Polonia

Polonia is the Latin name for Poland, as well as in many Romance and other languages. Compare: Lechia. In modern Polish language, however, it is usually used to refer to people of Polish origin who live outside Polish borders, i.e. the Polish diaspora.

There are roughly 15-20 million people of Polish ancestry living outside Poland. Reasons vary from border shifts to forced resettlement to political or economic emigration. Major Polish minorities can be found in Germany and the United States.

A large part of the Polish citizens that migrated in the early twentieth century were Polish Jews, who are also a part of the Jewish Diaspora.

North America

. Chicago is considered the largest Polish city outside Poland. The major US Polonia organization is the Polish American Congress.

Canada

There are about 850,000 Polish Canadians. The Canadian Polish Congress is a blanket organisation that arranges activities and articulates the concerns of the Canadian Polish community. In the past there was little support from the homeland. A renowned figure among Polish Canadians is Henriyck Duchaka.

Europe

Germany

The second largest Polonia in the world, and largest in Europe, is the Polish Germans community. As many as 3 million people living in Germany may be of Polish descent, although the vast majority of people in this group identify themselves as Germans. The main Polonia organization is Kongres Polonii Niemieckiej / Polnischer Kongress in Deutschland. Polish surnames are very common in Germany.

France

About 1 million people of Polish descent live in France, concentrated in the Nord-Pas de Calais region, in the metropolitan area of Lille and the bassin minier, around Lens and Valenciennes. Prominent members of the Polish community in France have included Frédéric Chopin and Marie Curie.

Ukraine

Britain

Polish people have travelled to England throughout the centuries for a number of different reasons. In the 16th century Polish travellers came as traders and diplomats. In the 18th century a small number of Polish Protestants arrived as religious refugees due to the counter reformation in Poland. In the 19th century, due to the collapse of the November Uprising of 1831, many Polish fighters went to Britain in search of sanctuary.

However, it was only after the First World War that Poles settled in large numbers in London - many from the London Polish Prisoner of War camps in Alexandra Palace and Feltham. Again, during the Second World War the majority of the Poles came to Britain as political emigrés. In 1940, with the fall of France, the exiled Polish President, Prime Minister and the government and at least 20,000 soldiers transferred to London. Many others based themselves in other parts of the United Kingdom. To all extents, London became the nerve centre of the Polish liberation movement and its military headquarters.

When the Second World War ended, a Communist government was installed in Poland. Most Poles felt betrayed by their wartime allies and were extremely reluctant to return home. Polish soldiers refused to return to Poland, and large numbers, after occupying resettlement camps, later settled in London. A significant number of Poles were professionals, (lawyers, judges and engineers etc) yet only doctors and pharmacists had their qualifications recognised. As a result the majority of Poles worked in building and construction, coal mining and other forms of manual labour as well as the hospitality trades. However the Poles were very entrepreneurial and set up a number of businesses such as clock, watch and shoe repairers - many of which are stiolloperating today.

The relaxation in travel restrictions to and from Poland saw a steady increase in Polish migration to Britain in the 1950s. Brixton, Earls Court and Lewisham were a few of the London areas where they settled. As these communities grew, it was felt by the Polish Catholic hierarchy and the English and Scottish hierarchies (majority of whom are Irish) that Polish priests should settle and minister specifically to the spiritual needs of the Polish people. The first such parish was Brockley-Lewisham in 1951 and today there are 10 Polish parishes in London, in places such as Balham and Ealing.

The Polish government in London was not dissolved until 1991, when a freely elected president was installed in Warsaw. The Polish people fought hard to combat communism and for their right to liberty. London has been occupied with great success by the Poles. It was a base to fight against the communist regime in Poland. Now that Poland has a democratic government, it is seen as an important centre to foster business and political relations.

The main focus of the London Polish community is Hammersmith in West London. The centre of activities is the Polish Social and Cultural Centre (POSK) in King Street. Polish newspapers and food shops are increasingly apparent since Poland's entry into the European Union in May 2004. About 60,000 people in Britain were born in Poland and about 250,000 are of Polish descent.

Other than London, many Poles have settled in Bolton, Bury and Chorley in Lancashire. Otherwise there are concentrations in Nottingham, South Wales and Swindon.

Recent migration

(based on a Article in the British Magazine The Week 27 May 2006, p 11)

Immigration into Britain from Eastern Europe is a contreversial topic. Britain has just experienced its greatest mass immigration over a very short time.

