreds of research and development institutes. However, in the 19th and 20th centuries many Polish scientists worked abroad; one of the most important of these exiles was Maria Skłodowska-Curie, a physicist and chemist who lived much of her life in France. In 1925, she established Poland's Radium Institute.
In the first half of the 20th century, Poland was a flourishing centre of mathematics. Outstanding Polish mathematicians formed the Lwów School of Mathematics (with Stefan Banach, Stanisław Mazur, Hugo Steinhaus, Stanisław Ulam) and Warsaw School of Mathematics (with Alfred Tarski, Kazimierz Kuratowski, Wacław Sierpiński and Antoni Zygmund). Numerous mathematicians, scientists, chemists or economists emigrated due to historic vicissitudes, among them Benoit Mandelbrot, Leonid Hurwicz, Alfred Tarski, Joseph Rotblat and Nobel Prize laureates Roald Hoffmann, Georges Charpak and Tadeusz Reichstein.
In the 2011 Polish census, 37,310,341 people reported Polish people identity, 846,719 Silesians, 232,547 Kashubians and 147,814 German. Other identities were reported by 163,363 people (0.41%) and 521,470 people (1.35%) did not specify any nationality. Official population statistics do not include migrant workers who do not possess a permanent residency permit or Karta Polaka. More than 1.7 million Ukrainians citizens worked legally in Poland in 2017. The number of migrants is rising steadily; the country approved 504,172 work permits for foreigners in 2021 alone.
According to the 2021 census, ethnic Poles comprise 98.84% of the population, including people who declared Polish heritage alone (96.28%) or both Polish and another ethnicity (2.56%) as responders were allowed to select up to two ethnicities. People who declared only non-Polish ethnicities made up 1.13% of the population and people who did not report their ethnicity numbered 0.03%. The province with the highest percentage of ethnic Poles was the Holy Cross Voivodeship (99.70%), and the region with the lowest share of ethnic Poles was the Silesian Voivodeship (95.49%).
Poland is one of the most religious countries in Europe, where Catholicism remains a part of national identity and Polish-born Pope John Paul II is widely revered. In 2015, 61.6% of respondents outlined that religion is of high or very high importance. However, church attendance has greatly decreased in recent years; only 28% of Catholics attended mass weekly in 2021, down from around half in 2000. According to The Wall Street Journal, "Of the more than 100 countries studied by the Pew Research Center in 2018, Poland was Secularization the fastest, as measured by the disparity between the religiosity of young people and their elders."
Freedom of religion in Poland is guaranteed by the Constitution, and Poland's concordat with the Holy See enables the teaching of religion in public schools. Historically, the Polish state maintained a high degree of religious tolerance and provided asylum for refugees fleeing religious persecution in other parts of Europe. Poland hosted Europe's largest Jewish diaspora, and the country was a centre of Ashkenazi Jewish culture and traditional learning until the The Holocaust.
Contemporary religious minorities include Eastern Orthodox Church, Protestantism, including Lutheranism of the Evangelical-Augsburg Church, Pentecostalism in the Pentecostal Church in Poland, Adventists in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Other smaller Christian denominations include Eastern Catholics, Mariavite Church, Evangelicalism denominations. Other religions include Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews, Muslims (Tatars), and Modern Paganism, some of whom are members of the Native Polish Church.
According to the HDI from 2020, the average life expectancy at birth is 79 years (around 75 years for an infant male and 83 years for an infant female); the country has a low infant mortality rate (4 per 1,000 births). In 2019, the principal cause of death was ischemic heart disease; diseases of the circulatory system accounted for 45% of all deaths. In the same year, Poland was also the 15th-largest importer of medications and pharmaceutical products.
The framework for primary, secondary and higher tertiary education are established by the Ministry of Education and Science. One year of kindergarten is compulsory for six-year-olds. Primary education traditionally begins at the age of seven, although children aged six can attend at the request of their parents or guardians. Elementary school spans eight grades and secondary schooling is dependent on student preference – a four-year high school ( liceum), a five-year technical school ( technikum) or various vocational studies ( szkoła branżowa) can be pursued by individual pupils. A liceum or technikum is concluded with a maturity exit exam ( matura), which must be passed in order to apply for a university or other institutions of higher learning.
In Poland, there are over 500 university-level institutions,Central Statistical Office: Studenci szkół wyższych (łącznie z cudzoziemcami) na dzień 30 XI 2008. Number of students at Poland's institutions of higher education, as of 30 November 2008. Retrieved 13 June 2012. Archived at Archive.org on 28 October 2008. with numerous faculties. The University of Warsaw and Warsaw Polytechnic, the University of Wrocław, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań and the University of Technology in Gdańsk are among the most prominent. There are three conventional in Poland – licencjat or inżynier (first cycle), magister (second cycle) and PhD (third cycle qualification).
