ThePolans (Polish:Polanie;Latin:Polani,Polanos), also known asPolanians orWestern Polans (Polish:Polanie Zachodni;Latin:Polani Occidentis), were aWest Slavic andLechitic tribe who inhabited theWarta River basin of the contemporaryGreater Poland region starting in the 6th century.[1]
They were one ofCentral Europe's main tribes and closely related to theVistulans,Masovians,Czechs andSlovaks. According toZygmunt Gloger, their name was derived from the word "pole", meaning "field", thus denoting them as "men of the fields".[2]
In the 9th century, the Polans united several West Slavic (Lechitic) groups to the north ofGreat Moravia. The union led by thePiast dynasty developed into theDuchy of Poland, whose name derives from that of the Polans.[3]
The earliest Polan rulers mentioned by name are the legendary figures ofPiast the Wheelwright andPopiel (8th–9th centuries). The first historical ruler wasMieszko I (960–992), who enlarged the territory later named Poland by incorporatingMasovia and conqueringSilesia and the Vistulan lands ofLesser Poland.[4]
TheDagome iudex document refers to Poland duringMieszko's reign asCivitas Schinesghe (TheGniezno State). The document describes the country as stretching between theOder andRus and betweenLesser Poland ("Craccoa"/"Alemure") and theBaltic Sea. For more information, seePoland in the Early Middle Ages andHistory of Poland during the Piast dynasty.
Archeological findings reveal four major strongholds orgords (Polishgród) in the early Polans' state:
The Western Polans were first mentioned around the year AD 1000.Eastern Polans, a similarly named Eastern Slavic tribe which lived near modern-dayKyiv were last documented in AD 944.