Poland

Table of Contents

Introduction & Quick Facts
Land
- Relief
  - The coastal plain
  - The lake region and central lowlands
  - The Little Poland Uplands
  - The Sudeten
  - The Carpathians
- Drainage and soils
- Climate
- Plant and animal life
  - Vegetation
  - Wildlife
  - The environment
People
- Ethnic groups
- Languages
- Religion
- Settlement patterns
  - Rural settlement
  - Urban settlement
- Demographic trends
Economy
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing
- Resources and power
  - Minerals
  - Energy
- Manufacturing
- Finance
- Trade
- Services
- Labour and taxation
- Transportation and telecommunications
  - Railways
  - Highways
  - Waterways
  - Air transport
  - Telecommunications
Government and society
- Constitutional framework
- Local government
- Justice
- Political process
- Security
  - Military
  - Police
- Health and welfare
- Housing
- Education
Cultural life
- Cultural milieu
- Daily life and social customs
- The arts
  - Literature
  - Music
  - Visual arts
  - Theatre and motion pictures
- Cultural institutions
- Sports and recreation
- Media and publishing
History
- The Piast monarchy
  - The early state
  - Collapse and restoration
  - The period of divisions
    - Collapse of Bolesław’s governing system
    - Cultural developments, 11th–13th century
    - Social and economic developments
    - Feudalism
    - The arrival of the Teutonic Knights
  - Revival of the kingdom
    - The Czech dynasty
    - Władysław I
    - Casimir the Great
    - Louis I
    - The marriage of Jadwiga
- The states of the Jagiellonians
  - The waning of the Middle Ages
    - The rule of Jagiełło
    - Casimir IV
  - The golden age of the Sigismunds
    - Political developments
    - Foreign affairs
    - Social and cultural developments
- The Commonwealth
  - Báthory and the Vasas
    - Social and political structure
    - Stephen Báthory
    - Sigismund III Vasa
    - Władysław IV
    - The Cossacks
    - Bohdan Khmelnytsky
    - John II Casimir Vasa
  - The 17th-century crisis
    - Social and economic changes
    - Political stagnation
    - Cultural changes
  - Decline and attempts at reform
  - The Saxons
    - Augustus II
    - Augustus III
  - Reforms, agony, and partitions
    - Reform under Stanisław II
    - The First Partition
    - Social and economic changes
    - The constitution of 1791
    - The Second and Third Partitions
- Partitioned Poland
  - The legions and the Duchy of Warsaw
  - From the Congress of Vienna to 1848
    - Early Russian rule
    - Emigration and revolt
  - The January 1863 uprising and its aftermath
  - Accommodation with the ruling governments
- Poland in the 20th century
  - The rebirth of Poland
  - From the Treaty of Versailles to the Treaty of Riga
  - The Second Republic
  - World War II
  - Communist Poland
  - Transitioning from communism
  - The constitution of 1997
- Poland in the 21st century

References & Edit History Facts & Stats

Images, Videos & Interactives

Physical features of Poland

Carpathian Mountains; cross section of the Western Carpathians

Tatra Mountains, Poland

For Students

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Cannibalism: Cultures, Cures, Cuisine, and Calories

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What Is the Emoluments Clause?

Poland: Facts & Stats

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

News •

Poland votes for a new president Sunday as worries grow about the future • May 15, 2025, 7:44 AM ET (AP)

Poland orders the Russian Consulate in Krakow closed after Moscow was blamed for a 2024 arson attack • May 12, 2025, 3:29 PM ET (AP)

Russia's Putin proposes direct talks with Ukraine in Istanbul 'without preconditions' • May 10, 2025, 8:53 PM ET (AP)

The Latest: Russia-West rift at forefront of celebrations for victory over Nazis • May 9, 2025, 4:30 PM ET (AP)

Friedrich Merz to visit Warsaw and Paris in first trip as German chancellor to stress European unity • May 7, 2025, 4:00 AM ET (AP)

Facts

Also Known As	Republic of Poland • Polska • Rzeczpospolita Polska • Polska Rzeczpospolita Ludowa • Rzeczpospolita Polska Ludowa • Polish People’s Republic • Polska Rzeczpospolita
Head Of Government	Prime Minister: Donald Tusk
Capital	Warsaw
Population	(2025 est.) 37,412,000
Currency Exchange Rate	1 USD equals 3.782 Polish zloty
Head Of State	President: Andrzej Duda
Form Of Government	unitary multiparty republic with two legislative houses (Senate [100]; Sejm [460])
Official Language	Polish
Official Religion	none¹
Official Name	Rzeczpospolita Polska (Republic of Poland)
Total Area (Sq Km)	311,895
Total Area (Sq Mi)	120,423
Monetary Unit	złoty (zł)
Population Rank	(2025) 39
Population Projection 2030	37,663,000
Density: Persons Per Sq Mi	(2025) 310.7
Density: Persons Per Sq Km	(2025) 120
Urban-Rural Population	Urban: (2022) 59.7% • Rural: (2022) 40.3%
Life Expectancy At Birth	Male: (2022) 73.4 years • Female: (2022) 81.1 years
Literacy: Percentage Of Population Age 15 And Over Literate	Male: not available • Female: not available
Gni (U.S.$ ’000,000)	(2023) 729,945
Gni Per Capita (U.S.$)	(2023) 19,900
¹Roman Catholicism has special recognition per 1997 concordat with Vatican City.

