Flags, Symbols & Currency of Poland

The National Flag of Poland was officially adopted on August 1, 1919.

The National Flag of Poland features two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and red. The flag colors have long been associated with Poland and its coat of arms. The white color represents the hope for peace by all the people of Poland. The red color symbolizes the many struggles for freedom over the centuries. The flag has a height-to-width ratio of 5:8.

History of the flag of Poland

Several different flags have been used in Poland before the current flag was adopted. In 1138, the Kingdom of Poland was made up of several duchies, each of which had its banner. In 1320, Poland became unified under King Wladyslaw, whose coat of arms consisting of a white eagle with a crown on its head, was used as the national symbol. In 1569, through the Union of Lublin, the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania united to become a commonwealth. The colors of the flag were adopted from the coat of arms of both the nations and consisted of the eagle of Poland and the mounted knight of the King of Lithuania. At the end of the 18^th century, Austria, Russia, and Prussia collaborated to dissolve the commonwealth and break the union between Poland and Lithuania. Subsequently, Poland became a partitioned territory for the next 123 years. A new coat of arms was adopted by most of the partitioned regions, while some of them chose to retain the white eagle. During WWI, the German control over the Western-Polish Lithuanian region broke due to the Bolshevik Revolution, resulting in the crippling of Russia’s authority over the region. As a result, Poland became independent of these foreign powers. However, the previous red flag with the white eagle was rejected and a simple horizontal bicolor (white-red) flag was adopted as the national flag.

National Anthem

• Anthem Title: "Mazurek Dąbrowskiego" ("Poland Is Not Yet Lost")
• Music Composer: Unknown
• Lyricist: Józef Wybicki
• Date of Adoption: 1926

"Mazurek Dąbrowskiego" ("Poland Is Not Yet Lost") is the national anthem of Poland. The music composer of the anthem is still unkown and the music is probably based on a traditional folk song. The lyrics of the anthem have been penned by Józef Wybicki. The anthem was officially adopted in 1926.

The current official currency of Poland is Polish złoty (zł, PLN). The Polish złoty is subdivided into 100 groszy (cents). In 1990, Poland redenominated the złoty, where, one new złoty was equal to 10,000 old złotys. The National Bank of Poland, the country's central bank, is responsible for producing and maintaining the stability of the złoty. In 1990, a fourth version of the złoty was introduced and is the country's current currency. Coins were minted in 1994 and circulated in 1995.

Coins

The current version of polish złoty coins were first minted in 1990, but not circulated until 1995. There are one hundred groszy (gr) to one złoty (zł). The coins in circulation are the one grosz, two grosze, five groszy, ten groszy, 20 groszy, 50 groszy, 1 zł, 2 zł, and 5 zł.

Banknotes

Unlike the minting of coins, the production of banknotes posed a bigger challenge. In 1990, a new version of the banknotes was printed in the denominations of 10 zł, 20 zł, 50 zł, 100 zł, and 200 zł. In 2012, the National Bank of Poland introduced a new feature on its banknotes. Apart from the new feature, everything else remains the same except for the 200zł note, whose color was changed.

Historical currencies of Poland

During the 14^th and 15^th centuries, any foreign gold currency that was used in the duchies of Germany and Ruthenia was known as zloty. Poland created a national currency in 1496, that was equivalent to 30 groschens of Prague and known as Polski zloty (golden Polish). Under the rule of Stanislaw August Poniatowski in the 18^th century, the zloty became the official currency. It was replaced by the Russian rouble from 1850-1917 and by the Polish mark from 1917-1924. After WWI, the resulting economic crisis and hyperinflation led to the reintroduction of the zloty. After undergoing several devaluations, a new zloty was introduced in 1950 (PLZ) that equaled 100 old zloties. Again due to hyperinflation and subsequent decimalization, a new zloty (PLN) was introduced, where 10,000 old zloties (PlZ) equaled 1 new zloty (PLN).