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Poland

Across the globe, Poles represent a growing population on a wide range of Web-based social networking communities. This social network is serving as a meeting ground for the Polish diaspora. The majority of Poland's social networking sites can be accurately described as clones of some of the most successful social networking sites that originated in the United States. However, even though Websites such as Facebook have managed to succeed in most other European nations, Poles show a significant preference for natively Polish Websites.

Historical Context

Occupying a vast expanse of flat land in central Europe and surrounded by several nations with histories of expansionism, Poland has been partitioned and invaded many times during its history. Prince Mieszko is recognized as the first ruler of Poland, by accepting Christianity and therefore bringing together a number of separate principalities through tributes to the Roman Empire. In 966 C.E., Poland subsequently had to fight off multiple invasions by Teutonic knights, Mongol nomads, and Turks. The Jagiellon Era (1385–1572) saw Poland become one of the most powerful European empires, but subsequent centuries left Poland vulnerable to frequent partitions and invasions by the Russians, Austrians, Germans, and eventually the Soviet Union. What makes Poland unique is that unlike its Slavic cousins, such as Romania or the former Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, the Polish nation and Polish identity are highly unified. Poles are highly united behind a national identity, despite the frequent fracturing of political boundaries. Much as Catholicism strengthened during the years of communist rule, the Polish national identity seems to only grown stronger in the face of adversity. For a nation with such a strong history of rural, agrarian life, even the differences between Polish dialects are minimal. Individuals from any part of Poland have no trouble understanding each other.

While the waves of war, invasion, political instability, and economic disparity have sent Poles emigrating all over the world, their ties to their Polish identity, the Catholic faith, and friends remaining in their homeland are very strong. This tension between ethnic unity and geographical distance manifests itself in interesting ways regarding social media.

Polonia

Because so many Poles leave and return to Poland based on economic opportunities and family migration, it is impossible to discuss social networking practices in Poland in isolation from the wider notion of Polonia. Examining the social networking practices of this country entails, by necessity, an understanding that they target individuals of a national origin, even when those individuals no longer reside in the nation. Polonia is a term that applies to the 15–20 million Poles living outside Poland. The United States, Germany, and United Kingdom contain some of the largest percentages of Polonia, but there are notable populations of Poles living in former Soviet republics, France, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, Australia, Ireland, and Sweden. Poles have long been emigrating from Poland, and social networking sites have become a pipeline connecting Polonia to people in their Polish homeland. Social networking has been a tremendous catalyst for uniting this diaspora. Social networking sites have become a place to reunite friends and family distributed around the globe and serve as a forum to discuss the challenges Poles face as immigrants.

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