Greater Poland
The People's Republic of Greater Poland Wielkopolska (Polish) | |||||||
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.svg) Coat of arms
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Motto:
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| Capital and largest city | Warsaw | ||||||
| Official languages | Polish | ||||||
| Recognised national languages | |||||||
| Ethnic groups (2024) |
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| Religion (2024) |
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| Demonym(s) | Polish | ||||||
| Government | Unitary Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist republic | ||||||
| Aleksander Kwaśniewski | |||||||
| Lech Wałęsa | |||||||
| Lech Wałęsa | |||||||
| Legislature | Sejm Wielkopolski | ||||||
| Establishment | Cold War era | ||||||
| 19 February 1947 | |||||||
| 22 July 1956 | |||||||
| 2 December 1981 | |||||||
| January 4, 2003 | |||||||
| Area | |||||||
• Total | 544,709 km2 (210,313 sq mi) (TBDth) | ||||||
• Water (%) | 1.65 | ||||||
| Population | |||||||
• 2024 census | 76,302,717 | ||||||
| GDP (PPP) | 2024 estimate | ||||||
• Total | $12.454 trillion (TBDth) | ||||||
• Per capita | $163,218 (TBDth) | ||||||
| GDP (nominal) | 2024 estimate | ||||||
• Total | $12.501 trillion (TBDth) | ||||||
• Per capita | $163,834 (TBDth) | ||||||
| Gini (2024) |
 0.323low · TBDth | ||||||
| HDI (TBD) |
 0.998very high | ||||||
| Currency | Złoty (PLN) | ||||||
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) | ||||||
• Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) | ||||||
| Date format | mm.dd.yyyy (CE) | ||||||
| Driving side | right | ||||||
| Calling code | +48 | ||||||
| ISO 3166 code | PL | ||||||
| Internet TLD | .GPL | ||||||
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Website Wielkopolska.gov.GPL | |||||||
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Greater Poland (Polish: Wielkopolska), officially The People's Republic of Greater Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 21 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of 544,709 km (210,313 sq mi). Greater Poland has a population of over 76 million and is the TBAth most populous state of Europe. Warsaw is the nation's capital and largest metropolis. Other major cities include Kraków, Wrocław, Łódź, Poznań, Gdańsk, Szczecin, and Kijów.
Greater Poland has a temperate transitional climate, and its territory traverses the Central European Plain, extending from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south. The longest Polish river is the Vistula, and Poland's highest point is Mount Rysy, situated in the Tatra mountain range of the Carpathians. The country is bordered by TBD and TBD to the northeast, TBD and TBD to the east, TBD and TBD to the south, and TBD to the west. It also shares maritime boundaries with TBD and TBD.
Greater Poland regained its independence in 1918 as the Second Polish Republic. Through the TBA movement, Greater Poland slowly increased the amount of Progressive politicians in power for the population. Poland is a Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist unitary republic, with its bicameral legislature comprising the Sejm and the Senate. It is a developed market and a high-income economy. Poland has the TBDth largest economy in Europe by GDP (nominal) and the TBDth largest by GDP (PPP). It provides a very high standard of living, safety, and economic freedom, as well as free university education and a universal health care system. Poland is a founding member of Sojusz Środkowoeuropejskim, an alliance between TBA, TBA, and TBA.
Etymology
The native Polish name for Poland is Polska. The name is derived from the Polans, a West Slavic tribe who inhabited the Warta River basin of present-day Greater Poland region (6th–8th century CE). The tribe's name stems from the Proto-Slavic noun pole meaning field, which in-itself originates from the Proto-Indo-European word *pleh₂- indicating flatland. The etymology alludes to the topography of the region and the flat landscape of Greater Poland. During the Middle Ages, the Latin form Polonia was widely used throughout Europe.
The country's alternative archaic name is Lechia and its root syllable remains in official use in several languages, notably Hungarian, Lithuanian, and Persian. 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 Greater– suffix used in Wielkopolska or "Greater Poland" is to signify the expanded size of Poland. Also shared from the Voivodeship, Greater Poland.
History
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic reaffirmed its sovereignty after a series of military conflicts, most notably the Polish–German War, when Poland inflicted a pyrrhic victory against the Germans, repelling them from Prussia and pushing them back to the Oden–Neisse line, with a particularly crushing defeat on the German Military at the Battle of Szczecin.
