108-454: (Redirected from Prussian Pomerania ) Pomerania Province may refer to one of several provinces established in Pomerania , a region of Europe: Swedish Pomerania (1630–1815), a historical province of Sweden Province of Pomerania (1653–1815) , a historical province of Brandenburg, later Brandenburg-Prussia Province of Pomerania (1815–1945) ,
216-531: A Lechitic ( West Slavic ) ethnic group native to the historical region of Pomerania , including its eastern part called Pomerelia , in north-central Poland . Their settlement area is referred to as Kashubia . They speak the Kashubian language , which is classified as a separate language closely related to Polish . The Kashubs are closely related to the Poles and sometimes classified as their subgroup. Moreover,
324-461: A Western Slavic people living on the shores of the Baltic Sea. Kashubians have their own unique language, history, culture and traditions. Until the end of the 12th century, the vast majority of inhabitants of Pomerania ( Hither , Farther and Eastern ) were Slavic-speakers , but the province was quite sparsely populated, with large areas covered by forests and waste lands. During the 13th century,
432-416: A historical province of Prussia, later Germany See also [ edit ] Pomerania (disambiguation) Pomeranian Voivodeship , the name of several historical and one current province of Poland West Pomeranian Voivodeship Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship [REDACTED] Topics referred to by the same term This disambiguation page lists articles about distinct geographical locations with
540-549: A relatively low population density , with its largest cities being Gdańsk and Szczecin . Outside its urban areas, it is characterized by farmland, dotted with numerous lakes, forests, and small towns. In the west of Pomerania lie several islands, the largest of which are Rügen , the largest island in Germany; Usedom /Uznam, and Wolin , the largest island in Poland. The region has a rich and complicated political and demographic history at
648-493: A result of political mistrust and coercion to declare Polish identity many Kashubians turned away from Poland and chose opting for Germany . In the 2021 Population Census, about 87,600 people declared Kashubian as their language used at home, a decrease from 108,100 in the 2011 Census. The classification of Kashubian as a language or dialect has been controversial. From a diachronic point of view of historical linguistics, Kashubian, like Slovincian , Polabian and Polish ,
756-587: A separate Kashubian identity and strove for a Russian-led pan-Slavic federacy , He considered Poles "born brothers". Ceynowa was a radical who attempted to take the Prussian garrison in Preussisch Stargard ( Starogard Gdański ) during 1846 (see Greater Poland uprising ), but the operation failed when his 100 combatants, armed only with scythes, decided to abandon the site before the attack was carried out. Although some later Kashubian activists tried to push for
864-508: A separate identity, they further based their ideas on a misrepresented reading of the journalist and activist Hieronim Derdowski : "There is no Cassubia without Polonia , and no Poland without Cassubia" ( Nie ma Kaszeb bez Polonii a bez Kaszeb Polsci "). Further stanzas of Derdowski's tribute also point to the fact that Kaszubs were Poles and could not survive without. The Society of Young Kashubians ( Towarzystwo Młodokaszubskie ) has decided to follow in this way, and while they sought to create
972-430: A strip the historical Greater Poland ( Tuczno , Człopa , Mirosławiec , Wałcz , and Czaplinek ), or even a small part of Pomerelia ( Biały Bór ); in turn the other one comprises only approximately northern two-thirds of Pomerelia but also parts of historical Malbork Land and Upper Prussia known under the ethnographic designation of Powiśle and constituting the westernmost strip of historical Prussia ; and finally,
1080-670: A strong Kashubian identity, at the same time they regarded the Kashubians as "One branch, of many, of the great Polish nation". The leader of the movement was Aleksander Majkowski , a doctor educated in Chełmno with the Society of Educational Help in Chełmno. In 1912 he founded the Society of Young Kashubians and started the newspaper Gryf . Kashubs voted for Polish lists in elections, which strengthened
1188-659: A universally accepted definition, since it may refer either to combined Hither and Farther Pomerania only (in German contemporary and historical usage ) or to Hither and Farther Pomerania combined with Pomerelia (in Polish contemporary and historical usage). As a consequence, the term "West Pomerania" is ambiguous, since it may refer to either Hither Pomerania (in German usage and historical usage based on German terminology ), or to combined Hither and Farther Pomerania (in Polish usage and historical usage based on German terminology). In parallel,
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#17328556941671296-627: A variety of dialects are spoken that differ significantly from each other. The vocabulary is influenced by both German and Polish. There are other traditional Slavic ethnic groups inhabiting Pomerania , including the Kociewiacy , Borowiacy and Krajniacy . These dialects tend to fall between Kashubian and the Polish dialects of Greater Poland and Mazovia , with Krajniak dialect indeed heavily influenced by Kashubian, while Borowiak and Kociewiak dialects much more closer to Greater Polish and Mazovian. No obvious Kashubian substrate or any other influence
1404-486: Is a Lechitic West Slavic language , while from a synchronic point of view it is a group of Polish dialects. Given the past nationalist interests of Germans and Poles in Kashubia, Barbour and Carmichel state: "As is always the case with the division of a dialect continuum into separate languages, there is scope here for manipulation." A "standard" Kashubian language does not exist despite attempts to create one, rather
1512-564: Is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe , split between Poland and Germany . The central and eastern part belongs to the West Pomeranian , Pomeranian and Kuyavian-Pomeranian voivodeships of Poland, while the western part belongs to the German states of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Brandenburg . Pomerania's historical border in the west
