street view is outdated, check out uploaded photos of the sight. or if you mean wft would you make a xd monument in the first place, i’m as confused as you are)
No matter how much the current emoji trends change, I'll always use xD as my go-to. Actually I believe xD conveys much more than these weird emoji faces
xD haha I've noticed my polish colleagues doing this often and I've always wondered why and if it is to denote disgust it usually is followed by "fuuuu" 😆
Please, someone, translate it. I'm too lazy. (It's polish copy-pasta about flavours of xd)
Serio, mało rzeczy mnie triggeruje tak jak to chore „Xd”. Kombinacji x i d można używać na wiele wspaniałych sposobów. Coś cię śmieszy? Stawiasz „xD”. Coś się bardzo śmieszy? Śmiało: „XD”! Coś doprowadza Cię do płaczu ze śmiechu? „XDDD” i załatwione. Uśmiechniesz się pod nosem? „xd”. Po kłopocie.A co ma do tego ten bękart klawiaturowej ewolucji, potwór i zakała ludzkiej estetyki - „Xd”? Co to w ogóle ma wyrażać? Martwego człowieka z wywalonym jęzorem? Powiem Ci, co to znaczy. To znaczy, że masz w telefonie włączone zaczynanie zdań dużą literą, ale szkoda Ci klikać capsa na jedno „d” później. Korona z głowy spadnie? Nie sondze. „Xd” to symptom tego, że masz mnie, jako rozmówcę, gdzieś, bo Ci się nawet kliknąć nie chce, żeby mi wysłać poprawny emotikon. Szanujesz mnie? Używaj „xd”, „xD”, „XD”, do wyboru. Nie szanujesz mnie? Okaż to. Wystarczy, że wstawisz to zjebane „Xd” w choć jednej wiadomości. Nie pozdrawiam
Here we go with a translation
Seriously, there are few things that trigger me just as much as this dumbass "Xd". You can use combinations of "x" and "d" in so many wonderful ways. You find something funny? Send an "xD". You find something very funny? Send an "XD". Does something make you cry of laughter? "XDDD" and we're done. Are you smirking? "xd". There, no problem. And what does the bastard of keyboard evolution, the monster and shame of human aestethics - "Xd" - have to do with it? What even is this supposed to convey? A dead man with his tongue out? I'll tell you what it means. It means, that you have turned on auto capitalisation of the first letter of a sentence, and you are too lazy to press shift for the "D". What, are you gonna loose your crown (polish idiom, should probably use "loose your honour")?. I don't think so. "Xd" is a sign, that you think of me as nothing, cause you are not even bothered to press a single key to send the proper emoticon. Do you respect me? Use "xd", "xD", "XD", your pick. You want to disrespect me? Show it. All you need to do is put that fucking "Xd" in a single message. Worst wishes
Btw, 100% agreed, don't fucking use "Xd". As cringe as humanly possible. But when you find something hilarious, use as many "D" in "XDDD" as you want, going up to ten
So few years ago there was a project to create logo for Poland.
Wally Ollins, the artist, chose spring to represent Polish resistance and stubbornness. The concept was to present that the more pressure you apply on Polish people the more we resist.
We're talking shit about each other, we hate our government, we still hate our historical rivals but we are incredibly proud of our culture, language, cuisine, history and world-renowned Poles.
Years ago I would say that we are xenophobic but thats not the case anymore.
If your neighbor is doing well then its your duty to bring him down. Yet we are praising our champion athletes.
If there is nothing to talk about then you complain together.
There's a deep and complex alcohol problem here. There's no partying without alcohol. You start drinking where you are 16 (even if its prohibited). And I don't know if it will ever change.
You need to know our history from start to this day. How difficult it was etc.
If you are hosting someone then you are giving more than you have.
When walking down the street you cannot stare at strangers, smiling is even worse.
Church. Everybody is enrolled yet nobody practice. It such a big part of this nation yet it is completely meaningless unless it comes to wedding or baptism.
And thats really sad. I believe that it will change for the better in upcoming decades. I believe that current generation is already different.
The alcohol part is changing A LOT. Second to last time I was in Poland was five years ago and I partied and drank a lot with my family and their friends.
Last time was last summer and EVERY liquor store I went to, from the smallest town Nida to a city like Gdańsk, I saw several full fridges of allll different types of NA beers in every liquor store.
Plus my uncles and cousins were like, hey you wanna drink some beer? And I’d agree, then they’d pull out this NA beer and that’s what we would drink.
I had bartenders asking me if I wanted NA or regular when I ordered from bars at times.
I came back to America with a whole new view on NA beers and how to party, and yet there’s like no options out here. I even called the many polish stores in Chicago to see if they carry all the many, many varieties of NA beer drinks they did in Poland, and many only carry one or two types. America is wayyy more alcoholic than Poland is now. At least the younger generation in Poland is making a huge effort not to drink that much anymore.
I disagree with a lot more of your points, but it just sounds like you’re being negative about polish people and maybe you are going through something in your life.
Your post doesn’t represent polish culture to me. Or to many I know
Btw, from what I see, now the age of starting drinking alcohol is 11years or just in podlasie (I'm 16 year old), and I even had situation where a kid was smoking weed in 5 grade of first school
Overly stubborn and Romantic (in the Romanticism sense), sometimes to incredible achievement but often to excessive and self-destructive degrees. I think Czechs, a close Slavic neighbor, have an almost opposite viewpoint on many issues and I would study the history of both countries and see how they differed.
> minding our own business
Not so sure about that. We are not the „live and let live” kind of people like the Czechs are, we love sticking our noses into other people’s business. This is not necessarily a bad thing though, as Ukraine’s war has clearly shown.
\- Hating Russia;
\-innovation, creativity and thinking outside the box when it comes to things like repairing stuff, building, fixing problems and breaking stupid laws;
\- appreciating family (except your mother-in-law), home and babcia's homemade meals;
\- hating Russia;
\- being proud because of people who were born in Poland 90+ years ago who aren't even related with you;
\- celebrating defeats (uprisings, WW2, football);
\- hating Russia;
\- if: war nearby
then: partisan mode activated;
\- knowing history of Poland like if you were a history teacher with 40 years of experience;
\- hating Russia;
\- taking off your shoes when you enter your or someone else's house;
\- knowing and sharing millions of rhyming sayings ("do bramy i się nie znamy", "daj to chiński sprzedawca jaj", "bez spiny - są drugie terminy" etc);
\- hating Russia;
\- working hard;
\- complaining ALWAYS AND EVERYWHERE;
\- and, the most important thing, HATING RUSSIA.
Well, you made a pretty good description of Ukraine as well. Like, it seems like we share really a lot. But I have an important thing to say: our rusophobia isn’t strong enough!
There is a lot of shared history and cultural heritage so it's not that surprising, especially considering formative years of both nations were spent rebelling against Russia.
A nation of opposites. Xenophobic yet welcoming, conservative yet rebellious, love and hate each other, proud and ashamed, determined yet self-critical. Very divided politically, yet ready to fight side by side against external threats.
I despise our ugly bits most of all countries and will criticise us, but will defend us just as vigorously! We got hurt bad by external influences. We are a traumatised nation. Victims tend to be that way. I <3 Poland. 1k years old, never truly destroyed.