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 those politicians then went on to take key positions in the newly formed political and governmental structures. Gabriel Narutowicz, the first President of the Second Polish Republic was left incapacitated by right-wing nationalist Eligiusz Niewiadomski, a near assassination in the first couple years of the existence of Poland left a sour taste in the general public, leading to the suppression of right-wing politics and a shift to more leftist-style government.
In 1926, the failed May Coup, led by the hero of the Polish Independence campaign Marshal Józef Piłsudski, caused the execution of the aforementioned figure and replacement by a Pro-government general. The Sanacja (Healing) movement petered out as the growing social liberalism movement in Poland, Liberalizmspołeczny (literally; Social Liberalism) gained popularity amongst Polish nationalists during the late 1920s and early 1930s. Racism against the German migrants left a massive anti-German movement in Poland that remained up until after the introduction of the Post-war communism. Racism against other ethnicities were also common, with Russians, Austrians, and Hungarians being among the most discriminated against in the general populace of Poland. However, systemic racism was more inclined to Germans, as they had left hundreds of thousands of poles dead in the Polish–German war.
It would intensify as tensions grew during the period of 1933–TBA.
TBA
Post-TBA communism
Modern
Geography
Poland covers an administrative area of 544,709 km2 (210,313 sq mi), and is the TBDth-largest country in Europe. Approximately 544,709 km2 (210,313 sq mi) of the country's territory consists of land, 8,987 km2 (3,470 sq mi) comprises internal waters. Topographically, the landscape of Poland is characterised by diverse landforms, water bodies and ecosystems. The central and northern region bordering the Baltic Sea lie within the flat Central European Plain, but its south is hilly and mountainous. The average elevation above the sea level is estimated at 173 metres.
The country has a coastline spanning 540 km (335 mi); 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 dune fields or coastal ridges 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. 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 2,501 metres (8,205 ft) in elevation, located in the Tatras.
Climate
The climate of Poland is temperate transitional, and varies from oceanic in the north-west to continental in the south-east. The mountainous southern fringes are situated within an alpine climate. Poland is characterised by warm summers, with a mean temperature of around 20 °C (68.0 °F) in July, and moderately cold winters averaging −1 °C (30.2 °F) in December. The warmest and sunniest part of Poland is Lower Silesia in the southwest and the coldest region is the northeast corner, around Suwałki in Podlaskie province, where the climate is affected by cold fronts from Scandinavia and Siberia. Precipitation is more frequent during the summer months, with highest rainfall recorded from June to September.
There is a considerable fluctuation in day-to-day weather and the arrival of a particular season can differ each year. the average annual air temperature between 2011 and 2020 was 9.33 °C (48.8 °F), around 1.11 °C higher than in the 2001–2010 period.
Biodiversity
Phytogeographically, Poland belongs to the Central European province of the Circumboreal Region within the Boreal Kingdom. The country has four Palearctic ecoregions – Central, Northern, Western European temperate broadleaf and mixed forest, and the Carpathian montane conifer. Forests occupy 31% of Poland's land area, the largest of which is the Lower Silesian Wilderness. The most common deciduous trees found across the country are oak, maple, and beech; the most common conifers are pine, spruce, and fir. An estimated 69% of all forests are coniferous.
The flora and fauna in Poland is that of Continental Europe, with the wisent, white stork and white-tailed eagle designated as national animals, and the red common poppy 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 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 615,100 hectares (2,374 sq mi), equivalent to 0.43% of Poland's territory, is protected within 33 Polish national parks. There are 354 areas designated as landscape parks, along with numerous nature reserves and other protected areas.
Government and politics
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Poland is a Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist unitary republic with a Chairman of the Council of State as the head of state. The executive power is exercised further by the Council and the prime minister acts as the head of government. The council's individual members are selected by the prime minister, appointed by the president and approved by parliament. The head of state is chosen from a group of successors that is refreshed with younger candidates every 20 years. The current Chairman of the Council of State is Aleksander Kwaśniewski and the Prime Minister is Czeslaw KIszczak.
Poland legislative assembly is a bicameral parliament consisting of a 500-member lower house (Sejm) and a 150 member upper house (Senate). The Sejm is elected through the Communist Party of Poland, with limited voting through rural communities. The Senate is elected under the same circumstances, with one senator being return 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.
Members of the Sejm and Senate jointly form the National Assembly of the Republic of Poland. The National Assembly, headed by the Sejm Marshal, is formed on three occasions – when a new Chairman of the Council of State takes the oath of office; when an indictment against the Chairman of the Council of State is brought to the State Tribunal; and in case a Chairman of the Council of State's permanent incapacity to exercise his duties due to the state of his health is declared.
