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Kashubia

The name Kaszuby (Kashubia or Kashubs), and Kaszëbë in Kashubian, most likely comes from the word ‘kaszuby’, that is, wetlands and marshes. It can also be derived from the type of garments that Pomeranians wore, the huts they lived in, the groats they eagerly ate, and even the Persian or Arabic word ‘kasub’ meaning a man, or a merchant who gets rich.So far, the meaning of the name Kaszuby (Kashubia or Kashubs) has not been explained.

Język kaszubski

Kashubian is a West Slavic language. Many archaic features from the Proto-Slavic language have been preserved in it. One can also find words from the Baltic and Germanic languages in it. About 7% of its vocabulary is Germanisms. In the Middle Ages, the dialects of the Kashubian (Pomeranian) language were used throughout Pomerania, from Gdańsk to Szczecin.Currently, Kashubian is spoken by approximately 150,000 people

Gnomes

In the past, in Kashubia, the belief in house elves called krôsniãta was widespread. They wore red color, men of this race had long white beards, lived inside the houses under the floors, in gardens under lilac bushes or in stables. They would help people who were kind to them, and they cause harm to bad people on the farm. Krôsniãta had the magical power to turn pine-cones into gold.

Stone circles

Before the Slavs began to settle in Pomerania in the 6th century AD, these areas were inhabited by Germanic Goths and Gepids. They left behind many mementoes, for example numerous burial mounds and stone circles, which can be seen, among others, in Odry and Węsiory.

Wieszczi

Even at the beginning of the 20th century, in Kashubia, there were cases where the corpses of the deceased were dug up and their heads cut off with a special peat shovel.People believed that these were the so-called wieszczi or òpi, who – after death – rose from the grave to kill members of their family. A man who could become a wieszczi after his death was recognizable at birth – when he was born with a caul on his head, it was a bad sign. The caul had to be burnt, the dust was mixed with water and after a few days the mixture was to be drunk by the new-born.After death, the man was closely watched in the coffin – when he turned red in the face, a piece of a fishing net – among other things – had to be put in his casket, so that he could keep himself busy untangling the knots, or a page from a prayer book with a litany on it, but without the word ‘amen’, so that his prayer would never end. Òpi, on the other hand, was born with two teeth that had to be knocked out immediately.If òpi came out of the tomb and rang the bell in the church, everyone who heard the sound – died. When no security measures helped, the body of wieszczi or òpi had to be dug up, and the head – cut off...

Magical practice

To this day, Kashubians exercise certain magical practices, e.g. newborns and young animals have their necks tied around with a red ribbon to make them resistant to the so-called ‘evil eye’ or unkind words. Babies’ beauty should not be praised too much, as this can bring them bad luck. After cutting the hair, it should be burned to prevent the devil from making a nest of it, which can cause headaches.

Herbal medicine

Plants that were used for magical purposes include, among others lëbiszk (Pol. lubczyk, En. lovage) which awakens love, whereas wormwood and marsh Labrador protect men and animals from charm. Juniper or birch twigs add vitality in spring. Bëlëca (Pol. bylica, En. mugwort) woven into the hair of a young girl makes it grow beautifully and prevents headaches, and lilac heals tuberculosis in children.

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