Ukrainians in Poland

Ukrainian minority in Poland
Kievan Rus Foundation of St. Vladimir in Kraków
Total population
In the 2002 Polish census, 27,172 identified themselves as ethnic Ukrainians.[1]
Regions with significant populations
North east: Olsztyn, Elbląg; north west: Słupsk, Koszalin; south west: Legnica and Wrocław
Languages

Ukrainian  · Polish

The Ukrainian minority in Poland (Ukrainian: Українці, Ukrayintsi, Polish: Ukraińcy) is composed of 27,172 people according to the Polish census of 2002. Most of them live in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship (11,881), followed by West Pomeranian (3,703), Podkarpackie (2,984) and Pomeranian Voivodeship (2,831).[2]

Most numerous concentrations of Ukrainians are in the north-east (Olsztyn and Elbląg), north-west (Słupsk and Koszalin) and south-west of Poland (Legnica and Wrocław). There are some Lemko-Rusyns in Poland that are officially categorized as an "ethnic" (rather than a "national") minority, since there is no Lemko nation-state. The Ukrainian language was taught at 162 schools in the year 2005–2006 atttended by 2,740 Ukrainian students.[2]

Contents

Cultural life

Main Ukrainian organizations in Poland include: Związek Ukraińców w Polsce (Association of Ukrainians in Poland), Związek Ukraińców Podlasia (Association of Ukrainians of Podlasie), Towarzystwo Ukraińskie w Lublinie (Ukrainian Society of Lublin), Fundacja św. Włodzimierza Chrzciciela Rusi Kijowskiej (Kievan Rus Foundation of St. Vladimir, pictured), Związek Ukrainek (Association of Ukrainian Women), Ukraińskie Towarzystwo Nauczycielskie w Polsce (Ukrainian Educators' Society of Poland), Ukraińskie Towarzystwo Lekarskie (Ukrainian Medical Society), Stowarzyszenie Ukraińców - Więźniów Politycznych Okresu Stalinowskiego (Ukrainian Club of Stalinist Political Prisoners), Organizacja Młodzieży Ukraińskiej "PŁAST" (Ukrainian Youth Association "ПЛАСТ"), Ukraińskie Towarzystwo Historyczne (Ukrainian Historical Society), and Związek Niezależnej Młodzieży Ukraińskiej (Association of Independent Ukrainian Youth). The most important periodicals published in Ukrainian language include: Nasze Słowo (Our Voice) weekly and Nad Buhom i Narwoju (Над Бугом і Нарвою) bimontly.[2]

The most important Ukrainian festivals and popular cultural events include: "Festiwal Kultury Ukraińskiej" w Sopocie (Festival of Ukrainian Culture in Sopot), "Młodzieżowy Jarmark" w Gdańsku (Youth Market in Gdańsk), Festiwal Kultury Ukraińskiej na Podlasiu "Podlaska Jesień" (Festival of Ukrainian Culture of Podlasie), "Bytowska Watra", "Spotkania Pogranicza" in Głębock, "Dni Kultury Ukraińskiej" (Days of Ukrainian Culture) in Szczecin and Giżycko, Dziecięcy Festiwal Kultury w Elblągu (Children Festival in Elbląg), "Na Iwana, na Kupała" in Dubicze Cerkiewne, Festiwal Ukraińskich Zespołów Dziecięcych w Koszalinie (Festival of Ukrainian Children Groups in Koszalin), "Noc na Iwana Kupała" in Kruklanki, Jarmark Folklorystyczny "Z malowanej skrzyni" (Ukrainian Folklor Market) in Kętrzyn, "Pod wspólnym niebem" (Under the Common Skies) in Olsztyn, and Dni teatru ukraińskiego w Olsztynie (Days of Ukrainian Theatre) also in Olsztyn.[2]

History, and trends

Main article: History of the Ukrainian minority in Poland

Since World War II

After the quashing of a Ukrainian insurrection at the end of World War II by the Soviet Union, about 140,000 Ukrainians residing within the new Polish borders were forcibly moved to northern and western Poland during Operation Vistula, settling the land ceded to Poland at the Tehran Conference of 1943, previously in Nazi Germany.

Ukrainian Settlement Permits and Temporary Residence Permits since Poland's EU accession [3]
 Permits / Year   2004   2005   2006   2007   2008   2009   Total 
 Permament Settlement Permits 1,905  1,654  1,438  1,609  1,685  1,280  9,571 
 Temporary Residence Permits 8,518  8,304  7,733  7,381  8,307  8,489  48,736 
 Grand total 58,303 
 Source: EU Membership Highlights Poland's Migration Challenges, Warsaw

Since 1989, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, there has been a new wave of Ukrainian immigration, mostly of jobseekers, tradesmen, and vendors, concentrated in larger cities with established market. After the Poland's 2004 accession to the European Union, in order to meet the requirements of the Schengen zone (an area of free movement within the EU), the government was forced to make immigration to Poland more difficult for the people from Belarus and Russia including Ukraine. Nevertheless, Ukrainians consistently receive the most settlement permits and the most temporary residence permits in Poland (see table).[3] As a result of the Eastern Partnership, Poland and Ukraine have reached a new agreement replacing visas with simplified permits for Ukrainians residing within 30 km of the border. Up to 1.5 million people may benefit from this agreement which took effect on July 1, 2009.[4]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Mniejszości narodowe i etniczne w Polsce "Mniejszości narodowe i etniczne w Polsce" (in Polish). 2002 Polish census. http://www.mswia.gov.pl/portal/pl/61/37/ Mniejszości narodowe i etniczne w Polsce. Retrieved October 19, 2007. 
  2. ^ a b c d (Polish) Mniejszości narodowe i etniczne w Polsce on the pages of Polish Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration. Retrieved on 9 September 2007.
  3. ^ a b Krystyna Iglicka, Magdalena Ziolek-Skrzypczak, Ludwig Maximilian (University of Munich) (September 2010). "EU Membership Highlights Poland's Migration Challenges". Center for International Relations, Warsaw. http://www.migrationinformation.org/feature/display.cfm?ID=800. Retrieved August 19, 2011. 
  4. ^ "Sikorski: umowa o małym ruchu granicznym od 1 lipca". Gazeta Wyborcza. 2009-06-17. http://wyborcza.pl/1,91446,6728669,Ukraina__Sikorski__umowa_o_malym_ruchu_granicznym.html. Retrieved 2009-06-17. 

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