Lublin: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

Lublin is the biggest city in eastern Poland and the capital of Lublin Voivodship with a population of 361,400 (2001).

Lublin
Motto: none
Voivodship	Lubelskie
Local self-government	Lublin Town Council
City president	Andrzej Pruszkowski
Area	147,5 km²
Longitude Latitude	22°34' E 51°14' N
Elevation	-
Population  - city (2003)  - density  - Metropolitan area	354 000 2400/km² -
Area code	(+48) 81
Postal code	20-001 do 20-900
License plates	LU OOO1 do LU 99999
Lublin Internet Homepage

Geography and Location

Aerial map

Economy

The Lublin region has the unfortunate distinction of having the lowest per capita GDP in the entire European Union. It is a part of eastern Poland, which has generally benefitted less from the economic transformation after 1989 than other regions of Poland located closer to Western Europe. While the standard of living in the city of Lublin is considerably higher than in the surrounding countryside, the city's relatively poor economic performance is unavoidably tied to the poverty of its surrounding region. Poorly developed transportation infrastructure (no major highway connection to other cities, restricted and decling rail links etc.) and a widespread local unbelief in the possibilities that the region has to offer have also put a brake on the city's development.

The factories build under the Communist regime in the city have generally done poorly in the new market economy. The large car factory FSC (Fabryka Samochodów Ciężarowych) seemed to have a brighter future when acquired by the South Korean Daewoo conglomerate in the early 1990s. Unfortunately, with Daewoo's financial troubles in 1998, the production at FSC practically collapsed and the factory entered bankruptcy. Efforts to restart its van production succeeded when the engine supplier bought the company in order not to lose it's prime market.

With the decline of Lublin as a regional industrial centre, the city's economy is being reoriented towards the service industries. Currently, the largest employer is the Maria Curie-Sklodowska University (UMCS).

It has six schools of higher education, including Maria Curie-Sklodowska University (UMCS) and Catholic University of Lublin (KUL).

• Akademia Medyczna – http://www.am.lublin.pl/
• Akademia Rolnicza – http://www.ar.lublin.pl/
• Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski – http://www.kul.lublin.pl/
• Lubelska Szkoła Biznesu – http://www.lbs.pl/
• Politechnika Lubelska – http://www.pol.lublin.pl/
• Uniwersytet Marii Curie-Skłodowskiej – http://www.umcs.lublin.pl/
• Wyższa Szkoła Ekonomii i Innowacji w Lublinie – http://www.wsei.lublin.pl/
• Wyższa Szkoła Nauk Społecznych z siedzibą w Lublinie – http://www.wsns.lublin.pl/
• Wyższa Szkoła Przedsiębiorczości i Administracji – http://www.wspa.lublin.pl/
• Wyższa Szkoła Społeczno-Przyrodnicza w Lublinie – http://www.wssp.edu.pl/

• Lubelska Szkoła Wyższa im. Króla Władysława Jagiełły
• Wyższa Szkoła Ekonomii i Innowacji
• Wyższa Szkoła Humanistyczna im. Alojzego Szubartowskiego
• Wyższa Szkoła Nauk Społecznych
• Wyższa Szkoła Przedsiębiorczości i Administracji
• Wyższa Szkoła Społeczno-Przyrodnicza

• Start Lublin - men basketball team, 12th in Era Basket Liga in 2003/2004 season.
• Bystrzyca Lublin - women's handball team playing in Polish Ekstraklasa Women's Handball League: 2nd place in 2003/2004 season.
• A local Soccer Team competing in the Polish league.
• A local Rugby Union team competing in the Polish, and surrounding district league.

