Culture of Poland
The culture of Poland (Polish: Kultura Polski) is the product of its geography and distinct historical evolution, which is closely connected to an intricate thousand-year history.
It is theorised and speculated that ethnic Poles are the combination of descendants of West Slavs and people indigenous to the region including Celts, Balts and Germanic tribes which were gradually Polonized after Poland's Christianization by the Catholic Church in the 10th century.
Despite the pressure of non-Polish administrations in Poland, who have often attempted to suppress the Polish language,[citation needed] a rich literature has developed over the centuries.
In the Middle Ages, as the cities of Poland grew larger in size and the food markets developed, the culinary exchange of ideas progressed & people got acquainted with new dishes and recipes.
[4] At the time, the word vodka (wódka), referred to chemical compounds such as medicines and cosmetics' cleansers, while the popular beverage was called gorzałka (from the Old Polish gorzeć meaning to burn), which is also the source of Ukrainian horilka (горілка).
The word vodka written in Cyrillic appeared first in 1533, in relation to a medicinal drink brought from Poland to Russia by the merchants of Kievan Rus'.
Kompot is a non-alcoholic beverage made of boiled fruit, optionally with sugar and spices (clove or cinnamon), served hot or cold.
Poland's (along with Hungary's) eastern frontiers used to mark the outermost boundary of Western architecture on the continent, with strong influences derived from Italy, Germany and the Low Countries.
Interesting buildings were also constructed during the Communist era in the style of Socialist Realism; some remarkable examples of modern architecture were erected more recently.
The Kraków school of Historicist painting developed by Jan Matejko produced monumental portrayals of customs and significant events in Polish history.
Distinguished contemporary artists include Monika Sosnowska, Roman Opałka, Leon Tarasewicz, Jerzy Nowosielski, Mirosław Bałka, and Katarzyna Kozyra and Alicja Kwade in the younger generation.
The origin of Polish music can be traced as far back as the 13th century, from which manuscripts have been found in Stary Sącz, containing polyphonic compositions related to the Parisian Notre Dame School.
[6] Among the best classical modern composers are Polish musicians Grażyna Bacewicz, Witold Lutosławski, Krzysztof Penderecki and Henryk Górecki.
[citation needed] The Polish world renown virtuosos of classical music of all time include composers Karol Lipiński, Artur Rubinstein, Ignacy Paderewski, Mieczysław Horszowski, Grażyna Bacewicz, Wanda Wilkomirska and Krystian Zimerman.
Whіlе іn tеrmѕ оf Rар thеrе аrе mаnу fеmаlе аrtіѕt but nоnе gаіnеd mаіnѕtrеаm publicity.
There is also an active grindcore, and a vigorous black metals scenes as well, the later led by Graveland, Darzamat, Kataxu, Infernal War and Vesania.
[citation needed] Since the arrival of Christianity and the subsequent access to Western European civilization, Poles developed a significant literary production in Latin.
With the arrival of the Renaissance, Poles came under the influence of the artistic patterns of the humanistic style, actively participating in the European issues of that time with their Latin works.
The early 19th century novel "Manuscrit trouvé à Saragosse" by Count Jan Potocki, which survived in its Polish translation after the loss of the original in French, became a world classic.
The poets Adam Mickiewicz, Juliusz Słowacki and Zygmunt Krasiński, the "Three Bards", became the spiritual leaders of a nation deprived of its sovereignty, and prophesied its revival.
The legacy of the Kresy marshlands of Poland's eastern regions with Wilno and Lwów (now Vilnius and Lviv) as two major centres for the arts, played a special role in these developments.
After the Second World War, many Polish writers found themselves in exile, with many of them clustered around the Paris-based "Kultura" publishing venture run by Jerzy Giedroyc.
Zbigniew Herbert, Tadeusz Różewicz, Czesław Miłosz, and Wisława Szymborska are among the most outstanding 20th century Polish poets, including novelists and playwrights Witold Gombrowicz, Sławomir Mrożek, and Stanisław Lem (science fiction).
The long list includes Hanna Krall whose work focuses mainly on the war-time Jewish experience, and Ryszard Kapuściński with books translated into many languages.
The period of Messianism, between the November 1830 and January 1863 Uprisings, reflected European Romantic and Idealist trends, as well as a Polish yearning for political resurrection.
"[A] Positivist," wrote the novelist Bolesław Prus's friend, Julian Ochorowicz, was "anyone who bases assertions on verifiable evidence; who does not express himself categorically about doubtful things, and does not speak at all about those that are inaccessible.
Rigorously trained Polish philosophers made substantial contributions to specialized fields—to psychology, the history of philosophy, the theory of knowledge, and especially mathematical logic.
The phenomenologist Roman Ingarden did influential work in esthetics and in a Husserl-style metaphysics; his student Karol Wojtyła owned a unique influence on the world stage as Pope John Paul II.
