Historical Western Pomerania, also called Cispomerania, Fore Pomerania, Front Pomerania or Hither Pomerania (german: Vorpommern), is the western extremity of the historic region of

Pomerania Pomerania ( pl, Pomorze; german: Pommern; Kashubian: ''Pòmòrskô''; sv, Pommern) is a historical region on the southern shore of the Baltic Sea in Central Europe, split between Poland and Germany. The western part of Pomerania belongs to ...

forming the southern coast of the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain. The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and ...

, Western Pomerania's boundaries have changed through the centuries as it belonged to various countries such as Poland, the

Duchy of Pomerania The Duchy of Pomerania (german: Herzogtum Pommern; pl, Księstwo Pomorskie; Latin: ''Ducatus Pomeraniae'') was a duchy in Pomerania on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, ruled by dukes of the House of Pomerania (''Griffins''). The country ha ...

(later part of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

), Sweden, Denmark, as well as

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

which incorporated it as the

Province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

. Today, the region embraces the whole area of

west of the Oder River, small bridgeheads east of the river, as well as the islands in the

Szczecin Lagoon Szczecin Lagoon ( pl, Zalew Szczeciński, german: Stettiner Haff, since 1945 sometimes also ''Oderhaff'' (Oder lagoon) or ''Pommersches Haff'' (Pomeranian lagoon)) is a lagoon in the Oder estuary, shared by Germany and Poland. It is separated f ...

. Its majority forms part of Germany and has been divided between the states of

Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; nds, Mäkelborg-Vörpommern), also known by its anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern ranks 14th in po ...

and

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an area of 29,480 sq ...

, with the cities of Stralsund ( pl, link=no, Strzałów) and

Greifswald Greifswald (), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (german: Universitäts- und Hansestadt Greifswald, Low German: ''Griepswoold'') is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rosto ...

( pl, link=no, Gryfia), as well as towns such as

Ribnitz-Damgarten Ribnitz-Damgarten () is a town in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, situated on Lake Ribnitz (''Ribnitzer See''). Ribnitz-Damgarten is in the west of the district Vorpommern-Rügen. The border between the historical regions of Mecklenburg and ...

(Damgarten only), Bergen auf Rügen (

Rügen Rügen (; la, Rugia, ) is Germany's largest island. It is located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea and belongs to the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The "gateway" to Rügen island is the Hanseatic city of Stralsund, where ...

Island),

Anklam Anklam [], formerly known as Tanglim and Wendenburg, is a town in the Western Pomerania region of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the banks of the Peene river, just 8 km from its mouth in the ''Kleines Haff'', the western ...

Wolgast Wolgast (; csb, Wòłogòszcz) is a town in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is situated on the bank of the river (or strait) Peenestrom, vis-a-vis the island of Usedom on the Baltic coast that can b ...

( pl, link=no, Wołogoszcz),

Demmin Demmin () is a town in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It was the capital of the former district of Demmin. Geography Demmin lies on the West Pomeranian plain at the confluence of the rivers ...

Pasewalk Pasewalk () is a town in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in Germany. Located on the Uecker river, it is the capital of the former Uecker-Randow district, and the seat of the Uecker-Randow-Tal ''Amt'', o ...

Grimmen Grimmen (; csb, Grzëmié) is a town in Vorpommern-Rügen, a district in the Bundesland Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Prior to 2011, when district reforms were made in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, it was the capital of the now bygone Nordvorpomme ...

Sassnitz Sassnitz (, before 1993 in german: Saßnitz) is a town on the Jasmund peninsula, Rügen Island, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. The population as of 2012 was 9,498. Sassnitz is a well-known seaside resort and port town, a ...

(Rügen Island),

Ueckermünde Ueckermünde () is a seaport town in northeast Germany, located in the district of Vorpommern-Greifswald, Western Pomerania, near Germany's border with Poland's Police County. Ueckermünde has a long and varied history, going back to its foundi ...

( pl, link=no, Wkryujście),

Torgelow Torgelow () is a municipality in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania in north-eastern Germany. It is situated on the river Uecker, 12 km south of Ueckermünde, and 41 km northwest of Szczecin, Poland ...

, Barth, and

Gartz Gartz is a town in the Uckermark district in Brandenburg, Germany. It is located on the West bank of the Oder River, on the border with Poland, about 20 km south of Szczecin, Poland. It is located within the historic region of Western Pomer ...

