Poland (Polish: Polska [ˈpɔlska] (About this soundlisten)), officially the Republic of Poland (Polish: Rzeczpospolita Polska[c] [ʐɛt͡ʂpɔˈspɔlita ˈpɔlska] (About this soundlisten)), is a country located in Central Europe.[14] It is divided into 16 administrative provinces, covering an area of 312,696 square kilometres (120,733 sq mi), and has a largely temperate seasonal climate.[8] With a population of nearly 38.5 million people, Poland is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union.[8] Poland's capital and largest metropolis is Warsaw. Other major cities include Kraków, Łódź, Wrocław, Poznań, Gdańsk, and Szczecin.
Poland's topographically diverse territory extends from the b...