I'm from Kraków so i say 'I'm going na pole'. All my Polish friends from different parts of PL say ' na dwór'. And they make fun of me ;) lol.....
How do you say it? :D
It is quite easy to guess the origin of this difference. In the past , Krakow residents used to live in nice houses and residences, so when they left them they said they were going "na pole," (to the field). The field was sort of a recreation area for them.
All other Poles, in Warsaw and elsewhere, used to live in crumbling cottages, so when they left them, they said they were going "na dwór" (to the mansion). It was their favourite entertainment to look at the mansion and watch people there. Like at the cinema.
I always tought that "na pole" is used by people living in the villages, didn't know that it actually orginates from Southern Poland. But I does sound unnatural to me, I always used "na dwór".
Now a little quiz for non-polish. Where does "tej" originate? What part of the country. :)
Na pole is no guarantee of being from the whole of the South of Poland. For example, here in Silesia, which is in the South of Poland, they generally say 'na dwór' more here. Na pole is more of a Kraków term and from the villages as said above
I assume 'na pole' works fine for Poles from any part of the country if it really is a field out there, as opposed to a street, garden, backyard or just the exterior of your spaceship.
na dwór = direction (to go) - iść na dwór, wyjść na dwór na dworze = stay (to be) - byłem na dworze, "Mama jest na dworze, zaraz ją zawołam" na świeżym powietrzu = open air [literally: fresh air] (in opposition to indoor activities) - Lubię wypoczynek na świeżym powietrzu.
For example, here in Silesia, which is in the South of Poland, they generally say 'na dwór' more here. Na pole is more of a Kraków term and from the villages as said above
When I was in Bieruń(Close to Katowice) in Silesia, they told me 'outside' was na pole, they never said na dwór
I just asked my cousin about it in an email, i will let you know the answer when he replies=)
Here is the response from my cousin in Bieruń:
'We say 'na pole' because it is regional custom, it is an example of silesian language, there are a lot of differences in 'speaking language' in different parts of Poland'
Well, my girlfriend is a staunch Silesian with Silesian/German parents and they insist otherwise but the point is hardly worth arguing, especially for a foreigner