Greater Poland
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Greater Poland Voivodeship since 1999 |
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Coat of Arms for Greater Poland Voivodeship |
Greater Poland (also "Great Poland"; ,
German:
Großpolen,
Latin:
Polonia Maior) is a historical region of west-central
Poland.
Wielkopolska 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 of Greater Poland 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 (
Polish:
Małopolska;
Latin:
Polonia Minor), a region in southeastern Poland with its capital at
Kraków, rather than the whole of
Poland as a state and country.
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. In the north, the lake district, full of post-glacial lakes and hills. In the south, the rather flat plain.
Administratively, the historical area is divided into the
voivodeships of
Greater Poland, and parts of
Lubusz,
Kuyavia-Pomerania and
Łódź.
Major cities and towns
(population 2003)
*
Poznań (581,200)
*
Kalisz (106,500)
*
Konin (83,600)
*
Piła (76,800)
*
Ostrow Wielkopolski (74,500)
*
Gniezno (71,600)
*
Leszno (63,500)
*
Srem (31,000)
*
Turek (30,700)
*
Krotoszyn (29,100)
*
Września (28,900)
*
Swarzedz (28,200)
*
Jarocin (26,000)
*
Koscian (24,500)
*
Wągrowiec (24,500)
*
Koło (24,300)
*
Lubon (23,800)
*
Sroda Wielkopolska (22,200)
*
Rawicz (21,700)
*
Gostyn (20,800)
*
Chodzież (20,500)
