 Sacred Heart Cathedral, Tashkent, also known as the Polish Church | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 2,000[1] (2023, est.) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Tashkent,Samarkand,Bukhara[1] historically also:Fergana,Toʻrtkoʻl,Kokand,Kattakurgan,Andijan,Namangan | |
| Religion | |
| Roman Catholicism | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Poles in Kazakhstan,Poles in Kyrgyzstan,Poles in Tajikistan,Poles in Turkmenistan |
Poles in Uzbekistan form a small population, although historically the second most numerousPolish diaspora ofCentral Asia (after thePoles in Kazakhstan). Polish presence inUzbekistan dates back to the 19th century.
In the late 18th century, Poland lost its independence in the course of thePartitions of Poland, and its territory was annexed byPrussia (laterGermany),Russia andAustria, while Uzbek khanates were conquered by Russia in the 19th century. Russian-controlled Uzbek territory was one of the places to which Poles were either deported as political prisoners from theRussian Partition of Poland or were sent after being conscripted to the Russian Army.[2] According to the 1897 census, the overwhelming majority of Poles in Uzbek lands lived in the cities, with the largest populations inTashkent (2,206),Samarkand (1,072),Fergana (727),Toʻrtkoʻl (299),Kokand (215),Kattakurgan (211),Andijan (194) andNamangan (191).[3][4][5] The Poles built theSacred Heart Cathedral in Tashkent, also known as the Polish Church, now a cultural heritage site of the Uzbek capital.
DuringWorld War I, ethnic Polish conscripts andlegionnaires from the Austrian and German armies were held by the Russians in a prisoner-of-war camp in Fergana.[6] They made contact and received help from the local Polish minority, however, many of the Polish prisoners died due to the harsh conditions andtyphus epidemic.[6]
Following the joint German-Sovietinvasion of Poland, which startedWorld War II in 1939, theUzbek Soviet Socialist Republic was one of the destinations for thedeportations of Poles fromSoviet-occupied eastern Poland.[7] An estimated of 100,000 Poles were deported to Uzbekistan.[8] In early 1942, the PolishAnders' Army along with thousands of civilians was relocated to the Uzbek andKyrgyz SSRs, andGʻuzor became the organizational center of the army.[9] The Poles suffered from epidemics and famine, so they opened temporary feeding centers, orphanages, clinics and small hospitals, yet 2,500 soldiers and many more civilians still died.[10][11][12] A remnant of this period arePolish military cemeteries located in 15 cities in Uzbekistan, includingChiroqchi, Gʻuzor,Jizzakh,Karmana,Kenimekh,Kitob,Margilan,Olmazor,Qarshi,Shahrisabz, Tashkent,Yakkabogʻ,Yangiyoʻl.[12] Since mid-1942, the Soviets thwarted Polish efforts to improve the situation, and carried out arrests of the staff of the Polish diplomatic posts, first Władysław Bugajski in Tashkent in May 1942, and then the staff of the post in Samarkand in July 1942, and then seized and closed the post.[11] In 1942, the Anders' Army with manycivilians was evacuated toIran. As of 1943, there were still over 25,000 Polish citizens in Uzbekistan, according to Soviet data.[13] After the war, over 32,000 Poles were repatriated from the Uzbek SSR to Poland in 1946–1948.[14]
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1926 | 3,411 | — |
| 1939 | 3,652 | +7.1% |
| 1959 | 2,941 | −19.5% |
| 1970 | 3,482 | +18.4% |
| 1979 | 3,654 | +4.9% |
| 1989 | 3,007 | −17.7% |
| 1997 (est.) | 3,000 | −0.2% |
| 2023 (est.) | 2,000 | −33.3% |
| Sources:[15][16][17][18][19][20][1] | ||
In the 1970s, Polish priest Józef Świdnicki conducted clandestine services for Catholics in Uzbekistan, and after his release from a Sovietforced labour camp in 1987, he founded five Catholic communities.[8] In 1991, PolishFranciscans assumed Catholic priest duties in Tashkent.[8]
In 1997, there were some 3,000 Poles in Uzbekistan.[1] Since then, many Poles left Uzbekistan, and 2023 estimates give the total number of Poles and people of Polish descent in Uzbekistan at 2,000.[1]
The Poles are organized in several associations, which aim is to preserve, nurture and promote Polish culture in Uzbekistan, with a total of some 1,200 members as of 2023.[1]
