Why do majority of Polish are afraid to admit their nationality?

MEMBER ♂

Edited by: Havok Mar 15, 10, 04:04 #1

I'm New to PF. So far I really like it. :)

I visited Poland after 12 years, a few years ago. At the airport in Frankfurt, I’ve noticed some Polish speaking family near the gate to Pyrzowice. I felt like chatting so I approached them and greeted them as politely as I could. They were trying to assure me in broken English that none of them speaks Polish.
After few more encounters like this I've realized it's very common.

In your opinion what is the base for behavior like this?

♀

Edited by: asik Mar 15, 10, 05:32 #2

Havok:

In your opinion what is the base for behavior like this?

The base could be, they were not Polish.
Havok in your profile, it states : Yes, somewhat when asked if you know Polish language and I'm convinced you probably missunderstood the peoples language.
There are other similarly sounding languages to Polish, like Slovak language ( from Slovakia) or Ukrainian (from Ukraine) .
There are no reasons why would Polish people not want to be recognised as a Polish citizens unless they were some kind of weirdos or otherwise they were scared of you (maybe you tried too hard to get to know them).

Some other reasons could be, Polish people are very reserved towards unknown person . That's our Polish culture, we need time to get to know people before we can trust them or engage in conversation.
We are very formal to unkown person. I mean Poles living in Poland, because Poles from around the world are much different and more approachable- you should remember that.

beckskiThreads: 19 Posts: 2,148 Joined: May 15, 07 MEMBER ♀	Edited by: beckski Mar 15, 10, 06:09 #3
Havok: Why do majority of Polish are afraid to admit their nationality? Havok: After few more encounters like this I don't think it is very realistic comparing a few encounters, with the majority of Polish people. A sincere thanks PF, for putting up with me FIVE terrific years, muah!

♀

Edited by: f stop Mar 15, 10, 07:35 #4

I was really surprised by this question. Are you serious, I thought? I am known around here as the "Polish girl" and never met anyone that would lie about being Polish. As a matter of fact, I can't think of anyone here that would not proudly admit to being Cuban, Puerto Rican, American, Nicaraguan... some listing their nationalities down to quarters and eigths, proud of every piece. What on earth is going on over there in Europe?

MEMBER ♂

Edited by: Torq Mar 15, 10, 07:48 #5

LOL

Are you for real, Havoc?

Being Polish (and preferably Catholic) is like winning a ticket in the lottery of life!

I've never met anyone who wouldn't admit that they're Polish and Poles abroad
are trying to show their Polishness most of the time. When I was abroad, I very
often wore a t-shirt with storks and "Made In Poland" written on it and got only
positive reactions from the natives :-)

I always made a sign of the cross when going out of the house in the morning,
wore my best suit every Sunday when I went to Mass and my neighbours
loved me! (well, those bottles of vodka that I gave them probably helped too ;)).

frdThreads: 8 Posts: 1,956 Joined: Feb 3, 09 ♂	Mar 15, 10, 08:52 #6
"Majority of Poles" sounds like you've met sometime in your life most of out countries citizens... ; o

HavokThreads: 14 Posts: 1,508 Joined: Mar 12, 10 MEMBER ♂	Mar 15, 10, 13:45 #7
I’m not afraid to be honest. I’m a “secure” Polish person. Guys, you're missing the point. I'm Polish myself. I do speak the language. I know for a fact that this is occurring I just wanted to know what other intelligent people have to say about it.

HarryThreads: 62 Posts: 8,508 Joined: May 2, 07 ♂ [Suspended]	Mar 15, 10, 13:54 #8
Torq: Being Polish (and preferably Catholic) is like winning a ticket in the lottery of life! How unfortunate for you: all you get is a free ticket. The winning ticket does not go to anybody Polish. As we all know, to have been born British is to have drawn the winning ticket in the lottery of life.

purplewolfThreads: 2 Posts: 63 Joined: Mar 13, 10 ♂	Mar 15, 10, 13:55 #9
Havok: In your opinion what is the base for behavior like this? Totally unfounded inferiority complex typical for postcommunist societies.. However I observe very positive phenomenon: Poles seem to be more'n'more proud of their nationality nowadays... and that's good because they've got plenty of reasons to be proud of themselves..

TorqThreads: 65 Posts: 4,024 Joined: Apr 10, 09 MEMBER ♂	Edited by: Torq Mar 15, 10, 13:56 #10
Harry: As we all know, to have been born British is to have drawn the winning ticket in the lottery of life. Yes - that's what I wanted to say, only you have to replace 'British' with 'Polish' :)

♂

Mar 15, 10, 13:58 #11

Havok:

I’m not afraid to be honest. I’m a “secure” Polish person. Guys, you're missing the point. I'm Polish myself. I do speak the language. I know for a fact that this is occurring I just wanted to know what other intelligent people have to say about it.