Particular traditions and superstitious customs observed in Poland are not found elsewhere in Europe. Though Christmas Eve ( Wigilia) is not a public holiday, it remains the most memorable day of the entire year. Christmas trees are decorated on 24 December, hay is placed under the tablecloth to resemble Jesus' manger, ( opłatek) are shared between gathered guests and a twelve-dish meatless supper is served that same evening when the first star appears. An empty plate and seat are symbolically left at the table for an unexpected guest. On occasion, Christmas carols journey around smaller towns with a folk Turoń creature until the Lent period.
A widely popular doughnut and sweet pastry feast occurs on Fat Thursday, usually 52 days prior to Easter. Easter egg for Easter Sunday are painted and placed in decorated baskets that are previously blessed by clergymen in churches on Easter Saturday. Easter Monday is celebrated with pagan dyngus festivities, where the youth is engaged in water fights. Cemeteries and graves of the deceased are annually visited by family members on All Saints' Day; tombstones are cleaned as a sign of respect and candles are lit to honour the dead on an unprecedented scale.
The origins of Polish music can be traced to the 13th century; manuscripts have been found in Stary Sącz containing polyphony compositions related to the Parisian Notre Dame School. Other early compositions, such as the melody of Bogurodzica and God Is Born (a coronation polonaise tune for Polish kings by an unknown composer), may also date back to this period, however, the first known notable composer, Nicholas of Radom, lived in the 15th century. Diomedes Cato, a native-born Italian who lived in Kraków, became a renowned lutenist at the court of Sigismund III; he not only imported some of the musical styles from southern Europe but blended them with native folk music.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, Polish baroque composers wrote liturgical music and secular compositions such as concertos and for voices or instruments. At the end of the 18th century, Polish classical music evolved into national forms like the polonaise. Wojciech Bogusławski is accredited with composing the first Polish national opera, titled Krakowiacy i Górale, which premiered in 1794.
Poland today has an active music scene, with the jazz and metal genres being particularly popular among the contemporary populace. Polish jazz musicians such as Krzysztof Komeda created a unique style, which was most famous in the 1960s and 1970s and continues to be popular to this day. Poland has also become a major venue for large-scale music festivals, chief among which are the Pol'and'Rock Festival, Open'er Festival, Opole Festival and Sopot Festival.
Internationally renowned Polish artists include Jan Matejko (historicism), Jacek Malczewski (symbolism), Stanisław Wyspiański (art nouveau), Henryk Siemiradzki (Roman academic art), Tamara de Lempicka (art deco), and Zdzisław Beksiński (dystopian surrealism). Several Polish artists and sculptors were also acclaimed representatives of avant-garde, constructivist, Minimalism and contemporary art movements, including Katarzyna Kobro, Władysław Strzemiński, Magdalena Abakanowicz, Alina Szapocznikow, Igor Mitoraj and Wilhelm Sasnal.
Notable art academies in Poland include the Kraków Academy of Fine Arts, Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, Art Academy of Szczecin, University of Fine Arts in Poznań and the Geppert Academy of Fine Arts in Wrocław. Contemporary works are exhibited at Zachęta, Ujazdów, and MOCAK art galleries.
The earliest architectonic trend was Romanesque ( 11th century), but its traces in the form of circular rotundas are scarce. The arrival of brick Gothic ( 13th century) defined Poland's most distinguishable medieval style, exuded by the castles of Malbork Castle, Lidzbark Castle, Gniew Castle and Kwidzyn Castle as well as the cathedrals of Gniezno, Gdańsk, Wrocław, Frombork and Kraków. (2025). 9781443832953, Cambridge Scholars. ISBN 9781443832953 The Renaissance (16th century) gave rise to Italianate courtyards, defensive and mausoleums. Decorative attics with and arcade are elements of Polish Mannerism, found in Poznań, Lublin and Zamość.Adam Miłobędzki (1994). 9788385739142, International Cultural Centre-Międzynarodowe Centrum Kultury w Krakowie. ISBN 9788385739142 Foreign artisans often came at the expense of kings or nobles, whose palaces were built thereafter in the Baroque, Neoclassical and Revivalist styles (17th–19th century).
Primary building materials Lumber and brick were used extensively in Polish folk architecture, and the concept of a fortified church was commonplace. Secular structures such as dworek manor houses, farmhouses, Granary, Gristmill and country are still present in some regions or in open air museums ( Open-Air Museum). (2025). 9781000377385, Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781000377385 However, traditional construction methods faded in the early-mid 20th century due to urbanisation and the construction of functionalist and residential areas.
The poets Jan Kochanowski and Nicholas Rey became the first Renaissance authors to write in Polish. Prime literarians of the period included Dantiscus, Modrevius, Goslicius, Sarbievius and theologian John Laski. In the Polish Baroque era, Jesuits and local culture greatly influenced the literary techniques of Jan Andrzej Morsztyn (Marinism) and Jan Chryzostom Pasek (Sarmatism memoirs). During the Enlightenment, playwright Ignacy Krasicki composed the first Polish-language novel. (2025). 9781118779071, John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 9781118779071 Poland's leading 19th-century romantic poets were the Three Bards – Juliusz Słowacki, Zygmunt Krasiński and Adam Mickiewicz, whose epic poem Pan Tadeusz (1834) is a national classic. In the 20th century, the English impressionist and early modernist writings of Joseph Conrad made him one of the most eminent novelists of all time.