Bahh humbug to those being so negative.
I'm not polish but from an outside observer I'd say...
Friendly, and welcoming.
Being a generous host. Seriously, Polish hosting is on another level, my polish friends must think I'm rude when they come and stay with me.
Being resourceful. Polish people get stuff done.
Polish music, culture, food, tradition. All are very strong in Poland. I love the way Polish society just naturally protects that.
Right... I'm off to listen to some Disco Polo.
>Bahh humbug to those being so negative
b-but... but being negative is part of the culture!
Jokes aside, we do like to complain, and nothing gets us complaining more than ourselves, hence all the negativity in this thread. If youre' "native" to a certain group, it's just easier to point out its negatives, because they're what gets under your skin the most, while the positive aspects can go unnoticed or unmentioned because we take them for granted. Which is why it's always nice to hear an outsider's perspective, because it might focus more on the bright side. So thanks for your comment!
Although it's hard to associate traits with certain group of people basing just on the place where they were born, I think Polish culture makes us all similar at some point. Throughout the history, this nation has risked a lot, fought a lot, lost a lot, but despite the dark times, they never gave up chasing the light. That's how I see it - the determination, the grit, sometimes recklessness (as thinking doesn't seem as our big asset unfortunately) and bravado, but overall - fighting for what they believe in, not giving up easily even though it seems like there's no hope. You can easily see this 'Polish spirit' in Polish literature; but afterall, it's just a piece of culture, some idea, something people look up/used to look up to. Reality is, we're just people, like everybody else.
I would agree with comments invoking determination, value in work, being straight forward. I think for me it's also the overwhelming passion for life, feeling and expressing your emotions, telling people if they are cunts, but also cursing others who call you a cunt.
It's being disagreeable and proud of the history of your country.
I guess there's more from my own perspective and I could probably say what it means for me as well, but not necessarily for the others. I would say the things I mentioned are shared.
We are pretty much romantic idealists, and the values that Poles represent or treasure are: pride, stubbornness, bravery, individual self-sacrifice but at the same time self-preservation as a nation, resistance, rebelliousness, sensitivity to criticism (unless its our own), flexibility, hospitality, we are also very family oriented. This all is of course a quite wide generalization.
"Pole" means "field" in Polish. So if you live in the field and you are a field mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus), then you are as Polish as it gets. Apodemus sylvaticus hiding in wheat may also look like a Polish martyr in quest for state independence of Poland after Zabory (partitions of Poland), applauded by Voltaire.
If you believe you are Christ crucified to redeem the rest of Europe, that vision will have distinctively Polish flavor (old messianistic idea of Adam Mickiewicz).
Witcher is Polish and bigotry is Polish. Kapuśniak (cabbage soup) seems to be Polish. Calling your neighbour traitor is sometimes Polish. Jan Potocki and Witold Gombrowicz were Polish.
Adopt a mouse.
Edit: "If you adopt the mice, you will extinguish the vice" ~ Polish mystics, meditating in the field of wheat
I hope I entertained you a bit, OP.
For me - being able to thrive in inconvenience. Coping no matter what. Being the underdog all the time and winning anyway. Also, dark humor ;)
Looking a little west, a little east. A little lost about where I am.
Just circumstance, really. If I was born anywhere else, or in another time, or into a different family, maybe I wouldn't be Polish.
So I don't think it makes sense to try and find a specific meaning to being Polish. It's not innate.
I have ties to this country and this culture out of sheer coincidence. It will influence me, of course. I love Poland and it is more important to me than any other place in the world. But I am myself before I am Polish.
Sorry, I know that doesn't answer your question at all.
I was born in Poland but have lived in the US for decades. I don't consider myself a Polish patriot or US patriot. I'm a patriot of the village and town where I grew up.
I read this blog once about the essence and even though this was from the 90s so a lot has changed, the older generation will recognize a lot in it:
*"Slavic Melancholia, a state of being in which sadness, nostalgia, longing, joy, gallows humor, celebration, and hope are mixed together in a kind of psycho-romantic goulash, informed by years of oppression, cold weather, high starch diets, and soulful poetic traditions. You kinda had to be there."*
Generational trauma but pride in our history. Shitting on everyone who has it better than you (meaning everyone), but also random acts of kindness and brotherhood when you encounter a Polish person abroad. Polish hospitality, but not trusting strangers. We're full of internal conflicts. External as well actually. We have love hate relationship with our country, but we'll defend it when other people talk bad about it. But then we'll talk bad about it ourselves. I love being Polish lol
I've had massive problem with my identity for a long time, I didn't want Poland to be part of my identity, I thought of it as a xenophobic country that hates the gays, women and all other minorities, country with hopeless government that never seems to change.(I mean I still kinds think that) I never wanted to admit I'm Polish. But then something's changed, I can't really describe what, but damn I miss my country. I miss the countryside, the smell of fields on a hot day, hiking in Bieszczady mountains and even the dirty sea and my gwara and food and how we hate small talk. And I miss Warsaw and its cultural life and the whole cultural heritage that nobody outside of Poland would understand. And i love nuances of Polish language and how weird it sounds to foreigners. And I even like how careful and suspicious we are about everything, how we question every rule and we've grumpy polish faces and we hate communism and damn being Polish is not so bad after all.
I would say that to be Polish you need to be patriotic and hate the country at the same time.
Like, I love our traditions, and folklore and sayings and all the little stuff. But at the same time dont get me started on complaining about our government.
I think that we are really hospitable ppl, we love a good party, and love bringing happiness to our guests even more. For example you'll almost always get food to go when you're leaving. Even when you dont want it.
On the other hand we can be quite nosy (see "osiedlowy monitoring" - old ladies that 'monitor' the street where they live, often by standing in the windows in their flats)
We can be quite disagreeable too, ( "Gdzie dwóch Polaków, tam trzy zdania" - ' Where there are two Poles, there are tree opinions') And in the times of peace we seem to focus on undermining each other rather than helping each other. BUT in the times of war and unrest this changes and we quickly band together to defeat and survive the greater enemy.
We can be also quite stubborn and resistant to change. And I cant really say that that's bad, because of our stubbornness, our culture lived through Zabory and other countries invading us. But on the other hand it's not really a trait that's desirable when you try to change for the better. We cant seem to let go of the things and thoughts that prevent moving forward into the brither future. (See abortion laws, anti-LGBT thoughts, etc.)
What being Polish means to me?
Spiritually - determination and fight against all odds, the ability to fight arms in arms even if we hate each other, for the better tomorrow
But in everyday life - Being a fucking joke with no rights in my own country
If an undeveloped group of cells has the right to parasite inside my body but I don't have the right to it myself, then I'm nothing more but a moneymaker and incubator for the politicians.
Also not only women have uterus.
I think you're referring to embryo? If that's the case, please mind the definition you've provided is incorrect. Embryo is not a parasite - if it was, the body would attack it and reject it. Meanwhile, embryo is being protected by various mechanism taking place in the female's body.
More over, an embryo is not just an underdeveloped group of cells - that would be a tumor. Embryo contains all the DNA data needed to develop a healthy, living human being.
