Poland

  

Polish Republic Rzeczpospolita Polska
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: Nieposkromiony Undaunted
Anthem: Witajcie w Polsce "Hail to Poland"
Location of Poland in Europe
Capital and largest city	Warsaw
Official languages	Polish
Recognised regional languages	German, Ukranian, Yiddish, Lithuanian
Demonym(s)	Polish
Government	Unitary Semi-Presidential Parliamentary Republic
• President	Augustyn Majewski
• Prime Minister	Aleksy Kowalczyk
Legislature	Sejm (unicameral)
Population
• Census	39,392,582
• Density	6/km2 (15.5/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)	estimate
• Total	$1.01 trillion
• Per capita	$35,291
HDI	0.891 very high
Time zone	Central Europe Time
ISO 3166 code	PL

Poland, officially the Polish Republic, is a sovereign nation located in in Central Europe. Poland borders Germany to the west, Czechia, and Slovakia, and Romania, Belarus and Ukraine to the east. With a population of over 39 million, Poland is the TBD most populous country in Europe and is the 37th largest country in terms of population globally. The capital and largest populated city in Poland is Warsaw.

The history of human activity on Polish soil spans thousands of years. Throughout the late antiquity period it became extensively diverse, with various cultures and tribes settling on the vast Central European Plain. However, it was the Western Polans who dominated the region and gave Poland its name. The establishment of Polish statehood can be traced to 966, when the pagan ruler of a realm coextensive with the territory of present-day Poland embraced Christianity and converted to Roman Catholicism. The Kingdom of Poland was founded in 1025, and in 1569 it cemented its longstanding political association with Lithuania by signing the Union of Lublin. This union formed the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, one of the largest (over 400,000 square miles in area) and most populous nations of 16th and 17th century Europe, with a uniquely liberal political system which adopted Europe's first modern constitution, the Constitution of 3 May 1791.

With a declining military and political presence in European geopolitics, Poland was later partitioned by its neighbors, with a large portion of its central territory forming the western border of the Russian Empire. Poland remained under Russian occupation until the end of the Great War in 1938, when the country regained independence as a constitutional republic through the Treaty of TBD. Poland formed a central part of the European side of the Cold War, aligning with the United Kingdom and Germany against the communist influence of Italy and Iberia. Poland formally joined the Northern Treaty Organization in 1950 and was a founding member of the European Community. Following the Revolutions of 2000, Poland has been considered a middle power within European affairs.

Poland is a federal constitutional republic and parliamentary democracy. The head of state is the Preisdent of Poland, who possesses largely ceremonial executive powers. Instead, most executive power in granted to the head of government, the Prime Minister. The nation's legislature is the Sejm and it is a unicameral body. The nation's chief judicial branch is the Supreme Court of Poland. In the modern era, Poland is considered a developed indsutrialized nation and a "middle power" in Europe. Poland is a founding member of the League of Nations and the European Community, and is a member of NTO and the IMF.

Etymology

Polska is the native Polish name for Poland. The name is derived from the West Slavic tribe of the Polans, who settled the Warta River basin region. The name of the tribe itself originates from the Proto-Slavic noun pole, meaning field. The name is a reference to the topography of the flat landscape of Greater Poland. The English word of Poland was formed near the end of the sixteenth century, from German Pole(n) and the suffix -land, which dentoes a people or nation. Prior to the widespread use of the English name, Poland was referred to as Polonia, the Latin form of the world that was widely used during the Medieval era.

Lechia, the country's alternative archaic name, and its root syllable remains in official use in several languages, most notably Hungarian, Lithuanian, and Persian. The exonym most likely derives from either Lech, a fabled ruler of the Lechites, or from the Lendians, a tribe of Western Slavs that inhabited the south-eastermost edge of Lesser Poland. The name of the tribe originates from Old Polish. Lechia and Polonia were both used interchangeably to describe Poland during the Middle Ages.

