Opole Voivodeship

Lore & Background

The territory became part of the emerging Polish state in the 10th century, and later on, Brzeg, Namysłów, Niemodlin, Opole, Prudnik and Strzelce Opolskie were ducal seats of local lines of the Piast dynasty. Opole Voivodeship was created on January 1, 1999, out of the former Opole Voivodeship and parts of Częstochowa Voivodeship, pursuant to the Polish local government reforms adopted in 1998. Originally, the government, advised by prominent historians, had wanted to disestablish Opolskie and partition its territory between the Lower Silesian and Silesian Voivodeship. The plan was that Brzeg and Namysłów were to be transferred to Lower Silesia, while the rest was to become, along with a part of the Częstochowa Voivodeship, an integral part of the new 'Silesian' region. However, the plans resulted in an outcry from the German minority population of Opole Voivodeship, who feared that should their region be abolished, they would lose all hope of regional representation. To the surprise of many of the ethnic Germans in Opole, the local Polish Silesian population and groups of ethnic Poles also rose up to oppose the planned reforms. The solution came in late 1999, when Olesno was, after 24 years apart, finally reunited with the Opole Voivodeship to form the new legally defined region. A historic moment came in 2006 when the town of Radłów changed its local laws to make German, alongside Polish, the district's second official language, becoming the first town in the region to do so.

Reader's Guide

The voivodeship lies in southwestern Poland, the major part on the Silesian Lowland. To the east, the region touches upon the Silesian Upland with the famous Saint Anne Mountain; the Sudetes range, the Opawskie Mountains, lies to the southwest. The Oder River cuts across the middle of the voivodeship. The northern part, along the Mała Panew River, is densely forested, while the southern part consists of arable land. The region has the warmest climate in the country. Protected areas include Opawskie Mountains Landscape Park, Góra Świętej Anny Landscape Park, and Stobrawa Landscape Park. The voivodeship is divided into 12 counties: 1 city county and 11 land counties, further divided into 71 gminas. The voivodeship contains 2 cities and 34 towns. The Opole Voivodeship is the smallest region in the administrative makeup of the country in terms of both area and population. About 15% of the one million inhabitants are ethnic Germans, which constitutes 90% of all ethnic Germans in Poland. Towns with particularly high concentrations of German speakers include: Strzelce Opolskie; Dobrodzien; Prudnik; Głogówek; and Gogolin. The Gross domestic product (GDP) of the province was 10.1 billion euros in 2018, accounting for 2.0% of Polish economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 17,000 euros or 56% of the EU27 average. The Opole Voivodeship is an industrial as well as an agricultural region. A total of nineteen industries are represented. The most important are cement and lime, furniture, food, car manufacturing, and chemical industries. The voivodship's economy consists of more than 53,000 businesses, mostly small and medium-sized, employing over 332,000 people. Tourism highlights include three large lakes: Turawskie, Nyskie, and Otmuchów; the Opawskie Mountains; the castle in Brzeg; the Franciscan monastery on Góra Świętej Anny; the medieval old town and defence fortifications in Paczków; and palaces in Moszna, Narok, Żyrowa, and other locations. International tourists visiting Opole Voivodeship most frequently come from Europe (94.6%), with 46.2% from Germany.

Did You Know?

• Opole Voivodeship is the smallest and least populated voivodeship in Poland.
• The German language is co-official in 28 communes of the voivodeship.
• The region has the warmest climate in Poland.
• The voivodeship was created on January 1, 1999, from the former Opole Voivodeship and parts of Częstochowa Voivodeship.
• About 15% of the population are ethnic Germans, making up 90% of all ethnic Germans in Poland.