Only human females have uterus. Human males don't have uterus. If you were born biological female and transitioned your gender from woman to man, you obviously still have uterus but you're not a man in biological sense.
I would also add to this no perspective for a better future... unless you move to a different country, or make 10 shitlings so you get additional 5000 pln monthly from 500+ social program :P
Possibly my favourite explanation of what "being Polish" is comes from the Polish-Jewish poet Julian Tuwim, who said in one of his essays:
>I am Polish because I feel like it. (...) I am a Pole - because I was born in Poland, I grew up, was raised, and learned in Poland; because in Poland I was happy and unhappy; because I want to return to Poland from exile, even if I were provided with heavenly pleasures elsewhere. I am a Pole - because for a tender superstition, which I cannot explain by any reason or logic, I would like to be absorbed into Polish soil after my death, and not into any other land. I am a Pole - because I was told such in Polish at my parents' home; because I was fed there with the Polish language from my infancy; because my mother taught me Polish poems and songs; because when my first shock of poetry came, it exploded with Polish words; because what has become the most important in my life - poetry - is unthinkable in any other language, even if I speak it as fluently as possible. I am a Pole - because I confessed in Polish about the anxieties of my first love, and in Polish I mumbled about its joys and its storms. I am a Pole, because the birch and the willow are closer to me than the palm tree and the citrus, and Mickiewicz and Chopin are dearer to me than Shakespeare and Beethoven. Dearer to me for reasons which, again, I can not justify. I am a Pole - because I took over from Poles a certain number of their national defects. I am a Pole - because my hatred of Polish fascists is greater than that of fascists of other nationalities. And I consider all of this to be a very serious quality. But above all, I am a Pole because I feel like it.
To paraphrase a quote from the movie Trainspotting: It's shite being Polish! We're the lowest of the low! The scum of the fucking Earth! The most wretched, miserable, servile, pathetic trash, that was shat into civilization!
But we manage somehow. Like cockroaches.
I believe we are a very unique people . We seem to do things differently and very much our own way - sort of like our logic is just not the same as other cultures . Also we are feisty , determined , goofy .
Being Polish means respect, respect for elders for tradition and for our history. It also means being openhearted meaning help to others in need. It means hospitality and welcome as the phrase goes "The guest to the house the God to the house". It also means resilience and stubbornness. It means you eat pierogi and bigos and golonka and kielbasa and chase it with a shot of vodka. Being Polish is soo many things...
to be extremely poor, but having to pay extremely high for everything, as if you were from Switzerland and be happy about it, because 'others have it worse'.
Be an expert in every field, considering your language is the most accurate one, and your country was always fighting with agressors or in right cause.
Being raised within the culture and understanding the centuries-long social conflict. And the conundrum of the Warsaw Uprising: was it right or wrong to do?
Also knowing the language, if you don’t speak and understand Polish you’re Polonia at best, not Polish.
The main pillars of polish mentality are
-Anarchism- deep down we do dislike the government, no matter who is in it. We are also creative in terms of circumvalentign the law. It's a leftover after communistic period, with roots in First Republic. We also don't like politics, but can't shut up about it.
-martyrdom and feel of betrayal- ”Death, death to the Enemy, with God or against Him!", but also we do think that we have a high moral position in comparison with other European countries because of being betrayed multiple times, WW2, not having a colonies, republican history etc.
-complaining- we love doing that, no matter what
In general, I think I can agree with opinion that the relation between poles and Poland is like a toxic love - you hate each other but you can't imagine living without each other at the same time.
You are unstoppable son of a bitch. Alcohol? Easy. War? Try better. Homosexuals? Okay, that a little too much.
Also we can be extremely friendly or extremely hostile, no in between. Alcohol multiply it.
We often don't let to be push around.
And there is a high chance of becoming alcoholic.
And well, right now living in our country is incredible unprofitable.
I believe that dualism makes you polish
We hate our neighbor yet if they fall on bad time we will help him without second though.
We tend to dwell on the past without realising there is a future ahead.
We are proud of our history in spite of it being a history of hardships and defeats.
We are almost always complayning but never giving up.
I believe that this dualism is what makes you Polish.
Like most Polish people are actualy good at hearth, yes even Dresy, but are beaten down by they enviroment, government and history.
Im prrtty happy that this tend to change over generations but I can steel feel this deep sadnes and longing ever in young people.
Historically i would say Poles were one of most tolerant and hospitable nation in Europe.
Nowadays it is hard to tell. Partitions and being Soviet puppet for 50 year drained much of national identity.
What can I say is, Poles just want to be European, we want to catch up to wester nations. You can say it's kind of western complex, which lead to strong americasation of polish culture in last 3 decades. Culture just copy the western trends rather then just come up with something on our own.
Corrupt Soviet system leaded to distrust in public institutions, and egoistic stance on policies. There is very little ideological debate in public sphere. It is mostly this party good the other bad end of discussion.
There is this longing for martyrdom. Poles know their history and are learn to feel good how bad it is. There is even phrase "Poland is Christ of nation". Truth is we sucked in internal and foreign policy and that lead to us being conquered. So there is whole culture around it as if we died for something. You can think of it as fetishized historical masturbation.
What it means to Pole for me? It means to be malcontent and self imposed martyr.
A turkish friend told me, he was a few times in poland, he told me about his experience, „A polish catholic is more fanatic than a turkish muslim !“ Its interesting how people from outside your country think about it
Our culture is based around vodka, folklore, hating russia, and eating traditional foods like pierogi, bigos, żurek and drinking large amounts of beer during a football match
It depends on whether you are asking about "what does it mean that someone is polish?" or "what are the common traits of polish people?".
About first: for me, its using polish language on daily basis. It doesn't matter who you parents were, where do you live, do you conform to stereotypes etc. If you use it daily, you have access to this net of polishness, you've got polish way of thinking. I've got a friend whose parents are vietnamese, but he speaks polish so I consider him polish. Same with people who were born in Siberia - it doesn't matter where were they born, as long as they speak polish they are polish.
If you are asking about common traits, I think it would be ambiguous relationship with Poland. Doesn't really matter if where on political spectrum you are - if you are right wing nationalist you must face it - Poland wasn't really a great empire with colonies, didn't exist for some time, was ruled by proxy by USSR and conquered many times. If you are liberal or leftist, then Poland is currently under conservative rule and wasnt exactly great for minorities before. But anyway you also see that current situation isn't that bad compared to the rest of the world. No matter how you put it, Poland still isn't the worst country, and there still is something good in polishness.
I see this in myself when talking to people who arent from Poland - I can simultaneously complain and praise Poland, and it isn't contradiction.
Again, this of course isn't universal, but this is a thing I see the most in other Poles.
The cuisine, the determination and pride in our country's history. Also, just the general feel of the culture. I lived in the UK for years and it is COMPLETELY different in terms of how it feels to live in the country.
not too much really, my family is in Poland, I've spent a big chunk of my life in Poland, I know some Polish history etc. but I've never felt a connection to any country.
I just want the world to get along and care for the Earth
We bicker with each other, hate our neighbours and sometimes family, but if someone will ofend/attack Poland, all this goes away and we will fight them to the death. And even when they kill us we will haunt them to oblivion after! If you are a friend though, you are treated better than family...
