Sosnowiec
Encyclopedia
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...
, near Katowice
Katowice
Katowice is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica and Rawa rivers . Katowice is located in the Silesian Highlands, about north of the Silesian Beskids and about southeast of the Sudetes Mountains.It is the central district of the Upper Silesian Metropolis, with a population of 2...
. It is one of the central districts of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union
Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union
The Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia or Upper Silesia Metroplex, Silesia Metroplex / Silesia Metroplex is a union of 14 adjacent cities in the Polish province of Silesia....
- a metropolis with a combined population of over two million people located in the Silesian Highlands
Silesian Highlands
Silesian Highlands are highlands located in Silesia and Lesser Poland, Poland. It is the part of Lesser Poland Highlands Its highest point is the Mountain of St. Anne .-See also:...
, on the Brynica
Brynica
Brynica is a river in Silesia and Lesser Poland , Poland. It has a length of 55 km and is the main confluence of Czarna Przemsza. It has a source in Wymysłów, and flows through Piekary Śląskie, Wojkowice, Czeladź, Siemianowice Śląskie, Świerklaniec, Katowice, Sosnowiec and finally Mysłowice...
river (tributary of the Vistula).
It is situated in the Silesian Voivodeship
Silesian Voivodeship
Silesian Voivodeship, or Silesia Province , is a voivodeship, or province, in southern Poland, centering on the historic region known as Upper Silesia...
since its formation in 1999. Previously, it was part of Katowice Voivodeship
Katowice Voivodeship
Katowice Voivodeship was a unit of administrative division and local government in Poland in the years 1975–1998, superseded by the Silesian Voivodeship...
. Sosnowiec is one of the cities of the 2.7 million person conurbation - Katowice urban area
Katowice urban area
The Katowice urban area, also known as the Upper Silesian urban area, is an urban area/conurbation in southern Poland. It is located in the Silesian Voivodeship and in a small part of the Lesser Poland Voivodeship. The Katowice urban area is the largest urban area in Poland and one of the largest...
and within a greater Silesian metropolitan area
Silesian metropolitan area
The Upper Silesian metropolitan area is the metropolitan area in southern Poland and northeast Czech Republic, centered on the cities of Katowice and Ostrava in Silesia...
populated by about 5,294,000 people. The population of the city is 220,450 (June 2009).
Its name comes from Polish sosna, referring to the pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
forests which were common prior to 1830. It was originally known as Sosnowice. Other variations of the name include Sosnowietz, Sosnowitz, Sosnovitz (Yiddish), Sosnovyts, Sosnowyts, Sosnovytz, Sosnowytz, Sosnovetz, Сосновець Sosnovets (Ukrainian
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
). There are 5 other smaller towns in Poland also called Sosnowiec. They are located in the regions of Kielce
Kielce
Kielce ) is a city in central Poland with 204,891 inhabitants . It is also the capital city of the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship since 1999, previously in Kielce Voivodeship...
, Łódź, and Opole
Opole
Opole is a city in southern Poland on the Oder River . It has a population of 125,992 and is the capital of the Upper Silesia, Opole Voivodeship and, also the seat of Opole County...
.
History
Sosnowiec was granted city rights only in 1902, over a century after the military partitions of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The rights were created by joining together a number of settlements often several centuries old. The oldest of them were: MilowiceMilowice
Miłowice may refer to the following places in Poland:*Miłowice, Lower Silesian Voivodeship *Miłowice, Lubusz Voivodeship *Miłowice, Opole Voivodeship...
, Sielec
Sielec
- Poland :*Sielec, Inowrocław County in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship *Sielec, Żnin County in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship *Sielec, Lublin Voivodeship...
and Pogoń, while Modrzejów, Niwka
Niwka
Niwka may refer to the following places:*Niwka, Tarnów County in Lesser Poland Voivodeship *Niwka, Drawsko County in West Pomeranian Voivodeship *Niwka, Gryfino County in West Pomeranian Voivodeship...
, Środula and Radocha were not much younger either.
Sosnowiec belonged originally to the Kraków Voivodeship (14th century-1795)
Kraków Voivodeship (14th century-1795)
Kraków Voivodeship 1300–1795 - a unit of administrative division and local government in the Kingdom of Poland from 14th century to the partitions of Poland in 1772–1795...