1620-938: Is an association of people who have the latter view. Kashubian cuisine contains many elements from the wider European culinary tradition. Local specialities include: According to a study published in 2015, by far the most common Y-DNA haplogroup among the Kashubs (n=204) who live in Kashubia , is haplogroup R1a , which is carried by 61.8% of Kashubian males. It is followed in frequency by I1 (13.2%), R1b (9.3%), I2 (4.4%), E1b1b (3.4%), J (2.5%), G (2%) and N1 (1.5%). Other haplogroups are 2%. Another study from 2010 (n=64) discovered similar proportions of most haplogroups (R1a - 68.8%, I1 – 12.5%, R1b - 7.8%, I2 – 3.1%, E1b1b - 3.1%), but found also Q1a in 3.1% of Kashubians. This study reported no significant differences between Kashubians from Poland and other Poles as far as Y chromosome polymorphism
1728-742: Is higher, around 366,000. As of 1890, linguist Stefan Ramułt estimated the number of Kashubs (including Slovincians ) in Pomerelia as 174,831. He also estimated that at that time there were over 90,000 Kashubs in the United States , around 25,000 in Canada ,15,000 in Brazil and 25,000 elsewhere in the world. In total 330,000. In the census of 2021 in total 179,685 people in Poland claimed Kashubian as their ethnic-national identity. Of them only 12,846 claimed it without accompanying Polish identity. Kashubians are
1836-525: Is included within the modern West Pomeranian Voivodeship, but its easternmost parts (the Słupsk area) now constitute the northwest of Pomeranian Voivodeship. Farther Pomerania in turn comprises several other historical subregions, most notably the former Principality of Cammin , the Nowogard County, and the Słupsk and Sławno Land . The Lębork and Bytów Land is considered a part of Pomerelia ( Kashubia ) by
1944-432: Is regarded. When it comes to mitochondrial DNA haplogroups , according to a January 2013 study, the most common major mtDNA lineages among the Kashubians, each carried by at least 2.5% of their population, include J1 (12.3%), H1 (11.8%), H* (8.9%), T* (5.9%), T2 (5.4%), U5a (5.4%), U5b (5.4%), U4a (3.9%), H10 (3.9%), H11 (3.0%), H4 (3.0%), K (3.0%), V (3.0%), H2a (2.5%) and W (2.5%). Altogether they account for almost 8/10 of
2052-449: Is the Easter'). The pussy willows, blessed by priests, were treated as sacred charms that could prevent lightning strikes, protect animals, and encourage honey production. They were believed to bring health and good fortune to people as well, and it was traditional for one pussy willow bud to be swallowed on Palm Sunday to promote good health. According to the old tradition, on Easter Monday
2160-632: Is the Mecklenburg-Western Pomeranian border Urstromtal , which now constitutes the border between the Mecklenburgian and Pomeranian part of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, while it is bounded by the Vistula River in the east. The easternmost part of Pomerania is alternatively known as Pomerelia , consisting of four sub-regions: Kashubia inhabited by ethnic Kashubians , Kociewie , Tuchola Forest and Chełmno Land . Pomerania has
2268-542: Is the only tongue in Poland with this status. It was granted by an act of the Polish Parliament on 6 January 2005. Old Kashubian culture has partially survived in architecture and folk crafts such as pottery , plaiting, embroidery , amber-working, sculpturing and glasspainting. In the 2011 census, 233,000 people in Poland declared their identity as Kashubian, 216,000 declaring it together with Polish and 16,000 as their only national-ethnic identity. Kaszëbskô Jednota
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#17328556941672376-568: Is visible in Kociewiak dialect. This indicates that they are not only descendants of Pomeranians , but also of settlers who arrived in Pomerania from Greater Poland and Masovia during the Middle Ages , from the 10th century onwards. In the 16th and 17th century Michael Brüggemann (also known as Pontanus or Michał Mostnik), Simon Krofey (Szimon Krofej) and J.M. Sporgius introduced Kashubian into
2484-840: Is written in the same Polish-Kashubian style as Krofey's and Brüggemann's books, also contain small passages ("6th Sunday after Epiphany") written in pure Kashubian. Scientific interest in the Kashubian language was sparked by Christoph Mrongovius (publications in 1823, 1828), Florian Ceynowa and the Russian linguist Aleksander Hilferding (1859, 1862), later followed by Leon Biskupski (1883, 1891), Gotthelf Bronisch (1896, 1898), Jooseppi Julius Mikkola (1897), Kazimierz Nitsch (1903). Important works are S. Ramult's , Słownik jezyka pomorskiego, czyli kaszubskiego , 1893, and Friedrich Lorentz , Slovinzische Grammatik , 1903, Slovinzische Texte , 1905, and Slovinzisches Wörterbuch , 1908. Zdzisław Stieber
2592-456: The Lebensraum policy. The Stutthof concentration camp with numerous subcamps was located in the region. There were also numerous Nazi prisons, forced labour camps, and multiple prisoner-of-war camps , including the large Stalag II-B and Stalag II-D , for Polish, French , Belgian, Dutch, Serbian, Italian , American, Canadian, Australian, New Zealander and other Allied POWs. Połczyn-Zdrój
2700-747: The Central European Plain . Its southern, hilly parts belong to the Baltic Ridge, a belt of terminal moraines formed during the Pleistocene . Within this ridge, a chain of moraine-dammed lakes constitutes the Pomeranian Lake District . The soil is generally rather poor, sometimes sandy or marshy. The western coastline is jagged, with many peninsulas (such as Darß – Zingst ) and islands (including Rügen , Usedom , and Wolin ) enclosing numerous bays ( Bodden ) and lagoons (the biggest being
2808-451: The Communist regimes implemented during the post-war era; since then, Pomerania is democratically governed . Pomeranian dialect and traditions still live in the country of Brazil in a colony where the language is still spoken. The arrival of Pomerania immigrants with Germans and Italians helped form the state of Espírito Santo since the early 1930s. Their importance and respect are one of