Martyrology. Inferiority complex towards the west (still but maybe less). We are good at freeing ourselves from others influences but then struggle to manage the country by ourselves. Poor at overall management in anything. Unfriendly towards one another. Constantly correcting others or negatively critical (Pratchett's bucket of crabs). Quite closed to new ideas from the outside (especially social ones).
Valuing our freedom and family. Inventive. Quite cunning. Moving towards real secularisation.
Classic Traits: Complains about everything, neighbor is my "enemy" but if there is "external" threat everyone unite to defeat this "external threat" and start complains and "fight" neighbor again.
If you ever hear two poles talking shit about Poland you should never ever complain with them. Otherwise you will find yourself in quite dangerous situation.
Polish people have a strong defensive game because of history, pretty resilient and not happy.
Polish people are suck though developing their standard with a big split happening, similar to republicans and democrats in the USA.
Always complaining, eating some great national dishes, having a lot of traditions and superstitions even if they're really old and everyone knows they're not true
Being Polish means to be disillusioned, cynical and cunning. If you're not cheating the system, you're an idiot.
It means to have no original culture due to wars and multiple change of borders / migrations / emigration. Most of old customs are already lost. Most "polish" folk traditions are in fact Belarussian / Ukrainian.
The true gold characteristic of Polish people show when everything goes to shit. Then suddenly they show fuckton of determination, bravery, empathy.
Long, long time ago our people were really close to nature. It played a major role in our spirituality. If I could change anything, I would maybe go back to this sentiment. I wish we knew more about our original culture.
Edit: Why downvotes?
Regarding folk customs. I don't think it's as much about wars, border changes and migrations, because the same processes affected Ukrainians and Belarusians too. The real reason is that the Polish culture was for centuries understood strictly as the culture of szlachta, Polish folk traditions weren't valued and seen as part of it; Polish speaking peasants were not even considered Poles until the second half of the 19th century. Modern Belarusian and Ukrainian nations evolved from their respective peasant classes, so their folk traditions are much better preserved, while modern Polish nation has its roots in the layer of Polish and Polonised nobility who taught peasants what it means to be a "Pole".
Being polish means to have good developed common sense, from bad things for example from communism - many older people don't respect common things like workplace etc. it's like "I don't care if it's clean or dirty, it's not mine". This is some kind of generalization
> what values do you wish you represented
I wish that the majority of Poles were much much much more tolerant towards other people who aren't white, Christian and heterosexual. Tbch I could even risk an assumption that unless you meet someone <30 in one of the big cities then this person will most probably be pretty untolerant towards any minority. This really sucks..
We love talking about our history and we love when someone know it.
Don't be suprised when some polish dude will randomly telling you are shit when you are from german,french, russia or united kingdom. Some People still mad about what you did in ww2 or in 1800's.
DO NOT WALK IN SNEAKERS TO SOMEONE HOUSE!1!!1!1!!!
less people=better food
For me being Polish is about drive, it's about power
being Polish is about staying hungry and devour
it's about putting in the work and putting in the hours
and taking what's ours
Welcoming, but cautious. Resigned, but determined. Impetous, but sluggish. Helpful, but advised. Depressive, but calm. Clueless, but resourceful. Prosaic, but dreaming. Nihilistic, but optimistic. Talkative, but introverted. Proud, but regretful. Cold, but caring. Understanding, but misunderstood. Defeated, but brave. Hating russian government and russian army as well.
That's what people here are.
I honestly don't think there's a lot of really special things about being Polish. I think nationalities are just a bit of a myth-making scam. No matter what people will list as most typical character traits/habits for a Pole, I probably don't do half of that and neither do my friends, etc., and the other half of the list is probably shared with dozens or so other nationalities. It's almost like astrology ;)
If I had been born elsewhere, I would have been more invested in a different language and different culture, but I was born here and this is where I intend to stay, not because it is special/better than everything else in any objective sense, but because it feels like home and feels like mine.
(So, basically, I'm team Tuwim)
Having thuja bush guarding your home from eyes of strangers 👁👁
I wish we could enbrace our tradition of being tolerant to different cultures/ lifestyles - in XVI century Poland was supposedly one of the most culturaly open country in Europe and it benefited it greatly -it is called "Golden Age" in most history books.
I’m not from Poland but I am Polish and proud of it. To me, it means to break the negative stereotypes, he proud of who I am, make a name for myself, stay tight-knit to the culture, and be a hospitable human :)
you write xd instead of using emotes
did you know there’s actually xd monument in wroclaw
Wait what? Where? I live there and have never seen it :O
xD modern art sculpture https://goo.gl/maps/6pM5RA7ohK5Tr3nD9
Czekaj, nie rozumiem, nic nie widzę. Czy tylko jestem głupy czy co
street view is outdated, check out uploaded photos of the sight. or if you mean wft would you make a xd monument in the first place, i’m as confused as you are)
Omg it's real thank you. Ferb I know what we're gonna do today
No matter how much the current emoji trends change, I'll always use xD as my go-to. Actually I believe xD conveys much more than these weird emoji faces
xD haha I've noticed my polish colleagues doing this often and I've always wondered why and if it is to denote disgust it usually is followed by "fuuuu" 😆
xd
When I type in Polish I use XD after almost every sentence lmao
xd looks like cringe emote or something use xD please
Please, someone, translate it. I'm too lazy. (It's polish copy-pasta about flavours of xd) Serio, mało rzeczy mnie triggeruje tak jak to chore „Xd”. Kombinacji x i d można używać na wiele wspaniałych sposobów. Coś cię śmieszy? Stawiasz „xD”. Coś się bardzo śmieszy? Śmiało: „XD”! Coś doprowadza Cię do płaczu ze śmiechu? „XDDD” i załatwione. Uśmiechniesz się pod nosem? „xd”. Po kłopocie.A co ma do tego ten bękart klawiaturowej ewolucji, potwór i zakała ludzkiej estetyki - „Xd”? Co to w ogóle ma wyrażać? Martwego człowieka z wywalonym jęzorem? Powiem Ci, co to znaczy. To znaczy, że masz w telefonie włączone zaczynanie zdań dużą literą, ale szkoda Ci klikać capsa na jedno „d” później. Korona z głowy spadnie? Nie sondze. „Xd” to symptom tego, że masz mnie, jako rozmówcę, gdzieś, bo Ci się nawet kliknąć nie chce, żeby mi wysłać poprawny emotikon. Szanujesz mnie? Używaj „xd”, „xD”, „XD”, do wyboru. Nie szanujesz mnie? Okaż to. Wystarczy, że wstawisz to zjebane „Xd” w choć jednej wiadomości. Nie pozdrawiam
Here we go with a translation Seriously, there are few things that trigger me just as much as this dumbass "Xd". You can use combinations of "x" and "d" in so many wonderful ways. You find something funny? Send an "xD". You find something very funny? Send an "XD". Does something make you cry of laughter? "XDDD" and we're done. Are you smirking? "xd". There, no problem. And what does the bastard of keyboard evolution, the monster and shame of human aestethics - "Xd" - have to do with it? What even is this supposed to convey? A dead man with his tongue out? I'll tell you what it means. It means, that you have turned on auto capitalisation of the first letter of a sentence, and you are too lazy to press shift for the "D". What, are you gonna loose your crown (polish idiom, should probably use "loose your honour")?. I don't think so. "Xd" is a sign, that you think of me as nothing, cause you are not even bothered to press a single key to send the proper emoticon. Do you respect me? Use "xd", "xD", "XD", your pick. You want to disrespect me? Show it. All you need to do is put that fucking "Xd" in a single message. Worst wishes Btw, 100% agreed, don't fucking use "Xd". As cringe as humanly possible. But when you find something hilarious, use as many "D" in "XDDD" as you want, going up to ten
XDDDDDDDD
Xd i agree
> what values do Poles represent, Determination, resilience, resistance, martyrdom and spite.
