Language Overview

Polish

Polski

45 million speakers
West SlavicLatin

Polish is a West Slavic language with over 45 million speakers, known for its complex consonant clusters and seven grammatical cases.

Polish

Overview

Polish is a West Slavic language spoken primarily in Poland. It is one of the official languages of the European Union and has a rich literary tradition.

Alphabet

Polish uses the Latin alphabet with additional diacritics. The alphabet has 32 letters, including special characters like ą, ć, ę, ł, ń, ó, ś, ź, and ż.

Sound Features

Polish is known for:

  • Complex consonant clusters
  • Nasal vowels (ą, ę)
  • Palatalization
  • Stress always on the penultimate syllable

Key Grammar Highlights

Polish grammar includes:

  • Seven grammatical cases
  • Three grammatical genders
  • Complex verb conjugation
  • Aspect system for verbs (perfective/imperfective)

Related Languages

Polish is most closely related to Czech and Slovak. It also shares similarities with other West Slavic languages like Sorbian.

Basic Phrases

  • Hello: Cześć / Dzień dobry
  • Thank you: Dziękuję
  • Yes: Tak
  • No: Nie
  • Please: Proszę

Resources

  • Polish language learning materials
  • Polish media and literature
  • Language exchange programs
  • Online dictionaries and grammar resources