After the second World War Poland was basically a country of one nation. According to the 2021 census in Poland there are 38 million people. 97,7% interviewees pointed out Polish nationality but 2,3% others. The biggest minority that is included in 2,3% were Silesians – 596 thousands which is around 43% of all non–Polish people. Silesia is a region in two countries, Poland and Czechia. Poland is south west and south central. In Czechia is a region called Cesin Silesia which is in the north–east. Nowadays, people that use Silesian are mostly in parts that are called Upper Silesia and Cesin Czechia.
The history of Silesia is difficult. At the end of the X century Silesia was part of Piast Poland and during this time, Silesia was under the reign of Polish kings with princes reign for Silesia. The Polish reigned lasts until 1348 when the Kazimierz the Great remise Silesia to Czechia to reach the abnegation of the Czech King to crown of Kingdom of Poland. From that time Silesia was under the Czech kingdom until 1763 when Prusia and Austria won the war and included Silesia in both countries. Since that moment, Silesia was under the German Influence.
Important thing to mention is that this was the time of the industrial revolution where Silesia became an important part of the economy of Germany. The region is rich with coal, silver and other natural resources.
The next big event during Silesia history was the First World War, where Germany and Austria lost. Until 1918 Poland didn’t exist on maps. So, after the war according to the Treaty of Versailles people got the opportunity to decide to which country they wanted to belong. In Silesia a plebiscite was held where local people decided to be part of Germany, but some Polish immigrants that came for the job and some locals decided to make uprisings to bring Silesia to Poland again after around 500 years. After three uprisings, Silesia was split up into Poland and Germany. Border was complicated, usually people had families in both countries so it was hard for them to stay in touch.
The last episode of Silesia that created the border was the Second World War. After the war Silesia was split into mostly Poland and Czechoslovakia, where it still remains until our times. During the communist episode, it was forbidden to speak Silesian publically and follow local traditions.
The Silesian language is unrecognisable as a language right now, the Polish linguists consider it as a dialect of Polish but Czech linguist as Czech dialect. The Silesian is Slavic language with construction of sentences similar to other slavic family languages with German imports of vocabulary.
The arguments that consider Silesian as a dialect usually say that the construction of sentences is the same as in Polish with some specific vocabulary that comes from German and Czech. The argument against Silesian as a language is also the existence of the Silesian alphabet and literature. But the opposite side that supports Silesian as an independent language gives examples of homonyms (the same word but different meaning) as an argument for recognizing it as a language. Eg. Silesian – synek, Polish – syn, English – son, Silesian – spodnioki – Polish – spodnie, English – trousers. The other argument to consider Silesian as an independent language is also that other languages such as Croatian and Slovenian have German imports.
There are many other things except for a language that is different from Poland or Czech. The traditional food that only exists there as “rolada śląska, kluski śląskie i modro kapusta” which is “rolled beef, potato dumplings and red cabbage”, garlic soup “wodzionka” or yeasty cake called “kołocz”. Also, the biggest feast that is celebrated in Silesia is the feast of Saint Barbara on December 4th. The celebration is in church with a solemn mass and in families making a party. The reason behind this is because the region has a lot of mines and Saint Barbara is the patron of miners. There is also a difference between celebrating Christmas or Easter. In Silesia, traditionally, Baby Jesus gives presents on Christmas Eve which is unique compared to Poland.
If you ask a Silesian, most of them can say that it is challenging to preserve language and culture. Being a Silesian is feeling different, feeling that you don’t have your own state and everybody tells you that it doesn’t matter. But Silesians are not giving up. Nowadays Silesian is becoming popular in our region because of its uniqueness. The alphabet was invented and books were translated into Silesian. There are some Silesian brands of sweets, clothes or shops. Silesians hope that in the future this region will be recognized and respected by all countries because diversity can be uniting.
Jakub Pokuciński
Sources:
stat.gov.pl: Wstępne wyniki NSP 2021 w zakresie struktury narodowo-etnicznej oraz języka
kontaktów domowych PDF
VOICES 
Leave a comment