Poland
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The current government structure consists of a council of ministers led by a Prime Minister, typically chosen from a majority coalition in the bicameral legislature's lower house. The president elected every 5 years is head of state. The judicial branch plays a minor role in decision-making. The parliament, consisting of 460 members of the Sejm and...
The Polish economy grew rapidly in the mid-1990s, but slowed considerably in 2001 and 2002. Since then, growth in the gross domestic product (GDP) recovered to 3.8% in 2003 and accelerated to 5.4% in 2004; although final figures are not yet available, GDP is expected to increase another 4.5-5% in 2005. Faster growth has failed to significantly reduce...
The literature of the 18th century showed the influence of contacts with Western Europe. The first major Polish woman writer, ElZbieta DruZbacka, appeared at this time. The establishment of a national theater in Warsaw in 1765 encouraged a number of dramatists such as Wojciech Boguslawski and Franciszek Zablocki. Aleksander Fredro wrote popular comedies....
Poland's written history begins with the reign of Mieszko I, who accepted Christianity for himself and his kingdom in AD 966. The Polish state reached its zenith under the Jagiellonian dynasty in the years following the union with Lithuania in 1386 and the subsequent defeat of the Teutonic Knights at Grunwald in 1410. The monarchy survived many upheavals...
GEOGRAPHY Cities (1992): Capital--Warsaw (pop. 1.6 million). Other cities--Lodz (838,000), Krakow (744,000), Wroclaw (641,000), Poznan (583,000), Gdansk (462,000). Terrain: Flat plain, except mountains along southern border. Climate: Temperate continental. Location: Central Europe, east of Germany Map references: Ethnic Groups in Eastern Europe, Europe Area: total area: 312,680 sq km land area: 304,510 sq km comparative area: slightly smaller than New Mexico Land boundaries: total 3,114 km, Belarus 605 km, Czech Republic 658 km, Germany 456 km, Lithuania 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad Oblast) 432 km, Slovakia...
Poland today is ethnically almost homogeneous (98% Polish), in contrast with the World War II period, when there were significant ethnic minorities 4.5 million Ukrainians, 3 million Jews, 1 million Belorussians, and 800,000 Germans. The majority of the Jews were murdered during the German occupation in World War II, and many others emigrated in the...
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