2916-648: The Gestapo carried out arrests of Polish leaders, activists, entrepreneurs, and even some staff of the Consulate of Poland in Szczecin. In September 1939, Germany invaded Poland starting World War II . The first battle of the war, at Westerplatte , was fought in the region. Afterwards the Polish part of Pomerania was annexed by Germany, and made part of the Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia . The Nazis deported
3024-569: The Kashubians in Pomerelia . In the German part of Pomerania, Standard German dominates. The historical German dialects of Pomerania are, however, Low German . The Pomeranian dialects were all part of the East Low German subgroup: Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch in the west, Central Pomeranian (Mittelpommersch) in Central Pomerania around Szczecin (then Stettin), and East Pomeranian in
3132-726: The Lagoon of Szczecin ). The eastern coastline is smooth. Łebsko and several other lakes were formerly bays, but have been cut off from the sea. The easternmost coastline along the Gdańsk Bay (with the Bay of Puck ) and Vistula Lagoon , has the Hel Peninsula and the Vistula peninsula jutting out into the Baltic. The Pomeranian region has the following administrative divisions: The bulk of Farther Pomerania
3240-546: The Little Kashubian Tricity with a population of 120,158 people (2012), formed by the City of Wejherowo (population 50,310 in 2012) and the towns (urban gminas) of Rumia (population 49,230 in 2020) and Reda (population 26,011 in 2019). The area also includes two smaller towns of Żukowo and Pruszcz Gdański belonging to the eponymous urban-rural gminas, and a number of rural gminas. Altogether, there are 16 cities in
3348-985: The National Museum in Szczecin , the Museum of the Puck Region , and the Museum of Maritime Fisheries in Świnoujście. Other notable museums include the Museum of the National Anthem ( Muzeum Hymnu Narodowego ) in Będomin at the birthplace of Józef Wybicki , author of the lyrics of the national anthem of Poland , and the Copernicus House in Toruń , birthplace of famed astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus . The Diocesan Museum in Pelplin contains one of
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3456-626: The Oder and Vistula Rivers after the Migration Period , and were at various times Polish and Danish vassals. While most Slavic Pomeranians were assimilated during the medieval German settlement of Pomerania (Ostsiedlung) , especially in Eastern Pomerania ( Pomerelia ) some kept and developed their customs and became known as Kashubians. The tenth century far-traveled Arab writer Al-Masudi – who had great interest in non-Muslim peoples, including
3564-577: The Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia of Nazi Germany , and since 1945 within the People's Republic of Poland , and after within the Third Polish Republic . German Ostsiedlung in Kashubia was initiated by the Pomeranian dukes and focused on the towns, whereas much of the countryside remained Kashubian. An exception was the German settled Vistula delta ( Vistula Germans ), the coastal regions, and
3672-653: The Stone and Bronze Age , Baltic peoples , Germanic peoples and Veneti during the Iron Age and, in the Dark Ages , West Slavic tribes and Vikings . Starting in the 10th century, early Polish rulers subdued the region, successfully integrating the eastern part with Poland, while the western part fell under the suzerainty of Denmark and the Holy Roman Empire in the late 12th century. Gdańsk , established during
3780-631: The Swedish Crown who succeeded in Swedish Pomerania when the House of Pomerania became extinct . The westernmost ( Slovincian ) parts of Kashubia, located in the medieval Lands of Schlawe and Stolp and Lauenburg and Bütow Land , were integrated into the Duchy of Pomerania in 1317 and 1455, respectively, and remained with its successors ( Brandenburgian Pomerania and Prussian Pomerania ) until 1945 , when
3888-928: The University of Szczecin , the University of Gdańsk and the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń , the oldest of which, the University of Greifswald , was founded when Greifswald belonged to Duchy of Pomerania , thus being one of the oldest universities in the world . The technical universities are the Gdańsk University of Technology , West Pomeranian University of Technology in Szczecin, and Koszalin University of Technology . The Stralsund University of Applied Sciences (Hochschule Stralsund) in Stralsund has around 2,400 students. Agriculture primarily consists of raising livestock, forestry, fishery, and
3996-410: The Vistula valley . Following the centuries of interaction between local German and Kashubian population, Aleksander Hilferding (1862) and Alfons Parczewski (1896) confirmed a progressive language shift in the Kashubian population from their Slavonic vernacular to the local German dialect ( Low German Ostpommersch , Low German Low Prussian , or High German ). On the other hand, Pomerelia since
4104-563: The former eastern territories of Germany and Poles of German ethnicity from Pomerelia were expelled . Between 1945 and 1948, millions of ethnic Germans (Volksdeutsche) and German citizens (Reichsdeutsche), were removed from former German territory now governed by Poland and other Eastern European countries. Many German civilians were sent to internment and labor camps where they were used as forced labor as part of German reparations to countries in Eastern Europe. The death toll attributable to
4212-508: The 1870s a fishing village was established in Jones Island in Milwaukee , Wisconsin, by Kashubian immigrants . The settlers however did not hold deeds to the land, and the government of Milwaukee evicted them as squatters in the 1940s, with the area soon after turned into industrial park. The last trace of this Milwaukee fishing village that had been settled by Kashubians on Jones Island is in
4320-470: The 2002 census there was no option to declare one national identity and a different ethnicity, or more than one ethnicity. On the 2011 census, the number of persons declaring "Kashubian" as their only ethnicity was 16,000, and 233,000 including those who declared Kashubian as first or second ethnicity (together with Polish). In that census, over 108,000 people declared everyday use of Kashubian language. The number of people who can speak at least some Kashubian
