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Polaco (lit. 'Pole') is a derogatory term used in Spain to refer to a Catalan person. Its etymological origins are uncertain, and all existing theories are speculative, usually based on the fact that the same word also refers to Polish people. The term is primarily used in Madrid and the regions bordering Catalonia. Although rarely found in literature, it is common in colloquial speech, particularly during sporting events. Within Catalonia, the term has been reclaimed in some contexts, used without its derogatory connotations to differentiate Catalans from other Spaniards. The term is generally unknown in Poland.

Antecedents

Historically the term "polacos" has been twice used in Spanish as an abuse or smear. In the late 18th century the name was applied to followers of one of two Madrid drama schools; in theatrical auditoria they used to trade insults with a competitive group, named "chorizos". The name allegedly stemmed from a cleric known as Padre Polaco, who used to lead his band.^[1] Both groupings were revived almost a century later with a popular zarzuela of Luis Mariano de Larra Chorizos y polacos (1876);^[2] the title immortalized both names, though there is no indication that they were used beyond the theatrical realm or had anything to do with Catalonia.^[3] Once more the term "polacos" emerged against an entirely different background in the mid-1850s; the name was applied to a faction of Partido Moderado. The grouping was led by Luis José Sartorius, a politician erroneously supposed to be of Polish origin.^[4] Because of the way the group operated, the terms "polacada", "polaquería" and "polaquísmo" soon started to stand for favoritism, cronyism and arbitrary personal decisions; the term "polaco" denoted a member of a clientelist political network.^[5] The name disappeared from public usage following Sartorius’ death, yet it enjoyed temporary revival in the 1880s^[6] and made it from the press to literature appearing in Miau, a novel of Benito Pérez Galdós (1888).^[7] The term "polacada" barely survived in Spanish until today, in dictionaries defined as "an act of favoritism";^[8] when denoting a crony the word "polaco" disappeared entirely. One more episode of Poland-related naming practice occurred during the lifetime of the First Spanish Republic. Few liberal politicians dubbed Spain "Poland of the South"; the term was by no means derogatory and it was supposed to suggest that like Poland in the late 18th century, Spain faced a threat of a foreign reactionary intervention. The name was not anyhow related to Catalonia; adopted only among a small circle of liberal intellectuals it was used in the 1870s and did not make it as a commonly used reference.^[9]

Origins

Origins of the anti-Catalan usage of "polacos" are obscure.^[10] The theories striving to clarify the issue are abundant, yet they are all purely speculative and can hardly be verified. The most far-reaching hypothesis claims that supposed 17th-century merchant relations between Catalonia and Poland proved fertile soil for growth of ethnic stereotypes.^[11] Another theory points to the 18th-century theatrical debate, though it provides no clue as to the Catalan link.^[12] One more idea is about Polish soldiers fighting in Spain and by enemies confused with their Catalan allies; specifically some point to the War of Succession,^[13] some to the Peninsular War^[14] and some to the French intervention of 1823.^[15] There is a concept which reverts to Sartorius; his supposed Catalan cronies was allegedly the reason why the name was applied to the Catalans.^[16] Some authors dwell upon perceived parallelism between the Polish independence movement of the late 19th century and the emergent Catalan^[17] or Basque^[18] nationalisms. Divided between France and Spain, Catalonia – the theory goes – resembled Poland, the country divided between Germany, Austria and Russia;^[19] another version is that Catalan deputies to the Cortes were dubbed "Poles" because of their national exaltation.^[20] Few suggest that the derogatory term was exported to Spain by the Prussians.^[21] Others point to the Civil War period, when allegedly Nationalist soldiers on the Aragon front confused the Polish International Brigades volunteers with the Catalan Republican belligerents.^[22] One more group of students claim that the victorious Nationalists pledged to wipe out Catalonia from the maps just like the Germans did in case of Poland in 1939.^[23] A fairly popular thesis partially supported by evidence is that the insult emerged during Francoism^[24] as part of the barrack argot; the reference to Poland was casual^[25] and the term was to stigmatize Catalan recruits as "alien".^[26] There is a group of theories which do not refer to any point in time but bank on presumed similarities between the Catalans and the Poles, be it linguistic ("slurping" sound of the language),^[27] religious (black Madonnas of Częstochowa and Montserrat)^[28] or other (both nations are supposedly stingy).^[29]

Usage

While some derogatory terms for Catalans exist in modern Spanish, such as "catalufos," "catalinos," and "catalardos," none of them match the prevalence of "polacos."^[30] Considered by some a classic form of anti-Catalan sentiment,^[31] the term is undeniably derogatory, though its intent can range from mildly patronizing to ironic or overtly hostile.

