Rzeczpospolita is the official name of Poland and a traditional name for some of its predecessor states. It is a compound of the terms "thing, matter" and "common", a calque of Latin rés pública (rés "thing" + pública "public, common"), i.e. republic, in English also rendered as commonwealth (historic) and republic (current). In modern Polish, the word rzeczpospolita is used exclusively in relation to the Republic of Poland, while any other republic is referred to in Polish as a republika (e.g. Italian Republic – Republika Włoska).

Origins

The term rzeczpospolita has been used in Poland since the beginning of the 16th century. It was adapted for Poland, as it at that time had a unique republican system, similar to the former Roman rés pública. The famous quote by Jan Zamoyski, the Lord Chancellor of the Crown, on the importance of education is an example of its use: "Takie będą Rzeczypospolite, jakie ich młodzieży chowanie. Such will be the Commonwealths as the upbringing of their youth."

• Jan Zamoyski The meaning of rzeczpospolita is well described by the term commonwealth. As a result, the literal meaning of Rzeczpospolita Polska is "Polish Commonwealth", or "Republic of Poland". Although the first Rzeczpospolita was an elective monarchy, the king had no real power, as most of the state affairs were regulated by the parliament and senate, known as the Sejm. The Latin name for the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth is Rés Pública Poloniae.

Main usage

Rzeczpospolita is also used in a series of symbolic names referring to three periods in the history of Poland:

Other usage

Expressions that make use the concept of rzeczpospolita include: Nowadays, the terms Rzeczpospolita and Rzeczpospolita Polska are used interchangeably, so far as they relate to the Polish state by default. Before 1939, Rzeczpospolita was sometimes abbreviated to Rzplita in written documents, while RP is still a common abbreviation for Rzeczpospolita Polska. The Lithuanian word Žečpospolita is a direct borrowing from Polish. The East Slavic cognates of the name are: ; ; ; the West Slavic cognates are ; ; and the South Slavic cognates are, , , ,.

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