Centuries before first kings sat on the Polish throne, many different tribes dwelled on Polish territory: from the Baltic Sea in the North and between two big rivers: Bug in the East and Odra in the West. Back in these days, the whole territory was covered with dense woods and spacious plains (gęste lasy i przestronne równiny). Around 9th century Slavic tribes came to these regions and started permanent settlement, building first large communities and developing cultures. One of them was the Polan tribe (plemię Polan) from which the country’s name originated.

The name Poland appeared in 10th-century manuscripts with various Latin and Arabic spellings including Polania, Palania, Polenia, Polonia. The earliest recorded usage of Polish (Polianicus in Latin) dates back to the early 11th century.

Poland. Image by Gordon Johnson from Pixabay

You probably have heard another name, which is still popularly used by poles: Rzeczpospolita Polska (The Commonwealth of Poland). It has been used since the early 16th century. Why? It goes back to the name of the historical multi-ethnic state which was formed in the 15th century by Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. By the 17th century it became one of the largest and most populous countries in Europe: the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (traditionally called in Polish, Rzeczpospolita Obojga Narodów).