The origin of the term is obscure. Any original meaning has been lost, with the word now firmly entrenched as a slur. While insults like "catalufos" or "catalardos" are frequently used in politically charged contexts against perceived Catalan separatists, "polacos" has broader usage.

Geographically, the term can be heard throughout Spain, including regions far from Catalonia, such as Andalusia,^[32] though it remains especially common in Madrid. It is also frequently used in regions neighboring Catalonia, such as the Balearic Islands,^[33] Valencia,^[34] and Aragon.^[35] In Aragon, it is frequently directed towards residents of La Franja, the Catalan-speaking border region.^[36]

"Polacos" is primarily used in spoken Spanish, although it occasionally appears in writing, particularly on social media.^[37] Though characteristic of informal speech, it is sometimes found in literature.^[38] The term is generally used in the plural form and is often directed at a Catalan audience, either directly or indirectly, such as during confrontations.

Currently, its most recognized use is in chants at sporting events, particularly by fans of teams opposing FC Barcelona. The chant "es polaco el que no bote"^[39] ("he who doesn't jump is a polaco") has become a ritual at Real Madrid home games. Instances of public figures using the term, such as playwright Antonio Gala Velasco^[40] and sports manager Ramón Mendoza Fontela,^[41] typically attract media attention.

Reception in Catalonia

Among the Catalans there is a general degree of awareness of the abusive role of the term "polacos" in Spanish. Their own response might fall into one of chiefly four categories. The one which because of its verbal and on the fly background is most difficult to document is indignation.^[42] Another – a fairly popular one – is about ignoring or eradicating the abusive intention; instead, the term is assigned a neutral, favorable or even proud flavor. A TV survey on the streets of Barcelona seems to demonstrate that the city dwellers are scarcely troubled by the word, and some of them speculate about Catalan and Polish comparisons related to such values as patriotism, national pride or solidarity.^[43] Some nationalist Catalan politicians, like Oriol Junqueras Vies, underline what they believe to be attractive features rendering the two nations alike.^[44]

One more type of response, made popular by TV, is turning the term into a paradigm of general political ridicule. This is how the term "polacos" is positioned by a satirical show Polònia, aired since 2006 by regional public Catalan channel TV3. Often banking on caricature Polish references, the broadcast provides a mocking commentary to ongoing political events in Spain and has proved to be a commercial success. In 2008 a sports-related and similarly formatted spin-off was launched, named Crackovia (a pun on Polish city Cracow and "crack", or sports ace).

The word "polacos" has also filtered into the Catalan language, though it lost its double designation; at times and when self-defining themselves against the background of Catalan-Spanish skirmishes the Catalans use the word "polacs", while another word "polonesos" stands for the Poles.^[45]

Reception among Poles

Although the derogatory use of "polacos" is not widely known in Poland,^[46] it is occasionally reported in the media. These reports often downplay or deny the offensive nature of the term.^[47] For example, an official publication from the Warsaw Ministry of Foreign Affairs merely stated that "in Catalonia, the Poles are approached with particular sympathy, since inhabitants of the region are traditionally nicknamed polacos."^[48]

News reports about "polacos" sometimes speculate on Poland being a model for Catalonia, with headlines like "Catalans are proud to be Poles."^[49] Some authors portray the derogatory use as a relic of the Franco era, emphasizing supposed Catalan admiration for Poland stemming from factors like popular Polish cartoons for kids, esteemed Polish writers, and a revered Polish history.^[50]

The topic of Catalans being inspired by Polish patriotism, independence movements, resistance against oppression, and the contribution of Polish interbrigadistas during the Spanish Civil War occasionally surfaces in Polish online discussions.^[51]

Reports that clearly identify "polacos" as a "pejorative-ironic" and frequently used slur are less common,^[52] usually appearing in discussions about the Real Madrid-FC Barcelona rivalry.^[53]

With the recent increase in Polish migration to Spain, including Catalonia, some Poles have encountered this usage. Like the Polish media, they often downplay its offensiveness, sometimes treating it humorously, such as by introducing themselves as "Polacos de Polonia" ("Poles from Poland").^[54]

A website run by Polish people from Barcelona describes the term as "slightly pejorative," but also "colloquial" and "with a slight wink."^[55] However, some Poles react angrily, condemning the term as an insult to the entire Polish nation.^[56]

