Łódź Voivodeship

Infobox Settlement
name = Łódź Voivodeship
native_name=Województwo łódzkie
settlement_type=

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image_shield =Coat_of_Arms_of_Łódź_Voivodeship.svg

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map_caption = Location within Poland

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map_caption1 = Division into counties
subdivision_type=Country
subdivision_name=POL
seat_type=Capital
seat = Łódź
parts_type = Counties
parts=3 cities, 21 land counties *
p1=Łódź|p2=Piotrków Trybunalski|p3=Skierniewice|p4=Bełchatów County|p5=Brzeziny County|p6=Kutno County|p7=Łask County|p8=Łęczyca County|p9=Łódź East County|p10=Łowicz County|p11=Opoczno County|p12=Pabianice County|p13=Pajęczno County|p14=Piotrków County|p15=Poddębice County|p16=Radomsko County|p17=Rawa County|p18=Sieradz County|p19=Skierniewice County|p20=Tomaszów Mazowiecki County|p21=Wieluń County|p22=Wieruszów County|p23=Zduńska Wola County|p24=Zgierz County
coor_type=Łódź|latd=51|latm=47|latNS=N|longd=19|longm=28|longEW=E
area_total_km2 = 18219
total_type=Total
population_total = 2571534
population_as_of = 2006
population_density_km2 = auto
population_urban= 1662937
population_blank1_title=Rural
population_blank1= 908597
blank_name=Car plates
blank_info=E
website=http://www.lodzkie.pl
footnotes = * further divided into 177 gminas

Łódź Voivodeship (also known as Łódź Province, or by its Polish name of "województwo łódzkie" IPA-pl| [|w|o|j|e|'|w|u|c|t|f|o|-|'IPA-pl|ł|u|c|k|j|e| or simply "Łódzkie") is a province (voivodeship) in central Poland, created on January 1, 1999 out of the former Łódź Voivodeship (1975-99) and the Sieradz, Piotrków Trybunalski and Skierniewice Voivodeships and part of Płock Voivodeship, pursuant to the 1998 Local Government Reorganization Act. The province is named after its capital and largest city, Łódź, pronounced [IPA-pl|ł|u|ć] .

Łódź Voivodeship is bordered by six other voivodeships: Masovian to the north and east, Świętokrzyskie to the south-east, Silesian to the south, Opole to the south-west, Greater Poland to the west, and Kuyavian-Pomeranian for a short stretch to the north. Its territory belongs to three historical provinces of Poland – Masovia (in the east), Greater Poland (in the west) and Lesser Poland (in the southeast, around Opoczno).

Cities and towns

The voivodeship contains 43 cities and towns. These are listed below in descending order of population (according to official figures for 2006 [http://www.stat.gov.pl/gus/45_655_PLK_HTML.htm] ):1. Łódź (764,168)
2. Piotrków Trybunalski (79,367)
3. Pabianice (70,445)
4. Tomaszów Mazowiecki (66,705)
5. Bełchatów (62,062)
6. Zgierz (58,313)
7. Radomsko (49,152)
8. Skierniewice (48,761)
9. Kutno (47,557)
10. Zduńska Wola (44,370)
11. Sieradz (44,045)
12. Łowicz (30,204)
13. Wieluń (24,347)
14. Opoczno (22,708)
15. Ozorków (20,571)
16. Aleksandrów Łódzki (20,512)
17. Łask (18,684)
18. Rawa Mazowiecka (17,643)
19. Konstantynów Łódzki (17,564)
20. Łęczyca (15,423)
21. Głowno (15,167)
22. Koluszki (13,407)
23. Brzeziny (12,373)
24. Żychlin (8,880)
25. Wieruszów (8,759)
26. Zelów (8,173)
27. Poddębice (7,875)
28. Tuszyn (7,178)
29. Pajęczno (6,674)
30. Sulejów (6,387)
31. Działoszyn (6,276)
32. Krośniewice (4,647)
33. Drzewica (3,945)
34. Przedbórz (3,758)
35. Stryków (3,566)
36. Złoczew (3,403)
37. Warta (3,388)
38. Rzgów (3,338)
39. Biała Rawska (3,182)
40. Uniejów (2,916)
41. Kamieńsk (2,858)
42. Błaszki (2,179)
43. Szadek (2,007)

Administrative division

Łódź Voivodeship is divided into 24 counties (powiats): 3 city counties and 21 land counties. These are further divided into 177 gminas.

The counties are listed in the following table (ordering within categories is by decreasing population).

Protected areas

Protected areas in Łódź Voivodeship include seven Landscape Parks, as listed below.
*Bolimów Landscape Park (partly in Masovian Voivodeship)
*Łódź Hills Landscape Park
*Przedbórz Landscape Park (partly in Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship)
*Spała Landscape Park
*Sulejów Landscape Park
*Warta-Widawka Landscape Park
*Załęcze Landscape Park (partly in Silesian Voivodeship)

Most popular surnames in the region

# Nowak : 15,460
# Kowalski : 15,005
# Kowalczyk : 13,121

History

The capital of the Łódź Voivodeship has always been Łódź, but the area of land which it comprises has changed several times. The first was a unit of administrative division and local government in the Second Polish Republic in the years 1921-1939. In 1938 some western counties were ceded to Greater Poland Voivodeship (see: Territorial changes of Polish Voivodeships on April 1, 1938).

After the change, Łódź Voivodeship's area was 20,446 km², and its population (as for 1931) was 2,650,100. It consisted of 15 powiats (counties):

- Brzeziny county,

- Końskie county,

- Kutno county,

- Łask county,

- Łęczyca county,

- Łowicz county,

- city of Łódź county (powiat lodzki grodzki),

- Łódź county,

- Opoczno county,

- Piotrków Trybunalski county,

- Radomsko county,

- Rawa Mazowiecka county,

- Sieradz county,

- Skierniewice county,

- Wieluń county.

The largest cities of the Voivodeship were (population according to the 1931 census):

- Łódź (pop. 604,600),

- Piotrków Trybunalski (pop. 51,300),

- Pabianice (pop. 45,700),

- Tomaszów Mazowiecki (pop. 38,000),

- Zgierz (pop. 26,600),

- Kutno (pop. 23,400),

- Radomsko (pop. 23,000).

Source: Maly rocznik statystyczny 1939, Nakladem Glownego Urzedu Statystycznego, Warszawa 1939 (Concise Statistical Year-Book of Poland, Warsaw 1939).

The next incarnation existed from 1945 until 1975 (although the city of Łódź was excluded as a separate City Voivodeship). This Łódź Voivodeship was then broken up, superseded by Łódź (see below), Sieradz, Piotrków Trybunalski, Skierniewice and partly Płock Voivodeships.

Łódź Voivodeship, also known as Łódź Metropolitan Voivodeship ("województwo miejskie łódzkie"), existed from 1975 until 1998, after which it was incorporated into today's Łódź Voivodeship. In that period the mayor of the city of Łódź was also the voivodeship governor.

As of 1995, major cities and towns in Łódź Metropolitan Voivodeship included (with their 1995 populations):
* Łódź (825,600);
* Pabianice (75,700);
* Zgierz (59,100);
* Ozorków (21,900);
* Aleksandrów Łódzki (20,400).

External links

See tourist information at :

* [http://www.lodzkie.pl/ Województwo Łódzkie] Official website