( pl, link=no, Gardziec). The cities of Szczecin (german: link=no, Stettin) and

Świnoujście Świnoujście (; german: Swinemünde ; nds, Swienemünn; all three meaning "Świna ivermouth"; csb, Swina) is a city and seaport on the Baltic Sea and Szczecin Lagoon, located in the extreme north-west of Poland. Situated mainly on the islands o ...

(german: link=no, Swinemünde), as well as the towns of

Police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

(german: link=no, Pölitz),

Goleniów Goleniów ( csb, Gòłonóg; german: Gollnow) is a town in Pomerania, northwestern Poland with 22,844 inhabitants (2011). It is the capital of Goleniów County in West Pomeranian Voivodeship (since 1999); previously it was in Szczecin Voivodeshi ...

(german: link=no, Gollnow),

Wolin Wolin (; formerly german: Wollin ) is the name both of a Polish island in the Baltic Sea, just off the Polish coast, and a town on that island. Administratively, the island belongs to the West Pomeranian Voivodeship. Wolin is separated from th ...

(german: link=no, Wollin),

Międzyzdroje Międzyzdroje (;), known as Misdroy in English, is a city and a seaside resort in northwestern Poland on the island of Wolin on the Baltic coast. The city is located in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, and is a seat of the Kamień County and the ...

(german: link=no, Misdroy),

Nowe Warpno Nowe Warpno (; formerly german: Neuwarp) is a historic town in northwestern Poland, within Police County in West Pomeranian Voivodeship. It lies on the shore of the Szczecin Lagoon, at the border with Germany. It is the seat of the urban-rural ad ...

(german: link=no, Neuwarp), and (the left-bank part of)

Dziwnów Dziwnów (formerly german: Dievenow) is a town in north-western Poland situated on the Baltic Sea at the mouth of the river Dziwna which divides it into the right-bank part containing the center of the town, belonging to historical Farther Pome ...

(german: link=no, Dievenow) are part of Poland (see

Territorial changes of Poland immediately after World War II At the end of World War II, Poland underwent major changes to the location of its international border. In 1945, after the defeat of Nazi Germany, the Oder–Neisse line became its western border, resulting in gaining the Recovered Territories f ...

). The German part forms about one-third of the present-day north-eastern

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

, while the Polish part constitutes the westernmost border areas of the

West Pomeranian Voivodeship The West Pomeranian Voivodeship, also known as the West Pomerania Province, is a voivodeship (province) in northwestern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Szczecin. Its area equals 22 892.48 km² (8,838.84 sq mi), and in 2021, it was ...

. German Western Pomerania had a population of about 470,000 in 2012 (districts of

Vorpommern-Rügen Vorpommern-Rügen is a district in the north of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the Baltic Sea and the districts Vorpommern-Greifswald, Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Rostock. The district seat is ...

and

Vorpommern-Greifswald Vorpommern-Greifswald is a district in the east of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is bounded by (from the west and clockwise) the districts of Mecklenburgische Seenplatte and Vorpommern-Rügen, the Baltic Sea, Poland ( West Pomeranian Voivo ...

combined) – while the Polish districts of the region had a population of about 520,000 in 2012 (cities of Szczecin,

and

Police County __NOTOC__ Police County ( pl, powiat policki, ) is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in West Pomeranian Voivodeship, north-western Poland, on the Polish-German border. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a res ...

combined). So overall, about 1 million people live in the historical region of Western Pomerania today.

Terminology

The German prefix ''Vor-'' denotes a location closer to the speaker, and is the equivalent of " Fore"/"

Front Front may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Front'' (1943 film), a 1943 Soviet drama film * ''The Front'', 1976 film Music * The Front (band), an American rock band signed to Columbia Records and active in the 1980s and e ...

"/" Hither" in English and Anterior/ Citerior/ Cis- in Latin (with the corresponding antonyms in German, English and Latin being ''Hinter-'', "

Hinder Hinder is an American rock band from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, formed in 2001 by lead singer Austin John Winkler, guitarist Joe "Blower" Garvey, and drummer Cody Hanson with bassist Mike Roden and guitarist Mark King joining in 2003, solidify ...

"/"

Rear Rear may refer to: Animals *Rear (horse), when a horse lifts its front legs off the ground *In stockbreeding, to breed and raise Humans *Parenting (child rearing), the process of promoting and supporting a child from infancy to adulthood *Gende ...

"/" Farther" and Posterior/

Ulterior {{Short pages monitor