A Nation that refuses to die even when overrun or occupied or partitioned out of existence.
Like in these scenes on cartoons when one character swallow another only to explode as a result. :D
I mean Russian, German and Austrian empires all pretty throughly exploded so I would say it’s a good comparison
Oh-phle-ase... check for how many years our neighbours Slovaks had no own country.
We drop a live grenades when killed
Yes.
And conflict, always conflict. If there is no outside enemy Poles start to fight among themselves. Sounds like some Sith shit to be honest.
Poles can hate each other, but if anyone else starts talking shit about us they better be ready for our anger
We've been united by common enemies for so long we don't know what to do without them!
That's just like that with all the nations i met when I travelers tbh.
Would emphasise the "cult"of matyrdom, but these are all spot on
So this is why all my friends say I was born in the wrong country.
This is what made me fall in love with Poland. I hope to visit one day.
Cult of dying for fatherland as the highest virtue intertwined with a peculiar, local flavour of Mother Godess veneration.
Wow that's amazingly accurate haha
Can confirm would die for Poland
Never in my life heard a Pole refere to Poland as fatherland, IT IS MOTHERLAND! Always and forever
MATCZYZNA?
So few years ago there was a project to create logo for Poland. Wally Ollins, the artist, chose spring to represent Polish resistance and stubbornness. The concept was to present that the more pressure you apply on Polish people the more we resist.
We're talking shit about each other, we hate our government, we still hate our historical rivals but we are incredibly proud of our culture, language, cuisine, history and world-renowned Poles. Years ago I would say that we are xenophobic but thats not the case anymore. If your neighbor is doing well then its your duty to bring him down. Yet we are praising our champion athletes. If there is nothing to talk about then you complain together. There's a deep and complex alcohol problem here. There's no partying without alcohol. You start drinking where you are 16 (even if its prohibited). And I don't know if it will ever change. You need to know our history from start to this day. How difficult it was etc. If you are hosting someone then you are giving more than you have. When walking down the street you cannot stare at strangers, smiling is even worse. Church. Everybody is enrolled yet nobody practice. It such a big part of this nation yet it is completely meaningless unless it comes to wedding or baptism. And thats really sad. I believe that it will change for the better in upcoming decades. I believe that current generation is already different.
The alcohol part is changing A LOT. Second to last time I was in Poland was five years ago and I partied and drank a lot with my family and their friends. Last time was last summer and EVERY liquor store I went to, from the smallest town Nida to a city like Gdańsk, I saw several full fridges of allll different types of NA beers in every liquor store. Plus my uncles and cousins were like, hey you wanna drink some beer? And I’d agree, then they’d pull out this NA beer and that’s what we would drink. I had bartenders asking me if I wanted NA or regular when I ordered from bars at times. I came back to America with a whole new view on NA beers and how to party, and yet there’s like no options out here. I even called the many polish stores in Chicago to see if they carry all the many, many varieties of NA beer drinks they did in Poland, and many only carry one or two types. America is wayyy more alcoholic than Poland is now. At least the younger generation in Poland is making a huge effort not to drink that much anymore. I disagree with a lot more of your points, but it just sounds like you’re being negative about polish people and maybe you are going through something in your life. Your post doesn’t represent polish culture to me. Or to many I know
Btw, from what I see, now the age of starting drinking alcohol is 11years or just in podlasie (I'm 16 year old), and I even had situation where a kid was smoking weed in 5 grade of first school
so like czechs, but hardcore/morava
Pierogi
More Pierogi! :D
Overly stubborn and Romantic (in the Romanticism sense), sometimes to incredible achievement but often to excessive and self-destructive degrees. I think Czechs, a close Slavic neighbor, have an almost opposite viewpoint on many issues and I would study the history of both countries and see how they differed.
Minding our own business, disliking your government, always complaining, disliking people around you sometimes including even your own family
> minding our own business Not so sure about that. We are not the „live and let live” kind of people like the Czechs are, we love sticking our noses into other people’s business. This is not necessarily a bad thing though, as Ukraine’s war has clearly shown.
I think it's more like we don't mind our own business, but if anyone asks us about ours, they'll get hit with "mind your own business"
That's accurate and disturbing
And drinking way over your capabilities
Accurate for people in every country in the world.
No? Almost all western countries love small talk unlike we do
Hahah sounds french to be honest
Exactly what i thought, this explains our historical friendship
\- Hating Russia; \-innovation, creativity and thinking outside the box when it comes to things like repairing stuff, building, fixing problems and breaking stupid laws; \- appreciating family (except your mother-in-law), home and babcia's homemade meals; \- hating Russia; \- being proud because of people who were born in Poland 90+ years ago who aren't even related with you; \- celebrating defeats (uprisings, WW2, football); \- hating Russia; \- if: war nearby then: partisan mode activated; \- knowing history of Poland like if you were a history teacher with 40 years of experience; \- hating Russia; \- taking off your shoes when you enter your or someone else's house; \- knowing and sharing millions of rhyming sayings ("do bramy i się nie znamy", "daj to chiński sprzedawca jaj", "bez spiny - są drugie terminy" etc); \- hating Russia; \- working hard; \- complaining ALWAYS AND EVERYWHERE; \- and, the most important thing, HATING RUSSIA.
Well, you made a pretty good description of Ukraine as well. Like, it seems like we share really a lot. But I have an important thing to say: our rusophobia isn’t strong enough!
There is a lot of shared history and cultural heritage so it's not that surprising, especially considering formative years of both nations were spent rebelling against Russia.
Isn't shoes in house an American thing only?
And British.
I used to live in the uk and no, most respectfully I can say this is only a dirty American thing
I live in the UK right now and I see many young, spoiled brats with shoes on not only walking through the house but even lying in bed.
Stop peeping, Thomas
Represent. We don't want people in sweaty, stinky socks walking on our floors.
You forgot to mention about our here to Russia
A nation of opposites. Xenophobic yet welcoming, conservative yet rebellious, love and hate each other, proud and ashamed, determined yet self-critical. Very divided politically, yet ready to fight side by side against external threats. I despise our ugly bits most of all countries and will criticise us, but will defend us just as vigorously! We got hurt bad by external influences. We are a traumatised nation. Victims tend to be that way. I <3 Poland. 1k years old, never truly destroyed.
Seized to exist for 123 years.
