Silesians
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Silesians |
|---|
| Total population |
|
some millions[1] |
| Regions with significant populations |
| Poland: 173,200 nationality declarations (2002), ~2 millions (Polish nationality declarations) Czech Republic: 10,878 nationality declarations (2001), several hundred thousand (non nationality declarations) Germany: unknown |
| Languages |
| Silesian, Polish, German, Czech. |
| Religions |
| Related ethnic groups |
| West Slavs, Germanic peoples |
Silesians (Silesian: Ślůnzoki; Polish: Ślązacy; Czech: Slezané; German: Schlesier) are the inhabitants of Silesia in Poland, Germany and the Czech Republic.
There has been some debate over whether or not the Silesians who speak a West Slavonic language constitute a distinct ethnic group. In recent history, they have been often pressured to declare themselves to be either German or Polish. Nevertheless, more than 170,000 people declared Silesian nationality in the Polish national census in 2002, making them the largest minority group in Poland and more than 10,000 people declared Silesian nationality in the Czech national census in 2001.
The term Silesian can also be applied in a more general manner to describe an inhabitant of Silesia, regardless of ethnicity.
Contents |
[edit] History
Inhabited from time immemorial and exceptionally rich in natural resources, Silesia has been long contested by various peoples, states and principalities. The constant shifting of Silesia between (alphabetically) Austrian, Czech, German and Polish control over several centuries resulted in the multilingual Silesians developing a separate culture that borrowed heavily from (alphabetically) Czech, German and Polish (and vice versa).
In the Middle Ages, Silesia was a Piast duchy, which subsequently became a possession of the Bohemian crown under the Holy Roman Empire in the 14th century and passed with that crown to the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria in 1526. In 1742, most of Silesia was seized by King Frederick the Great of Prussia in the War of the Austrian Succession. This part of Silesia constituted the Province of Silesia (later the Prussian provinces of Upper and Lower Silesia) until 1945.
Following World War II, the majority of Silesia was incorporated into Poland, with smaller regions remaining in East Germany and Czechoslovakia. Millions of ethnic German Silesians were subsequently expelled, but those Silesians classified by the Polish authorities as "autochthons" or "ethnic Poles insufficiently aware of their Polishness" were allowed to remain, after being sifted out from the ethnic Germans by a process of "national verification".[2] In order to qualify, it was enough to speak some of the Upper Silesian dialect, or just to have a Slavic-sounding surname. Many such Silesians were allowed to remain in the city of Opole.
During the Communist era, nearly 600,000 Silesians emigrated to West Germany.
Since the end of Communist rule in Poland, there have been calls for greater political representation for the Silesian ethnic minority. In 1997, a Katowice law court registered the Union of People of Silesian Nationality (ZLNS) as the political representative organization of the Silesian ethnic minority, but after two months the registration was revoked by a regional court.
[edit] Language
Silesian language (Upper Silesian) is spoken by the Silesian ethnic group or nationality. According to the last census in Poland (2002), some 60,000 people declared Silesian as their native language.
There is some contention over whether Silesian is a dialect or a language in its own right. Part of Polish linguists consider Silesian to be merely a prominent regional dialect of Polish. However, many Silesians regard it as a separate language belonging to the West Slavic branch of Slavic languages, together with Polish, Upper and Lower Sorbian, and other Lekhitic languages, as well as Czech and Slovak. In July 2007 year Silesian language was recognized by Library of Congress and SIL International. Language was attributed ISO code: SZL. The first official dictation contest of the Silesian language took place in August 2007.
[edit] Famous Silesians
Silesia produced scores of highly accomplished individuals, particularly chemists, physicists, mathematicians and soccer players. World-wide, the most recognizable perhaps are Gregor Mendel (the father of genetics) and Manfred von Richthofen (the "Red Baron" pilot).
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ It is Silesians' theoretical number declaring the Silesian nationality together with number all indigenous occupants of Silesia different the nationality: the Polish, Czech or German nationality. Number this as well span diaspora in whole world. Only in Poland lives about 2 million Silesians (sources: Weekly "Our Time" Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, The Institute for European Studies, Ethnological institute of UW).
- ^ Kamusella, Tomasz (November 2005). Doing It Our Way (English). Transitions Online. Retrieved on 2006-07-25.
