Greeks in Poland
Encyclopedia
Greeks in Poland form one of the country's smaller minority groups
.
, funding a number of Orthodox churches
throughout the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
. However most of these immigrants eventually assimilated into the diverse groups that trace their heritage from this polity such as Poles
, Lithuanians
, Belarusans, and Ukrainians
.
Most self-identified Greeks in Poland today trace their heritage to the large number of Greek citizens who fled as refugees from the Greek Civil War
and were admitted into Poland.
They consisted largely of former partisan units from the Macedonia region of Greece
.
Most had been farmers before their flight from Greece. In total, from 1949 to 1951, 12,300 people from Greece came to Poland, of whom roughly one-fourth were children.
Most refugees arrived by sea through the port at Gdynia
. The Polish government chose to settle them in the territories west of the Oder River near the border with East Germany, especially near Zgorzelec
. About 200 were also sent to Krościenko
in the southeast, near the Bieszczady Mountains
in a formerly ethnic Ukrainian area. Initially, the refugees were celebrated as anti-capitalist heroes and given significant government assistance in building new lives and integrating in Poland. Initially, they found employment on farms, for which they were well suited because of their rural background; however, they later gravitated towards urban areas.
Some refugees chose to return to Greece early on. By 1957, still roughly 10,000 remained in Poland. However, suspicions later fell on them of being Titoist
agents. A large number were deported to Bulgaria in 1961.
After an 1985 agreement between the governments of Poland and Greece that enabled Greek refugees to receive retirement pensions at home, the number of Greeks in Poland has deteriorated further.
The refugees belonged to different ethnicities, including half reportedly of Macedonian ethnicity
and speaking the Macedonian language
. Two Polish experts in Minority Studies, Alfred F. Majewicz and Tomasz Wicherkiewicz, claim that the Polish government cooperated with Greek refugees in forcing Macedonian refugees to adopt Hellenic names, and prevented them from opening their own schools and organisations.
In 1950 the refugees from Greece were organized in the Community of Political Refugees from Greece , based in Zgorzelec
. Two years later it moved to Wroclaw
and was renamed in 1953 Nikos Beloyannis
Union of Political Refugees from Greece . After the fall of the dictatorship in Greece it changed its name into Association of Greeks in Poland , but in 1989, an internal schism led to the creation of the Association of Macedonians in Poland .
Answering a question by Brunon Synak
, President of the Kashubian-Pomeranian Association
, at a meeting organized by the Council of Europe
in 2002, Mr. Dobiesław Rzemieniewski, Head of the National Minorities Division in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration, explained that Greeks and Macedonians are "not classified as national minorities since they do not meet the requirement of being traditionally domiciled on the territory of the Republic of Poland".
Ethnic minorities in Poland
96.7% of the people of Poland claim Polish nationality, and 97.8% declare that they speak Polish at home . The population of Poland became one of the most ethnically homogeneous in the world as a result of the radically altered borders after World War II and the subsequent migrations...
.
History
Greeks, particularly merchants and traders have been present in the Polish lands since the Middle AgesMiddle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, funding a number of Orthodox churches
Eastern Orthodox church architecture
An Orthodox church as a church building of Eastern Orthodoxy has a distinct, recognizable style among church architectures.-History:While sharing many traditions, East and West in Christianity began to diverge from each other from an early date...
throughout the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
. However most of these immigrants eventually assimilated into the diverse groups that trace their heritage from this polity such as Poles
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
, Lithuanians
Lithuanians
Lithuanians are the Baltic ethnic group native to Lithuania, where they number around 2,765,600 people. Another million or more make up the Lithuanian diaspora, largely found in countries such as the United States, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Russia, United Kingdom and Ireland. Their native language...
, Belarusans, and Ukrainians
Ukrainians
Ukrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens...
.
Most self-identified Greeks in Poland today trace their heritage to the large number of Greek citizens who fled as refugees from the Greek Civil War
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
and were admitted into Poland.
They consisted largely of former partisan units from the Macedonia region of Greece
Macedonia (Greece)
Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of Greece in Southern Europe. Macedonia is the largest and second most populous Greek region...
.
Most had been farmers before their flight from Greece. In total, from 1949 to 1951, 12,300 people from Greece came to Poland, of whom roughly one-fourth were children.
Most refugees arrived by sea through the port at Gdynia
Gdynia
Gdynia is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport of Gdańsk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea.Located in Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania, Gdynia is part of a conurbation with the spa town of Sopot, the city of Gdańsk and suburban communities, which together...
. The Polish government chose to settle them in the territories west of the Oder River near the border with East Germany, especially near Zgorzelec
Zgorzelec
Zgorzelec is a town in south-western Poland with 33,278 inhabitants . It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship . It is the seat of Zgorzelec County, and also of the smaller district of Gmina Zgorzelec...