• Janusz Lewandowski, MEP, former minister of privatization - born 1951 in Lublin

Lublin constituency

Members of Parliament (Sejm) elected from Lublin constituency

• Gilowska Zyta, PO
• Głębocki Stanisław, Samoobrona
• Kasznia Arkadiusz, SLD-UP
• Kruk Elżbieta, PiS
• Kurczuk Grzegorz, SLD-UP
• Luśnia Robert, LPR
• Mańka Andrzej, PiS
• Masłowska Gabriela, LPR
• Osik Wiktor, SLD-UP
• Podkański Zdzisław, PSL
• Polański Tadeusz, PSL
• Sierakowska Izabella, SLD-UP
• Szymański Zygmunt Jerzy, SLD-UP
• Świętochowski Leszek, PSL
• Widz Marian, Samoobrona
• Żywiec Józef, Samoobrona

Municipal politics

to be written yet

The first permanent settlement on the site of Lublin was located in the present suburbs of Czwartek and Dziesiata between the 6th century and 7th century. In the 10th century and 11th century the Czwartek settlement developed into an important trade centre. In the 12th century a fortified settlement was established, to protect Polish lands from eastern invasions. It was at that time that the name Lublin first began to be used.

The city was a target of attacks by Tatars, Ruthenes, Yotvingians and Lithuanians and was destroyed a number of times. It received a city charter in 1317. Casimir the Great, appreciating the strategic importance of the site, built a masonry castle in 1341 and encircled the city with defensive walls.

In 1392 the city received an important trade privilege from Wladislaw Jagiello, and with the coming of the peace between Poland and Lithuania developed into a great trade centre carrying a large portion of commerce between the two countries.

In 1474 the area around Lublin was combined to form the Lublin Voivodship. In the 15th century and 16th century the town grew rapidly. In Lublin the biggest trade fairs of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth were held. During the 16th century the noble parliaments (sejm) were held in Lublin a number of times. On June 26, 1569, one of them proclaimed the Polish-Lithuanian Union (Lublin Union).

Some of the artists and writers of the Polish renaissance lived and worked in Lublin, including Sebastian Klonowic and Jan Kochanowski, who died in the city in 1584. In 1578 the Crown Tribunal was established in the city, this being the highest court of the Little Poland (Malopolska) region.

Since the second half of the 16th century Reformation movements developed in Lublin, and a large congregation of Polish Brethren was present in the city.

One of Poland's most important Jewish communities was also established in Lublin around this time. It continued to be a vital part of the city's life until the community ceased to exist during the Nazi Holocaust. Between 1580 and 1764 the Jewish Council of Four Lands Arba Aracot (Sejm of 4 countries) was held in Lublin. 70 delegates of Jewish local kahals met to discuss issue of taxations and other important for Jewish communities issues.

In the 17th century, the town suffered a decline due to the Swedish invasion during the Northern Wars. After the Third of the Partitions of Poland in 1795 Lublin was located in Austrian Empire, then since 1809 in the Duchy of Warsaw, and then since 1815 in the Congress Poland under Russian rule.

At the beginning of the 19th century a number of modern urban developments took place, with new squares, streets, and public buildings coming into existence. In 1877 a railway connection to Warsaw and Kovel was built, which spurred industrial development in the city. Lublin's population grew from 28,900 in 1873 to 50,150 in 1897.

The Russian rule ended in 1915, when the city was occupied by German and Austro-Hungarian armies. After the defeat of the Central Powers in 1918, the first government of independent Poland operated in Lublin for a short time.

In the interwar years, the city continued to develop, its population grew, and important industrial enterprises were established, including the first aviation factory in Poland. The Catholic University of Lublin was founded in 1918. The city contained a vibrant Jewish community which formed around 40% of Lublin's population.

After the 1939 German invasion of Poland the city was occupied by the Germans. It served as a German headquarters for Operation Reinhard. A large concentration camp Majdanek was established on the outskirts of the city. The Jewish population of the city was forced into the Lublin ghetto established around the area of Podzamcze. Most Jews were then murdered in Belzec death camp in 1942.

In 1944 the city was "liberated" (this definition is open to interpretation) by the Soviet Army and became the first postwar Polish capital, with a Soviet-sponsored Polish Committee of National Liberation (PKWN in Polish) established in the city. The capital was moved to Warsaw once that city was liberated in January, 1945.

In the postwar years Lublin continued to grow, tripling its population and greatly expanding in area. A considerable scientific and research base was established around the newly founded Maria Curie-Sklodowska University. A large automobile factory was established in the city.

