Masovians

Masovians,[lower-alpha 1] also spelled as Mazovians, and historically known as Masurians,[lower-alpha 2] is an ethnographic group of Polish people that originate from the region of Masovia, located mostly within borders of the Masovian Voivodeship, Poland. They speak the Masovian dialect of Polish.[1][2]

Masovians
Mazowszanie (Polish)
The flag of the Masovian Voivodeship, Poland
Regions with significant populations
Poland (Masovian Voivodeship)
Languages
Polish (Masovian dialect)
Religion
Roman Catholicism
Related ethnic groups
Poles, Masurians, Podlachians

The group originate from the Lechitic tribe of Masovians, first referenced in the historical records by Nestor the Chronicler in the 11th century.[3]

Name

The name Masovian, in Polish, Mazowszanin, comes from the name of the region of Masovia, in Polish known as Mazowsze. The name of the region, comes from its Old Polish names Mazow, and Mazosze, and most likely came from word maz (ancestory word of modern maź and mazać), which was used to either describe a "muddy region" or a "person covered in mud".[4]

Historically, prior to the World War II, the population was known as Masurians (Polish: Mazurzy). Currently, the name is exclusively associated with Masurians (historically known as Prussian Masurians), another ethnic group related to Masovians, who inhabit nearby region of Masuria, while the population of Masuria is exclusively related to as Masovians.[5]

History

The group originate from the Lechitic tribe of Masovians, first referenced in the historical records by Nestor the Chronicler in the 11th century. The tribe inhabited an area in modern region of Masovia, centered on the Vistula river. They were originally of the Slavic paganism faith, prior to the christianization of Poland, begun in 10th century. The main settlements of the tribes were Ciechanów, Czersk, Łomża, Płock, Płońsk, and Wizna.[3]

Ethnographic subgroups
The pair of Łowiczans in the traditional regional cloths.

There are several subgroups of Masovian people. It include Łowiczans, Poborzans, and Podlachians. Historically, it also included Międzyrzec Boyars.[1]

Notes
  1. Polish: Mazowszanie [ˈmazɔvˈʂaɲɛ]
  2. Polish: Mazurzy

References
  1. G. Odoj, A. Peć: Dziedzictwo kulturowe – edukacja regionalna. Dzierżoniów: Wydawnictwo Alex, 2000, p. 74, ISBN 83-85589-35-X, OCLC 749376082.
  2. Janusz Kamocki: Zarys grup etnograficznych w Polsce. In: Polskie Towarzystwo Turystyczno-Krajoznawcze: Ziemia 1965 – Prace i materiały krajoznawcze. Warsaw: Wydawnictwo Sport i Turystyka, 1966, p. 112.
  3. "Plemiona lechickie i ich ziemie". literat.ug.edu.pl (in Polish).
  4. Stefan Hrabec: Jeszcze raz o nazwie Mazowsze. In: Onomastica no. 7, issue. 4, part. 2, Wrocław 1958.
  5. SGKP, vol. 2. p. 458.
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