Polish culture permeates several Arab influences, according to a new research that used many elements of European culture from traditional noble clothes, designs, currencies and luxury goods that show these effects, and how it left a clear imprint in the Polish culture.
By analyzing the manuscripts of the first Arab travelers and the Polish pilgrimage in the Middle East, a team of 38 researchers found Arab archeology at all levels of Polish culture.
The team examined the notes left by Poles who visited the Arab world, how some of them participated in diplomatic relations with Arab countries, and looked at the various evidence provided by science, literature and the arts, as well as philosophy, religion and language.
"Our culture is not homogeneous, and I have always borrowed patterns from very different sources. We rarely realize in any particular regions, and how Arab influences have left their mark on them," team leader Professor Agata Nalborzik from the University of Warsaw told Polish News Agency.
She added, "There is nothing more polish in general than that of a Polish noble." But the element of the sword folded in its sheath for which the Polish nobles are known can be found in the Middle East, and she said, "The garment was sometimes supplemented with distinctive belts of Arab origin."
The researchers also found that the royal court uniforms of the nobility who swore oath and decorative fabrics hung on the walls were usually borrowed from the Middle East, according to the science website in Poland of the country's Ministry of Higher Education.
The team considered that some influences may also have come from Turkey and the Ottoman Empire, so the influences are not only Arab, but broader than the entire Islamic world at the time.
Also, words of Arabic origin found their way into the Polish language through the Turks. Examples include the word "kajdany", which is pronounced in Polish, "tied up" and means shackles or handcuffs.
Another example is the word “warehouse” (magazyn) in Polish, which has its origins in the word “warehouse” in Arabic.
Although direct contact between the two cultures was limited, the results dating back to the Middle Ages point to many indirect ties, especially through trade methods, many Arab dirhams and silver coins were found in Polish lands and some date back a thousand years .
Last year, mushroom pickers in the forests near the North Polish River found a treasure trove of coins that included many Arab coins dating back to the eighth and ninth centuries AD, and 200 silver coins were buried next to the river for hundreds of years.
It is believed that many merchandise brought from medieval merchants to Poland and the court and nobles court, including the Armenians, the Crimean villagers and the Tatars, and the sale of the goods was just the beginning of a much larger cultural transport that scientists decided to analyze.
38 authors participated in the writing of seven volumes on Polish-Arab relations, which were initiated by Professor Nalborchik and Dr. Mustafa Sweitat, and include science, literature, music and visual arts.