In July, 1980, the workers of Lublin and nearby Swidnik began the first in the wave of mass strikes aimed against the Communist regime, which eventually led to the emergence of the Solidarity movement.

The first strike began on July 8 in the WSK factory in Swidnik. It then quickly spread to other factories in Lublin and the surrounding region. The railroad network and city transit came to a standstill. Ultimately 150 factories employing 50,000 workers joined the strike. The strikers used a novel tactic of staying inside their factories and occupying them, instead of marching in the streets where the authorities would have found it easy to use force against them. The workers made demands for their economic situation to be improved. They also made political demands, such as: new elections for the leadership of the trade unions, liquidation of privilleges for the Communist party governing class, and the reduction of the bureaucracy in the factories.

The July strikes lasted two weeks. The Communist authorities eventually managed to bring them to an end peacefully, mainly by granting economic concessions to the workers. However, the momentum generated by the Lublin strikes quickly gave rise to a new wave of strikes in the Gdansk region in August, 1980. The workers there used similar tactics as the Lublin workers used a month before, and this time the Communist authorities had to agree to the stikers' demand to set up an independent trade union, which soon became Solidarity.

(From the Perspective of an Australian Student living in Lublin for 12 months) The Lublin nightlife, while seemingly non existent if compared to the more exotic locations of Western Europe, Asia, South America, North America et cetera; is still there. While not as fashionable, or vogue as the Warsaw clubs have to offer (2-2.5 hour by car), Lublin still has a variety of Modern clubs, which due to the regions finacial poverty, are incredibly cheaper than Warsaw pubs/clubs, Warsaw clubs average Beer to range to 16 zloty in an expensive bar to 9 zloty in a popular bar. Lublin beer by average is 4-6 zloty for beer in both clubs in Pubs, considering you buy Polish beer, local beverages are 'significantly' cheaper (Cheapest beer the author found in a pub/club environment was 3 zloty, The following listed are clubs/pubs/activities that the author has participated in)

- MC: Named after the same person (I think) as UMCS, due to the street it is located on. MC is quite probably the largest and most popular club in Lublin. Located within the CBD, and just a short walk to the Catholic University and UMCS various campuses, it is situated in an 'underground' location. Also within MC is a quality restaurant. The club consists of 3 primary rooms. The first room consists of the largest bar in the club, with a large dancefloor and seating situated around the walls and border of the room. The Music for this room depending on the night et cetera, is mainly music found on the Top 20 playlists of international music, including Polish Hip Hop, and popular dance music from the 1990s and occasionally 1980s. The second room is the 'lounge room' with no specific music played here, the noise mainly comes from the vast amount of people sitting down and socialising. To get a seat here, one has to be either early, or patient. There are two bars. One rather small 2.5m long bar and another larger one approximately 4-5m of length. The 'lounge room' consists of bar stools, high rise tables, low rise tables, chairs, padded seats with no backing and seats situated on the borders of one side of the room with full padding. The second room situated in the end of the club, is a club entirely devoted to Techno Music in all its forms; House, Drum n Bass et cetera. This room has a bar slightly larger than the 'lounge room' bar, yet slightly smaller than the Front room bar. This room's popularity depends from night to night, yet is usually filled with a large quantity of fake smoke and widely spaced dancing (compared to the crowded front room). The room contains high rise bar tables, and on one length of the wall approximatley 4 tables for seating capicity each of 6-8 people. MC's prices depending on Night, but by average are 10 zloty for Student, 15 zloty for non student, and if Women come before 9:00pm they get in for free. Men still have to pay.

-Graffiti

-Megidoo

(to be continued)

	Poland
Voivodships of Poland Greater Poland | Kuyavia-Pomerania | Lesser Poland | Lodz | Lower Silesia | Lublin | Lubusz | Masovia | Opole | Podlachia | Pomerania | Swietokrzyskie | Silesia | Subcarpathia | Warmia and Masuria | West Pomerania
Principal cities Warsaw | Łódź | Kraków | Wrocław | Poznań | Gdańsk | Szczecin | Bydgoszcz | Lublin | Katowice | Białystok | Częstochowa | Gdynia | Toruń | Radom | Kielce | Rzeszów | Olsztyn