Greater Poland

Greater Poland or Great Poland, Polish Wielkopolska Audio-IPA-pl|Wielkopolska.ogg|w|j|e|l|k|o|'|p|o|l|s|k|a ( _de. Großpolen, Latin: "Polonia Maior") is a historical region of west-central Poland. Its chief city is Poznań. Administratively, most of the region now forms Greater Poland Voivodeship ( _pl. województwo wielkopolskie), although some parts lie in Lubusz, Kuyavian-Pomeranian and Łódź Voivodeships.

Name of the region

Greater Poland was the core of the early medieval Polish state, is often termed "the cradle of Poland", and at times has simply been called "Poland" (Latin "Polonia"). The name is first mentioned in the Latin form "Polonia Maior" in 1257, and in Polish ("w Wielkej Polszcze") in 1449. The region's name may be construed as referring to old Poland, as opposed to the new Poland, Lesser Poland ( _pl. Małopolska; _la. Polonia Minor), a region in southern Poland with its capital at Kraków.

Geography

Greater Poland comprises much of the area drained by the Warta River and its tributaries, including the Noteć River. There are two major geographic regions: a lake district in the north, characterized by post-glacial lakes and hills, and a rather flat plain in the south.

An area of convert|75.84|km2|sqmi of forest and lakeland south of Poznań is designated the Wielkopolska National Park ("Wielkopolski Park Narodowy"), established in 1957.

Poznań
Kalisz
Konin
Piła
Ostrów Wielkopolski
Gniezno
Leszno
Turek
Koło
Kórnik

References

* [http://info-poland.buffalo.edu/web/geography/regions/wielkopolska/link.shtml Information on Wielkopolska (Greater Poland)] at University at Buffalo, State University of New York