Poland joined the EU in May 2004, as part of joining Poles gained the right to work in other EU countries. Britain, Sweden, and Ireland had no retrictions on Eastern European migration whereas France and Germany put in place controls to curb the influx. The British Home Office anticipated an inflow of 5000 to 13000 people a year. According to home office statistics 204,895 Poles registered for work in the UK and pay tax. The amount of unregistered Poles working in the shadow economy is probably as large. The Poles are relatively dispersed throughout Britain but do have some concentrations making up a sixth of the population in Jersey and Crewe, all arriving in the last two years.

Most Poles do low paid jobs such as catering, agriculture, building, and the stereotypical Polish Plumber. 80% of these people earn £6 ($10) per hour equivalent to the British Minimum Wage, but according to The Week this is four times what they would earn in Poland. About 4000 Polish doctors have been recruited for Britain's hard pressed National Health Service although there have been concerns about their relatively poor English language.

Most of the immigrants are educated people in the 20-35 year age group with a good education. The benefits to Britain from this influx of cheap labour are assesed as being an extra 0.2% of GDP growth and interest rates 0.5% lower according to the Ernst & Young Item Club. Many richer Britons appreciate having cheap and willing labourers while many poorer Britons resent the incomesrs taking entry level jobs and keeping down wages for those at the bottom of the heap.

The influx of Poles has led to homelessness amongst the incomers. The Cowgate Centre in Edinburgh reports 20-30 homeless Poles turning up every night. The Hammersmith area a centre for previous generations of Poles has also had to find a roof for 5000 Polish workers.

Back in Poland the exodus is causing concern for Polish politicians. The Polish magazine Polityka has launched a scheme "Stay With Us" to provide a £5000 bonus (10 months salary) to young Academics in the order to get them to stay at home. The right wing Law and Justice party meanwhile has questioned the patriotism of those Poles who leave.

Ireland

After Poland joined the European Union in 2004, just three existing members of the EU - Britain, Sweden and Ireland - opened their borders to welcome Polish workers as relatively cheap qualified labour. Ireland quickly became the primary destination for young Poles seeking work outside the country. Immigration was very dynamic and it is estimated that there are currently about 120,000 Poles living in Ireland, constituing that country's largest minority by far.

Czech Republic

Post-WWI border shifts (mostly Cieszyn Silesia, so-called Zaolzie). The population numbers between 70,000 - 100,000.

Kresy, Poland's former eastern territories

Post-WW2 Border shifts. See Polish minority in Soviet Union.

Belarus - between 400,000 and 1 million.
Ukraine - between 300,000 and 900,000.
Lithuania - between 250,000 and 300,000.

Latin America

Political and economic emigration since mid-19th century.

Brazil - between 1 million and 1.5 million. Most of the Polish Brazilians are Catholic, with a significant Jewish minority. (See Polish Brazilian)

Russia and Kazakhstan

Forced resettlement during 19th and 20th centuries. See Polish minority in Soviet Union.

Russia - about 300,000
Kazakhstan - between 60,000 - 100,000

Australia

There are approximately 160,000 - 200,000 Polish Australians.

The first Pole known to have arrived in Australia was a J. Potowski, who was sent there as a convict from England. The first settlers from Poland arrived in South Australia in 1856 and settled in the Clare Valley region in a place later called Polish Hill River. The first mass migration happened in the late 1940s when large groups of displaced persons migrated to Australia after World War II, including soldiers from the Polish Independent Carpathian Brigade ("rats of Tobruk").

One of the Poles best-known in Australia (besides Paul Strzelecki, who explored it, and Tadeusz Kościuszko, after whom Strzelecki named Australia's highest peak) is Professor Jerzy Zubrzycki, known as "the father of multiculturalism in Australia" ^*. Other well-known contemporary Polish-Australians include Olympic gold medallist Michael Klim, and physicist and media personality Karl Kruszelnicki.

Asia, Africa, Oceania

Economic migration, Catholic missions, etc.

External links

Information Resource of Polonia Organizations
Polonia.org (in Polish language)
http://www.nasza-gazetka.com/Menu_Polonia/DIASPORA/DIASPORA.HTM (information about Poles in Western Europe and all other countries)
Polish magazine in the UK
PolishPlanet (Polish Community in the UK. Forum)