Polish residents took part in a poll organised by the Stefan Batory Foundation and the Kultura Niepodlega movement called "One hundred questions for the centenary of independence" at the end of last year. The respondents were only given two options for each inquiry, and they were asked about everything from politics to relationships to... Polish cuisine. What have we discovered as a result of the survey?

Family life

Family takes first place on the list of Polish priorities - over 87 percent of respondents choose it over career. The term "relationship" is mostly understood as "marriage" by nearly 70 percent of Poles. What about four-legged members of Polish families? There is no doubt Poles are dog people – 77.1 percent of respondents associate the word "friend" with dogs, the rest prefer the company of cats.

Poles have a soft spot for animals.

Education

Ucz się ucz, bo nauka to potęgi klucz - "Keep learning because knowledge is the key to power", says a well-known Polish rhyme. Poles do take education seriously - 71.6 percent of those surveyed agree that school supports development, not clips your wings. Higher education is perceived as the way to success by most (70.7 percent). At the same time, the majority of Poles (62.1 percent) do not believe religion should be taught in schools, even though over 85 percent of them declare their faith in God. Religion classes in Poland have sparked controversy for years since they only focus on the dominant Catholic faith and can therefore lead to indirect discrimination of children who do not attend them.

Poland

Most of the respondents (76.1 percent of answers) call themselves patriotic. 70.2 percent of them like to spend their holiday in Poland and 78.6 percent would not want to leave the country. Although Poles are often seen as pessimistic by nature, the majority of them (62.4 percent) believe the best things are yet to come.

Europe

Most Poles agree that the European Union does “a lot of good” (72.6 percent of answers) and more of them (56.9 percent) consider Poland to be a Western, not Eastern European country. However, only around 23 percent of the respondents would like to adopt the euro as Poland’s currency. The country is also divided over coal mining, which the EU plans to phase out in the near future. 53.8 percent of those surveyed view coal as Poland's problem, the rest see it as their pride.

National sport

The game of football is popular in Poland, just like anywhere else. Still, the majority of Poles, believe ski jumping to be their “national sport” (58.9 percent), which they “love” (56.1 percent). It may come as a surprise to some, considering the exclusive nature of the discipline and its near non-existence outside of a few European countries, but contrary to football, it is a sport Poland excels in internationally. And who doesn’t like watching their team win?

Food

Food is not to be trifled with in Poland. Poles are not only very fond of their cuisine, they like to discuss the superiority of one dish over another – borscht or pierogi? Tomato soup with noodles or rice? The poll made it clear that the Polish prefer broth (62.4 percent) to tomato soup, especially when it’s cooked by “their grandmother” (72.6 percent) who prevailed over television chefs in the “culinary authority” category.