Data at glance of Poland - average on period

History

Poland's history as a state began near the middle of the 10th century. By the mid-16th century, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth ruled a vast tract of land in Central and Eastern Europe. During the 18th century, internal disorder weakened the nation, and in a series of agreements between 1772 and 1795, Russia, Prussia, and Austria partitioned Poland among themselves. Poland regained its independence in 1918 only to be overrun by Germany and the Soviet Union in World War II. It became a Soviet satellite state following the war. Labor turmoil in 1980 led to the formation of the independent trade union Solidarity that over time became a political force with over 10 million members. Free elections in 1989 and 1990 won Solidarity control of the parliament and the presidency, bringing the communist era to a close. A "shock therapy" program during the early 1990s enabled the country to transform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe. Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the EU in 2004.

Environment

Area: 312,685 km2

Climate: temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters with frequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers and thundershowers

Natural resources: coal, sulfur, copper, natural gas, silver, lead, salt, amber, arable land

Ethnic characteristics

Groups: Polish 96.9%, Silesian 1.1%, German 0.2%, Ukrainian 0.1%, other and unspecified 1.7% (2011 est.)note: represents ethnicity declared first

Languages: Polish (official) 98.2%, Silesian 1.4%, other 1.1%, unspecified 1.2% (2011 est.)major-language sample(s): Księga Faktów Świata, niezbędne źródło podstawowych informacji. (Polish)The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.note 1: shares of languages sum to more than 100% because some respondents gave more than one answer on the census; data represent language spoken at homenote 2: Poland also recognizes Kashub as a regional language; Czech, Hebrew, Yiddish, Belarusian, Lithuanian, German, Armenian, Russian, Slovak, and Ukrainian as national minority languages; and Karaim, Lemko, Romani (Polska Roma and Bergitka Roma), and Tatar as ethnic minority languages

Religions: Roman Catholic 70.7%, refused to answer 20.9%, no religion 6.9%; less than 1 percent: Orthodox, Jehovah Witness, Evangelic of Augsburg, Greek Catholic, Pentecostal, other Protestant, not stated, old Catholic Mariavite Church, other Christians, Islam, Buddhist, Polish Catholic Church, other, Baptist Union of Poland, Pagan, Seventh Day Adventist, Hindu, other Catholic (2021 est.)

Government

Capital: Warsaw

Government type: parliamentary republic

Executive branch

Chief of state: President Karol NAWROCKI (since 6 August 2025)

Head of government: Prime Minister Donald TUSK (since 11 December 2023)cabinet: Council of Ministers proposed by the prime minister, appointed by the president, and approved by the Sejmelection/appointment process: president directly elected by absolute-majority popular vote in 2 rounds, if needed, for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); prime minister, deputy prime ministers, and Council of Ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the Sejm; all presidential candidates resign their party affiliationmost recent election date: 18 May 2025, with the second round on 1 June 2025election results: 2025: Karol NAWROCKI elected president in second round; percent of vote - Karol NAWROCKI (PiS) 50.9%, Rafal TRZASKOWSKI (KO) 49.1%; NAWROCKI takes office 6 August 20252025: First round Rafal TRZASKOWSKI (KO) 31.4%, Karol NAWROCKI 29.5% (PiS), Slawomir MENTZEN 14.8%, Grzegorz BRAUN 6.3%, and Szymon HOLOWNIA 5.0%; second round to be held on 1 June 2025; 2020: Andrzej DUDA reelected president in second round; percent of vote - Andrzej DUDA (independent) 51%, Rafal TRZASKOWSKI (KO) 49%2015: Andrzej DUDA elected president in second round; percent of vote - Andrzej DUDA (independent) 51.5%, Bronislaw KOMOROWSKI (independent) 48.5%expected date of next election: July 2030

Legislative branch

Description: legislative structure: bicameralnote: the designation "National Assembly" (or Zgromadzenie Narodowe) is only used on those rare occasions when the two houses meet jointly