The statement in your profile:
"Znasz j. polski?: yes, somewhat" suggest that you rather learn Polish language, or in the process of learning than that you are a native Polish speaker. So, Havok - why DO YOU are afraid to clearly admit that you are a Polish? Heh?

♂

Mar 15, 10, 14:02 #12

Havok:

near the gate to Pyrzowice

IME most Polish people aren't interested in meeting new people by chance. They prefer to meet new people through people that they already know. Also, Polish people especially do not seek out other Polish people when abroad (and guidebooks often explicitly advise Poles moving abroad to avoid other Poles). I could easily imagine that a stranger coming up them in public speaking oddly accented Polish (if you've been away 12 years) would set off the warning bells.

HarryThreads: 62 Posts: 8,508 Joined: May 2, 07 ♂ [Suspended]	Mar 15, 10, 14:10 #13
Torq: Harry: As we all know, to have been born British is to have drawn the winning ticket in the lottery of life. Yes - that's what I wanted to say, only you have to replace 'British' with 'Polish' :) But if you do that, you need to replace the word "winning" with "second place".

purplewolfThreads: 2 Posts: 63 Joined: Mar 13, 10 ♂	Edited by: purplewolf Mar 15, 10, 14:27 #14
Harry: As we all know, to have been born British is to have drawn the winning ticket in the lottery of life. Sure thing!... Living amongst rapidly growing population of fanatical muslim goatfuuckers is a pure fun by definition...

♀

Mar 15, 10, 14:27 #15

mafketis:

Also, Polish people especially do not seek out other Polish people when abroad (and guidebooks often explicitly advise Poles moving abroad to avoid other Poles).

That is surprising to me too! The most common way I meet Polish people here is when either I hear them or they hear me speaking Polish. Since it's still quite rare around where I live, we always use the opportunity to introduce ourselves and chat..
Why do guidebooks advise otherwise?

MEMBER ♂

Mar 15, 10, 14:29 #16

enkidu:

"Znasz j. polski?: yes, somewhat" suggest that you rather learn Polish language, or in the process of learning than that you are a native Polish speaker. So, Havok - why DO YOU are afraid to clearly admit that you are a Polish? Heh?

Honestly, my family jokes with me a lot because i have an accent in my Polish. Also i can't spell well in Polish. I developed a complex. I just don't want anyone to call me out and test me.

♂

Mar 15, 10, 15:07 #17

f stop:

The most common way I meet Polish people here is when either I hear them or they hear me speaking Polish. Since it's still quite rare around where I live, we always use the opportunity to introduce ourselves and chat..
Why do guidebooks advise otherwise?

The stereotype is that Polish people established in a place (outside Poland) have a tendency to .... prey upon new arrivals. And there is certainly some truth to that. If you remember when Poland joined the EU and Polish people started arriving in numbers in the UK there were lots of stories of people getting cheated by friendly Poles they met just as they got off the bus.

Personally I've noticed when I've been abroad with Poles they seem uninterested in other Poles whose paths they cross. An American in a foreign country who hears an American voice will often say a quick 'hello' while Poles mostly don't.

♀

Mar 15, 10, 15:11 #18

Havok:

After few more encounters like this I've realized it's very common.

Well it's true. I met a guy in Mikolajki at a live music concert and he said he was from England. We started talking and it was pretty obvious after a couple of sentences that he wasn't. He thought I was Polish at first and just try to speak English. When I told him I was an American, he went to the bathroom and never came back, lol. I saw him later that night, drunk and speaking fluent Polish with his friends at the bar.

♂

Mar 15, 10, 15:19 #19

I don't think the majority of Polish are afraid to do this at all. Some are aware of the malaise in the UK given the swamping effect but that's understandable. Nobody wants to face reprisals (odwety) at the hands of some mercenary fool.

On a different note, Poles who have lived in Germany for some time will sometimes try and mask their Polishness. There was a case here where a Pole insisted on speaking German to the Polish bakery staff. He was mumbling sth about German stuff being better and he refused to speak or have anything to do with Polish. My wife reprimanded him for being such a burak.

cukierpudelThreads: - Posts: 5 Joined: Mar 12, 10 ♂	Edited by: cukierpudel Mar 15, 10, 16:29 #20
I never lie about my origin. I'm Polish. I live in Wales. But its funny sometimes, when I met a nice girl in a club. She turns around to me smiling and asking: - where are you from ? - Poland silence - which part of Poland? (standard question) :-) or - Where are you from ? - Poland - Ahh! I love Amsterdam! (Poland - Holland)

♂

Edited by: cukierpudel Mar 15, 10, 16:59 #21

Havok - your question in the topic is tendentious. It assumes that it is true that Polish people are afraid to admit their nationality.
You imply that it is true.

