How to find work in Warsaw "if u don't speak Polish" !

What nonsense. The vast majority of Polish people are very tolerant towards foreigners learning Polish and regard it as something honourable and decent.

True, Delph. On the other hand, I can also confirm to a degree what Ktoś says!

Like many struggling languages in Europe, among others Hungarian, Icelandic, even German, often, native speakers of those languages will be quicker to jump on the most minor grammatical infraction of a foreigner than one made by their own:-) The reason for this I think is that they are still rather defensive about their linguistic status and so don't feel as though they should give the foreign-born speaker aka learner the slightest edge......the latter will have to cope with correction just as they did.

That's not what I've found in Poland. Quite the opposite - people are willing to communicate with foreigners and be as helpful as possible. I usually get mistaken for someone from the Czech Republic or Slovakia because my accent is too soft, but they've never been nasty about it.

I guess you and I've shared different experiences! I never found the Poles for instance, nasty, merely proscriptively corrective of my mistakes, that's all. On occasion, a stranger in a bank or even a store (if not too busy, which it rarely was) might recast my sentence into "correct" Polish, usually to aid clarification. No one switched to English, thankfully. Most couldn't.

Better for me anyhow, so as I wouldn't be treated as though I were handicapped:-)

Ktos, why the personal slight? (Your Highness!)
I was not generalising, just giving an example of what I have experienced. I thought that was the idea of a forum?
I think if anyone was on a high horse its you, but again thats my opinion, so I shall just get back to polishing my tiara.

for goodness sake Ktos, someone has to listen to you mashing up English on a daily basis, don't they?

Webkot, Ktoś might not have understood what you meant to say. I think you said that you feel/felt as though certain store personnel were simply giving you a hard time, and understood your Polish perfectly, am I right? As I already stated, I found that when I visited Hungary many years ago, and I tried in my level-best Hungarian to order in a restaurant and would sometimes receive blank stares, as if to imply "Dude, what the hell are you tryin' to say??" Turns out they DID understand me (according to my girlfriend at the time), they were only being sarky:-)

Lyzko, yes that is what I was trying to explain. I felt that individuals on occasions they have been 'sarky' because I have had Polish speakers with me and they have commented about it saying they understood perfectly what I was trying to say. Anyway, possibly Ktos isnt big on subtleties?

As a second-language speaker, Webkot (and frankly/entre nous, from one native English speaker to anotherLOL), that's hardly a surprise:-)

Thank you Lyzko,... water off a duck billed platypus's behind, so to speak!
Good luck to anyone wanting to find work in Poland (I'm not being sarcastic), I would imagine cities would be their best bet, but I will say that the only people I have encountered who say Polish is easy to learn are Polish people.

Who else would have the nerve utter such heresy?
lol

People! Learn to read what I write, firstly Lyzko I understood Webcot perfectly, the shop keepers (and won't matter if they are male or female ha ha) understood Webcot but his Polish must have had some fundamental errors and so some of them ridiculed him for that, same as they would ridicule anyone else. If it was know that he just arrived in Poland then nobody would be laughing at his Polish but it is not known to those shop keepers, what is known to them is his broken Polish and in Poland you have to communicate properly or you will be reprimanded in some way as former president Komorowski and his equally intelligent wife have been for their "bul". Webcot, you are not even a president. Swallow it and take it like a man, and keep learning Polish as best as you can, if you can't do any better, then it's fine, at least you are trying but get use to the attitude from time to time because of your inadequate Polish and know that mostly, this attitude, is due to the sheer fact that your Polish is bad not because you are a foreigner. Have I made it clear or you are going to keep crying about it and blaming everyone under the sun for your shortcomings?

And so if a Pole comes to the US and speaks (usually!!) bad to horrible English, the shopkeeper should then switch to Polish???!
This is ludicrous, Ktoś. If someone comes to your country and speaks in your language, perfhaps not perfectly, the polite thing to do, even if we're unfortunately not always polite, is to answer in Polish, and not switch to broken English:-)

Chances are in reverse, that the foreign speaker understands Polish far better than they speak it.

