Macedonians in Poland
Encyclopedia
Macedonians
(in ) of Poland
form small minority and they are mainly concentrated in Southern and Central Poland. Most of the Macedonians of Poland originate from the Child Refugees of the Greek Civil War
. Estimates put the number of Macedonian refuges settled in Poland at 11,458. Many Macedonians immigrated to Poland after the Breakup of Yugoslavia.
area in Poland after the Greek Civil War
. This group included both Greeks and Macedonians.
The refugees from Greece after the Greek Civil War
belonged to different ethnicities, including half reportedly of Macedonian ethnicity
and speaking the Macedonian language
. According to Alfred F. Majewicz and Tomasz Wicherkiewicz
Many Greeks decided to return to Greece after the 1982 Amnesty Law allowed their return, whereas a large proportion of Slavomacedonians ended up leaving Poland, for the Socialist Republic of Macedonia. A book about the Slavomacedonian Children in Poland was published in Skopje in 1987. Another book, "The Political refugees from Greece in Poland 1948 - 1975" has also been published. In 1989 the "Association of Macedonians in Poland" was founded in order to lobby the Greek government to allow the free return of civil war refugee children to Greece.
Answering a question by Brunon Synak
, President of the Kashubian-Pomeranian Association
, at a meeting organized by the Council of Europe
in 2002, Mr. Dobiesław Rzemieniewski, Head of the National Minorities Division in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration, explained that Greeks and Macedonians are "not classified as national minorities since they do not meet the requirement of being traditionally domiciled on the territory of the Republic of Poland".
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
(in ) of Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
form small minority and they are mainly concentrated in Southern and Central Poland. Most of the Macedonians of Poland originate from the Child Refugees of the Greek Civil War
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
. Estimates put the number of Macedonian refuges settled in Poland at 11,458. Many Macedonians immigrated to Poland after the Breakup of Yugoslavia.
History
A large group of refugees of around 10,000 found their way to the Lower SilesiaLower Silesia
Lower Silesia ; is the northwestern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia; Upper Silesia is to the southeast.Throughout its history Lower Silesia has been under the control of the medieval Kingdom of Poland, the Kingdom of Bohemia and the Austrian Habsburg Monarchy from 1526...
area in Poland after the Greek Civil War
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
. This group included both Greeks and Macedonians.
The refugees from Greece after the Greek Civil War
Greek Civil War
The Greek Civil War was fought from 1946 to 1949 between the Greek governmental army, backed by the United Kingdom and United States, and the Democratic Army of Greece , the military branch of the Greek Communist Party , backed by Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Albania...
belonged to different ethnicities, including half reportedly of Macedonian ethnicity
Macedonians (ethnic group)
The Macedonians also referred to as Macedonian Slavs: "... the term Slavomacedonian was introduced and was accepted by the community itself, which at the time had a much more widespread non-Greek Macedonian ethnic consciousness...
and speaking the Macedonian language
Macedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
. According to Alfred F. Majewicz and Tomasz Wicherkiewicz
Polish administration supported the Greek refugees in Poland in forcible Hellenization of personal names of Aegean Macedonians, representatives of whom came to Poland together with the Greeks. (...) Polish authorities in close cooperation with the Organization of Political Refugees from Greece imposed limitations upon the schooling for Macedonians and successfully prevented them from creating their own organization which could be finally founded and officially recognized as late as 1989. There were also obstacles in access to literature in Macedonian and the Macedonian version of the Greek-language paper Dimokratis ceased to appear in the 1960s.
Many Greeks decided to return to Greece after the 1982 Amnesty Law allowed their return, whereas a large proportion of Slavomacedonians ended up leaving Poland, for the Socialist Republic of Macedonia. A book about the Slavomacedonian Children in Poland was published in Skopje in 1987. Another book, "The Political refugees from Greece in Poland 1948 - 1975" has also been published. In 1989 the "Association of Macedonians in Poland" was founded in order to lobby the Greek government to allow the free return of civil war refugee children to Greece.
Minority status
At present, the full legal protection is limited to this national minorities which are groups of Polish citizens, are “old”, “native” and on non-immigrant origin. This perspective has caused that the groups of Greeks and Macedonians who have been recognized as national minorities from the 1950s, from the beginning of the 1990s are not treated as national minorities by the state.
Answering a question by Brunon Synak
Brunon Synak
Brunon Synak is a professor of sociology and a Kashubian activist. He was the chairman of Kashubian-Pomeranian Association in the period 1998-2004.-References:...
, President of the Kashubian-Pomeranian Association
Kashubian-Pomeranian Association
The Kashubian-Pomeranian Association is a regional non-governmental organization of the Kashubians , Kociewiacy and other people interested in the regional affairs of Kashubia and Pomerania in northern Poland...
, at a meeting organized by the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
in 2002, Mr. Dobiesław Rzemieniewski, Head of the National Minorities Division in the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration, explained that Greeks and Macedonians are "not classified as national minorities since they do not meet the requirement of being traditionally domiciled on the territory of the Republic of Poland".
See also
- Refugees of the Greek Civil War in Poland
- Greeks in PolandGreeks in PolandGreeks in Poland form one of the country's smaller minority groups.-History:Greeks, particularly merchants and traders have been present in the Polish lands since the Middle Ages, funding a number of Orthodox churches throughout the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth...