Christmas in Poland is a major annual celebration, as in most countries of the Christian world. The observance of Christmas developed gradually over the centuries, beginning in ancient times; combining old Polish pagan customs with the religious ones introduced after the Christianization of Poland by the Catholic Church. Later influences include the mutual permeating of local traditions and various folk cultures. It is one of the most important religious holidays for Poles, who follow a somewhat strict traditional custom. Christmas trees are decorated and lit in family rooms on the day of Christmas Eve. Other trees are placed in most public areas and outside churches. Christmas in Poland is called "Boże Narodzenie", which translates to 'God's Birth'.
Zakopane is a town in the extreme south of Poland, in the southern part of the Podhale region at the foot of the Tatra Mountains. From 1975 to 1998, it was part of Nowy Sącz Voivodeship; since 1999, it has been part of Lesser Poland Voivodeship. As of 2017 its population was 27,266. Zakopane is a centre of Goral culture and is often referred to as "the winter capital of Poland”. It is a popular destination for mountaineering, skiing, and tourism.
"Jingle Bells" is one of the best-known and commonly sung American songs in the world. It was written by James Lord Pierpont (1822–1893) and published under the title "The One Horse Open Sleigh" in the autumn of 1857. It has been claimed that it was originally written to be sung by a Sunday school choir, or as a drinking song. Although it has no original connection to Christmas, it became associated with Christmas music and the holiday season in the 1860s and 1870s, and it was featured in a variety of parlor song and college anthologies in the 1880s. It was first recorded in 1889 on an Edison cylinder; this recording, believed to be the first Christmas record, is lost, but an 1898 recording also from Edison Records survives.
Joulupukki is a Finnish Christmas figure. The name joulupukki literally means "Christmas goat" or "Yule Goat" in Finnish; the word pukki comes from the Teutonic root bock, which is a cognate of the English "buck", and means "billy-goat". An old Scandinavian custom, the figure is now being eventually conflated with Santa Claus.
Janusz Kulig was a Polish rally driver. He started his career behind the wheel of a Polski Fiat 126p and during his early years in rally he also drove a Toyota Corolla, an Opel Kadett, and a Renault Clio. He became one of the top drivers while driving Renault Mégane Maxi. In this car he also won his first Polish Rally Championship title in 1997. After 2 seasons with Renault, he signed a contract with Marlboro Mobil 1 team. He changed his car to a Ford Escort WRC and in following years to a Ford Focus WRC. Those years were most successful for Kulig. He won another 2 Polish Championship titles and became well known in European and World rally. Kulig spent the 2002 and 2003 seasons competing in the European Rally Championship and occasional WRC events. In 2002 Janusz Kulig won the Rally du Valais. His biggest success in WRC was 1st place in PCWRC in Sweden 2003 but after the rally he was stripped of his glory by FIA due to illegal modifications in his Mitsubishi Lancer EVO VII. For the 2004 Polish Championship Season he signed a contract to drive Fiat Punto S1600.
Leon Schiller or Leon Schiller de Schildenfeld was a Polish theatre and film director, as well as critic and theatre theoretician. He also wrote theatre and radio screenplays and composed music. He was born in Kraków under the Austrian rule during the foreign Partitions of Poland, to a family of Austrian origin that had been ennobled by Empress Maria Theresa.
Maslenitsa is an Eastern Slavic religious and folk holiday, which has retained a number of elements of Slavic mythology in its ritual, celebrated during the last week before Great Lent, that is, the eighth week before Eastern Orthodox Pascha.
Silesian Museum in Katowice is a museum in the City of Katowice, Poland.
Z partyjnym pozdrowieniem. 12 hitów w stylu lambada hardcore - released in 1990 was the debut album of Polish punk group Big Cyc.
"Sleigh Ride" is a light orchestra standard whose music was composed by Leroy Anderson. The composer had formed the original idea for the piece during a heat wave in July 1946, and he finished the work in February 1948. The original recordings were instrumental versions. The lyrics, about riding in a sleigh and other fun wintertime activities, were written by Mitchell Parish in 1950.
Proxibarbital (Ipronal) is a barbiturate derivative synthesized in 1956. It has anti-anxiety properties and is, in contrast to most barbiturates, almost without hypnotic action.
Przemysław Kulig is a Polish football defender who played in the Ekstraklasa for Górnik Łęczna and Cracovia.
Riessersee is a German lake located in southwest Garmisch-Partenkirchen. The lake itself hosted the speed skating events and 10 of the 37 ice hockey games for the 1936 Winter Olympics. Adjacent to the lake, the bobsleigh events took place.
Ski Trails is a 1956 album by Jo Stafford, with accompaniment by Paul Weston and His Orchestra, The Starlighters, and the Norman Luboff Choir. Most of its songs have a winter theme.
Christmas Is 4 Ever is a 2006 Christmas-themed album by Parliament-Funkadelic bassist Bootsy Collins. The album was released in the United States by the Shout Factory label and by P-Vine Records in Japan. The album represents the first Christmas album made by any member of the P-Funk musical collective. The album features re-workings of Christmas standards such as "Silent Night", "Merry Christmas Baby", and "Sleigh Ride", as well as original compositions such as "Happy Holidaze".
The Best Christmas... Ever! is a compilation album released by EMI in 2006. It contains Polish, English and Christmas songs from other countries.
Curse of DarKastle was a dark ride located at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia. It was a hybrid dark ride which combined roving motion-simulating vehicles, 3D projection animation, physical sets, in-vehicle audio, and special effects. Curse of DarKastle carried a rider height requirement of 42 inches, but with a sign warning that scenes within the attraction may be too intense for young audiences. The ride took place in an abandoned Bavarian castle, haunted by evil ghosts and a demonic werewolf.
Happy Holidays: I Love the Winter Weather is a 1999 compilation album of seasonal songs recorded by American singer Jo Stafford. It was released by Corinthian Records, the label founded by Stafford and her husband Paul Weston on October 12, 1999.
Cadmium was the sixth album by the progressive-classical rock band Sky, released in December 1983. The album contents were a mixture of Sky traditions and new elements – it contained a classical-rock arrangement of Prokofiev's "Sleigh Ride", alongside seven original compositions and the first examples of commissioned compositions from contemporary writers from outside the band. The colour of the album cover is primarily cadmium yellow, a pigment used by painters.
Slavic carnivals are known under different names in various Slavic countries: Macedonian: Прочка, romanized: Prochka, Bulgarian:Сирни заговезни, Прошка, Russian: Масленица, Мясопуст, Polish: Ostatki, Mięsopust, Zapusty, Czech: Masopust, Šibřinky, Ostatky, Slovak: Fašiangy, Slovene: Mesopȗst, Pust, Pustni teden, Fašnk, Serbian: Покладе, Poklade, Croatian: Pust, Poklade, Mesopust, Fašnik. They are traditional Slavic festivals related to the period of carnival.