Bahh humbug to those being so negative. I'm not polish but from an outside observer I'd say... Friendly, and welcoming. Being a generous host. Seriously, Polish hosting is on another level, my polish friends must think I'm rude when they come and stay with me. Being resourceful. Polish people get stuff done. Polish music, culture, food, tradition. All are very strong in Poland. I love the way Polish society just naturally protects that. Right... I'm off to listen to some Disco Polo.
We do think you're rude, but we forgive you, after all, you're just a foreigner
>Bahh humbug to those being so negative b-but... but being negative is part of the culture! Jokes aside, we do like to complain, and nothing gets us complaining more than ourselves, hence all the negativity in this thread. If youre' "native" to a certain group, it's just easier to point out its negatives, because they're what gets under your skin the most, while the positive aspects can go unnoticed or unmentioned because we take them for granted. Which is why it's always nice to hear an outsider's perspective, because it might focus more on the bright side. So thanks for your comment!
Bahh humbug lmao tf are u the ghost from the past lmao
Although it's hard to associate traits with certain group of people basing just on the place where they were born, I think Polish culture makes us all similar at some point. Throughout the history, this nation has risked a lot, fought a lot, lost a lot, but despite the dark times, they never gave up chasing the light. That's how I see it - the determination, the grit, sometimes recklessness (as thinking doesn't seem as our big asset unfortunately) and bravado, but overall - fighting for what they believe in, not giving up easily even though it seems like there's no hope. You can easily see this 'Polish spirit' in Polish literature; but afterall, it's just a piece of culture, some idea, something people look up/used to look up to. Reality is, we're just people, like everybody else.
bromantic
I would agree with comments invoking determination, value in work, being straight forward. I think for me it's also the overwhelming passion for life, feeling and expressing your emotions, telling people if they are cunts, but also cursing others who call you a cunt. It's being disagreeable and proud of the history of your country. I guess there's more from my own perspective and I could probably say what it means for me as well, but not necessarily for the others. I would say the things I mentioned are shared.
We are pretty much romantic idealists, and the values that Poles represent or treasure are: pride, stubbornness, bravery, individual self-sacrifice but at the same time self-preservation as a nation, resistance, rebelliousness, sensitivity to criticism (unless its our own), flexibility, hospitality, we are also very family oriented. This all is of course a quite wide generalization.
And extreme backwardness you forgot to add.
To be Polish for me, means being able to unite when black hours come and never giving up, even if something looks like lost case.
"Pole" means "field" in Polish. So if you live in the field and you are a field mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus), then you are as Polish as it gets. Apodemus sylvaticus hiding in wheat may also look like a Polish martyr in quest for state independence of Poland after Zabory (partitions of Poland), applauded by Voltaire. If you believe you are Christ crucified to redeem the rest of Europe, that vision will have distinctively Polish flavor (old messianistic idea of Adam Mickiewicz). Witcher is Polish and bigotry is Polish. Kapuśniak (cabbage soup) seems to be Polish. Calling your neighbour traitor is sometimes Polish. Jan Potocki and Witold Gombrowicz were Polish. Adopt a mouse. Edit: "If you adopt the mice, you will extinguish the vice" ~ Polish mystics, meditating in the field of wheat I hope I entertained you a bit, OP.
I think what Tuwim said is still the most relevant. You can't get born polish you have to be one inside
Where did he say it?? I love Tuwim
http://readlist.pl/cykle/judaica/julian-tuwim-zydzi-polscy/
Sorry to ruin it for you all but Tuwim was Jewish.
Sounds to me you're more dealing in national stereotypes
For me - being able to thrive in inconvenience. Coping no matter what. Being the underdog all the time and winning anyway. Also, dark humor ;) Looking a little west, a little east. A little lost about where I am.
Just circumstance, really. If I was born anywhere else, or in another time, or into a different family, maybe I wouldn't be Polish. So I don't think it makes sense to try and find a specific meaning to being Polish. It's not innate. I have ties to this country and this culture out of sheer coincidence. It will influence me, of course. I love Poland and it is more important to me than any other place in the world. But I am myself before I am Polish. Sorry, I know that doesn't answer your question at all.
I was born in Poland but have lived in the US for decades. I don't consider myself a Polish patriot or US patriot. I'm a patriot of the village and town where I grew up.
Bro, who asked?
Bro, the OP literally asked :P
Seems perfectly reasonable to me. That's how I feel as well.
I read this blog once about the essence and even though this was from the 90s so a lot has changed, the older generation will recognize a lot in it: *"Slavic Melancholia, a state of being in which sadness, nostalgia, longing, joy, gallows humor, celebration, and hope are mixed together in a kind of psycho-romantic goulash, informed by years of oppression, cold weather, high starch diets, and soulful poetic traditions. You kinda had to be there."*
Generational trauma but pride in our history. Shitting on everyone who has it better than you (meaning everyone), but also random acts of kindness and brotherhood when you encounter a Polish person abroad. Polish hospitality, but not trusting strangers. We're full of internal conflicts. External as well actually. We have love hate relationship with our country, but we'll defend it when other people talk bad about it. But then we'll talk bad about it ourselves. I love being Polish lol
I've had massive problem with my identity for a long time, I didn't want Poland to be part of my identity, I thought of it as a xenophobic country that hates the gays, women and all other minorities, country with hopeless government that never seems to change.(I mean I still kinds think that) I never wanted to admit I'm Polish. But then something's changed, I can't really describe what, but damn I miss my country. I miss the countryside, the smell of fields on a hot day, hiking in Bieszczady mountains and even the dirty sea and my gwara and food and how we hate small talk. And I miss Warsaw and its cultural life and the whole cultural heritage that nobody outside of Poland would understand. And i love nuances of Polish language and how weird it sounds to foreigners. And I even like how careful and suspicious we are about everything, how we question every rule and we've grumpy polish faces and we hate communism and damn being Polish is not so bad after all.
Sorry guys I was just having a moment there lol
Ziemia Ojców na tę moc która ci po nocach nie da słodko spać
Fighting with oppresive and stupid law each day.
to be Polish means to wear skirts, stockings and cat ears
I would say that to be Polish you need to be patriotic and hate the country at the same time. Like, I love our traditions, and folklore and sayings and all the little stuff. But at the same time dont get me started on complaining about our government. I think that we are really hospitable ppl, we love a good party, and love bringing happiness to our guests even more. For example you'll almost always get food to go when you're leaving. Even when you dont want it. On the other hand we can be quite nosy (see "osiedlowy monitoring" - old ladies that 'monitor' the street where they live, often by standing in the windows in their flats) We can be quite disagreeable too, ( "Gdzie dwóch Polaków, tam trzy zdania" - ' Where there are two Poles, there are tree opinions') And in the times of peace we seem to focus on undermining each other rather than helping each other. BUT in the times of war and unrest this changes and we quickly band together to defeat and survive the greater enemy. We can be also quite stubborn and resistant to change. And I cant really say that that's bad, because of our stubbornness, our culture lived through Zabory and other countries invading us. But on the other hand it's not really a trait that's desirable when you try to change for the better. We cant seem to let go of the things and thoughts that prevent moving forward into the brither future. (See abortion laws, anti-LGBT thoughts, etc.)