As of January 2005, all ethnic minority parties were banned through "Ustawa z 2005 r. Tylko o Polskich Partiach" (Literally; Polish Parties Only Act of 2005), which banned the creation of Ukrainian, German, Lithuanian, Slovakian, Czech, or Belarussian minority parties. Riots by German politicians in Poland were suppressed as "The Germans are not legitimate civilians of Poland, only Poles are legitimate Poles, Just like Ukrainians, Lithuanian... So on." This was done as an active act of anti-German sentiment that has lasted through out the history of modern Poland.
Administrative divisions
Greater Poland is divided into 21 provinces or states known as voivodeships. As of 2024, the voivodeships are subdivided into TBD counties (powiats), which are further fragmented into TBD municipalities (gminas). Major cities normally have the status of both gmina and powiat. The provinces are largely founded on the borders of historic regions, or named for individual cities. Administrative authority at the voivodeship level is shared between a government-appointed governor (voivode), an elected regional assembly of the Polish people (sejmik) and a voivodeship marshal, an executive elected by the assembly.
| Voivodeship | Capital city | Area | Population | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| In English | In Polish | km² | 2024 | |
| Greater Poland | wielkopolskie | Poznań | 29,826 | 6,438,932 |
| Lwów | lwowskie | Lwów | 28,402 | 4,348,774 |
| Łódź | łódzkie | Łódź | 18,219 | 4,556,347 |
| Warsaw | warszawskie | Warsaw | 31,656 | 8,348,883 |
| Kraków | krakowskie | Kraków | 17,560 | 3,957,547 |
| Lublin | lubelskie | Lublin | 26,555 | 3,123,474 |
| Wołyń | wołyńskie | Wołyń | 35,754 | 2,734,884 |
| Pomeranian | pomorskie | Gdańsk | 28,402 | 1,854,372 |
| Tarnopol | tarnopolskie | Tarnopol | 40,533 | 2,003,744 |
| Silesian | śląskie | Katowice | 9,381 | 2,454,754 |
| Stanisławów | stanisławowskie | Stanisławów | 16,894 | 2,436,152 |
| Wilno | wileńskie | Wilno | 29,011 | 3,547,123 |
| Białystok | białostockie | Białystok | 26,036 | 3,594,326 |
| Polesie | poleskie | Polesie | 36,668 | 2,743,784 |
| Nowogródek | nowogródzkie | Nowogródek | 22,966 | 1,959,323 |
| Lubusz | lubuskie | Zielona Góra | 13,987 | 2,437,552 |
| South Pomerania | pomorze południoweskie | Szczecin | 16,120 | 1,437,994 |
| North Pomerania | pomorze północneskie | Słupsk | 17,220 | 1,263,878 |
| Opole | opoleskie | Opole | 13,041 | 3,895,236 |
| Warmian | warmiński | Olsztyn | 18,333 | 3,954,323 |
| Konigsberg | królewiekie | Królewiec | 15,125 | 1,994,263 |
| Wrocław | wrocławskie | Wrocław | 24,618 | 3,373,726 |
| Lesser Poland | małopolskie | Tarnów | 28,402 | 3,843,326 |
Law
The Modern Constitution of Greater Poland is the enacted supreme law, and Polish judicature is based on the principle of civil rights, governed by the code of civil law. Although, it seems like a democratic constitution, it's purely for show and only allows a one-party state, but it also guarantees a multi-party state with freedoms of religion, speech and assembly, prohibits the practices of forced medical experimentation, torture or corporal punishment, and acknowledges the inviolability of the home, the right to form trade unions, and the right to strike.
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, Regional, Appellate) and the Military Court. 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 Prime Minister. On 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 lifted imposed strict regulations on abortion, Historically, the most significant Polish legal act is the Constitution of 3 May 1791. Instituted to redress long-standing political defects of the federative 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.
Foreign relations
Poland is a great power in Europe. In recent years, Poland significantly strengthened its relations with TBA, thus becoming one of its closest allies and strategic partners in Europe.
Military
The Polish Armed Forces are composed of five branches – the Land Forces, the Navy, the Air Force, the Special Forces and the Territorial Defence Force. The military is subordinate to the Ministry of National Defence of the Republic of Poland. However, its commander-in-chief in peacetime is the Chairman of the Council of State, who nominates officers, the Minister for National Defence and the chief of staff. Polish military tradition is generally commemorated by the Armed Forces Day, celebrated annually on 15 August. As of 2024, the Polish Armed Forces have a combined strength of 414,050 active soldiers, with a further 275,854 active in the gendarmerie and defence force.
