# Polish People As Stupid. **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 23, 2011, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892 "2011-11-23T18:05:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2011, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/21 "2011-11-23T22:12:55Z")
> [@SpoilerVirgin](#): > > According to folklorist Jan Harold Brunvand, Polish jokes [replaced](http://books.google.com/books?id=oJuvqhxFXH8C&pg=PA1312&lpg=PA1312&dq=moron+jokes+replacing+ethnic+jokes&source=bl&ots=UDkUORkkpM&sig=cTLhN0q2a0kSRBHmwj-C8XTeFcY&hl=en#v=onepage) little moron jokes. That’s what I figured! Thanks 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/22 "2011-11-24T04:40:18Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > …In the Midwest where I grew up, many jokes started with “There’s a nigger, a kike, and a polack…” These kind of jokes were told at school and in church, and it never occurred to people that anyone would be offended (or at least, not anyone worthy of notice). Of course, there were no blacks, Jews, or Polish people around to bear offense… I, too, heard occasional “Polack jokes” growing in a small Ohio River town which, AFAIK, had no Polish residents. My aunt likes to tell jokes that refer to, and I quote, “A person of a certain ethnic persuasion,” which lets you mentally fill in whichever such person you please. ---
**Author:** ![GameHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ed655f/32.png) [@GameHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GameHat)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/23 "2011-11-24T08:01:23Z")
Grew up in Wisconsin; My dad had a whole routine of “Polack” jokes that he told us repeatedly when I was young. Most of them were just silly, like “Hey! Get a load of that Polack submarine with a screen-door!” Never questioned them when I was young, but: What’s interesting is that there were like no actual Polish immigrants that I was aware of where I grew up (Madison). I actually probably made it to college with the half-belief that “Polacks” were just some idiot archetype. A name you use in a joke for “generic idiot.” It was a bit of a shock, on moving to the Chicago suburbs, on seeing a sticker a work meant for the cleaning crew, three languages: English, Spanish, and Polish. Something like “Trash/Basura/Wyrzucić” I asked a co-worker what the hell that third term was, and was amazed to find out that being Polish was an actual thing! :rolleyes: I mean, I knew there was Poland, but I was astonished to find them to be an actual immigrant population in the midwest. Even more astonished to find that “Polack” was offensive. I didn’t mind retiring it from my polite vocabulary, just weird to find that there were jokes denigrating an immigrant ethnic group that I was unaware existed (at least locally) for most of my life. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Niply\_Elder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@The\_Niply\_Elder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Niply_Elder)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 8:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/24 "2011-11-24T08:33:01Z")
Speaking of which, how come in a tv police procedural show, in any group of policemen larger than 3 there’s a 99%probability of there being at least one Kowalski? It’s always Kowalski, do writers not know any other polish last names? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/25 "2011-11-24T08:54:54Z")
> [@The\_Niply\_Elder](#): > > Speaking of which, how come in a tv police procedural show, in any group of policemen larger than 3 there’s a 99%probability of there being at least one Kowalski? It’s always Kowalski, do writers not know any other polish last names? There was that one show with the fella named Wojciehowicz. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/26 "2011-11-24T10:49:59Z")
I would hazard a guess that virtually every ethnic group, culture or nation has a ‘heh, my neighbours are stupid’ joke, particularly if the neighbour is regarded as economically inferior. In the UK, the Irish were always the butt of ‘stupid’ jokes, in France it is the Belgians, in Germany it’s the Polish. So I would guess that the OP comes from an area with a high population of German heritage. I have never heard a ‘poles are stupid’ joke in my life. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/27 "2011-11-24T14:14:13Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > I would guess that the OP comes from an area with a high population of German heritage. The Wikipedia page on Polish jokes has a cite to a source that says that Pollack jokes in the United States developed independently of ethnic stereotypes based in eastern Europe. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/28 "2011-11-24T14:41:39Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > The Wikipedia page on Polish jokes has a cite to a source that says that Pollack jokes in the United States developed independently of ethnic stereotypes based in eastern Europe. Actually, now that I think about, I think the object for German ‘stupid’ jokes are Austrians, as they are viewed as the ‘hick’ neighbours. ---
**Author:** ![BrotherCadfael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@BrotherCadfael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrotherCadfael)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/29 "2011-11-24T14:50:08Z")
It does seem to me that “Polack” jokes died out in the late 70s or early 80s, probably due to a combination of the Solidarity movement and the election of John Paul II (Karol Józef Wojtyła). There were a few “Polish Pope” jokes, but they didn’t last long. I haven’t heard a generic Polish joke in years. (My favorite Polish joke is to ask for an English word that is pronounced differently when capitalized!) In Canada, they tell “Newfie” jokes, about people from Newfoundland. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/30 "2011-11-24T15:21:52Z")