Footnotes

^ Manuel García de Villanueva, Origen, épocas y progresos del teatro español: discurso historico al que acompaña un resumen de los espectaculos y un compendio de la historia general de los teatros hasta la era presente, Madrid 1802, p. 314
^ La Vanguardia 10.01.1994, available here, also Chorizos y polacos, [in:] Zarzuelerías service, 18.01.2016, available here
^ see e.g. the term "polacos" in the Spanish press of the 1930s at the Spanish national hemeroteca, available here
^ Barbara Obtułowicz, Luis Jose Sartotius, hrabia de San Luip. Polak, który nie był Polakiem, Kraków 2012, ISBN 9788372717160, Barbara Obtułowicz, Luís José Sartorius, conde de San Luís: leyenda y realidad, [in:] Intinerarios 15 (2012), pp. 279-303
^ see e.g. the phrase "polaco de última hora y de última extracción", standing for a new member of a clientelistic political network, La Vanguardia 10.11.1884, available here
^ see e.g. the use of "polacada" in La Vanguardia of the 1880s, available here
^ detailed analysis in Jadwiga Konieczna-Twardzikowska, Los polacos en Miau. Problema de la traducción del estereotipo, [in:] Actas del quinto congreso internacional de estudios Galdosianos, Las Palmas 1992, ISBN 8481031003, pp. 209-213
^ polacada, [in:] Diccionario de la lengua española online, available here
^ Juan Fernández-Mayoralas Palomeque, La Polonia del mediodía. Un tópico polaco en la historia española, [in:] Hispania: Revista española de historia 62/210 (2002), pp. 167-220
^ "academics are divided over why it became used to describe Catalan as foreign", Raphael Minder, The Struggle for Catalonia: Rebel Politics in Spain, Oxford 2017, ISBN 9781849049375, p. 39
^ allegedly the Poles arriving in Catalonia were to call the Spaniards from the South "czarni" (blacks), the term reportedly adopted in Catalan as "xarnego". This in turn triggered a counter-abuse, with the Catalans dubbed "polacos". Alicía „polaca”, [in:] Alícies service, available here. A similar and perhaps related theory claims that in the old Andalusian dialect "to speak Polish" meant to speak incomprehensibly, to mumble, Carlos Marrodan, Jeździec polski, Molina Antonio Munoz, [in:] Gazeta Wyborcza 03.11.03, available here
^ La Vanguardia 10.01.1994, available here
^ Joan Avenallada, Viatge a l'origen dels insults, Badalona 2006, ISBN 9788496201712, p. 30
^ La Vanguardia 23.11.1995, available here
^ La Vanguardia 17.08.2006, available here
^ Per què Polacs?, [in:] directe.cat service 11.09.2008, available here
^ Enric Prat de la Riba explicitly referred to the Polish case when teaching his Catalan compatriots the difference between a nation and a state, see El catalanismo mira hacia Polonia con admiración, [in:] Blog de Xavier Casals service, available here
^ compare e.g. the reasoning of a Basque nationalist of the late 19th century: "quedo ahora plenamente convencido de que no es Vd. español, sino bizcaino. Los polacos nunca se dirán rusos o alemanes, sino polaco", referred after Fernández-Mayoralas Palomeque 2002, p. 210
^ this logic was well alive as late as in the 1930s, see La Vanguardia 17.07.1931, available here
^ Sergi Mateo, ¿Por qué a los catalanes nos llaman polacos?, [in:] sergimateo service, available here
^ La Vanguardia 23.11.1995, available here
^ Per què Polacs?, [in:] directe.cat service 11.09.2008, available here
^ opinion of an anthropologist; Robert Costa Solé, Per què a Espanya anomenen 'polacos' els catalans?, [in:] sapiens.cat service, available here
^ the first recorded abusive anti-Catalan usage of the term "polacos" is noted by the Republican POWs in the Nationalist prison or labor camps, see Polonya - ¿Per què als catalans es diu ¨Polacs¨?, [in:] YouTube service, available here; for Catalans forced into Nationalist ranks see La Vanguardia 25.01.1994, available here
^ by the same token the English single out the Dutch or the Greeks when noting "double Dutch" or that "it is all Greek to me"
^ La Vanguardia 29.01.1994, available here, La Vanguardia 19.01.2002, available here, La Vanguardia 15.01.1994, available here