Anyway. I have some funny stories with my country people.
I was waiting for a train in Borth. It was late evening and there were maybe 4 people on the platform.
Some guy had started talking to me and we engaged in a conversation when I heard a young couple speaking Polish:

"...A jak wrocimy to zrobisz mi tak dobrze jak zawsze, a potem zrobimy sobie dzidziusia. Fajnie ze nas nikt tutaj nie rozumie." or something like this.
She was talking to his boyfriend about how they going to play tonight :-) And then she said: "Its funny nobody can understand us here". Then I stood up and said "Ja rozumiem!" (I can !). And then she turned red , went silent and the train arrived :-)

Another story:

I was sitting on a bench looking at the Cardigan Bay, when two girls asked me (in English) if they can sit with me. After a while I heard them saying in Polish "He smells nice , must be waiting for somebody..." :-)))

Sometimes its worth to wait with "breaking the cover" ;-)

f stopThreads: 33 Posts: 2,861 Joined: Dec 9, 09 ♀	Edited by: f stop Mar 15, 10, 17:54 #22
most frequent reaction when I tell people that I'm Polish is "Oh! My grandmother (great grandfather, step-dad, boyfriend's father, etc etc...) is Polish! I also had to explain few times where Poland is, especially to YUTs.

Mr GrunwaldThreads: 34 Posts: 2,358 Joined: Dec 16, 08 ♂	Mar 16, 10, 03:15 #23
Yeah I hear alot of people speaking Polish when im at a supermarket or something. Usely I just listen to what they say as they pass by... Their strangers... I am a stranger... common language... what's the deal really?

♂

Mar 16, 10, 03:54 #24

this is a good question.. i saw it last night and just had to think about it... i'm not sure if it's a majority of poles that are "ashamed" of their polishness but it is true.. i am thinking it's because poland has never been a "cool" country to be from... i can't think of another reason for it.. in the past i didn't always admit being from PL right away.. but most people have no idea i'm not an american...

optsThreads: 12 Posts: 333 Joined: Jul 29, 06 ♂	Edited by: opts Mar 16, 10, 05:21 #25
Havok: After few more encounters like this I've realized it's very common. You had few encounters or met few Poles who either were afraid to admit that they were Polish or maybe they just did not wish speak with you. With your limited experience and intellect you can not make such broad generalizations.

♂

Edited by: czar Mar 16, 10, 07:17 #26

hah Torq=win / harry plotter =last place

in america italians not to harp on them but i will so, they fly the italian flag at equal height or across from the american flag, or by itself without the stars and stripes. now i can see this and let it go but it is everywhere all the time to the point where they are making another statement rather than showing pride.

my grandpa lived in a house built in the late 1700's and flew USA everyday, now around here at the"guido shore" I see wind torn flags everywhere left to rip off the pole heh, anyway on topic

if i traveled at this point to poland even i might not advertise i am american.

FUZZYWICKETSThreads: 12 Posts: 1,999 Joined: Nov 3, 09 ♂	Mar 16, 10, 07:50 #27
czar wrote: now around here at the"guido shore" you must live in Jersey.

czarThreads: 4 Posts: 248 Joined: Mar 3, 10 ♂	Edited by: czar Mar 16, 10, 08:27 #28
yeah it burns me up to know NJ the way it was and is and should be and to have it known for guidos and gangsters (i mean that stuff is real) but off topic ill start a nueve jersy thread sometime.

HavokThreads: 14 Posts: 1,508 Joined: Mar 12, 10 MEMBER ♂	Mar 16, 10, 14:15 #29
Pretty interesting stuff because i just realized that I found more people like myself. Half and half and also interested in what makes the world tick. Thank you for answering my question.

POLAND . The Unofficial Guide	Unanswered \| Archives
POLAND . The Unofficial Guide	Republic of Poland Online	Witamy, Guest \| PF Members \| Gold Members

Home \| Unanswered \| Archives \| Random \| Statistics	Time in Poland: 04:19 / May 27
About Us \| Contact Us \| Rules, Privacy \| Poland Advertising	© 2005-12 PolishForums.com