News / Irena Kwiatkowska died on March 3, 2011 [14]

Irena Kwiatkowska was an avid supporter of Radio Marya and said she only read Nasz Dziennik.

Genealogy / Kurkowski [2]

KURKOWSKI: topo nick from Kurkowo; from kurek (spigot), hecne Spigotville

History / Armia Krajowa - Polish underground forces during WWII [4]

What is your question? Something like a civil war raged in Poladn after the war -- Soviet-backed commies were terrorising Poles who opposed the communist take-over and AK partisans and oterh undergound groups were tyring to prevent the take-over hoping (futiley as it turned out) that the West would come to their rescue either at the conference table or throuhg armed assistance..

Genealogy / The Belweder Palace (Amann / Chrzanowska) [2]

AMANN: variant of Hamann which evolved from Johann (German for John)

CHRANOWSKI: topo nick from Chrzanów (Horsradishville)

GRONLAND: from German word for Greenland (Grönland)

Law / PRICE OF BEER CANS IN SUPERMARKETS IN POLAND [11]

I've seen Żywiec in 33 cl cans but by and large half-litre ones rule the roost in Poland. If they are not widepsread in Spain, maybe that could be a boon. 33 cl is somehow not quite enough, but 50 cl is just right.

Genealogy / Surnames: Sierzputowski & Skrocki [25]

To faciltiate the pronunciaition of -kowski ending Polish names in America it suffices to scrub the 'w'.
Makoski gets rid of the 'cow' in Makowski!
Same goes for Dembkowski, Rakowski, Linkowski, etc.

Genealogy / Need help with anglicized Polish sir name, Alexander [4]

It's a toss-up. One never knwos what went through the heads of name-changers, whether someone put them up to it or what.
I knew pf an Aleksiejczuk from Podlasie, one of whose sonds in America whose sons changed it to Alecks and anotehr to Aleks.
If we assume the name-changer hovered round the original root to create Alexander, then it could have orignally been Aleksandrowicz, Aleksandrowski, Aleksandrzak, Aleksandrów, Aleksy, Aleksiak, Oleksy, Oleksiak, Sendrowicz and maybe even Nowak, Kowalski, Piekarczyk or Stasiak. Whimsical changes unrelated to the orignal surname were not uncommon. Someone the immigrant admired may have been named Alexander Caldwell and he thought his Christian name woiuld make a good surname.

All this is guesswork unless you caaeither find some Old World documents for your ancestor or talk to the oldest surviving relative or family friend who might know something.

BTW more than 800 people in Poland use the Aleksander surname.ł

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]

I reckon some of you (I'm sure not all) prefer idle gossip and sundry chit-chat to any meaty, honest-to-goodness discussion of any problem. Skim the surface and go on to the next thing... everything nice, shallow and superficial like the whole popculture 'religion' many are swallowing hook, line and sinker...

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]

It is immaterial and irrelevant on a disucssion forum what makes me or you or some Paddy O'Hara or Jacek Kuźmicki happy...
But since you're constantly harping, OK -- the sight not only of a three-generation family at a picnic, happily spending time together but also a teenage girl lovingly taking her old and frail gran for a stroll through the park.... the beatification of JPII... winter in the Tatra mountains... an autumn colour drive through the Michigan countryside on a sunny Indian summer day.... Wigilia and Pasterka....Learning that Poland has made some signifciant contribution to culture, science or other field.... Seeing how Poles react spontaneuosly to TV appeals for sick or handicapped children requiring costly medication or treatment abroad... Catching a keeper (fish), cleaning it at lakeside and cooking it over a campfire... Jan Pośpieszalski TV talk show... Learning that an historic old building will not be torn down to make way for some tacky discount store or shopping centre... Hearing that a major Polonian cultural project, an elegant Polish-American restaurant or other image-improving project is succeeding or that some Pol-Am has 'made it' nationally or internationally.... A win by the Tigers or Red Wings for the sake of local patriotism... A double espresso and plumcake or papal creamcake at Blikle's near the Primate's Palace in Miodowa.... Taking an out-of-state or out-of-country visitor to see Greenfield Village in Dearborn and also showing him/her the world's biggest mosque outside the Middle East...Seeing that the ex-commie SLD's ratings are not growing....