Unless natives of languages such as English or French (since huge business presence), close to 0% chance to find employment in Warsaw (or wherever else in Poland) without solid knowledge of the Polish language (obvious). Even to stack shelves at Biedronka's and the like or to clean toilets, the Polish language is required.

In what country can foreigners work without knowing local language???? None so why should Poland be different.

It always amazes me all to read from those foreigners who come to Poland, completely unprepared and who suddenly discover reality. Hard to believe but sometimes we even have 3rd worlders speaking 0 Polish expecting to work in Poland as .. waiters ;) "lol"

Firstly, do not refer to Polish people as Poles, you can do that in Britain where it is fair but not on this forum, it is offensive to us Polish people, full stop. Secondly, what are you writing about???? I never wrote that shop keepers or anyone else in Poland in response to hearing broken Polish should answer in English, are you trying deliberately to provoke me into calling you something? Because you deserve to be called "the not so bright" but in a more direct manner. And your weak attempt at making fun of Polish speaking broken English is as low as it gets and again not very bright, for, in Poland there are many people who are able to speak English to foreigners, but In USA you would have to look with a candle for an American who can communicate in Polish, we are more open minded and more educated so do not make fun of our English because next to you westerners we stand too tall for you to reach and I'm not riding a high horse, it is a statement of fact, we are on average better educated than you westerners, so it is ridiculous trying to make fun of us, first show us how clever you are, I am still waiting.

You seem to have a problem understanding the point I am making, I will write it as simple as possible: In Poland nobody has to be polite to anybody for speaking broken Polish, if you speak badly then too bad, your problem, you have to fix it, and you will be reprimanded, you understand? However, in Poland a foreigner receives a lot of concessions when studying in Polish schools and is treated with more compassion by teaching stuff due to having to struggle with the language, whereas in The West nobody makes any concessions for foreign students, assignments and exams have to be done to the same standards by foreigners as they are done by the locals. In Poland if a foreigner struggles the teachers help out not by sending the student to special skills classes but by closing an eye to some of the mistakes made by the foreigner. Which society would you like to be a foreigner in?

Well said! I agree. Polish people tend to love the _idea_ of politeness but often in the heat of the moment prefer displays of aggression. This can be profoundly disorienting to newcomers from wimpy anglophone countries.

The good news is that it's okay to answer in kind, if the salesgirl seems to be making fun of you learn a few insults in Polish (or mini-rants) and practice them until you can toss them off fluently.

Then what are you doing on this forum? Go away or we will use our aggression on you, nick off back to your western wasteland.

Taking comments out of context is western specialty as is media manipulation, everyone will read my comment and then yours and you have achieved big nothing.


Even better news is that when you toss your insults you won't be served in that place anymore and this the best news ever, but wait! There is the bestest news of all, while you will not be charged for insults as you would be in good old England, for instance, you will deal with shop keeper's friends (usually male) who will be more than happy to show some kindness of their own towards a tosser from foreign land who harasses Polish shop keepers, especially female ones.

I usually find that if you are polite to people, they are polite back, whether you speak in Polish, (broken Polish), English, (broken English). Manners cost nothing and make all the difference.

When I speak in Polish and make a mistake, I do not take it as an offence (well, maybe a tiny bit) when someone corrects me (by saying the work/phrase correctly). The answer to that is ...oh, I didn't know and will remember it for the future.

There are many times, when translating from one language to another that 'strange words or combinations' occur, which mean something completely different in the other language.

However, there have been times when I've been met with an aggressive stance when I ask questions (regarding price or reasons) which other people do not. At Balice (Krakow airport) I asked politely why I needed to show my boarding pass to a shop-assistant who told me that without that she could not sell me anything. All I wanted was 300ml of pure water, which had one price for EU and non-EU passengers. Two other assistants joined in and came at me like police interrogators saying that 'without that we cannot sell you anything'. I should have gone further up the chain and made a big fuss about it, but I needed the water.