4428-533: The Amber Museums in Gdańsk and Jarosławiec , and the Museum of Gingerbread in Toruń. There are around 40 museums in the district of Vorpommern-Rügen , the most notable of which are: In the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald are located around 30 museums, among which: There are four traditional (non-profiled and multi-faculty, public research ) universities in the region, namely the University of Greifswald ,
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4536-465: The English A-Level and French Baccalaureat). This development was seen as an important step in the official recognition and establishment of the language. Today, in some towns and villages in northern Poland, Kashubian is the second language spoken after Polish , and it is taught in some regional schools. Since 2005 Kashubian enjoys legal protection in Poland as an official regional language . It
4644-664: The German Ostsiedlung began in this region. Slavic dukes of Pomerania such as Barnim I (1220–1278) – despite calling themselves dux Slavorum et Cassubie – contributed a lot to the change of ethnic structure by promoting German immigration and granting land to German nobles, monks and clergy. The Slavic ruling dynasty itself started intermarrying with German princesses and became culturally Germanized over time. Wendish commoners became alienated in their own land, their culture replaced by that of newcomers. All of this led to Germanization of most of Slavic Pomeranians and
4752-679: The German population in the Duchy of Pomerania adopted the Protestant reformation in 1534, the Polish (along with Kashubian ) population remained with the Roman Catholic Church . The Thirty Years' War severely ravaged and depopulated narrow Pomerania; few years later this same happened to Pomerelia ( the Deluge ). With the extinction of the Griffin house during the same period, the Duchy of Pomerania
4860-424: The Guardhouse no. 1 at Westerplatte (a branch of the Museum of Gdańsk), the Museum of Coastal Defence in Hel , the Stutthof Museum in Sztutowo with the branch Piaśnica Museum in Wejherowo , the Museum of the Pomeranian Wall and World War II in Szczecinek , and the Armory Museum in Kłanino . There are also aquaria: the Gdynia Aquarium and the Seal Sanctuary in Hel . Perhaps more unusual museums include
4968-417: The Kashub boys chase girls whipping gently their legs with juniper twigs. This is to bring good fortune in love to the chased girls. This was usually accompanied by a boy's chant Dyngus, dyngus – pò dwa jaja, Nie chcã chleba, leno jaja ('Dyngus, dyngus, for two eggs; I don't want bread but eggs'). Sometimes a girl would be whipped when still in her bed. Girls would give boys painted eggs. Pottery, one of
5076-424: The Kashubians became subject to Prussia's Kulturkampf between 1871 and 1878. The Kashubians faced Germanification efforts, including those by evangelical Lutheran clergy. These efforts were successful in Lauenburg ( Lębork ) and Leba ( Łeba ), where the local population used the Gothic alphabet. While resenting the disrespect shown by some Prussian officials and Junkers, Kashubians lived in peaceful coexistence with
5184-452: The Lutheran Church. Krofey, pastor in Bütow (Bytow), published a religious song book in 1586, written in Polish but also containing some Kashubian words. Brüggemann, pastor in Schmolsin , published a Polish translation of some works of Martin Luther ( catechism ) and biblical texts, also containing Kashubian elements. Other biblical texts were published in 1700 by Sporgius, pastor in Schmolsin. His Schmolsiner Perikopen , most of which
5292-444: The Middle Ages was assigned to the Kuyavian Diocese of Leslau and thus retained Polish as the church language. Only the Slovincians in 1534 adopted Lutheranism after the Protestant Reformation had reached the Duchy of Pomerania , while the Kashubes in Pomerelia remained Roman Catholic. The Prussian parliament ( Landtag ) in Königsberg changed the official church language from Polish to German in 1843 but this decision
5400-426: The Museum of Sopot, the Emigration Museum in Gdynia, the Museum of Polish Navy in Gdynia, the Museum of Kociewie in Starogard Gdański, the Museum of Kashubian and Pomeranian Literature and Music in Wejherowo, the Kashubian Museum in Kartuzy, the Central Pomerania Museum in Słupsk , the Darłowo Museum, the Koszalin Museum, the Museum of Polish Arms in Kołobrzeg, the Museum of Archeology and History in Stargard,
5508-440: The Polish historiography, and of Farther Pomerania by the German historiography. Parts of Pomerania and surrounding regions have constituted a euroregion since 1995. The Pomerania euroregion comprises Hither Pomerania and Uckermark in Germany, West Pomerania in Poland, and Scania in Sweden. In Lechitic languages the prefix "po-" means along ; unlike the word "po", which means after . Pomorze , therefore, means Along
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#17328556941675616-535: The Polish nation could be dissolved. However, Kashubians who were suspected to support the Polish cause, particularly those with higher education, were arrested and executed, the main place of executions being Piaśnica (Gross Plassnitz), where 12,000 were executed. The German administrator of the area Albert Forster considered Kashubians of "low value" and did not support any attempts to create Kashubian nationality. Some Kashubians organized anti-Nazi resistance groups, Gryf Kaszubski (later Gryf Pomorski ), and
5724-523: The Pomeranian Jews to a reservation near Lublin . The Polish population suffered heavily during the Nazi oppression ; more than 40,000 died in executions, death camps, prisons and forced labour , primarily those who were teachers, businessmen, priests, politicians, former army officers, and civil servants. Thousands of Poles and Kashubians suffered expulsion , their homes taken over by the German military and civil servants, as well as some Baltic Germans resettled there between 1940 and 1943 in accordance with
