Maciej Grzegorz Szymański (born 25 January 1957,

Milicz Milicz (german: Militsch) is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in west-central Poland. It is the seat of Milicz County and of Gmina Milicz, part of the larger Wrocław metropolitan area. Geography The town is situated in the historic Lower ...

) is a Polish slavist and diplomat, an ambassador to

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

(1998–2002),

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

(2005–2009),

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

(2013–2017), and

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

(since 2019).

Life

Szymański grew up in

Międzyrzec Podlaski Międzyrzec Podlaski ( la, Meserici, german: Meseritz) is a city in Biała Podlaska County, Lublin Voivodeship, Poland, with the population of 17,162 inhabitants . The total area of the city is . Międzyrzec is located near the Krzna river, not f ...

, and finished high school in

Wrocław Wrocław (; german: Breslau, or . ; Silesian German: ''Brassel'') is a city in southwestern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the River Oder in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Europe, rou ...

. In 1981, he graduated from

Yugoslav studies Yugoslav studies or Yugoslavistics ( sh, Jugoslavistika; sl, Jugoslovanske študije; mk, Југословенски студии; sq, Studime Jugosllave; german: Jugoslawistik; la, Iugoslavistica) is an academic discipline within Slavic studi ...

at the

University of Silesia in Katowice The University of Silesia in Katowice ( pl, Uniwersytet Śląski w Katowicach, UŚ) is an autonomous state-run university in Silesia Province, Katowice, Poland. The university offers higher education and research facilities. It offers undergrad ...

, specialising in Macedonian and

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and ...

languages. In 1982, he began his professional career at the

Ossolineum Ossoliński National Institute ( pl, Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich, ZNiO), or the Ossolineum is a Polish cultural foundation, publishing house, archival institute and a research centre of national significance founded in 1817 in Lwów (now Lv ...

library in Wrocław. Between 1984 and 1992, he worked as a scientist at the Slavic Institute of the

Polish Academy of Sciences The Polish Academy of Sciences ( pl, Polska Akademia Nauk, PAN) is a Polish state-sponsored institution of higher learning. Headquartered in Warsaw, it is responsible for spearheading the development of science across the country by a society of ...

. He obtained his Ph.D. thesis on Slavic linguistics there. In 1992, Szymański joined the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

. He began as a head of the unit at the Consular Department. In 1995, he became deputy director there. In 1998, he was director of the Department of Central and South-Eastern Europe. That year he was nominated ambassador to Slovenia, next year being accredited also to newly formed embassy in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

. In 2002, he returned to the Consular Department, as a head of unit, and then as a director. Between 2005 and 2009, he was ambassador to

Serbia and Montenegro Serbia and Montenegro ( sr, Cрбија и Црна Гора, translit=Srbija i Crna Gora) was a country in Southeast Europe located in the Balkans that existed from 1992 to 2006, following the breakup of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...

, and since 2006, after the dissolution, to Serbia. Back at the Ministry, he was serving as a director of the Department for Cooperation with Polish Diaspora and Poles Abroad. In January 2013, Szymański started his mission as an ambassador to Croatia, ending his term in July 2017. Next, for a year, he has been director of the Diplomatic Academy. From February to October 2018, he was the Director General of the Foreign Service. In April 2019, he was nominated ambassador to Bulgaria. Szymański is married, with four children. In his free time, he photographs nature, birds mostly. His works have been publishing in books, atlases, and magazines, including

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

Honours

* Knight of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta ( pl, Order Odrodzenia Polski, en, Order of Restored Poland) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on al ...

, Poland, 2011 * Knight of the

Order of Duke Branimir The Order of Duke Branimir ( hr, Red kneza Branimira) is the 7th most important medal given by the Republic of Croatia. The order was founded on April 1, 1995. The medal is awarded for excellence in promoting Croatia in international relations. I ...

, Croatia, 2017

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Szymański, Maciej 1957 births Ambassadors of Poland to Bosnia and Herzegovina Ambassadors of Poland to Bulgaria Ambassadors of Poland to Croatia Ambassadors of Poland to Serbia Ambassadors of Poland to Slovenia Knights of the Order of Polonia Restituta Living people Polish philologists Photographers from Wrocław Slavists University of Silesia in Katowice alumni