February 28, 2017

2486, 2967 POLAND (Pomerania) - Kashubian people

2486 Kashubian traditional dress

Posted on 23.04.201, 24.02.2017
Kashubians (Kashubian: Kaszëbi; Polish: Kaszubi; German: Kaschuben) are a West Slavic ethnic group in  Pomerelia, a historical region in northern Poland, located on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea and west of the Vistula river. They speak the Kashubian language, classified either as a separate language closely related to Polish, or a Polish dialect. Gdynia contains the largest proportion of people declaring Kashubian origin, but the biggest city and the traditional capital of Kashubia is Gdańsk.

2967 A Kashubian dance

Kashubians descend from the Slavic Pomeranian tribes, who had settled between the Oder and Vistula Rivers after the Migration Period, prior to the arrival of the Poles, and were at various times Polish and Danish vassals. Despite strong Germanization, Kashubian think about themselves as Poles, and the motto is "There is no Kashubia without Poles and Poland without Kaszubians". Today, in some towns and villages in Pomeralia, Kashubian is the second language spoken after Polish, and it is taught in regional schools.

Despite the fact that the traditional costumes disappeared at the end of the 19th century, we can today admire its reconstructed version. One of the most characteristic elements of the men's costume was the kapuza, a huge hat made of lamb's leather, which in the summer was replaced with a straw hat. Russet coats were made in deep blue with creases in the back, and a long narrow belt and a red-edged collar constituted the outerwear.

The russet coat was rather uncomfortable and impractical for everyday chores, so men replaced it with two-rowed waistcoats, under which they wore white linen shirts. The costume was complemented with sackcloth trousers. The most important element of the traditional men’s costume was shoes. They denoted the affiliation to a given social class and the level of affluence. Therefore, the most suitable shoes for a Sunday Mass were black leather shoes with long tops.

The most typical element of the women’s costume were woifs. These velvet marvels, called złotnice, decorated with traditional Kashubian embroidery, with the use of silk threads surrounded by fine golden or silver filament.  Such masterpieces could be worn only by married women.  Similar to shoes in the case of men, woifs designated women’s social status. The most expensive hats, made in cloisters in Żuków and Żarowiec, could be afforded only by the richest ladies.

Other elements of women’s clothing were long-sleeved linen shirts on which bodices were worn. The essential element was broad-pleated skirts in deep blue, bronze or green. The costume was complemented with an apron, silk on holidays, and linen on weekdays. Kashubian women also decorated their clothes with beads made of amber or glass, they wore silver rings with amber stones, and covered their legs with white stockings and low shoes with bowknots.

About the stamps
On the postcard 2486


The stamps are part of the series World Championship in Athletics, Helsinki 2005, designed by Magdalena Błażków and issued on August 5, 2005:
• red (1,30 PLN)
• yellow (1,30 PLN) - It's on the postcard 2486
• green (1,30 PLN) - It's on the postcard 2486
• blew (1,30 PLN) - It's on the postcard 2486

On the postcard 2967
The first stamp, depicting a sunflower, is part of the series Flowers and Fruits, about which I wrote here.


The last stamp, designed on Agata Tobolczyk, was issued on July 14, 2016 to honor Postcrossing.

References
Kashubians - Wikipedia
Folk Costume - Pomorskie Travel
Kashubian folklore - Polish Folklore Design

Sender 2486: Krystyna Betiuk (direct swap)
Sent from Słupsk (Pomerania / Poland), on 01.12.2015
Sender 2967: Hark Luders (direct swap)
Sent from Warsaw (Masovia / Poland), on 24.02.2017

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