5832-503: The Pomeranian universities. Since the late 19th century, tourism has been an important sector of the economy, primarily in the numerous seaside resorts along the coast. The Polish Świnoujście LNG terminal is located in Pomerania. Sports enjoying either great popularity or success in Pomerania are football , basketball , speedway , handball , volleyball and rugby union . Most popular and accomplished football teams are Arka Gdynia , Lechia Gdańsk and Pogoń Szczecin , based in
5940-466: The Sea . This construction is similar to toponyms Pogórze ( Along the Mountains ), Polesie ( Along the Forest ), Porzecze ( Along the River ), etc. Pomerania was first mentioned in an imperial document of 1046, referring to a Zemuzil dux Bomeranorum ( Zemuzil , Duke of the Pomeranians). Pomerania is mentioned repeatedly in the chronicles of Adam of Bremen (c. 1070) and Gallus Anonymous (ca. 1113). The territorial designation "Pomerania" lacks
6048-441: The ancient Kashubians crafts, has survived to the present day. Famous is Kashubian embroidery and Kashubian embroidering Zukowo school is important intangible cultural heritage . Pope John Paul II visited in June 1987 and appealed to the Kashubes to preserve their traditional values including their language. In 2005, Kashubian was for the first time made an official subject on the Polish matura exam (roughly equivalent to
6156-415: The area became Polish . The bulk of Kashubia since the 12th century was within the medieval Pomerelian duchies, since 1308 in the Monastic state of the Teutonic Knights , since 1466 within Royal Prussia , an autonomous territory of the Polish Crown , since 1772 within West Prussia , a Prussian province, since 1920 within the Polish Corridor of the Second Polish Republic , since 1939 within
6264-447: The area to the east of Lupow river was inhabited by "pure-blood Wends", while to the west of this river some rural areas were inhabited by already half-Germanised "Wendischdeutsche". Perhaps the earliest census figures on ethnic or national structure of West Prussia and Farther Pomerania are from 1817 to 1823. Karl Andree , Polen: in geographischer, geschichtlicher und culturhistorischer Hinsicht (Leipzig 1831), gives
6372-432: The broad-sense Pomerania, understood as comprising also Pomerelia . Their list is presented below and includes the 14 municipalities in Poland electing a city mayor ( Polish : prezydent miasta ) instead of a town mayor ( Polish : burmistrz ), with 9 of them holding the status of a city with powiat rights ( Polish : miasto na prawach powiatu , an independent city ), as well as the 2 municipalities in Germany holding
6480-597: The capital are: Gdańsk ( Gduńsk ), Wejherowo ( Wejrowò ), and Bytów ( Bëtowò ). The total number of Kashubians (Pomeranians) varies depending on one's definition. A common estimate is that over 500,000 people in Poland are of the Kashubian ethnicity, the estimates range from ca. 500,000 to ca. 567,000. In the Polish census of 2002, only 5,100 people declared Kashubian national identity , although 52,655 declared Kashubian as their everyday language. Most Kashubs declare Polish national identity and Kashubian ethnicity , and are considered both Polish and Kashubian. On
6588-556: The cultivation of cereals , sugar beets , and potatoes. Industrial food processing is increasingly relevant in the region. Key producing industries are shipyards , mechanical engineering facilities (i.e. renewable energy components), and sugar refineries , along with paper and wood fabricators. Service industries today are an important economical factor in Pomerania, most notably with logistics, information technology, life science , biotechnology , health care, and other high-tech branches often clustering around research facilities of
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#17328556941676696-431: The cultural signatures of the area. The Brazilian city of Pomerode (in the state of Santa Catarina ) was founded by Pomeranian Germans in 1861 and is considered the most typically German of all the German towns of southern Brazil. The German part of Western Pomerania is inhabited by German Pomeranians . In other parts, Poles are the dominant ethnic group since the territorial changes of Poland after World War II , and
6804-421: The descendants of émigrées, most notably in the Americas (e.g. Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Canada). Slovincian was spoken at the Farther Pomeranian –Pomerelian frontier, but is now extinct. At least 50 museums in Poland cover the history of Pomerania, the most important of them being the District Museum in Toruń , the Museum in Grudziądz, the National Museum in Gdańsk , the National Maritime Museum, Gdańsk ,
6912-612: The direction of Pollnow towards Treblin on his way to Danzig . While staying in the manor house of Stanislaus Stenzel von Puttkamer in Treblin, he noted in his diary: "we have entered Slavic-inhabited lands, which has surprised us a lot." Later, while returning from Danzig to Stettin , Lubinus slept over in Wielka Wieś near Stolp , and noted: "in the whole village, we cannot find even one German-speaker" (which caused communication problems). Lubinus also travelled from Chocimino through Świerzno to Trzebielino, he entered Slavic-inhabited land. During another trip, near Wierzchocino , he
7020-495: The early 14th century the Teutonic Knights invaded and annexed Pomerelia from Poland into their monastic state , which already included historical Prussia . As a result of the Teutonic rule, in German terminology the name of Prussia was also extended to conquered Polish lands like Gdańsk Pomerania , although it was not inhabited by Baltic Prussians but Lechitic Poles. Meanwhile, the Ostsiedlung started to turn Slavic narrow Pomerania into an increasingly German-settled area;
7128-399: The east. The regions east of the Piaśnica river are not considered Pomeranian according to German terminology, but either West Prussian or Pomerelian. Danzig German was hence classified as Low Prussian , like the dialects of East Prussia ( Königsberg ). Those parts of Pomerania that remained German after 1945 are almost entirely located in the Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch area. Only