History

Main article: History of Poland

Prehistory and protohistory

A reconstruction of a Bronze Age, Lusatian culture settlement in Biskupin, 8th century BC.

Approximately 500,000, archaic humans and the Homo erectus species settled what is today known as Poland. However, the harsh climate of the time prevent permanent human settlement. The arrival of Homo sapiens and anatomically modern humans coincided with the discontinuation of the harsh climate temperatures at the end of the Last Glacial Period, resulting in Poland becoming habitable. Various archological studies have found evidence of widespread Neolithic development, including the early evidence of cheesemaking in Europe. Further excavations have also found the Bronocice pot, which possibly depicts the earliest instance of a wheeled vehicle.

Population density steadily increased from the Bronze Age to the Early Iron Age. This time period saw the expansion of the Lusatian culture and the establishment of walled settlements (gords). A significant archaeological find regarding the protohistory of Poland is a fortified settlement at {w|Biskupin}}, attributed to the Lusatian culture of the Late Bronze Age.

Many distinct cultures inhabited the territory of Poland in antiquity, notably the Celtic, Scythian, Germanic, Sarmatian, Baltic and Slavic tribes. There is significant archaeological evidence of the presence of Roman Legions in the modern-day Poland, who were most likely active in the region to protect the amber trade. The Polish tribes arrived during the second wave of the Migration Period around the 6th century AD. They were Slavic and may have forcibly assimilated the natives of the region into their culture. Beginning in the early 10th century, the Polans came to dominate other Lechitic tribes in the region, initially forming a tribal federation and later a centralized monarchy.

Kingdom of Poland

Poland under the rule of Mieszko I, whose acceptance of Christianity under the auspices of the Roman Church and the Baptism of Poland marked the beginning of statehood in 966.

Poland began to form into a recognizable territorial entity around the middle of the 10th century. At the time, Poland was ruled by the House of Piast and the country was under a centralized monarchy. In 966, Mieszko I accepted Christianity under the principles of the Roman Catholic Church with the Baptism of Poland. The Dagome Iudex first defined Poland's geographical boundaries with its capital and chief bishopric at Gniezno. The same artifact also affirmed the protection of the Polish monarchy by the Apostolic See...

Government and politics

The Presidential Palace in Warsaw, the residence and headquarters of the President of Poland.

The Warsaw Castle in Warsaw, the headquarters of the Sejm.

The Supreme Court Building in Warsaw, headquarters of the Supreme Court of Poland.

Poland is a unitary semi-presidential parliamentary republic. Poland is composed of fifteen provinces, known as voivodeships, each with their own semi-autonomous governments. The current government of Poland was established in TBD through the Constitution of Poland, shortly following independence from the Russian Empire.

The President of Poland is the head of state. As a parliamentary democracy, the president retains little power in the proceedings of government. However, the constitution does stipulate some executive powers that belong to the presidency, including the right to dissolve parliament and declare national emergencies. Along with those, the signature of the president is required for passed legislation to become law, and the president has the option to veto legislation. Most executive power within Poland is vested by the constitution to the Prime Minister of Poland. The prime minister is the head of government, and as such heads a cabinet of ministers responsible with maintaining certain functions of government.

The national legislature is the Sejm. It is a unicameral body, meaning it is composed of only one chamber. From TBD to TBD, a senate operated as the upper chamber of parliament, though that body was dissolved through additional amendments to the Polish constitution in 1958. The Sejm is composed of 400 representatives, who represent individual constituencies. Members of the Sejm are elected through an open-list proportional representation system, which also includes a 5% threshold for parties. The Sejm, as the national legislature, is charged with the creation and passage of national legislation. The chamber is expected to create an annual budget and also to conduct investigation and impeachment trials of government officials. The Sejm is led by the President of the Sejm, who is selected from the majority group within the chamber.