. As a result of the third partition of Poland
Third Partition of Poland
The Third Partition of Poland or Third Partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in 1795 as the third and last of three partitions that ended the existence of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.-Background:...
, however, it was seized by the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
and joined with the New Silesia
New Silesia
New Silesia was a small province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1795 to 1807, created after the Third Partition of Poland. It was located northwest of Kraków and southeast of Częstochowa, in the lands that had been part of the Silesian Duchy of Siewierz and the adjacent Polish historical province...
. During the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
against Prussians, it became part of the Duchy of Warsaw
Duchy of Warsaw
The Duchy of Warsaw was a Polish state established by Napoleon I in 1807 from the Polish lands ceded by the Kingdom of Prussia under the terms of the Treaties of Tilsit. The duchy was held in personal union by one of Napoleon's allies, King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony...
and later, Congress Poland
Congress Poland
The Kingdom of Poland , informally known as Congress Poland , created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, was a personal union of the Russian parcel of Poland with the Russian Empire...
ruled by the namestniks of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. In June 1902, by the order of tsar Nicholas II, Sosnowiec was legally named a city with the area of 19 km² and with 60,000 inhabitants. Obtaining the city rights helped the dynamic economic and cultural development of the town. Apart from steelworks and coal-mines and many enterprises of heavy and light industry, new cultural and social establishments were opened as well.
Natural resources and good geographical location near the borders of German
German Empire
The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...
and Austro-Hungarian Empires, had an important influence on the development of Sosnowiec. The opening of a branch line of the Warsaw-Vienna Railway
Warsaw-Vienna Railway
The Warsaw-Vienna Railway was a railway system which operated in Congress Poland, a part of the Russian Empire, from 1845 until 1912, when it was nationalized by the Russian government...
in 1859 was vitally important for the growth of the town. Development of industry with the new factory of rope and wire, rolling mill, steelworks, iron foundry, steam boilers factory, and later spinning mill, dye-house and paper mill sealed the new image of the town as entirely urban. The Summer Theatre and, in 1887, the Winter Theatre were founded, the second of which was called City Theatre from 1924 in independent Poland
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
, and later the Theatre of Zagłębie.
Sosonowiec suffered war damages during both military conflicts in the 20th century: the First World War, which caused mainly destruction to industry, and World War II, which brought about the terror of executions, which however, did not diminish the courage of Sosnowiec people, many of whom were active in the resistance. Thousands of Jews were deported from Sosnowiec ghetto
Sosnowiec Ghetto
Sosnowiec Ghetto or Sosnowitz Ghetto was a ghetto established for Jews by Nazi German authorities in the Province of Upper Silesia in occupied Poland during the Holocaust.-History:...
to Auschwitz in June 1943. The Ghetto was liquidated two months later and almost all remaining Jews (around 15,000) were also deported to Auschwitz. Previously there had been considerable underground activity among them. January 1945 brought about the liberation of the city, which gave it a chance for gradual rebuilding and further development.
Economy
Sosnowiec is characterised by its urban dynamics, economic activity, and care for both, its cultural heritage and natural environment. In recent years, Sosnowiec was further transformed from an industrial center with mainly mining and heavy industries into a hub of trade and services. Nevertheless, it still operates several important coal mines, steel factories and other heavy industrial plants.Its Special Economic Zone, established in Sosnowiec thanks to the efforts of local authorities, plays a major role in attracting new businesses into the area. As a result, several companies with Polish and foreign capital opened their businesses in the city. Sosnowiec City Office was awarded the ISO 9001 2001 quality certificate for its management system for providing services for the local community.
From 2006 a new trade center Expo Silesia
Expo Silesia
Expo Silesia is an exhibition and trade fair center located in the city of Sosnowiec, Poland in the Silesian Voivodeship, near Dąbrowa Górnicza. The center is located in place of the Silma factory, and was funded by Kolporter Expo Ltd .-External links:**...
began hosting numerous trade shows. Activities of Artistic and Literary Society of Zagłębie Dąbrowskie prove also that Sosnowiec as an industrial centre is not only a working class environment.