7236-423: The exiled Zwiazek Pomorski in Great Britain. When integrated into Poland, those envisioning Kashubian autonomy faced a Communist regime striving for ethnic homogeneity and presenting Kashubian culture as merely folklore. Kashubians were sent to Silesian mines, where they met Silesians facing similar problems. Lech Bądkowski from the Kashubian opposition became the first spokesperson of Solidarność . As
7344-427: The expelled Pomeranians found refuge there, later many moved on to other German regions and abroad. Today German Hither Pomerania forms the eastern part of the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern , while the Polish part is divided mainly between the West Pomeranian , Pomeranian voivodeships, with their capitals in Szczecin and Gdańsk . During the 1980s, the Solidarity and Die Wende ("the change") movements overthrew
7452-420: The finest collections of medieval art in Poland, and the country's sole copy of the Gutenberg Bible . Medieval open-air museums are the Grodzisko in Sopot and Skansen in Wolin . There are also the Dar Pomorza , ORP Błyskawica and SS Sołdek museum ships . Several museums devoted to World War II history are located in Polish Pomerania, including the Museum of the Second World War in Gdańsk,
7560-461: The flight and expulsions is disputed, with low-range estimates in the hundreds of thousands (see: Flight and expulsion of Germans (1944–1950) ). The area was resettled primarily with Poles of Polish ethnicity, (some themselves expellees from former eastern Poland ) and some Poles of Ukrainian ethnicity (resettled under Operation Vistula ) and few Polish Jews . Most of Hither or Western Pomerania ( Vorpommern ) remained in Germany, and most of
7668-450: The former Swedish parts were reorganized into the Prussian Province of Pomerania , while Pomerelia was made part of the Province of West Prussia . With Prussia, both provinces joined the newly constituted German Empire in 1871. Under German rule, the Polish minority suffered discrimination and oppressive measures aimed at eradicating its culture. Following the German Empire's defeat in World War I, however, eastern Pomerania/ Pomerelia
7776-636: The gradual death of their Slavic language, with the general direction of assimilation and language shift from west to east. Johannes Bugenhagen wrote that at the beginning of the 16th century the German-Slavic language border was near Koszalin . During the 17th century, the border between areas with mostly German-speaking and mostly Slavic-speaking populations ran more or less along the present-day border between West Pomeranian and Pomeranian Voivodeships. In year 1612, cartographer Eilhard Lubinus – while working on his map of Pomerania – travelled from
7884-479: The historical ones with Mecklenburg and Brandenburg . As a consequence, the common understanding of the terms has started to be used more and more frequently in the sense of the current administrative units. Settlement in the area called Pomerania for the last 1,000 years started by the end of the Vistula Glacial Stage , some 13,000 years ago. Archeological traces have been found of various cultures during
7992-549: The historical region of Hither Pomerania today, while the Szczecin metropolitan area reaches even further. Pomerelia is dominated by the Tricity metropolitan area (Pomeranian Voivodeship) with its population in 2012 estimated at least at 1,035,000 and the area at 1,332,51 km , encompassing the Tricity itself with a population of 748,986 combining the eponymous three cities of Gdańsk (population 460,427), Gdynia (population 248,726) and Sopot (population 38,217), as well as
8100-643: The historically Brandenburgian headwaters of the Uecker river ( Prenzlau ). In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern , however, the dominating Low German standard version is the Mecklenburgisch-Vorpommersch dialect, and Central Pomeranian texts are often rewritten. East Pomeranian, Low Prussian , and Standard German were dominating east of the Oder-Neisse line before most of its speakers were expelled after World War II . Kashubian and East Low German are also spoken by
8208-462: The intersection of several cultures. Pomerania is the area along the Bay of Pomerania of the Baltic Sea between the rivers Recknitz , Trebel , Tollense and Augraben in the west and Vistula in the east. It formerly reached perhaps as far south as the Noteć river, but since the 13th century its southern boundary has been placed further north. Most of the region is coastal lowland, being part of
8316-502: The largest proportion of people declaring Kashubian origin. However, the biggest city of the Kashubia region is Gdańsk ( Gduńsk ), the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship . Between 80.3% and 93.9% of the people in towns such as Linia , Sierakowice , Szemud , Kartuzy , Chmielno , Żukowo , etc. are of Kashubian descent. The traditional occupations of the Kashubs have been agriculture and fishing. These have been joined by
8424-573: The late 12th-early 13th century, the Griffin Duchy of Pomerania stayed with the Holy Roman Empire and the Principality of Rugia with Denmark, while Pomerelia, under the ruling of Samborides , was a part of Poland. Pomerania, during its alliance in the Holy Roman Empire , shared borders with West Slavic state Oldenburg, as well as Poland and the expanding Margraviate of Brandenburg . In
8532-695: The local German population until World War II, although during the interbellum, the Kashubian ties to Poland were either overemphasized or neglected by Polish and German authors, respectively, in arguments regarding the Polish Corridor . During the Second World War, Kashubs were considered by the Nazis as being either of "German stock" or "extraction", or "inclined toward Germanness" and "capable of Germanisation", and thus classified third category of Deutsche Volksliste (German ethnic classification list) if ties to
8640-471: The palm leaves used in Palm Sunday celebrations, which were not obtainable in Kashubia . They were blessed by priests on Palm Sunday, following which parishioners whipped each other with the pussy willow branches, saying Wierzba bije, jô nie bijã. Za tidzéń wiôldżi dzéń, za nocë trzë i trzë są Jastrë ('The willow strikes, it's not me who strikes, in a week, on the great day, in three and three nights, there
