The Malopolski (

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

: ''koń małopolski'') is a Polish horse breed developed in the 19th century in

Lesser Poland Lesser Poland, often known by its Polish name Małopolska ( la, Polonia Minor), is a historical region situated in southern and south-eastern Poland. Its capital and largest city is Kraków. Throughout centuries, Lesser Poland developed a ...

, Polish ''Małopolska'', hence the name. It is versatile breed, used today for light draft and under-saddle work. It was developed mainly from native Polish horses crossed with

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

s and

Arabians The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, No ...

, and a 2006 study shows a strong genetic presence of Thoroughbred bloodlines within the breed today. Population numbers have been in decline since the late 20th century, but genetic studies show little danger of

inbreeding Inbreeding is the production of offspring from the mating or breeding of individuals or organisms that are closely related genetically. By analogy, the term is used in human reproduction, but more commonly refers to the genetic disorders and o ...

at this time.

Breed characteristics

Malopolski horses generally stand from high, and may be bay,

black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ...

, chestnut,

gray Grey (more common in British English) or gray (more common in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning literally that it is "without color", because it can be composed o ...

, or roan, although chestnut and bay are the most common colors. Their head is well proportioned with a straight profile, a neck of good length,

withers The withers is the ridge between the shoulder blades of an animal, typically a quadruped. In many species, it is the tallest point of the body. In horses and dogs, it is the standard place to measure the animal's height. In contrast, cattle a ...

prominent, the chest wide and deep, and the shoulder sloping and long. The

back The human back, also called the dorsum, is the large posterior area of the human body, rising from the top of the buttocks to the back of the neck. It is the surface of the body opposite from the chest and the abdomen. The vertebral column runs ...

is long and the croup slightly sloping. The legs are well-muscled and long, with good joints and tough

hooves The hoof (plural: hooves) is the tip of a toe of an ungulate mammal, which is covered and strengthened with a thick and horny keratin covering. Artiodactyls are even-toed ungulates, species whose feet have an even number of digits, yet the rumi ...

. The breed has much in common with another Polish breed, the Wielkopolski. Malopolski horses are used for riding and light draft work. They are said to perform well in sporting competitions, especially show jumping.

History

The origins of the Malopolski are rooted in native Polish horses of the 15th century, who were crossed with

Oriental horse The term oriental horse refers to the ancient breeds of horses developed in the Middle East, such as the Arabian, Akhal-Teke, Barb, and the now-extinct Turkoman horse. They tend to be thin-skinned, long-legged, slim in build and more physically ...

s, including

, to form a cross that closely resembled its Oriental ancestors in type. Beginning in the late 19th century, bloodlines from Arabian and

horses were added in the form of purebreds and crossbreds of the Shagya, Gidran,

Furioso-North Star The Furioso-North Star is a horse breed developed in Hungary at the Mezőhegyes stud farm. Today it is considered a warmblood breed, noted as a breed with a sound, durable build capable of light farm work, yet with a refined appearance that ...

and other strains. Nonius blood was also added. Through the introduction of significant amounts of Arabian and Thoroughbred blood, a breed of the

Anglo-Arabian The Anglo-Arabian or Anglo-Arab is a crossbred, part-Arabian horse that now also has its own status as a horse breed. It is the result of a Thoroughbred (hence, the prefix "Anglo") being crossed with an Arabian. The cross can be made betw ...

type was formed. In 1963, a

stud book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders ...

for the breed was begun, and despite a lack of demand for horses to work in agriculture, Malopolskis rose in popularity as a riding horse. However, beginning in 1999 the breed population has begun to decline, and concerns have been raised about the possibility of inbreeding. However, a 2006 study found that there was little danger of inbreeding within the Malopolski, in part due to the large amount of genetic diversity brought to the breed by the Thoroughbred, which was shown to have a strong genetic influence on the current Malopolski breed. There are two distinct varieties of the Malopolski. The first is the Sadecki, which was heavily influenced by the Furioso line, and the second is the Dąbrowsko-Tarnowski, heavily influenced by the Gidran line. The breed was also influenced by infusions of various other Arabian and Thoroughbred half-breeds. Today, they are bred at five state studs in Poland:

Stubno Stubno is a village in Przemyśl County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship, in south-eastern Poland, close to the border with Ukraine. It is the seat of the gmina (administrative district) called Gmina Stubno. It lies approximately north-east of Przem ...

Prudnik Prudnik (, szl, Prudnik, Prōmnik, german: Neustadt in Oberschlesien, Neustadt an der Prudnik, la, Prudnicium) is a town in southern Poland, located in the southern part of Opole Voivodeship near the border with the Czech Republic. It is the ...

, Udórz, Walewice, and Janów Podlaski, as well as by individual citizens of southeast and central Poland.

References

External links

Malopolski Horse Breeders Association of Poland
(in Polish) {{Equine, state=collapsed Horse breeds Horse breeds originating in Poland Lesser Poland