The followingoutline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Poland:
Poland is asovereign country located inCentral Europe.[1] It is bordered byGermany to the west; theCzech Republic andSlovakia to the south;Ukraine,Belarus andLithuania to the east; and theBaltic Sea andKaliningrad Oblast, aRussianexclave, to the north. The totalarea of Poland is 312,679 km2 (120,728 sq mi),[2] making it the69th largest country in the world and 9th in Europe. Poland has a population of over 38.5 million people, which makes it the33rd most populous country in the world.[3]
The establishment of a Polish state is often identified with the adoption of Christianity by its rulerMieszko I in 966 (seeBaptism of Poland), when the state covered territory similar to that of present-day Poland. Poland becamea kingdom in 1025, and in 1569 it cemented a longassociation with theGrand Duchy of Lithuania byuniting to form thePolish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Commonwealth collapsed in 1795, andits territory was partitioned amongPrussia,Russia, andAustria. Polandregained its independence in 1918 after World War I but lost it again in World War II,occupied byNazi Germany and theSoviet Union. Poland lostover six million citizens in World War II, and emerged several years later as asocialist republic within theEastern Bloc under strong Soviet influence. In 1989communist rulewas overthrown and Poland became what is constitutionally known as the "Third Polish Republic". Poland is a unitary state made up of sixteenvoivodeships (Polish:województwo). Poland is also a member of theEuropean Union,NATO andOECD.
Czech Republic 796 km
Slovakia 541 km
Ukraine 535 km
Germany 467 km
Belarus 418 km
Russia 210 km
Lithuania 104 km
Administrative divisions of Poland
The Republic of Poland is a member of:[1]
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Poland travel guide from Wikivoyage
Media from Commons
News from Wikinews
Quotations from WikiquoteTravel guides from Wikivoyage
Polish edition of Wikipedia