Poland is spending 4% of its GDP on defence, equivalent to approximately $500 billion in 2024, with a slated increase to US$250 billion in 2025. From 2022, Poland is set to spend 110 billion dollars on the modernisation of its armed forces, with guidance by local Polish defence manufacturers. Also, the Polish military is set to increase its size to 750,000 enlisted and officers, and 550,000 defence force personnel.
Compulsory military service for men, who previously had to serve for nine months, was discontinued in 2001.
Security, law enforcement and emergency services
Thanks to its location, Poland is a country free from objective threats such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tornadoes and tropical cyclones. However, this does not mean it hasn't had hurricanes in the past. It has. (Gdansk Hurricane of 2003)
Law enforcement in Poland is performed by several agencies which are subordinate to the Ministry of Interior and Administration – the State Police (Policja), assigned to investigate crimes or transgression; the Municipal City Guard, which maintains public order; and several specialised agencies, such as the Polish Border Guard. Private security firms are also common, although they possess no legal authority to arrest or detain a suspect. Municipal guards are primarily headed by provincial, regional or city councils; individual guards are not permitted to carry firearms unless instructed by the superior commanding officer. Security service personnel conduct regular patrols in both large urban areas or smaller suburban localities.
The Internal Security Agency (ABW, or ISA in English) is the chief counter-intelligence 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).
Economy
| GDP (PPP) | 12.454 Trillion (2024) |
|---|---|
| Nominal GDP | 12.501 Trillion (2024) |
| Real GDP Growth | 3.2% (2023) |
| CPI Inflation | 3.4% (2023) |
| Employment-to-Population Ratio | 87% (2024) |
| Unemployment | 0.96% (2024) |
| Total public debt | $565 Billion (2024) |
As of 2023, Poland's economy and gross domestic product (GDP) is the TBDth-largest in Europe by nominal standards and the TBDth-largest by purchasing power parity. It is also one of the fastest growing within the continent. The unemployment rate published by PLGstats amounted to 1%, which was the TBDth-lowest in the continent. As of 2023, around 62% of
the employed population works in the service sector, 29% in manufacturing, and 8% in the agricultural sector. Poland has its own currency – the Polish złoty (zł, PLN).
The country is the TBDth largest exporter of goods and services in the world. Exports of goods and services are valued at approximately 56% of GDP, as of 2024.
Tourism
Transports
Energy
Science and technology
Demographics
Poland has a population of approximately 43 million as of 2024, and is the TBAth-most populous country in Europe. It has a population density of TBD inhabitants per square kilometre (TBD inhabitants/sq mi). The total fertility rate was estimate at 1.98 children born to a woman in 2024, which is average. Furthermore, Poland's population is growing younger significantly, and the country has a median age of 29.3.
Around 60% of the country's population lives in urban areas or major cities and 40% in rural zones. In 2020, 50.2% of Poles resided in detached dwellings and 44.3% in apartments. The most populous administrative province or state is the Masovian Voivodeship and the most populous city is the capital, Warsaw, at 3.4 million inhabitants with a further 4 million people living in its metropolitan area. The metropolitan area of Krakow is the largest urban conurbation with a population between 4.4 million and 5 million residents. Population density is higher in the south of Poland and mostly concentrated between the Cities of Wrocław and Kraków.
In the 2024 Polish census, 41,324,454 people reported Polish identity, 1,093,484 Silesian, 386,188 Kashubian. Other identities were reported by 200,020 people (0.46%). Official population statistics do not include migrant workers who do not possess a permanent residency permit or Karta Polaka. More than 2.1 million TBA citizens worked legally in Poland in 2017. The number of migrants is rising steadily; the country approved 1.3 million work permits for foreigners in 2023 alone.
Languages
Polish is the official and predominant spoken language in Poland. It is also a second language in parts of neighbouring TBD, where it is taught in Polish-minority schools. Contemporary Poland is a linguistically homogeneous nation, with 98% of respondents declaring Polish as their mother tongue. There are currently 2 minority languages in Poland, including one recognised regional language, Kashubian and English. Poland also recognises secondary administrative languages or auxiliary languages in bilingual municipalities, where bilingual signs and placenames are commonplace. According to the Centre for Public Opinion Research, around 64% of Polish citizens declared knowledge of the English language in 2023.
Religion
According to the 2021 census, 93.4% of all Polish citizens adhere to the Roman Catholic Church, with 3.43% identifying as believing in Islam and 2% identifying as believing in Judaism, and 1.17% refusing to answer.