Districts
For Sosnowiec's 100th birthday, the downtown area was thoroughly rebuilt, to harmonise its architectural layout and give the city a more modern image. In 2004 Sosnowiec authorities and designers were awarded the Grand Prix for the rebuilding of the downtown area in a competition for the best public space in the Śląskie Provinces. This investment had been accompanied by a program designed to improve the esthetic qualities of the city, under which a comprehensive program for unifying the colors of the elevations, and advertisements entitled “rainbow city” were introduced. Among the city districts there are:- Dańdówka
- Dębowa GóraDebowa GóraDębowa Góra may refer to the following places in Poland:*Dębowa Góra, Lower Silesian Voivodeship *Dębowa Góra, Kutno County in Łódź Voivodeship *Dębowa Góra, Piotrków County in Łódź Voivodeship...
- Jęzor
- Juliusz
- Kazimierz Górniczy
- KlimontówKlimontówKlimontów may refer to the following places in Poland:*Klimontów, Jędrzejów County in Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship *Klimontów, Sandomierz County in Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship...
- Maczki
- MilowiceMilowiceMiłowice may refer to the following places in Poland:*Miłowice, Lower Silesian Voivodeship *Miłowice, Lubusz Voivodeship *Miłowice, Opole Voivodeship...
- Modrzejów
- NiwkaNiwkaNiwka may refer to the following places:*Niwka, Tarnów County in Lesser Poland Voivodeship *Niwka, Drawsko County in West Pomeranian Voivodeship *Niwka, Gryfino County in West Pomeranian Voivodeship...
- Ostra Górka
- Ostrowy Górnicze
- Pogoń district in Sosnowiec
- PorąbkaPorabkaPorąbka may refer to the following places:*Porąbka, Limanowa County in Lesser Poland Voivodeship *Porąbka, Olkusz County in Lesser Poland Voivodeship *Porąbka, Silesian Voivodeship...
- Radocha
- Rudna district in Sosnowiec
- SielecSielec- Poland :*Sielec, Inowrocław County in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship *Sielec, Żnin County in Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship *Sielec, Lublin Voivodeship...
- Stary Sosnowiec
- Środula
- Śródmieście in Sosnowiec
- ZagórzeZagórzeZagórze is the biggest, northern-most district of Sosnowiec, totally transformed with building the Huta Katowice . Until 1975, it was a separate town in Będzin county. It is Edward Gierek's place of birth....
Points of interest
Sielecki Castle
Sielecki Castle is a castle in the city of Sosnowiec in southern Poland.It was built in the 17th century....
. Other tourist attractions include:
- Dietla Palace
- Schöena PalaceSchöen Palace (Sosnowiec)Schöena Palace-Location is a palace in Sosnowiec in southern Poland.History of the Museum'The Schon Palace, neo-Baroque in style, was built by Ernst Schon at the end of the 19th century and since 1985 has been the premises of the Museum in Sosnowiec. The building was located near the Warszaw Vienna...
and museum - Katedra Wniebowzięcia NMP w Sosnowcu
- Wilhelma Palace
- Church St Tomasza
- Railway Station Sosnowiec Główny
- Railway Station Sosnowiec Maczki
- Huta Buczek
Education and Science
Sosnowiec is an academic centre with well-developed research and educational infrastructure on top of industry, services and trade. Its own institutions of higher learning include:- The University of SilesiaUniversity of SilesiaThe University of Silesia in Katowice is an autonomous state university in Silesia Province, Poland.The University of Silesia should not be confused with a similarly named university in Opava, Czech Republic ....
(schools of modern languages, natural science, technology and a language teacher training college)- Faculty of Earth Science
- Faculty of Computer and Materials Science
- Faculty of Philology
- The Silesian Medical Academy,
- Faculty of Pharmacy
- The private School of Marketing and Management
- The Silesian University of TechnologySilesian University of TechnologySilesian University of Technology is a university located in Gliwice, Silesia, Poland. It was founded in 1945 by Polish professors of the Lwow Polytechnic, who were forced to leave their native city and move to the Recovered Territories .The Silesian University of Technology has 12...
- Faculty of Automatic Control, Electronics and Computer Science
- The private School of Ecology
Among general secondary level schools in Sosnowiec there are high-schools such as the II Liceum Ogólnokształcące im. Emilii Plater, III Liceum Ogólnokształcące, and IV Liceum Ogólnokształcące im. St. Staszica.
