Demographics of Białystok

Demographics of Białystok
Historical populations
Year Pop. ±%
1857 13,787
1889 56,629 +310.7%
1901 65,781 +16.2%
1939 107,000 +62.7%
1946 56,759 −47.0%
1950 68,503 +20.7%
1955 97,192 +41.9%
1960 120,921 +24.4%
1965 139,986 +15.8%
1970 168,500 +20.4%
1975 195,861 +16.2%
1980 224,187 +14.5%
1990 270,568 +20.7%
2000 285,507 +5.5%
2006 294,830 +3.3%
2011 295,198 +0.1%
Source: [1]

Historically, Białystok has been a destination for internal and foreign immigration, especially from Central and Eastern Europe. In addition to the Polish minority, there was a significant Jewish majority in Białystok. According to Russian census of 1897, out of the total population of 66,000, Jews constituted 41,900 (around 63% percent).[2] Białystok's prewar Jewish population of more than nn,nnn constituted about xx percent of the city's total population.[3] World War II changed all of this, in 1939, ca. 107,000 persons lived in Białystok,[4] but in 1946 – only 56,759, and to this day there is much less ethnic diversity than in the previous 300 years of the city's history.[3] Currently the city's population is 97% Polish, 2.5% Belarusian and 0.5% of a number of minorities including Russians, Lipka Tartars, Ukrainians and Romani.[5] Most of the modern day population growth is based on internal migration and urbanization.

The largest population in Białystok occurred in 2006 as reported by GUS 294,830 people.[6]

Contents

National minorities

Belarusians

Białystok is a center of culture and society of Belarus (according to the census, they are almost 7,500, which represents 2.5% of residents of Białystok).[7] There is a Belarus Consulate in the city, and organizations exist such as the Belarusian Social and Cultural Association,[8] the Belarusian Youth Union, the Union of Belarus to Poland, the Belarusian Association of Literary Bialowieza, Belarusian Historical Society,[9] Belarusian Association of Journalists, Belarusian Students Association,[10] Center for Civic Education, Poland-Belarus, Society of Belarusian Culture.

Bialystok also hosts cultural events such as nationwide Festival "Belarusian Song" and Day of Belarusian Culture.[11] Belarus Radio Right (Białoruskie Radio Racja)[12] is based in the city and transmits radio programming to Belarus. There are a number of Belarussian-language newspapers: Niwa,[13] Belarusian Historical Papers,[14] Pravincyja and Czasopis.[15]

Russians

Russians are a minority, they are scattered around the territory of Poland but mostly reside in eastern Poland. There are 3244 Russians in Poland, living mainly in Białystok and the surrounding region, according to the 2002 census.[7] The HFHR estimated around 13,000-15,000 Russians are in Poland. In Białystok, the main organization of work - Russian Cultural and Educational Association, organizing the Days of Russian Culture.

Tatars

The Lipka Tatar origins can be traced back to the descendant states of the Mongol Empire of Genghis Khan - the White Horde, the Golden Horde, the Crimean Khanate and Kazan Khanate. They initially served as a noble military caste but later they became urban-dwellers known for their crafts, horses and gardening skills. Throughout centuries they resisted assimilation and kept their traditional lifestyle. While they remained very attached to their religions, over time however, they lost their original Tatar language and for the most part adopted Polish.[16]

After the annexation of eastern Poland into the Soviet Union following World War II, Poland was left with only 2 Tatar villages, Bohoniki and Kruszyniany. A significant number of the Tartars in the territories annexed to the USSR repatriated to Poland and clustered in or near Białystok. In Poland, the Tatar population reached approximately 100,000 in 1630 but the 2002 census showed only 447 people declaring this ethnicity.[7]

In 1925 the Muslim Religion Association (Muzułmański Związek Religijny) was formed in Białystok. In 1992, the Organization of Tatars of the Polish Republic (Związek Tatarów Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej) with autonomous branches in Białystok and Gdańsk began operating. The Białystok branch issues a magazine called Life Tatar. The plan is to establish in Bialystok an 'Institute for the History of the Tartars.

Other nationalities

In Bialystok there are other minorities:

  • Roma - Emigration of Polish Romani to Germany in the late 1980s reduced Poland's Romani population by as much as 75 percent. In Białystok the Central Council of Roma work in Poland, and publish a monthly magazine, Rromano po Drom
  • Ukrainians - According to the census 417 Ukrainians live in Białystok,[7] There are two civic societies in the city, the Association of Ukrainians of Podlasie and Association of Independent Ukrainian Youth.