8748-631: The regions between the Zarow river in the west and the Oder river in the east are historically part of the Central Pomeranian dialect region: the southern shores of the Szczecin Lagoon ( Ueckermünde ), the towns along the Uecker and Randow rivers, and those parts of Pomerania that are now in Brandenburg ( Gartz and the northern districts of Schwedt/Oder ). Central Pomeranian is also spoken along
8856-520: The reign of Mieszko I of Poland has since become Poland's main port (apart from periods of Poland losing control over the region). In the 12th century, the Duchy of Pomerania (western part), as a vassal state of Poland, became Christian under saint Otto of Bamberg ( the Apostle of the Pomeranians ); at the same time Pomerelia (eastern part) became a part of diocese of Włocławek within Poland. Since
8964-719: The remaining Wends and Polish people, often known as Kashubians , continued to settle within Pomerelia. In 1325 the line of the princes of Rügen died out, and the principality was inherited by the Griffins . In 1466, with the Teutonic Order 's defeat in the Thirteen Years' War , Pomerelia became again part of the Polish Crown and formed the Pomeranian Voivodeship within the provinces of Royal Prussia and Greater Poland . While
9072-410: The remaining one third of Pomerelia forms part of województwo kujawsko-pomorskie ( Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship ), a further regional unit, in this case bearing a name accurately reflecting historical heterogeneity of its territory. Similarity but to lesser extent, borders of the combined German districts Vorpommern-Rügen and Vorpommern-Greifswald deviate significantly in numerous locations from
9180-509: The representation of Poles in the Pomerania region. Between 1855 and 1900, about 100,000 Kashubs emigrated to the United States, Canada, Brazil, New Zealand, and Australia in the so-called Kashubian diaspora , largely for economic reasons. In 1899 the scholar Stefan Ramult named Winona, Minnesota the "Kashubian Capital of America" on account of the Kashubian community's size within the city and its activity. Due to their Catholic faith,
9288-559: The resulting Polonization . Kashubians , descendants of the medieval West Slavic Pomeranians , are numerous in rural Pomerelia . German Hither Pomerania had a population of about 470,000 in 2012 (districts of Vorpommern-Rügen and Vorpommern-Greifswald combined) – while the Polish districts of Hither Pomerania had a population of about 580,000 in 2012 ( Szczecin and Świnoujście cities with powiat rights , Police County , as well as Goleniów Wolin and Międzyzdroje gminas combined). So overall, about 1.15 million people live in
9396-658: The same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pomerania_Province&oldid=861280074 " Categories : Place name disambiguation pages Province name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Pomerania Pomerania ( Polish : Pomorze [pɔˈmɔʐɛ] ; German : Pommern [ˈpɔmɐn] ; Pòmòrskô ; Swedish : Pommern )
9504-486: The service and hospitality industries, as well as agrotourism . The main organization that maintains the Kashubian identity is the Kashubian-Pomeranian Association . The recently formed "Odroda" is also dedicated to the renewal of Kashubian culture. The traditional capital has been disputed for a long time and includes Kartuzy ( Kartuzë ) among the seven contenders. The biggest cities claiming to be
9612-587: The settlement of Wilno , in Renfrew County, Ontario , which still exists. Today Canadian Polish-Kashubians return to Northern Poland in small groups to learn about their heritage. Kashubian immigrants founded St. Josaphat parish in Chicago's Lincoln Park community in the late 19th century, as well as the parish of Immaculate Heart of Mary in Irving Park , the vicinity of which was dubbed as " Little Cassubia ". In
9720-440: The status of a district-belonging city (German: Große kreisangehörige Stadt ), as no city of the German part of Pomerania holds currently any higher status, such as a partially of fully independent city (German: Große selbständige Stadt , Kreisfreie Stadt , or Stadtkreis ), or a city-state (German: Stadtstaat ). Polish is the dominating language in the Polish part of Pomerania. Kashubian dialects are also spoken by
9828-491: The term "East Pomerania" may similarly carry different meanings, referring either to Farther Pomerania (in German usage and historical usage based on German terminology ), or to Pomerelia (in Polish usage and historical usage based on German terminology). As a further complication, the borders of the eponymous administrative units have been drawn disregarding mostly the historical ones. The Polish unit called województwo zachodniopomorskie ( West Pomeranian Voivodeship ) includes
9936-600: The three largest cities. Among the most successful Polish basketball teams are the Arka Gdynia men's and women's teams. Other popular men's clubs are Czarni Słupsk , Spójnia Stargard , Trefl Sopot , Wilki Morskie Szczecin , Polpharma Starogard Gdański . The most successful speedway club is KS Toruń , while other popular teams are Wybrzeże Gdańsk and GKM Grudziądz . Kashubians The Kashubians ( Kashubian : Kaszëbi ; Polish : Kaszubi ; German : Kaschuben ), also known as Cassubians or Kashubs , are
10044-490: The total Kashubian mtDNA diversity. In a 2013 study, Y-DNA haplogroups among the Polish population indigenous to Kociewie (n=158) were reported as follows: 56.3% R1a , 17.7% R1b , 8.2% I1 , 7.6% I2 , 3.8% E1b1b , 1.9% N1 , 1.9% J and 2% of other haplogroups. Immigrant Kashubians kept a distinct identity among Polish Canadians and Polish Americans . In 1858 Polish-Kashubians emigrated to Upper Canada and created
10152-594: The total population (10,450 people) in county Stolp (Słupsk). In all constituencies with significant Catholic Kashubian population ( Neustadt in Westpr. - Putzig - Karthaus ; Berent - Preußisch Stargard - Dirschau ; and Konitz - Tuchel ), all Reichstag elections in 1867–1912 were won by the Polish Party ( Polish Party , later Polenpartei ). Kashubs descend from the Slavic Pomeranian tribes , who had settled between
