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| Podlachian Voivodeship Województwo podlaskie |
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| — Voivodeship — | |||
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| Coordinates (Białystok): | |||
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| Country |  Poland |
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| Capital | Białystok | ||
| Counties |
3 cities, 14 land counties *
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| Area | |||
| - Total | 20,180 km² (7,791.5 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2006) | |||
| - Total | 1,197,610 | ||
| - Density | 59.3/km² (153.7/sq mi) | ||
| - Urban | 712,675 | ||
| - Rural | 484,935 | ||
| Car plates | B | ||
| * further divided into 118 gminas | |||
| Website: http://www.bialystok.uw.gov.pl | |||
Podlachian (or Podlasie) Voivodeship (Polish: województwo podlaskie [vɔjɛˈvut͡stfɔ pɔdˈlaskjɛ] or simply Podlaskie) is a voivodeship (province) in north-eastern Poland.
It was created on January 1, 1999, out of the former Białystok and Łomża Voivodeships and half of the former Suwałki Voivodeship, pursuant to the 1998 Local Government Reorganization Act. The name of the voivodeship recalls the region's traditional name, Podlachia (Podlasie), and the Podlachian Voivodeship under the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1569-1795).
Contents |
History
- See also: Podlachia
Podlachian Voivodeship (1513–1795)
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For more details on this topic, see Podlachian Voivodeship (1513-1795).
The Podlachian Voivodeship was formed in 1513 as a voivodeship in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. With Lithuania's confederation with the Kingdom of Poland in 1569, the voivodeship was transferred to the Polish Crown.
Podlachian Voivodeship 1816–1837
Podlachian Voivodeship was one of the voivodeships of Congress Poland. Created from the Siedlce Department, in 1837 it was transformed into Podlachian Governorate.
Economy
According to the Polish National Official Business Register, REGON, 95,000 companies were registered in the Podlachia region in 2002.
Agriculture
Arable land constitutes around 60% of the total area of the region – most of which is ploughland (around 40%), forests, meadows and pastures. Over 120 000 farms are registered, roughly half of which are small farms of 1–5 ha and medium-sized farms of 5–10 ha. The smaller farms prefer intensive production (gardening, orcharding), whereas the larger ones engage in cattle and crop production. The cattle-raising farms are mainly oriented towards milk production.
The natural conditions of the region are conducive to the development of organic growing, which at present is practised by around 100 farms. Over 600 farms in the region offer agritourist services.
Geography
Natural assets
Podlachia has the lowest population density of the sixteen Polish voivodeships, and its largely unspoilt nature is one of its chief assets. Around 30% of the area of the voivodeship is under legal protection. The Polish part of the Białowieża Forest Biosphere Reserve is in Podlachia. There are four national parks (Wigry, Biebrza, Bialowieża, and Narew), 3 landscape parks (Suwałki, Łomża-Narew Valley, and Knyszyn Forest), 88 nature reserves, and 15 protected landscape areas. The voivodeship constitutes a part of the ecologically clean area of "the Green Lungs of Poland".
Climate
Podlachian is the coldest region of Poland, located in the very northeast of the country near the border with Belarus and Lithuania. The climate is affected by the cold fronts which come from Scandinavia and Siberia. The average temperature in the winter in the Podlachia region ranges from -15°C (5°F) to -4°C (24.8°F).
Cities and towns
The voivodeship contains 36 cities and towns. These are listed below in descending order of population (according to official figures for 2006 [1]):
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1. Białystok (295,210) |
13. Mońki (10,455) |
25. Lipsk (2,498) |
Administrative division
Podlachian Voivodeship is divided into 17 counties (powiats): 3 city counties and 14 land counties. These are further divided into 118 gminas.
The counties are shown on the numbered map and detailed in the table beside it.
| English and Polish names |
Area (km²) |
Population (2006) |
Seat | Other towns | Total gminas |
| City counties | |||||
| Białystok | 102 | 295,210 | 1 | ||
| Suwałki | 65 | 69,234 | 1 | ||
| Łomża | 33 | 63,572 | 1 | ||
| Land counties | |||||
| Białystok County powiat białostocki |
2,985 | 136,797 | Białystok * | Łapy, Czarna Białostocka, Wasilków, Choroszcz, Supraśl, Zabłudów, Tykocin, Suraż | 15 |
| Sokółka County powiat sokólski |
2,054 | 72,424 | Sokółka | Dąbrowa Białostocka, Suchowola | 10 |
| Bielsk County powiat bielski |
1,385 | 60,047 | Bielsk Podlaski | Brańsk | 8 |
| Wysokie Mazowieckie County powiat wysokomazowiecki |
1,288 | 59,719 | Wysokie Mazowieckie | Ciechanowiec | 10 |
| Augustów County powiat augustowski |
1,658 | 58,966 | Augustów | Lipsk | 7 |
| Łomża County powiat łomżyński |
1,354 | 50,887 | Łomża * | Nowogród, Jedwabne | 9 |
| Grajewo County powiat grajewski |
967 | 50,120 | Grajewo | Szczuczyn, Rajgród | 6 |
| Siemiatycze County powiat siemiatycki |
1,460 | 48,603 | Siemiatycze | Drohiczyn | 9 |
| Hajnówka County powiat hajnowski |
1,624 | 48,130 | Hajnówka | Kleszczele | 9 |
| Zambrów County powiat zambrowski |
733 | 44,798 | Zambrów | 5 | |
| Mońki County powiat moniecki |
1,382 | 42,960 | Mońki | Knyszyn, Goniądz | 7 |
| Kolno County powiat kolneński |
940 | 39,676 | Kolno | Stawiski | 6 |
| Suwałki County powiat suwalski |
1,307 | 35,136 | Suwałki * | 9 | |
| Sejny County powiat sejneński |
856 | 21,331 | Sejny | 5 | |
| * seat not part of the county | |||||
| Towns Powiats Gminas Sołectwos Villages |
36 17 118 3307 3272 |
| Agriculture | 12 006 km² |
| Road density | 52.4 km/100 km² |
| Economy | |
| Unemployment | 14.1%/79 000 people (2003) |
| GDP | 1106 PLN per capita |
| Production: | |
| food and drinks | 46.2% |
| wood, wood products and furniture | 14.6% |
| electrical energy, gas and water | 10.7% |
| machines and appliances | 4.8% |
| textiles | 4.4% |
| Private sector firms | |
| trade and commerce | 33.2% |
| services | 11.8% |
| construction | 10.5% |
| industrial processing | 9.7% |
| transport | 8.3% |
| agriculture, hunting and forestry | 4.5% |
| Administrative divisions | |
| Communes - Urban - Urban-Rural - Rural |
13 23 82 |
| Official webpage | |
Most common surnames in the region
See also
External links
- Radzilow Web Page
- Szczuczyn Web Page
- Wizna Web Page
- VisitBiałystok.com
- Podlaski Urząd Wojewódzki Official website
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