So what does it all prove? Say you prefer pączki and lemon tea, Manchester Untied and Ibiza, donating to Owsiak and going to Lutheran churches.... So what, big deal, who cares! Everybody has their set of likes and dislikes but what does that have to do with anything? See my point? Or do you still not get it?

Food / Typical lunch in Poland? [50]

Wine is rarely drunk with meals in ordinary Polish homes except on special occasions such as dinner parties (proszony obiad).
This might be more common amongst upscale types who constitute only a fraction of Polish society.

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]

This is not about you or me or the next guy letting these things pass or pretending not to see society's ills. I really don't recall whetehr it was Aristotle or Churchill (strange bedfellows, eh?) or Adam Smith who said evil takes over when decent men remain silent (paraphrased from memory).

Personal likes and dislikes are wholly irrelevant to our discussion. Trying to reduce things to 'but I like, fast food, punch-ups at rock cocnerts, smoking pot, football or drinking Miller Lite...' fails to address any problems. We all see what the world aorund us is like, so what can we do to make it a little bit better, gentler, kinder, more humane?

I once heard this from a Pol-Am professor who said: Little people talk about people, medium-sized people talk about things and big people talk about ideas.

Food / Typical lunch in Poland? [50]

The concept of lanczyk is relatively new in Poland and most popular amongst the japiszony.
Traditonal Polish eating patterns comprise:

-- A hearty breakfast (śniadanie) of cheese, coldcuts, eggs, bread, butter, perhaps jam or honey, tea or coffee, sometimes milk soups in winter - eaten between rising and leaving the home for school or work

-- A lighter second breakfast (drugie śnadanie) (10-11 am) eaten at school or work (similar to the American 'bag lunch'), usually a sammy, fruit, biscuit or cake.

-- NO LUNCH

-- A full dinner (obiad) between 2 nad 5 pm - usually 3 courses: soup, main course (meat, potatoes & veggie are typical) and dessert - this is the main meal of the day.

-- Supper (kolacja), a lighter meal (6-8 pm) in many cases simialr to the first breakfast -- cold cuts, cheese, eggs, possibly pancakes.

Polish TV dialogue translators say 'romantyczna kolacja dla dwojga przy świecach' when the Hollywood film speaks of a 'romantic dinner for two by candlelight'.

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]

No, I'm tired of scams, ploys, sucker traps, false advertising claims, celebrity claptrap, commercialist popculture and, above all, of those who divide the world into 'us, the movers and shakers' and all the rest just ripe to fleece.

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]

Everything is foisted upon us by the commercialist megaforces that be -- from their corproate boardrooms, design studios, marketing departments and collaborating units come the fashions, hit songs, cleberity PR, fads, crazes, innovations and suchlike, designed primarily to extract as much moeny as possible from the pockets (and credit cards) of the public.

Gullible youth, much more likely to uncirtically accept things if cleverly packaged and touted as trendy and cutting edge, are obviously the most targetted.

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]

Are you a big eternit fan? Do you oppose thorough checking of products and practices before they are foisted on the unsuspecting public?
One can always hide one's head in the sand and pretend 'It doesn't concern me'. But, unless you live on a desert island, the way people behave influences all of society. Self-inflicted medical problems and premature deaths due to fast-food obesity, physical inactivity, substance abuse, drink-driving and other questionable practices and risky lifestyles are things every taxpayer has to pick up the bill for. The same goes for vandalism, crime, environmental deterioration, unscrupulous business practices and many other developments occurring somewhere way out there beyond one's immediate range of scrutiny.

But it would suprise no-one if Jonni again comes with some clever repartee which he obviously prefers to substrantive discourse.

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]


Perhaps, but chatting ovder the back-garden fence did not cause brain damage the way cellphones do....
There were people in Poland (and not only) vaunting eternit (an asbetos-based building material) as cheap, effective and readily available, and it still covers houses, sheds and outbuildingns across Poland.

Anyone who opposed it at the time would have been called outdated, backward and unprogressive and evoked snippy remarks by the gung-ho modernists such as : 'He wants to take us back to thet thatched-roof era!'

Some of today's social and technical innovations will invariably be seen for what they are only after it is too late.
Before plunging headlong into whatever is cutting edge and trendy, najpierw pomyśl -- to nic nie kosztuje!