. About 200 were also sent to Krościenko
Kroscienko, Bieszczady County
Krościenko is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Ustrzyki Dolne, within Bieszczady County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland, near the border with the Ukraine. It lies approximately north-east of Ustrzyki Dolne and south-east of the regional capital Rzeszów.The...
in the southeast, near the Bieszczady Mountains
Bieszczady Mountains
Bieszczady is the Polish name for a mountain range in the extreme south-east of Poland, extending into Ukraine and Slovakia...
in a formerly ethnic Ukrainian area. Initially, the refugees were celebrated as anti-capitalist heroes and given significant government assistance in building new lives and integrating in Poland. Initially, they found employment on farms, for which they were well suited because of their rural background; however, they later gravitated towards urban areas.
Some refugees chose to return to Greece early on. By 1957, still roughly 10,000 remained in Poland. However, suspicions later fell on them of being Titoist
Titoism
Titoism is a variant of Marxism–Leninism named after Josip Broz Tito, leader of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, primarily used to describe the specific socialist system built in Yugoslavia after its refusal of the 1948 Resolution of the Cominform, when the Communist Party of...
agents. A large number were deported to Bulgaria in 1961.
After an 1985 agreement between the governments of Poland and Greece that enabled Greek refugees to receive retirement pensions at home, the number of Greeks in Poland has deteriorated further.
The refugees belonged to different ethnicities, including half reportedly of Macedonian ethnicity
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
and speaking the Macedonian language
Macedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
. Two Polish experts in Minority Studies, Alfred F. Majewicz and Tomasz Wicherkiewicz, claim that the Polish government cooperated with Greek refugees in forcing Macedonian refugees to adopt Hellenic names, and prevented them from opening their own schools and organisations.
In 1950 the refugees from Greece were organized in the Community of Political Refugees from Greece , based in Zgorzelec
Zgorzelec
Zgorzelec is a town in south-western Poland with 33,278 inhabitants . It lies in Lower Silesian Voivodeship . It is the seat of Zgorzelec County, and also of the smaller district of Gmina Zgorzelec...
. Two years later it moved to Wroclaw
Wroclaw
Wrocław , situated on the River Oder , is the main city of southwestern Poland.Wrocław was the historical capital of Silesia and is today the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. Over the centuries, the city has been part of either Poland, Bohemia, Austria, Prussia, or Germany, but since 1945...
and was renamed in 1953 Nikos Beloyannis
Nikos Beloyannis
Nikos Beloyannis was a Greek resistance leader and leading cadre of the Greek Communist Party. He was born in Amalias in 1915...
Union of Political Refugees from Greece . After the fall of the dictatorship in Greece it changed its name into Association of Greeks in Poland , but in 1989, an internal schism led to the creation of the Association of Macedonians in Poland .
Minority status
In his essay, published by the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights, professor Slawomir Lodzinski states:
At present, the full legal protection is limited to this national minorities which are groups of Polish citizens, are “old”, “native” and on non-immigrant origin. This perspective has caused that the groups of Greeks and Macedonians who have been recognized as national minorities from the 1950s, from the beginning of the 1990s are not treated as national minorities by the state.
Answering a question by Brunon Synak
Brunon Synak
Brunon Synak is a professor of sociology and a Kashubian activist. He was the chairman of Kashubian-Pomeranian Association in the period 1998-2004.-References:...
, President of the Kashubian-Pomeranian Association
Kashubian-Pomeranian Association
The Kashubian-Pomeranian Association is a regional non-governmental organization of the Kashubians , Kociewiacy and other people interested in the regional affairs of Kashubia and Pomerania in northern Poland...
, at a meeting organized by the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
in 2002, Mr. Dobiesław Rzemieniewski, Head of the National Minorities Division in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration, explained that Greeks and Macedonians are "not classified as national minorities since they do not meet the requirement of being traditionally domiciled on the territory of the Republic of Poland".
Notable people
- Apostolis AnthimosApostolis AnthimosApostolis Anthimos is a jazz / rock oriented guitarist, drummer and keyboard player of Greek origin.He is a member of the Polish progressive rock band SBB....
- Eleni TzokaEleni TzokaEleni Tzoka is a Polish female singer of Greek descent.-Biography:Tzoka was born to a Greek family which emigrated to Poland in the 1950s. At an early age, she was familiarized with music by her parents and numerous siblings who would constantly play or sing...
See also
- Greek-Polish relationsGreek-Polish relationsGreek-Polish relations are relations between Greece and Poland. Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1919 and exchanged ambassadors in 1922....
- Refugees of the Greek Civil War in Poland
- Macedonians in PolandMacedonians in PolandMacedonians of Poland form small minority and they are mainly concentrated in Southern and Central Poland. Most of the Macedonians of Poland originate from the Child Refugees of the Greek Civil War. Estimates put the number of Macedonian refuges settled in Poland at 11,458...
External links
- Bilateral relations between Greece and Poland
- Greek embassy in Warsaw (Association of Greeks in Poland)