Did You Know?

Poland is located in the exact geographical center of the European continent.
There has only ever been one Polish pope. Pope John Paul II, born Karol J�zef WojtyBa, was born in Wadowice, Poland and served as pope from October 16, 1978 until his death on April 2, 2005.
Poland is the first European country and second country overall to have written a constitution, although the constitution has changed (as recently as 1997).
Poland's flag is divided between two equally sized horizontal strips, with white on top and red on bottom. Its flag is thus extremely similar to those of Monaco and Indonesia, which are in the reverse orientation, and that of Singapore, which is in the reverse orientation but with a crescent and stars in the top half.
On September 1, 1939, Poland was invaded by Germany despite never having made a declaration of war, igniting World War II. It remained the only European country to neither cooperate with nor surrender a battle to the Nazis.

Photos and Videos

Physical features of Poland

Carpathian Mountains; cross section of the Western Carpathians

Tatra Mountains, Poland

The Elbe, Oder, and Vistula river basins

Learn how Poland's rich mineral resources sulfur and bituminous coal are mined

How old is Poland's Wieliczka salt mine?

Making traditional Polish pierogi

Learn about Poland's transformative history from King Bolesław I to World War II and the Potsdam Conference

German invasion of Poland: Start of World War II

National anthem of Poland

See All Videos, Images, Audio and Interactives →

Topics

Piast Dynasty Jagiellon dynasty Zamoyski Family Radziwiłł family Sejm World War II League of Nations European Union North Atlantic Treaty Organization nation-state United States India United Kingdom China Canada Russia Germany Australia Japan France

Dig Deeper: More Articles That Discuss This Topic

Mateusz Morawiecki

Mateusz Morawiecki

prime minister of Poland

Donald Tusk

Donald Tusk

prime minister of Poland

Tadeusz Kościuszko

Tadeusz Kościuszko

Polish general and statesman

Józef Piłsudski

Józef Piłsudski

Polish revolutionary and statesman

Władysław Gomułka

Polish politician

Carel Allardt: engraving of Jan (John III) Sobieski

John III Sobieski

king of Poland

Casimir III

Casimir III

king of Poland

Christina, engraving by Cornelis Visscher, 1650.

Christina

queen of Sweden

Casimir IV

Casimir IV

king of Poland

Lech Wałęsa

Lech Wałęsa

president of Poland

Jarosław Kaczyński

Jarosław Kaczyński

prime minister of Poland

Władysław II Jagiełło, sarcophagus figure, Wawel Cathedral, Kraków, Poland

Władysław II Jagiełło

king of Poland and grand duke of Lithuania

Köprülü Fazıl Ahmed Paşa

Ottoman vizier

Lech Kaczyński

Lech Kaczyński

president of Poland

Beata Szydło

Beata Szydło

prime minister of Poland

, Bronisław Komorowski

Bronisław Komorowski

president of Poland

Jerzy Buzek

prime minister of Poland

Paderewski, Ignacy

Ignacy Jan Paderewski

composer and prime minister of Poland

Tommaso Dolabella: Władysław IV Vasa

Władysław IV Vasa

king of Poland

M. Bacciarelli: Stanisław II August Poniatowski

Stanisław II August Poniatowski

king of Poland

Map showing the countries of Europe with national capitals and surrounding bodies of water, including the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Black Sea.

Europe

continent

Poland, 1634

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

historical state, Lithuania-Poland

Old Town

Warsaw

national capital, Poland

Reszel: castle

Warmińsko-Mazurskie

province, Poland

Kraków: Wawel Castle and Wawel Cathedral

Kraków

Poland

Jasna Góra monastery, Częstochowa, Poland

Śląskie

province, Poland

Tatra Mountains, Poland

Małopolskie

province, Poland

Ostrów Wielkopolski

Wielkopolskie

province, Poland

Mazowieckie, Poland

Mazowieckie

province, Poland

Nysa

Opolskie

province, Poland

Map showing the location of Lubelskie province within Poland.

Lubelskie

province, Poland

Dolnośląskie, Poland

Dolnośląskie

province, Poland

Łańcut: palace

Podkarpackie

province, Poland

Gdańsk, Pomorskie

Pomorskie

province, Poland

Zachodniopomorskie, Poland

Zachodniopomorskie

province, Poland

Quiz

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The Country Quiz

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Countries & Their Features

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List

Palace of Culture and Science, Warsaw, Poland

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5 Prominent Paintings in Poland