Sports
- Zagłębie Sosnowiec: men's footballFootball in PolandFootball is the most popular sport in Poland. Over 400,000 Poles play football regularly, with millions more playing occasionally. The first professional clubs were founded in the early 1900s, and the Polish national football team played its first international match in 1921.There are hundreds of...
team; Polish CupPolish CupThe Polish Cup in football or officially Remes Puchar Polski, is an elimination tournament for Polish football clubs, held continuously from 1950, and is the second most important national title in Polish football after the Ekstraklasa title...
winner: 1962, 1963, 1977, 1978 - KP Polska Energia Sosnowiec - men's volleyballVolleyball in PolandVolleyball in Poland is a popular team sport. It is the second most popular sport after football. The Men's national team is ranked 5th and the Women's team is ranked 9th in the FIVB World Rankings...
team playing in Polish Volleyball LeaguePolish Volleyball LeagueThe Polish Volleyball League , is the highest level of men's volleyball in Poland, a professional league competition for volleyball clubs located in this country. It is overseen by Profesjonalna Liga Piłki Siatkowej S.A. . It is currently a 10 team league that plays a 18 game schedule from...
(Polska Liga Siatkówki, PLS), 5th place in season 2003/2004.
Rivers
- Czarna Przemsza
- Biała PrzemszaBiała PrzemszaBiała Przemsza is a river of Poland....
- BrynicaBrynicaBrynica is a river in Silesia and Lesser Poland , Poland. It has a length of 55 km and is the main confluence of Czarna Przemsza. It has a source in Wymysłów, and flows through Piekary Śląskie, Wojkowice, Czeladź, Siemianowice Śląskie, Świerklaniec, Katowice, Sosnowiec and finally Mysłowice...
- Bobrek
- Potok Zagórski
Twin towns — Sister cities
Sosnowiec is twinned with:, Les Mureaux
Les Mureaux
Les Mureaux is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the north-western suburbs of Paris from the center.-Transport:...
, Suceava
Suceava
Suceava is the Suceava County seat in Bukovina, Moldavia region, in north-eastern Romania. The city was the capital of the Principality of Moldavia from 1388 to 1565.-History:...
, Roubaix
Roubaix
Roubaix is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. It is located between the cities of Lille and Tourcoing.The Gare de Roubaix railway station offers connections to Lille, Tourcoing, Antwerp, Ostend and Paris.-Culture:...
, Komárom
Komárom
Komárom is a city in Hungary on the right bank of the Danube in Komárom-Esztergom county.The city of Komárom was formerly a separate suburban village called...
, Casablanca
Casablanca
Casablanca is a city in western Morocco, located on the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Grand Casablanca region.Casablanca is Morocco's largest city as well as its chief port. It is also the biggest city in the Maghreb. The 2004 census recorded a population of 2,949,805 in the prefecture...
Notable people
- Edward GierekEdward GierekEdward Gierek was a Polish communist politician.He was born in Porąbka, outside of Sosnowiec. He lost his father to a mining accident in a pit at the age of four. His mother married again and emigrated to northern France, where he was raised. He joined the French Communist Party in 1931 and was...
- Jędrzej GiertychJedrzej GiertychJędrzej Giertych was a Polish right-wing politician, journalist and writer, son of Franciszek Giertych, father of Maciej Giertych and grandfather of Roman Giertych...
- Haim HeferHaim Hefer-Biography:Hefer was born in Sosnowiec, Poland in 1925 to Issachar Feiner, a chocolate salesman, and Rivka Herzberg, a housewife. He had a private Hebrew tutor....
(born 1925), Israeli songwriter, poet, and writer - Vladek Spiegelman
- Włodzimierz Sedlak
- Paul GodwinPaul GodwinPaul Godwin was a violinist and the leader of a popular German dance orchestra in the 1920s-30s.- Biography :He was born on March 28, 1902, in Sosnowitz , his real name was Pinchas Goldfein. Early recordings on the POLYPHON label gave the name "Tanz-Orchester Goldfein". At the age of 20 he formed...
- Jan KiepuraJan KiepuraJan Wiktor Kiepura was an acclaimed Polish singer and actor.-Biography:...
- Władysław Szpilman
- Marcin OlesMarcin OlesMarcin Oles is a jazz and free improvisation bass player, composer and record producer. He is the twin brother of Bartlomiej Oles....
- Bartlomiej OlesBartlomiej OlesBartlomiej Brat Oles is a jazz and free improvisation drummer, composer and record producer. He is the twin brother of Marcin Oles and Art-director of the Polish independent Jazz Label Fenommedia....