Zloty – Poles’ National Identity Attribute?

Abstract

The article is an expression of interest in the attitude of the Polish society
after the accession of Poland to the European Union. The announcements
made by the government in connection with the introduction of the euro
in Poland turned out to be an excellent research material relating to the
Polish citizens’ reactions. When I was writing the article, I did not meet
anybody with the Polish citizenship who would believe that the government’s
announcements regarding the introduction of the euro in Poland before 2013
meant anything more than a promise that cannot be kept or, putting it more
straightforward, just a load of twaddle. The arguments soon faded away,
the number of articles in the Polish press decreased and the headline “Euro
2012” now appears only in sports news.
The author’s main aim was to show the Polish society’s attitude towards
the introduction of the euro in Poland. Before she did it, however, she outlined
the history of the Polish currency. It did not turn out to be an entirely easy
task. Although there are many works by outstanding writers on the history
of the Polish zloty, obtaining thorough knowledge about the attitude of the
Poles towards the accession of Poland to the monetary union was a challenge.
Fortunately, the Center for Public Opinion Research, the National Bank of
Poland and Tygodnik Powszechny, which developed an appendix Droga do euro
(Route to the Euro) in 2009, did not let me down.
Already in 2009 the dispute about the euro resembled the same old
stories. The cost-benefit analysis in relation to the substitution of the zloty
by the euro was discussed once again. Public debate had clearly political
character; social and cultural effects were not discussed, not to say they were
– as usual – forgotten.
Presenting the article during the 1st Political Science Congress in
Warsaw, I had very few statistical data on the supporters and opponents
of the introduction of the common European currency in Poland and little
information about social and cultural effects of such an operation. It is much
easier to write and speak about the effects of the introduction of the euro in
Germany, France or Slovakia. In case of Poland such discussions seem to be
pure conjectures, speculations that will have to wait for confirmation. How
long? This question is also left without an answer at the moment.