References

  1. ^ Central Statistical Office, Warsaw 2009, "Statistical Yearbooks of Poland" (PDF). http://www.stat.gov.pl/gus/yearbooks_ENG_HTML.htm. Retrieved 2011-01-12. 
  2. ^ Joshua D. Zimmerman, Poles, Jews and the politics of nationality, Univ of Wisconsin Press, 2004, ISBN 0-299-19464-7, Google Print, p. 16
  3. ^ a b (English) "Białystok". www.ushmm.org. http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/article.php?lang=en&ModuleId=10005069. Retrieved 29 August 2008. 
  4. ^ (English) Dānishgāh-i Tihrān. Faculty of Fine Arts (1990). International Conference on Reconstruction of War-Damaged Areas: 6–16 March 1986 : Faculty of Fine Arts, University of Tehran, Iran. University of Tehran Press. p. 148. 
  5. ^ Central Statistical Office, Warsaw 2009, "Statistical Yearbooks of Poland" (PDF). http://www.stat.gov.pl/gus/yearbooks_ENG_HTML.htm. Retrieved 2011-01-12. 
  6. ^ GUS Bank Danych Regionalnych, faktyczne miejsce zamieszkania, stan na 31 XII 2006
  7. ^ a b c d Mniejszości narodowe i etniczne w Polsce (Polish)
  8. ^ Białoruskie Towarzystwo Społeczno-Kulturalne w ngo.pl, bazy.ngo.pl, [data aktualizacji bazy: 2009-09-01 ]
  9. ^ [1]
  10. ^ Sławomir Iwaniuk, 25-lecie Białoruskiego Zrzeszenia Studentów, "Беларускі грамадска-культурны часопіс" (pol. "Czasopis. Białoruskie pismo społeczno-kulturalne") 05/2006 [Dostęp 07.01.2011)
  11. ^ [2]
  12. ^ "Koncesje na rozpowszechnianie programów radiowych drogą naziemną". KRRiTv. 2010-04-12. http://www.krrit.gov.pl/bip/Nadawcy/Nadawcykoncesjonowani/Koncesjeradiowe/tabid/216/Default.aspx. 
  13. ^ [3]
  14. ^ Białoruskie Zeszyty Historyczne
  15. ^ "Wybrane artykuły z miesięcznika w wersji elektronicznej". Беларуская Iнтзрнзт-Бiблiятзка "Камунiкат" (Białoruska Biblioteka Internetowa "Komunikat"). 11 czerwca 2009. http://kamunikat.org/czasopis/. 
  16. ^ Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups, "Polish or Lithuanian Tartars", Harvard University Press, pg. 990

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужен реферат?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Demographics of Podlaskie Voivodeship — This article is about the demographics. For information about other facets of Podlaskie, see Podlaskie Voivodeship. Podlaskie is the land of the confluence of cultures – Polish, Belarusian, Ukrainian and Lithuanian – and is indicative of the… …   Wikipedia

  • Demographics of Poland — The Demographics of Poland is about the demographic features of the population of Poland, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the… …   Wikipedia

  • Poland — Polska redirects here. For other uses, see Polska (disambiguation). This article is about the country. For other uses, see Poland (disambiguation). Republic of Poland Rzeczpospolita Polska …   Wikipedia

  • Duchy of Warsaw — Duché de Varsovie Herzogtum Warschau Księstwo Warszawskie Client state of the French Empire, personal union with the King of Saxony …   Wikipedia

  • Belarus — This article is about the country. For other uses, see Belarus (disambiguation) …   Wikipedia

  • Polish areas annexed by the Soviet Union — After the Soviet invasion of Poland following the corresponding German invasion that marked the start of World War II in 1939, the Soviet Union annexed eastern parts (so called Kresy ) of the Second Polish Republic, totaling 201,015 km² and a… …   Wikipedia

  • Brańsk — Infobox Settlement name = Brańsk image shield = POL Brańsk COA.svg map caption = Location within Bielsk County pushpin pushpin label position = bottom pushpin map caption = Location within Poland subdivision type = Country subdivision name = POL… …   Wikipedia

  • Gmina Brańsk — Infobox Settlement name = Gmina Brańsk other name = Brańsk Commune settlement type = Gmina total type = Total image shield = POL gmina Brańsk COA.svg pushpin pushpin label position = bottom subdivision type = Country subdivision name = POL… …   Wikipedia

  • Holocaust denial — Antisemitism Part of Jewish history …   Wikipedia

  • Dachau concentration camp — American troops guard the main entrance to Dachau just after liberation …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”