^ "because of the alien, slurping sound of their language", Richard Fitzpatrick, El Clasico: Barcelona V Real Madrid: Football's Greatest Rivalry, London 2012, ISBN 9781408158791, p. 16, "sounded like Polacos", Kathryn A. Woolard, Singular and Plural: Ideologies of Linguistic Authority in 21st Century Catalonia, Oxford 2016, ISBN 9780190258634, p.129
^ Sergi Mateo, ¿Por qué a los catalanes nos llaman polacos?, [in:] sergimateo service, available here; see also the 1939 poem of Carles Pi i Sunyer, titled Diàleg de les Verges Negres de Polònia i Catalunya, discussed e.g. in Olga Glondys, La Polonia cercana e idealizada de los exiliados republicanos catalanes, [in:] Studia Iberystyczne 8 (2009), pp. 423-436
^ see e.g. the blog Polacos de Polonia, available here
^ Avenalleda 2006, p. 39
^ Jaume Subirana, Barcelona ABC, Barcelona 2013, ISBN 9788498504347, p. 47
^ Francisco Garrido, Cataluña y Andalucía, [in:] paralelo36andalusia service, available here
^ La Vanguardia 25.06.1996, available here
^ see e.g. cries "fuera catalanes, polacos" ("get out Catalans, you poles"), quoted after Ferran Colom i Ortiz, Repertori d'actituds i normes d'ús lingüístic entre els estudiants de la ciutat de València, [in:] Llengua, societat i ensenyament, Valencia 2003, ISBN 9788460800149, p. 19
^ José R. Bada Panillo, El debat del català a l'Aragó (1983-1987), Calaceit 1990, ISBN 9788487580017, pp. 93, 94, 137, 138
^ Artur Quintana i Font, Conferencia: Perspectives del catala a Arago, [in:] Ramon Sistac i Vicen, De fronteres i mil•lennis, Barcelona 2003, ISBN 9788472837096, p. 14
^ for Twitter see here, for Facebook see here
^ Vícent de Melchor, Antonio Gala, ¿serbio?, [in:] El País 29.08.1994, available here
^ "if you don’t jump you’re poles"; see e.g. the footage from a football game at YouTube service, available here, or from the basketball game, available here
^ Vícent de Melchor, Antonio Gala, ¿serbio?, [in:] El País 29.08.1994, available here
^ Los cánticos ofensivos más recordados entre Real Madrid y Barcelona, [in:] Marca 19.05.2015, available here
^ Vícent de Melchor, Antonio Gala, ¿serbio?, [in:] El País 29.08.1994, available here
^ see Polonya - ¿Per què als catalans es diu ¨Polacs¨?, [in:] YouTube service, available here
^ Oriol Junqueras, Catalans i polacos,[in:] junqueras.cat service, available here
^ Salvador Cot, L’odi al catalufo, [in:] El Món 09.09.2015, available here
^ parodoxically, in Polish romantic literature it is Lithuania compared to Catalonia, and Poland is positioned as a potentially oppressive Spain: "Cóż więcej? pod wojennym prawem i pod biczem / Barceloną byłoby Wilno z Mickiewiczem" [so what? under martial law and whip / Vilnius with Mickiewicz would be Barcelona], Juliusz Słowacki, Przypowieści i epigramaty (dated 1847-1849?)
^ e.g. a Polish sport service claims that chanting "if you don’t jump you’re a pole" is not abusive, Gerard Badia: w Madrycie ludzi z Katalonii nazywa się "Polakami", [in:] ekstraklasa.tv service, available here
^ Atlas polskiej obecności za granicą, p. 110, available online here
^ Katalończycy są dumni z bycia Polakami, [in:] polskieradio.pl service, available here
^ Ewa Wysocka, Barcelona, stolica Polski, Kraków 2016, ISBN 9788365282743; the title means "Barcelona, the capital of Poland"
^ see e.g. comments noting "bliskie ich sercom bohaterstwo i upór w dążeniach niepodległościowych", „El polcacco”, „typowy janusz”, czyli jak Polacy są postrzegani poza granicami kraju, [in:] otworzsiena service, available here; the Catalans and the Poles are supposedly united by "twardość, walka o niepodległość", W Hiszpanii zamieszki, a Katalończycy przezywani są... Polakami. O co chodzi?, [in:] pikio service, available here, and there is a comparions between the Poles oppressed by the Russiand and the Catalans oppressed by the Spaniards, Los Polacos – co łączy Katalończyków z Polakami?, [in:] wolne-dziennikarstwoservice, available here
^ see naTemat service, available here
^ see e.g. Michał Zaranek, Historia nienawiści, [in:] Przegląd Sportowy service 03.10.2012, available here, Dlaczego kibice Realu Madryt kpią z Polaków?, [in:] fronda service, available here
^ see e.g. Polacos de Polonia blog, available here
^ Polak a sprawa katalońska, czyli o pochodzeniu znajomo brzmiącego przezwiska Katalończyków, [in:] PoloniaBarcelona service, available here
^ La Vanguardia 27.12.1993, available here