The Society for Elementary Books (Polish: Towarzystwo do Ksiąg Elementarnych; 1775-92) was an institution formed by 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...

's Commission of National Education (Komisja Edukacji Narodowej) in Warsaw

Warsaw

Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...

 in 1775. The Society's mandate was to design school syllabus

Syllabus

A syllabus , is an outline and summary of topics to be covered in an education or training course. It is descriptive...

es and textbook

Textbook

A textbook or coursebook is a manual of instruction in any branch of study. Textbooks are produced according to the demands of educational institutions...

s for newly reformed schools.

Since education in Poland had until then been conducted mostly in Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

, the Commission of National Education faced the problem of an almost complete lack of textbooks. It was to cope with this problem that the Society for Elementary Books was formed. At times the scientists who worked on the new Polish-language textbooks had to invent the requisite specialized vocabulary. Much of the vocabulary that they invented, related to chemistry, physics, mathematics and grammar, is still in use today, and some of the Society's textbooks were in use as late as the Second Polish Republic

Second Polish Republic

The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...

 (1918-39).

Famous books created by the Society included Elementarz dla szkół parafialnych and Gramatyka dla szkół narodowych z przypisami. The Society was chaired by Ignacy Potocki, and its general secretary was Grzegorz Piramowicz. Hugo Kołłątaj made many important contributions to the Society's projects. Members included Onufry Kopczyński

Onufry Kopczynski

Onufry Kopczyński was an important educator and grammarian of the Polish language in the period of Enlightenment in Poland.-Life and work:...

, Kazimierz Narbutt, Józef Wybicki

Józef Wybicki

Józef Rufin Wybicki was a Polish general, poet and political figure.-Life:He was a close friend of General Jan Henryk Dąbrowski, and in 1797 he wrote Mazurek Dąbrowskiego , which in 1927 was adopted as the Polish national anthem.During the Kościuszko Uprising, he was counselor of the Military...

 and the academic directors of the Warsaw

Warsaw

Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...

 Corps of Cadets—Ch. Pfleiderer (mathematics) and Michał Jan Hube.

The Society was dissolved in 1792, in anticipation of the coming total dissolution of the Polish state.