> [@The\_Niply\_Elder](#): > > Speaking of which, how come in a tv police procedural show, in any group of policemen larger than 3 there’s a 99%probability of there being at least one Kowalski? It’s always Kowalski, do writers not know any other polish last names? Like Sipowicz? Or Wojciehowicz? Or Jablonski? ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/31 "2011-11-24T15:41:06Z")
> [@Stranger\_On\_A\_Train](#): > > In the Midwest where I grew up, many jokes started with “There’s a nigger, a kike, and a polack…” These kind of jokes were told at school and in church, and it never occurred to people that anyone would be offended (or at least, not anyone worthy of notice). Of course, there were no blacks, Jews, or Polish people around to bear offense. > > Stranger Your comparison doesn’t really work when the guy was an American raised in Germany. It would be far better to use, say, men, women and fags. ---
**Author:** ![SGT42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b9e5f3/32.png) [@SGT42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SGT42)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/32 "2011-11-24T15:56:08Z")
> [@tim-n-va](#): > > While the upthread comment is that those type jokes seem to be applied to any local subgroup (hillbillies, Aggies, etc.), the Polish usage seems broader. > > In truth to the idea that they arose due to being on the wrong side of a technology leap - horse mounted troops against tanks in WWI? It seems that there is an exageration in the story. The Polish have moved to the front in horses, that was their fastest means of transportation, but they entrenched themselves and attacked the tanks with mortar shells, not with lances. It is true that 60 mm shells had a minor effect agaist the armored cars, but there was no cavalry charge. By the way, Portuguese are the subjects of stupid jokes in Brazil and Austrians in Switzerland. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/33 "2011-11-24T16:22:27Z")
The story I heard was that the “Polish jokes” originated with the Polish immigrant community itself-in Detroit and Flint Michigan. Supposedly, the (Polish) autoworkers would adress witty little insults to eachother, while toiling on the auto assembly lines. Poland itself has a great intellectual tradition-some of the oldest universities are in Poland…of course, most of the Polish intelligensia did not immigrate-they stayed in Poland. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/34 "2011-11-24T16:28:34Z")
My ex-wife was a Polish catholic from the Iron Range of Minnesota. All the jokes I heard in that house were about Finlanders. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/35 "2011-11-24T16:33:47Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > My ex-wife was a Polish catholic from the Iron Range of Minnesota. All the jokes I heard in that house were about Finlanders. Interesting. I grew up in Quincy, MA, a city with a rather large Finnish community. I never heard any references to “finnish jokes”. And, outside of the Finland Steam Baths, not much of a cultural impact. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/36 "2011-11-24T17:26:09Z")
So I went to a training class in Sweden one time with the instructors from Europe. I went to dinner a couple of nights with the instructor from Poland. We would tell each other our favorite jokes. The thing was I knew all of his jokes, and he knew mine. The only difference was he told them about dumb Russians. Dumb blonde jokes didn’t change. We were both were amazed at how universal jokes were. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/37 "2011-11-24T17:36:43Z")
Folks, you’re killing me. There’s ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/38 "2011-11-24T17:42:18Z")
Folks, you’re killing me. There’s no ‘c’ and only one ‘l’ in “Polak”, which is the Polish word for a person from Poland. Despite what you may have heard in “A Streetcar Named Desire”, the word itself isn’t pejorative any more than “Jew” is. It can be, if used in the right tone, but it’s not _inherently_ offensive. So sayeth my grandfather, who would politely reprimand anyone that called him a Pole with some version of “I’m no pole. You don’t hang flags on me. I’m a Polak, dammit!” ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/39 "2011-11-24T18:11:44Z")
English and Polish are different languages. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2011, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892/40 "2011-11-24T18:38:22Z")
> [@Chessic\_Sense](#): > > Folks, you’re killing me. There’s no ‘c’ and only one ‘l’ in “Polak”, which is the Polish word for a person from Poland. Despite what you may have heard in “A Streetcar Named Desire”, the word itself isn’t pejorative any more than “Jew” is. It can be, if used in the right tone, but it’s not _inherently_ offensive. As **ascenray** says, how the word is spelled and used in Polish doesn’t indicate how it is used in English. The English word, while derived from Polish, is spelled Polack and is usually considered derogatory. Certainly when I’ve heard it used it has always been in a derogatory sense. From [Merriam-Webster:](http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/polack) > [@](#): > > Po·lack noun \ˈpō-ˌläk, -ˌlak\ > > Definition of POLACK > > 1 obsolete : a native or inhabitant of Poland > 2 usually disparaging : a person of Polish birth or descent > > Origin of POLACK > > Polish polak > First Known Use: 1574 Vice President Spiro Agnew famously got flack from the Polish community when he said “Very frankly, when I’m moving in a crowd, I don’t look and say, ‘Well, there’s a Negro, there’s an Italian, and there’s a Greek and there’s a Polack.” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polish-people-as-stupid/603892.md?page=3)