The Supreme Court of Poland is the highest court of Poland. The Supreme Court oversees the Polish judicial system, which include general civilian courts and military courts. It is the court of last resort for appeals from lower courts. It also passes resolutions that clarify constitutional inconsistencies or misconceptions from the government. The Supreme Court is composed of 120 members who are appointed by the President on the advice and consent of the National Judiciary Council. The head of the Supreme Court is the First President who is appointed by the president and serves and indefinate term. The first president can be removed by the Sejm through a resolution, though regular members of the Supreme Court can only be removed through an impeachment trial.

Parties and elections

Poland is a multi-party democracy, though has largely retained a two-party system in some form throughout its modern history. The two largest political parties in Poland since 2010 are the right-wing to far-right Congress of the New Right and the centre to centre-left Modern Renewal Party. Recent elections have seen the rise of various third parties, including the left-wing Polish Socialist Party; the center-right Democratic Platform for Poland; and the centrist 2050 movement.

Elections to the Sejm occur every four years and follow an open-list proportional representation system. Since 1950, Poland has required a 5% threshold in elections, in that parties must secure more that 5% of the national popular vote in order to enter the Sejm. The use of a thresold has been proven controversial, as the measure was added to the Polish constitution in order to prevent far-left political parties from taking office during the height of the Cold War. There are a total of 400 members of the Sejm, each of whom are elected to represent constituencies across Poland. Constituencies are referred to as electoral districts, and are single-member.

The prime minister, the head of government, is selected from the majority party or coalition in the Sejm. The current prime minister is Aleksy Kowalczyk, a member of the Congress of the New Right who was elected to the position in 2015. He represents 13 - Kraków II, a electoral district that represents a part of the city of Krakow. He is the first prime minister of the Congress of the New Right.

Military

Main article: Polish Armed Forces

The Polish Armed Forces form the military of Poland. The armed forces is composed of four branches: the Land Forces, Air Force, Territorial Defense Forces, and the Special Forces. The armed forces were established following the end of the Great War, forming from the Polish National Liberation Army. The commander-in-chief of the Polish Armed Forces is the president, who as head of the military has the power to nominate officers. During wartime however, the military is subordinate to the Ministry of Defense, which in turn is subordinate to the prime minister.

Service in the Polish Armed Forces is voluntary, and has been since 2001. From 19XX to 2001, military service was compulsory for men ages 18 to 35 and later included women of the same age category from 1990 to 2001. Compulsory military service was abolished through the National Defense Reorganization Act, though can be reinstituted during wartime or when the stability of the nation in in threat. Since 2023, there are a total of 118,100 active-duty members of the Polish Armed Forces, and an additional 80,000 members of the national gendarmerie and defense force. A total of TBD% of the national budget is directed towards military expenditure, the TBD largest in Europe.

Foreign relations

Poland is a founding member of the League of Nations, the European Community, and the Northern Treaty Organization. On the international scale, Poland is considered to be a middle power in geopolitical affairs and a regional power in Eastern Europe.

Poland has maintained a close diplomatic relationship with members of the European Community, particularly Germany. Germany played a large role in the formation of the modern Polish nation state, with the German Army working together with the Polish Resistance Army in driving out Russian authorities during the Great War. The two nations shared a close military relationship during the Cold War, where Poland joined Germany and the United Kingdom in opposing the landonist influence of Italy. Poland also has positive relationships with members of the Conference of American States, particularly with the Kingdom of Sierra. Successive governments in Poland have been staunch supporters of Transamericanism.

Poland has a complicated relationship with the Ukraine, caused by disputes regarding Polish control of the Ukrainian-majority provinces in the south. The country has also maintained a somewhat complicated relationship with various former Landonist countries in the Balkans. Poland maintains contentious relations with Italy. While both countries are member-states of the European Community, difference of political structures and historical animosity has led to tense relations within the organization. Aligned with other NTO nations, Poland has opposed both the United Commonwealth and China on different fronts. More recently, Poland has condemned the former for its role in the Caribbean crisis and the latter for the Chinese invasion of Manchuria.

See also

This page uses material from the Wikipedia page Poland, which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License (view authors).