Contemporary Polish literature is versatile, with its fantasy genre having been particularly praised. The philosophical science-fiction novel Solaris by Stanisław Lem and The Witcher series by Andrzej Sapkowski are celebrated works of world fiction. Poland has six Nobel-Prize winning authors – Henryk Sienkiewicz ( Quo Vadis; 1905), Władysław Reymont ( The Peasants; 1924), Isaac Bashevis Singer (1978), Czesław Miłosz (1980), Wisława Szymborska (1996), and Olga Tokarczuk (2018).
Traditional dishes are hearty and abundant in pork, potatoes, eggs, cream, mushrooms, regional herbs, and sauce. (2025). 9781610694568, Greenwood. ISBN 9781610694568 Polish food is characteristic for its various kinds of kluski (soft dumplings), , cereals and a variety of breads and . Salads, including mizeria (cucumber salad), coleslaw, sauerkraut, carrot and Searing, are common. Meals conclude with a dessert such as Cheesecake (cheesecake), makowiec (poppy seed roll), or napoleonka (mille-feuille) cream pie. (2017). 9781631216244, Avalon Publishing. ISBN 9781631216244
Traditional alcoholic beverages include honey mead, widespread since the 13th century, beer, wine and vodka. The world's first written mention of vodka originates from Poland. The most popular alcoholic drinks at present are beer and wine which took over from vodka more popular in the years 1980–1998. Grodziskie, sometimes referred to as "Polish Champagne", is an example of a historical beer style from Poland. Tea remains common in Polish society since the 19th century, whilst coffee is drunk widely since the 18th century. (2019). 9780781811248, Hippocrene Books. ISBN 9780781811248
Historically, fashion has been an important aspect of Poland's national consciousness or cultural manifestation, and the country developed its own style known as Sarmatism at the turn of the 17th century. The national dress and etiquette of Poland also reached the court at Versailles, where French dresses inspired by Polish garments included robe à la polonaise and the witzchoura. The scope of influence also entailed furniture; rococo with Canopy bed became fashionable in French châteaus. Sarmatism eventually faded in the wake of the 18th century.
The Film genre commonly explored in Polish cinema include historical film, drama, war, culture and black realism (film noir). In the 21st-century, two Polish productions won the Academy Awards – The Pianist (2002) by Roman Polański and Ida (2013) by Paweł Pawlikowski. Polish cinematography also created many well-received comedies. The most known of them were made by Stanisław Bareja and Juliusz Machulski.
Poland is a major European hub for video game developers and among the most successful companies are CD Projekt, Techland, The Farm 51, CI Games and People Can Fly. Some of the popular video games developed in Poland include The Witcher trilogy and Cyberpunk 2077. The Polish city of Katowice also hosts Intel Extreme Masters, one of the biggest esports events in the world.
As of September 2024, the Polish men's national volleyball team is ranked as first in the world. The team won a gold medal at the 1976 Summer Olympics and the gold medal at the FIVB World Championship 1974, 2014 and 2018.
Mariusz Pudzianowski is a highly successful strongman competitor and has won more World's Strongest Man titles than any other competitor in the world, winning the event in 2008 for the fifth time. (2025). 9788375527070, Agora. ISBN 9788375527070
Poland has made a distinctive mark in motorcycle speedway racing. The top Ekstraliga division has one of the highest average attendances for any sport in Poland. The national speedway team of Poland is one of the major teams in international speedway. Individually, Poland has three Speedway Grand Prix World Champions, with the most successful being five-time World Champion Bartosz Zmarzlik who won back-to-back championships in 2019 and 2020 as well as 2022, 2023 and 2024. In 2021, Poland finished runners-up in the Speedway of Nations world championship final, held in Manchester, England in 2021.
In the 21st century, the country has seen a growth of popularity of tennis and produced a number of successful tennis players including World No. 1 Iga Świątek, winner of five Grand Slam singles titles; former World No. 2 Agnieszka Radwanska, winner of 20 WTA career singles titles including 2015 WTA Finals; Top 10 ATP player Hubert Hurkacz; former World No. 1 doubles player Łukasz Kubot, winner of two Grand Slam doubles titles and Jan Zieliński, winner of two Grand Slam mixed doubles titles. Poland also won the 2015 Hopman Cup with Agnieszka Radwańska and Jerzy Janowicz representing the country.
Poles made significant achievements in mountaineering, in particular, in the Himalayas and the winter ascending of the (e.g. Jerzy Kukuczka, Krzysztof Wielicki, Wanda Rutkiewicz). Polish mountains are one of the tourist attractions of the country. Hiking, climbing, skiing and mountain biking and attract numerous tourists every year from all over the world. Water sports are the most popular summer recreation activities, with ample locations for fishing, canoeing, kayaking, sailing and windsurfing especially in the northern regions of the country. Summer Sports in Poland at Poland For Visitors Online. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
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