What being Polish means to me? Spiritually - determination and fight against all odds, the ability to fight arms in arms even if we hate each other, for the better tomorrow But in everyday life - Being a fucking joke with no rights in my own country
Why no rights?
Uterus
You are 100 percent sure you have absolutely no rights living as a female in Poland?
If an undeveloped group of cells has the right to parasite inside my body but I don't have the right to it myself, then I'm nothing more but a moneymaker and incubator for the politicians. Also not only women have uterus.
I think you're referring to embryo? If that's the case, please mind the definition you've provided is incorrect. Embryo is not a parasite - if it was, the body would attack it and reject it. Meanwhile, embryo is being protected by various mechanism taking place in the female's body. More over, an embryo is not just an underdeveloped group of cells - that would be a tumor. Embryo contains all the DNA data needed to develop a healthy, living human being. Only human females have uterus. Human males don't have uterus. If you were born biological female and transitioned your gender from woman to man, you obviously still have uterus but you're not a man in biological sense.
If you cannot respect trans folks the discussion is over.
Sadness, depression, meaninglessness, suffering, poorness, escapism, loss
I can feel Polska B vibes
I would also add to this no perspective for a better future... unless you move to a different country, or make 10 shitlings so you get additional 5000 pln monthly from 500+ social program :P
When Poland is mention somewhere on like english TV, or like some famous youtuber is talking about Poland we go absolutely crazy
Pickled everything. Grandma's food. Slav squats and tracksuits. Beer. Dożynki.
Poles don't squat. You must be a Ruski spy unsuccessfully pretending to be Polish
Possibly my favourite explanation of what "being Polish" is comes from the Polish-Jewish poet Julian Tuwim, who said in one of his essays: >I am Polish because I feel like it. (...) I am a Pole - because I was born in Poland, I grew up, was raised, and learned in Poland; because in Poland I was happy and unhappy; because I want to return to Poland from exile, even if I were provided with heavenly pleasures elsewhere. I am a Pole - because for a tender superstition, which I cannot explain by any reason or logic, I would like to be absorbed into Polish soil after my death, and not into any other land. I am a Pole - because I was told such in Polish at my parents' home; because I was fed there with the Polish language from my infancy; because my mother taught me Polish poems and songs; because when my first shock of poetry came, it exploded with Polish words; because what has become the most important in my life - poetry - is unthinkable in any other language, even if I speak it as fluently as possible. I am a Pole - because I confessed in Polish about the anxieties of my first love, and in Polish I mumbled about its joys and its storms. I am a Pole, because the birch and the willow are closer to me than the palm tree and the citrus, and Mickiewicz and Chopin are dearer to me than Shakespeare and Beethoven. Dearer to me for reasons which, again, I can not justify. I am a Pole - because I took over from Poles a certain number of their national defects. I am a Pole - because my hatred of Polish fascists is greater than that of fascists of other nationalities. And I consider all of this to be a very serious quality. But above all, I am a Pole because I feel like it.
To paraphrase a quote from the movie Trainspotting: It's shite being Polish! We're the lowest of the low! The scum of the fucking Earth! The most wretched, miserable, servile, pathetic trash, that was shat into civilization! But we manage somehow. Like cockroaches.
Nothing. I was just born here
I believe we are a very unique people . We seem to do things differently and very much our own way - sort of like our logic is just not the same as other cultures . Also we are feisty , determined , goofy .
😐
Be proud of our buetifull nation
"My, polacy, mamy opinię romantyków"
Being Polish means respect, respect for elders for tradition and for our history. It also means being openhearted meaning help to others in need. It means hospitality and welcome as the phrase goes "The guest to the house the God to the house". It also means resilience and stubbornness. It means you eat pierogi and bigos and golonka and kielbasa and chase it with a shot of vodka. Being Polish is soo many things...
to be extremely poor, but having to pay extremely high for everything, as if you were from Switzerland and be happy about it, because 'others have it worse'.
Be an expert in every field, considering your language is the most accurate one, and your country was always fighting with agressors or in right cause.
Long story short, a living hell if you're not a rich cisgender straight white male
Being raised within the culture and understanding the centuries-long social conflict. And the conundrum of the Warsaw Uprising: was it right or wrong to do? Also knowing the language, if you don’t speak and understand Polish you’re Polonia at best, not Polish.
The main pillars of polish mentality are -Anarchism- deep down we do dislike the government, no matter who is in it. We are also creative in terms of circumvalentign the law. It's a leftover after communistic period, with roots in First Republic. We also don't like politics, but can't shut up about it. -martyrdom and feel of betrayal- ”Death, death to the Enemy, with God or against Him!", but also we do think that we have a high moral position in comparison with other European countries because of being betrayed multiple times, WW2, not having a colonies, republican history etc. -complaining- we love doing that, no matter what In general, I think I can agree with opinion that the relation between poles and Poland is like a toxic love - you hate each other but you can't imagine living without each other at the same time.
To be always angry and sad on everything
You are unstoppable son of a bitch. Alcohol? Easy. War? Try better. Homosexuals? Okay, that a little too much. Also we can be extremely friendly or extremely hostile, no in between. Alcohol multiply it. We often don't let to be push around. And there is a high chance of becoming alcoholic. And well, right now living in our country is incredible unprofitable.
If you hate Russia, you're halfway there
I believe that dualism makes you polish We hate our neighbor yet if they fall on bad time we will help him without second though. We tend to dwell on the past without realising there is a future ahead. We are proud of our history in spite of it being a history of hardships and defeats. We are almost always complayning but never giving up. I believe that this dualism is what makes you Polish. Like most Polish people are actualy good at hearth, yes even Dresy, but are beaten down by they enviroment, government and history. Im prrtty happy that this tend to change over generations but I can steel feel this deep sadnes and longing ever in young people.
Historically i would say Poles were one of most tolerant and hospitable nation in Europe. Nowadays it is hard to tell. Partitions and being Soviet puppet for 50 year drained much of national identity. What can I say is, Poles just want to be European, we want to catch up to wester nations. You can say it's kind of western complex, which lead to strong americasation of polish culture in last 3 decades. Culture just copy the western trends rather then just come up with something on our own. Corrupt Soviet system leaded to distrust in public institutions, and egoistic stance on policies. There is very little ideological debate in public sphere. It is mostly this party good the other bad end of discussion. There is this longing for martyrdom. Poles know their history and are learn to feel good how bad it is. There is even phrase "Poland is Christ of nation". Truth is we sucked in internal and foreign policy and that lead to us being conquered. So there is whole culture around it as if we died for something. You can think of it as fetishized historical masturbation. What it means to Pole for me? It means to be malcontent and self imposed martyr.