I wonder if you (like Polonius) has ever actually been in Poland. No, they don't refuse to serve you just because you got in an argument once. What mohair could ever buy anything if that was the case?


Nie tylko cham, ale i chora wyobraźnia.... całe szczęście, że pan nie mieszka w Polsce.... ([you're] not only a jerk, but you have a sick mind, it's a good thing you don't live in Poland).

I live in Poland and not only that I own properties in my country and I guess what, I will not rent those out to foreigners. My properties will always be passed on within family and any proceeds will be carefully dispersed among persons from strictly Polish or Slavic background, so you stand no chance. And I congratulate to all Polish living in Poland and abroad who stand up for Poland, keep at it and ignore all those who wanat to bring us down anyway they can including Polish traitors and sprzedawczyki.

Then what the holy hell are you doing in Australia?!??! If you're so pro-slavic then come back to Poland and live the dream instead of leeching off of anglophone success. Hypocrite.

I suspect that he is no more than eighteen years old, and that his Polish family have filled his head with nationalistic romance.

Like I said, you are not welcome in Poland or leeching off Polish resources. Only Slavs!!! No Germans, Jews or English please, you do not assimilate, you disrespect our culture, only a handful of westerners appreciate Poland but most act as if they already own it, wrong. This was suppose to be about finding work in Warsaw without the knowledge of Polish language. My response to you in this regard is that you should keep on brushing up on Polish language if you want to hang around in my country, but first please improve your English because pro-slavic the second part of that phrase should start with capital "S". How else are you going to consult dictionary if you don't know any language, you don't want to be illiterate all your life right? Once you learn our language I would like you to get a job because Polish people should not have to pay your dole. However, you will not be welcome in my country, Polish don't like you already.

So.... why are you in Australia?!?? You still haven't answered that question.


Nit-picking about spelling - the absolute concession that you have lost the argument.


Too late! I have a job and pay taxes in Poland and most people who actually live in Poland, and not Austrialia (Why are you there again?) say my Polish is just fine.


I'm sure ones like you don't, but you're not in Poland, you're in Australia (a fact that you are curiously unable to explain).

Haha, because your question is idiotic , that's why hehehe.


How you know that someone has ran out of argument? It's when they repeat the same thing over and over or where they pick on perceived personal details not relevant to the topic. An example is provided above and in most comments by mafketits.

It's a question, and one that you don't seem to have a good answer to. If you answered then it would be over. But you can't and so it's fun to pick at (sort of like a scab).


Given your ideals of cultural homogeneity then it's relevant. Why should Poland get to be culturally and Australia not? Short answer (in Koło Fortuny style with missing vowels)

H_P_KR_ZJ_

I don't know about some Australia, I don't care, as for Poland I already explained why through extensive text.

Focus on the topic everyone please.

@Ktoś,

Sometimes your English is rather hard to follow, but if I get the gist of what you're saying, it boils down to this; people who have a problem with the "impoliteness" of Polish people towards foreigners trying to speak Polish, essentially, it's OUR problem, and not yours! Is that about right??

Incidentally, "Poles" is both perfectly correct and polite as well:-)

I'd like to add that Polish has a standard, on average, a higher one than, say, English, where, especially here in the States, it seems everything (and anything) goes and no one raises a finger in protest!

Once, there existed a similar standard to that of the UK, France and the rest of the continent, but those days are gone forever(:-

Random person reading this discussion. Ktos, you are a extremely rude and abrasive. Did you stick a pinecone up your butt or something?

No, webreadw2! Not really. Ktoś's merely being what we on the other side of the pond occasionally refer to as a "character", that's all. Like many Europeans, much older Brits included, our friend is bemoaning the loss of his beloved homogeneous, familiar, przytulny (gemuetlich) Polish culture, and to a degree, I for one can't really blame him:-)

After all, you may be corresponding with a latent Trump supporter.

Having said that, not to get off the topic, we were arguing the merits of politeness vs. the lack thereof when dealing with visitors to Poland who have little to zero knowledge of language.