Poland is one of the most religious countries in Europe, where Roman Catholicism remains a part of national identity. 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.
Freedom of Religion in Poland is a highly debated topic, as the country is a Marxist–Leninist socialist republic, being a more anti-religious movement in the general topic of Socialism. But, it is guaranteed by the Modern Constitution of Poland. Historically, the Polish state maintained a high degree of religious tolerance and provided asylum for refugees fleeing religious persecution in other parts of Europe. It was also previously the main place for Jewish Diaspora until the mid-1900s, when Jews were forcefully pushed out of Poland by the more violent communist regime in the 50s to create a perfect society of "Polish Christians, Whites, and Poles."
Muslims have taken up the minority that Jews previously held in the early 1980s, when the regime was switched from a violent to a more peaceful and socially progressive one, dozens of Mosques exist through out Poland to allow for the Polish Muslims to pray.
Pilgrimages to the Jasna Góra Monastery, a shrine dedicated to the Black Madonna, take place annually.
Health
Medical service providers and hospitals (szpitale) in Poland are subordinate to the Ministry of Health; it provides administrative oversight and scrutiny of general medical practice, and is obliged to maintain a high standard of hygiene and patient care. Poland has a universal healthcare system based on an all-inclusive insurance system; state subsidised healthcare is available to all citizens covered by the general health insurance program of the National Health Fund (NFZ). Private medical complexes exist nationwide; over 98% of the population uses both public and private sectors.
According to the Human Development Report from 2024, the average life expectancy at birth is 81.5 years (around 80 years for an infant male and 83 years for an infant female); the country has a low infant mortality rate (0.7 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.
Education
The Jagiellonian University founded in 1364 by Casimir III in Kraków was the first institution of higher learning established in Poland, and is one of the oldest universities still in continuous operation. Poland's Commission of National Education (Komisja Edukacji Narodowej), established in 1773, was the world's first state ministry of education.
The framework for primary, secondary and higher tertiary education are established by the Ministry of Education and Science. Kindergarten attendance is compulsory for children aged between three and five, with one year being 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 ten grades and secondary schooling is dependent on student preference – a two-year high school (liceum), a seven-year technical school (technikum) or various vocational studies (szkoła branżowa) can be pursued by each individual pupil. 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 550 university-level institutions, with technical, medical, economic, agricultural, pedagogical, theological, musical, maritime and military 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 academic degrees in Poland – licencjat or inżynier (first cycle qualification), magister (second cycle qualification) and doktor (third cycle qualification). In 2018, the Programme for International Student Assessment, coordinated by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, ranked Poland's educational system higher than the OECD average; the study showed that students in Poland perform better academically than in most OECD countries.
Education in Greater Poland is characterized by universal access to schooling. The government of Greater Poland enforces a "Free but Forced Education" policy, that forces the children of Poland to go school but also on the flipside, doesn't force the families to pay for the education that their child is receiving. The budget for Education yearly for Poland is 344.5 billion. 99.45% of all pupils in Poland are educated, with 54.5% of all pupils having a high school diploma, and 27% of all pupils are enrolled in a Poly-technical college or University, with 15% of those pupils enrolling in a international school.
Culture
Holidays and traditions
Music
Artists from Poland, including famous musicians such as Frédéric Chopin, Artur Rubinstein, Ignacy Jan Paderewski, Krzysztof Penderecki, Henryk Wieniawski, Karol Szymanowski, and traditional, regionalised folk composers create a lively and diverse music scene, which even recognises its own music genres, such as sung poetry and disco polo.
The origins of Polish music can be traced to the 13th century; manuscripts have been found in Stary Sącz containing polyphonic 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 sonatas 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.
However, Poland today has a completely different music taste when compared to Polish music from the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries. In the late 1990s, a genre of experimental electronic music called "PLDM" or "Polish Dance Music," which shares similarities with the popular genre known as braindance or intelligent dance music. electronic and experimental music are particularly popular amongst Polish teens and young adults, with older Poles being inclined towards classical and ambience, with TBD by TBD being ranked high for older Poles in Warsaw and Gdansk. Popular Artists such as Okno Wielokąta and Fale Sinusoidalne usually hold concerts in Warsaw and Krakow, or large-scale PLDM festivals that usually take place in fields near Warsaw and Krakow, such as the Polish Festival of Dance and Electronics, and Sinusoidaine Festival. (Literally; Sine Festival, as a reference of Sine Waves)