Poleszuk
Encyclopedia
Poleszuk is the name given to the people who populated the swamps of Polesia
.
The Poleszuk dialect is close to the Ukrainian
, Belarusian
and Polish
languages. Although recently most scholars assign it as a dialect of Ukrainian
, it maintains many local peculiarities and is notably distinct from other Slavic languages
and dialects of the area.
The Primary Chronicle
uses the name Dregovichs
for an ancient Slavic tribe settled between Pripyat
and Western Dvina rivers. The name comes from the Slavic word dregva or dryhva ("swamp"). This tribe is thought to be the ancestors of modern Poleszuks. In 11th and 12th centuries the land was administrated by the Prince of Turov
.
Inhabitants of remote areas of modern Belarus
and Poland
, the Poleszuks did not develop their own national identity until relatively recently. Hence when asked for their nationality in Imperial Russian and then Polish census
es, many of them answered "tutejszy
", meaning "local", and were categorized either as "other nationalities", Poles, Belarusians
or Russians, depending mostly on their religion and political situation. In the Polish census of 1931 approximately 800,000 people declared themselves to be "locals" rather than Poles or Belarusians.
During and after the World War II
, the Poleszuks along with Belarusian people developed a strong sense of identity and currently the Poleszuk group is one of the distinct cultural and ethnic parts of Belarus
, while most of the population of the Polish and Ukrainian parts of the region of Polesie have assimilated with the respective nations. At the end of 1980s, there was a minor campaign in Soviet Belarus for the creation of a separate "Polesian language" based on the dialects of Polesia launched by Belarus
ian philologist Mikola Shylyagovich
and his associates. However, they received almost no support and the campaign eventually melted away.
Polesia
Polesia is one of the largest European swampy areas, located in the south-western part of the Eastern-European Lowland, mainly within Belarus and Ukraine but also partly within Poland and Russia...
.
The Poleszuk dialect is close to the Ukrainian
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
, Belarusian
Belarusian language
The Belarusian language , sometimes referred to as White Russian or White Ruthenian, is the language of the Belarusian people...
and Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
languages. Although recently most scholars assign it as a dialect of Ukrainian
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
, it maintains many local peculiarities and is notably distinct from other Slavic languages
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
and dialects of the area.
The Primary Chronicle
Primary Chronicle
The Primary Chronicle , Ruthenian Primary Chronicle or Russian Primary Chronicle, is a history of Kievan Rus' from about 850 to 1110, originally compiled in Kiev about 1113.- Three editions :...
uses the name Dregovichs
Dregovichs
The Dregoviches were one of the tribal unions of Early East Slavs, and inhabited the territories down the stream of the Pripyat River and northern parts of the right bank of the Dnieper river...
for an ancient Slavic tribe settled between Pripyat
Pripyat River
The Pripyat River or Prypiat River is a river in Eastern Europe, approximately long. It flows east through Ukraine, Belarus, and Ukraine again, draining into the Dnieper....
and Western Dvina rivers. The name comes from the Slavic word dregva or dryhva ("swamp"). This tribe is thought to be the ancestors of modern Poleszuks. In 11th and 12th centuries the land was administrated by the Prince of Turov
Prince of Turov
The Prince of Turov was the kniaz, the ruler or sub-ruler, of the Rus' Principality of Turov, a lordship based on the city of Turov, now Turaŭ in Homiel Voblast, Belarus....
.
Inhabitants of remote areas of modern Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, the Poleszuks did not develop their own national identity until relatively recently. Hence when asked for their nationality in Imperial Russian and then Polish census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
es, many of them answered "tutejszy
Tutejszy
Tutejszy was a self-identification of rural population in mixed-lingual areas of Eastern and Northern Europe, including Poland, Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, and Latvia, in particular, in Polesie and Podlasie. As a self-identification, it persisted in Lithuania's Vilnius Region into the late 20th...
", meaning "local", and were categorized either as "other nationalities", Poles, Belarusians
Belarusians
Belarusians ; are an East Slavic ethnic group who populate the majority of the Republic of Belarus. Introduced to the world as a new state in the early 1990s, the Republic of Belarus brought with it the notion of a re-emerging Belarusian ethnicity, drawn upon the lines of the Old Belarusian...
or Russians, depending mostly on their religion and political situation. In the Polish census of 1931 approximately 800,000 people declared themselves to be "locals" rather than Poles or Belarusians.
During and after the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the Poleszuks along with Belarusian people developed a strong sense of identity and currently the Poleszuk group is one of the distinct cultural and ethnic parts of Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
, while most of the population of the Polish and Ukrainian parts of the region of Polesie have assimilated with the respective nations. At the end of 1980s, there was a minor campaign in Soviet Belarus for the creation of a separate "Polesian language" based on the dialects of Polesia launched by Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
ian philologist Mikola Shylyagovich
Mikola Shylyagovich
Mikola Shelyahovich Mikola Shelyahovich Mikola Shelyahovich (bel Мікола Шаляговіч, Mikoła Šelahovič (21 July 1956, village Agdemer, Drahichyn Raion, Brest Voblast, BSSR) is initiator and apologist of the idea of the establishment of Polesian autonomy in Belarus in 1980's....
and his associates. However, they received almost no support and the campaign eventually melted away.