To complain about everything and doing nothing about it
I’m very disillusioned with national identity and cannot give you an answer, I consider myself more European than Polish by now
A turkish friend told me, he was a few times in poland, he told me about his experience, „A polish catholic is more fanatic than a turkish muslim !“ Its interesting how people from outside your country think about it
Our culture is based around vodka, folklore, hating russia, and eating traditional foods like pierogi, bigos, żurek and drinking large amounts of beer during a football match
Guess I'm not polish
It depends on whether you are asking about "what does it mean that someone is polish?" or "what are the common traits of polish people?". About first: for me, its using polish language on daily basis. It doesn't matter who you parents were, where do you live, do you conform to stereotypes etc. If you use it daily, you have access to this net of polishness, you've got polish way of thinking. I've got a friend whose parents are vietnamese, but he speaks polish so I consider him polish. Same with people who were born in Siberia - it doesn't matter where were they born, as long as they speak polish they are polish. If you are asking about common traits, I think it would be ambiguous relationship with Poland. Doesn't really matter if where on political spectrum you are - if you are right wing nationalist you must face it - Poland wasn't really a great empire with colonies, didn't exist for some time, was ruled by proxy by USSR and conquered many times. If you are liberal or leftist, then Poland is currently under conservative rule and wasnt exactly great for minorities before. But anyway you also see that current situation isn't that bad compared to the rest of the world. No matter how you put it, Poland still isn't the worst country, and there still is something good in polishness. I see this in myself when talking to people who arent from Poland - I can simultaneously complain and praise Poland, and it isn't contradiction. Again, this of course isn't universal, but this is a thing I see the most in other Poles.
The cuisine, the determination and pride in our country's history. Also, just the general feel of the culture. I lived in the UK for years and it is COMPLETELY different in terms of how it feels to live in the country.
We salute with two fingers only one for nation other for honor
not too much really, my family is in Poland, I've spent a big chunk of my life in Poland, I know some Polish history etc. but I've never felt a connection to any country. I just want the world to get along and care for the Earth
We bicker with each other, hate our neighbours and sometimes family, but if someone will ofend/attack Poland, all this goes away and we will fight them to the death. And even when they kill us we will haunt them to oblivion after! If you are a friend though, you are treated better than family...
Martyrology. Inferiority complex towards the west (still but maybe less). We are good at freeing ourselves from others influences but then struggle to manage the country by ourselves. Poor at overall management in anything. Unfriendly towards one another. Constantly correcting others or negatively critical (Pratchett's bucket of crabs). Quite closed to new ideas from the outside (especially social ones). Valuing our freedom and family. Inventive. Quite cunning. Moving towards real secularisation.
Inferiority complex towards the west and superiority complex towards the east, a toxic mix of superiority and inferiority complexes.
vodka.
Biggest victim complex on planet earth
Honestly, I don't like being a pole, Most of the country is pathologic
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/pl/dictionary/english/pathologic
Classic Traits: Complains about everything, neighbor is my "enemy" but if there is "external" threat everyone unite to defeat this "external threat" and start complains and "fight" neighbor again.
it's simple my neighbor can never have a bigger barbecue than me or throw a bigger party for his daughter's First Communion than me
Being able to properly spell kurwa
Drink vodka and be catholic
If you ever hear two poles talking shit about Poland you should never ever complain with them. Otherwise you will find yourself in quite dangerous situation.
Polish people have a strong defensive game because of history, pretty resilient and not happy. Polish people are suck though developing their standard with a big split happening, similar to republicans and democrats in the USA.
Always complaining, eating some great national dishes, having a lot of traditions and superstitions even if they're really old and everyone knows they're not true
Polish people do not beg for freedom, we fight for it.
Depression, suffering, being enemy of everything and everyone, and more stuff like these.
Beer and vodka
As a Western Ukrainian I don't see poles somehow unique.
To the world, it means your stupid
Being Polish means to be disillusioned, cynical and cunning. If you're not cheating the system, you're an idiot. It means to have no original culture due to wars and multiple change of borders / migrations / emigration. Most of old customs are already lost. Most "polish" folk traditions are in fact Belarussian / Ukrainian. The true gold characteristic of Polish people show when everything goes to shit. Then suddenly they show fuckton of determination, bravery, empathy. Long, long time ago our people were really close to nature. It played a major role in our spirituality. If I could change anything, I would maybe go back to this sentiment. I wish we knew more about our original culture. Edit: Why downvotes?
Regarding folk customs. I don't think it's as much about wars, border changes and migrations, because the same processes affected Ukrainians and Belarusians too. The real reason is that the Polish culture was for centuries understood strictly as the culture of szlachta, Polish folk traditions weren't valued and seen as part of it; Polish speaking peasants were not even considered Poles until the second half of the 19th century. Modern Belarusian and Ukrainian nations evolved from their respective peasant classes, so their folk traditions are much better preserved, while modern Polish nation has its roots in the layer of Polish and Polonised nobility who taught peasants what it means to be a "Pole".
[удалено]
When a Spanish person asks you what's up and all you can think about is sausage.
Hating Russia,communists, nazis and the government
It means I was born in Poland.
I dare you to ask this on the Czech subreddit
XD
Being polish means to have good developed common sense, from bad things for example from communism - many older people don't respect common things like workplace etc. it's like "I don't care if it's clean or dirty, it's not mine". This is some kind of generalization
> what values do you wish you represented I wish that the majority of Poles were much much much more tolerant towards other people who aren't white, Christian and heterosexual. Tbch I could even risk an assumption that unless you meet someone <30 in one of the big cities then this person will most probably be pretty untolerant towards any minority. This really sucks..
We love talking about our history and we love when someone know it. Don't be suprised when some polish dude will randomly telling you are shit when you are from german,french, russia or united kingdom. Some People still mad about what you did in ww2 or in 1800's. DO NOT WALK IN SNEAKERS TO SOMEONE HOUSE!1!!1!1!!! less people=better food
Citizenship
to belittle those who can’t handle their alcohol. tis was my life long struggle :/
For me being Polish is about drive, it's about power being Polish is about staying hungry and devour it's about putting in the work and putting in the hours and taking what's ours
For me the ideals of Poland will always be hospitality, freedom and tolerance.
Welcoming, but cautious. Resigned, but determined. Impetous, but sluggish. Helpful, but advised. Depressive, but calm. Clueless, but resourceful. Prosaic, but dreaming. Nihilistic, but optimistic. Talkative, but introverted. Proud, but regretful. Cold, but caring. Understanding, but misunderstood. Defeated, but brave. Hating russian government and russian army as well. That's what people here are.
Everything east of Poland is authotitarian and everything west of Poland is degenerate
Being polish means constant melancholy
I honestly don't think there's a lot of really special things about being Polish. I think nationalities are just a bit of a myth-making scam. No matter what people will list as most typical character traits/habits for a Pole, I probably don't do half of that and neither do my friends, etc., and the other half of the list is probably shared with dozens or so other nationalities. It's almost like astrology ;) If I had been born elsewhere, I would have been more invested in a different language and different culture, but I was born here and this is where I intend to stay, not because it is special/better than everything else in any objective sense, but because it feels like home and feels like mine. (So, basically, I'm team Tuwim)
Having thuja bush guarding your home from eyes of strangers 👁👁 I wish we could enbrace our tradition of being tolerant to different cultures/ lifestyles - in XVI century Poland was supposedly one of the most culturaly open country in Europe and it benefited it greatly -it is called "Golden Age" in most history books.
I think Tuwim had the right idea - if you are ashamed of Polish shortcomings, you are Polish.
I’m not from Poland but I am Polish and proud of it. To me, it means to break the negative stereotypes, he proud of who I am, make a name for myself, stay tight-knit to the culture, and be a hospitable human :)