10260-460: The total population of West Prussia as 700,000 – including 50% Poles (350,000), 47% Germans (330,000) and 3% Jews (20,000). Kashubians are included with Poles, while Mennonites with Germans. Modern estimates of Kashubian population in West Prussia in the early 19th century, by county, are given by Leszek Belzyt and Jan Mordawski: According to Georg Hassel , there were 65,000 Slavic-speakers in
10368-549: The various Slavs of Eastern Europe – mentions a people which he calls Kuhsabin , who were probably Kashubians. The oldest known unambiguous mention of "Kashubia" dates from 19 March 1238 – Pope Gregory IX wrote about Bogislaw I as dux Cassubie – the Duke of Kashubia. The old one dates from the 13th century (a seal of Barnim I from the House of Pomerania , Duke of Pomerania-Stettin ). The Dukes of Pomerania hence used "Duke of (the) Kashubia(ns)" in their titles, passing it to
10476-570: The vast majority of Kashubians declare themselves as Poles and many of them have a Polish-Kashubian identity. The Kashubs are grouped with the Slovincians as Pomeranians . Similarly, the Slovincian (now extinct) and Kashubian languages are grouped as Pomeranian languages , with Slovincian (also known as Łeba Kashubian) either a distinct language closely related to Kashubian, or a Kashubian dialect. Among larger cities, Gdynia ( Gdiniô ) contains
10584-514: The whole Provinz Pommern in 1817–1819. Modern estimates for just eastern parts of Pommern (Western Kashubia) in early 1800s range between 40,000 (Leszek Belzyt) and 25,000 (Jan Mordawski, Zygmunt Szultka). The number declined to between 35,000 and 23,000 (Zygmunt Szultka, Leszek Belzyt) in years 1827–1831. In 1850-1860s there were an estimated 23,000 to 17,000 Slavic-speakers left in Pommern, down to 15,000 in 1892 according to Stefan Ramułt . The number
10692-562: The whole Polish part of Hither Pomerania, but only the western two-thirds of Farther Pomerania, with the remaining easternmost one-third ( Słupsk , Ustka , and Miastko ) has been part of the województwo pomorskie ([East-] Pomeranian Voivodeship ). The former regional unit stretches however far more south than the historical region, to include the northern part of the historical Neumark ( Dębno , Chojna , Trzcińsko-Zdrój , Myślibórz , Nowogródek Pomorski , Lipiany , Barlinek , Pełczyce , Suchań , Choszczno , Recz , and Drawno ), as well as
10800-483: Was Hieronim Derdowski . The Young Kashubian movement followed, led by author Aleksander Majkowski , who wrote for the paper Zrzësz Kaszëbskô as part of the "Zrzëszincë" group. The group would contribute significantly to the development of the Kashubian literary language. Another important writer in Kashubian was Bernard Sychta (1907–1982). Similarly to the traditions in other parts of Central and Eastern Europe , Pussy willows have been adopted as an alternative to
10908-492: Was declining due to Germanisation . The bulk of Slavic population in 19th century Pommern was concentrated in its easternmost counties: especially Bytów (Bütow), Lębork (Lauenburg) and Słupsk (Stolp). According to Zygmunt Szultka at the beginning of the 19th century in Provinz Pommern Kashubians were still around 55% of the total population (14,200 people) in county Lauenburg-Bütow (Lębork-Bytów) and over 25% of
11016-569: Was divided between the Swedish Empire and Brandenburg-Prussia in 1648 , while Pomerelia remained in with the Polish Crown. Prussia gained the southern parts of Swedish Pomerania in 1720, invaded and annexed Pomerelia from Poland in 1772 and 1793, and gained the remainder of Swedish Pomerania in 1815 , after the Napoleonic Wars . The former Brandenburg-Prussian Pomerania and
11124-606: Was expanded to include northern parts of the former Province of Posen–West Prussia (part of historic Greater Poland ). Under the Nazi government , the persecution of Poles in the German-controlled part of Pomerania intensified. In January 1939, Germany resumed expulsions of Poles and many were also forced to flee. The Sturmabteilung , Schutzstaffel , Hitler Youth and Bund Deutscher Osten launched attacks on Polish institutions, schools and activists. From May to August 1939,
11232-407: Was involved in producing linguistic atlases of Kashubian (1964–78). The first activist of the Kashubian national movement was Florian Ceynowa . Among his accomplishments, he documented the Kashubian alphabet and grammar by 1879 and published a collection of ethnographic-historic stories of the life of the Kashubians ( Skórb kaszébsko-slovjnckjé mòvé , 1866–1868). Another early writer in Kashubian
11340-454: Was not able to find even one German-speaking person. Over a century later, in 1772–1778, the area was visited by Johann Bernoulli . He noted that villages owned by Otto Christoph von Podewils – such as Dochow , Zipkow and Warbelin – were inhabited entirely by Slavic-speakers. He also noted that local priests and nobles were making great efforts to weed out Slavic language and turn their subjects into Germans. Brüggemann in 1779 wrote that
11448-494: Was returned to the rebuilt Polish state, while German-majority Gdańsk/Danzig was transformed into the independent Free City of Danzig . In the interbellum, the border with Poland and the creation of what German propaganda called the " Polish Corridor " were often contested in Germany. Irredentist claims towards Poland were one of the factors contributing to the rise of the Nazi Party in Germany. In 1938 Germany's Province of Pomerania
11556-434: Was soon repealed. In the 19th century the Kashubian activist Florian Ceynowa undertook efforts to identify the Kashubian language, and its culture and traditions. Although his efforts did not appeal to locals at the time, Kaszubian activists in the present day have claimed that Ceynowa awakened Kashubian self-identity, thereby opposing both Germanisation and Prussian authority, and Polish nobility and clergy. He believed in
11664-629: Was the location of a Germanisation camp for kidnapped Polish children . The Polish resistance movement was active both in the pre-war Polish part and the pre-war German part of Pomerania. After Nazi Germany 's defeat in World War II, the German–Polish border was shifted west to the Oder–Neisse line , and all of Pomerania was in the Soviet Occupation Zone . The German inhabitants of
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