By Christopher Carol
The Polish language is a cousin of western Slavic languages and is spoken by over 50 million people worldwide. Other western Slavic languages include Czech and Slovak. Polish is more similar to Slovak than Czech, as the two languages share roughly three-quarters of the same vocabulary. It is the official language spoken in Poland.
English in Poland
Despite Polish being Poland's national language, a traveller need not be fluent in Polish to communicate needs and desires to native Poles in tourist areas in Poland. English is widely understood in tourist areas.
Alphabet Derivation and Grammar
The Polish alphabet mirrors the Latin alphabet, with minor additions. Polish, like other languages, has a past, present, and future tense. Unlike Latin, the Polish language does not have articles preceding nouns.
Dialects
Polish has four main dialects: Great Polish, Little Polish, Mazovian and Silesian. The dialects differ in terms of vocabulary and syntax.
Geographical Distribution
Polish is spoken by about 97 percent of the natives in Poland. It is the second language in countries such as Russia and Ukraine.
Helpful Polish Phrases
These phrases will be helpful to travellers in Poland. (1) Ja nie mowie po Polsku. (I do not speak Polish.) (2) Czy mowisz po Angielsku? (Do you speak English?) Consult the resources below for more phrases and a pronunciation guide.
Resources
About the Author:
Based in Traverse City, Mich., Christopher Carol has been writing professionally since 2009. His work primarily appears on various websites. An avid outdoorsman, Carol holds two Bachelor of Arts in criminal justice and English from Michigan State University and a Juris Doctorate from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School, where he graduated with honors.
