Poland
/ˈpoʊ.lənd/noun
A country in Central Europe.
Did you know?The name Poland ultimately comes from the West Slavic Polanie, traditionally understood as “field-dwellers,” from the Proto-Slavic root for open field, making the country’s name a rare case of geography becoming identity.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Slavic
PSl
*polje
“open field, plain”
Early Slavic
Slavic
Poljane / Polanie
“people of the fields; field-dwellers”
10th Century
Latin
Polonia
“Poland; land of the Polanie”
Medieval Latin
Latin
Polonus
“a Pole; Polish person”
Middle English
English
Poland
“the country of Poland”
Modern English
English
Poland
“a country in Central Europe”