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]

Cellphones are enablers facilitating excessive chatter. Using a quill pen or byro or typewriter no-one could possibly communicate as excessively. Of course, one can cut down any point someone makes for the sake of sheer argument if one insists on being contradictious, but I prefer discussion. And the thread was which modern innovations can be harmful or damaging. What do you vote for in that category? Too much chemcially treated prefab food? Too many calorie-saving conveniences which lead to muscular atrophy? The dehumanising effects of excessive Internet use?

Intellectual sloth encouragedby the electronic media (people don't read much)? Or maybe you can't think of any and beleive we live in a perfect world?

Genealogy / Korab - Polish coat of arms? [6]

We must bear in mind that heraldry is a whimsical art full of lore and legend rather than an exact science. It is closer to alchemy and astrology thanto chemistry and astronomy. Herladists often dsiagree as to the origin, shape, symbolism and colour schemes of various coats of arms. That having been said, here is a snippet on Korab that I dredged up: KORAB: The Korab (Ark, Boat, Barge) coat of arms depicts a boat with a tower at its center. Conflicting legends place its origin in Germany, England or even ancient Rome. One version contends that the Roman Emperor Justinian (527-65) granted such emblems to his warriors who hade successfully sailed such ships up the Danube into the lands of the Slavs and/or Huns.

Law / WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF THE EURO CURRENCY TO POLAND? [101]

A year ago hardly anyone was saying this, now one can hear that the euro may collapse. In fact the future of the whole EU seems more shaky to many Poles than ever before. Is this indeed the case? Was the recession to blame or has the EU idea simply spent itself and run out of steam?

Gold is now at a record several-decade high. Is perhaps the yuan in our future?

News / Which modern developments harm Poland? [83]

No-one needs explain that a mobile phone can be a blessing when you run out of petrol on a dark country road, but the topic of this post is excessive cellphone use. Used to be that mostly women were accused of engaging in and spreading gossip, but now you see not only females constantly jabbering away over their cellphones and engaged in idle gossip. How much of the chatter is really necessary? How much of a time-waster is it? What about the damage to brain cells that excessive use reportedly causes?

History / Insoluble Judaeo-Polish imbroglio? [44]

What do Middle Eastern affairs have to do with Judaeo-Polish relations?
Stay on topic. If your post is not related to this thread, create a new one.

News / Should government monitor the net in Poland? [38]

[Moved from]: Polish Government Monitoring Polish Internet?

Gazeta Wybrocza reported that monitoring of the Polish Internet will start in April to protect minorities. Is thsi a good idea, in your view?

History / Insoluble Judaeo-Polish imbroglio? [44]

POLAND'S BISHOPS ISSUE APOLOGY TO JEWS

WARSAW, May 28, 01 (CWNews.com) - Poland's Catholic bishops on Sunday sought forgiveness from God and Jews for wrongs committed by Catholics against Jews during World War II, especially the 1941 massacre of Jews in northeastern Poland that had until recently been blamed on the Nazis.

Genealogy / Koch, Kostbar, Kormann surnames from Paproc - Can someone tell me where this is Poprotz, Poland? [13]

Transliterate into Lation alphabet, please!

Genealogy / Koch, Kostbar, Kormann surnames from Paproc - Can someone tell me where this is Poprotz, Poland? [13]

Then what is Yiddish for cook and precious?

History / Insoluble Judaeo-Polish imbroglio? [44]

Agreed. These things are best left unmentioned. Then why in hell are the Gros$$e$, $piegelman$s and other money-grubber$ constantly dredging up what should have long since been laid to rest.

Genealogy / Koch, Kostbar, Kormann surnames from Paproc - Can someone tell me where this is Poprotz, Poland? [13]

KOCH: German or Yiddish for cook

KOSTBAR: German ior Yiddish for precious, costly, valuable

History / Insoluble Judaeo-Polish imbroglio? [44]

So, all the clever and witty rhetoric aside, how can the problem be resolved? Are horseblinkers and mutual entrenchment inevitable? Shouldn't Poles be able to fess up to the part their compatriots in Jedwabne and Kielce? Shouldn't Jews face up to the Naliboki and Koniuchy massacres in which Poles were killed by Jewish Soviet partisans. Those are onyl examples of mutual hostility, but mutual apologies could go a long way towards clearing the air of suspicion and resentment surrounding this entire relam of two-way relations. That could be all the easier if one recalled that many of those recriminiations were rooted in the machinations of two evil dictatorships.

Life / Polish migrants & expats in Poland? The Polish market would be flooded. [9]

OK. Fair enuf. That makes sense.