Puńców is a village in Gmina Goleszów,

Cieszyn County __NOTOC__ Cieszyn County () is a unit of territorial administration and local government (powiat) in Silesian Voivodeship, southern Poland, on the Czech and Slovak border. It came into being on January 1, 1999, as a result of the Polish local gove ...

Silesian Voivodeship Silesian Voivodeship ( ) is an administrative province in southern Poland. With over 4.2 million residents and an area of 12,300 square kilometers, it is the second-most populous, and the most-densely populated and most-urbanized region of Poland ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, on the border with the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. The village lies in the

Silesian Foothills Silesian Foothills (, , ) are foothills located in Silesian Voivodeship, Poland. It has an area of 545 km2. Its western border is Olza river, eastern Skawa. Other main rivers that cut the foothills are from west to east: Vistula, Biała ...

and in the historical region of

Cieszyn Silesia Cieszyn Silesia, Těšín Silesia or Teschen Silesia ( ; or ; or ) is a historical region in south-eastern Silesia, centered on the towns of Cieszyn and Český Těšín and bisected by the Olza River. Since 1920 it has been divided betwe ...

. The name is probably of possessive origin derived from personal name ''Puńc'' (such a name was probably derived from

Middle High German Middle High German (MHG; or ; , shortened as ''Mhdt.'' or ''Mhd.'') is the term for the form of High German, High German language, German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High ...

word , , later a nickname?).

History

It was first mentioned in a document of

Bishop of Wrocław Bishops of the (Breslau )Wrocław Bishopric, Prince-Bishopric (1290–1918), and Archdiocese (since 1930; see Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Wrocław for details). Bishops * 1000–? – John (Johannes) * 1051–1062 – Hieronymus * 1063–1072 � ...

issued on 23 May 1223 for Norbertine Sisters in

Rybnik Rybnik (Polish pronunciation: ; ) is a city in southern Poland, in the Silesian Voivodeship, around 38 km (24 mi) southwest of Katowice, the region's capital, and around 19 km (11 mi) from the Czech Republic, Czech border. It i ...

among villages paying them a

tithe A tithe (; from Old English: ''teogoþa'' "tenth") is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Modern tithes are normally voluntary and paid in money, cash, cheques or v ...

, as ''Punzo''. In the same document another village of Radowice (Radouiza) was mentioned, which was later absorbed by Puńców. In 1228 the aforementioned Norbertine Sisters moved from Rybnik to

Czarnowąsy Czarnowąsy is a district in the northern part of Opole, Opole Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. Geography It is situated on the Mała Panew river near its confluence with the Oder. The village lies approximately south-east of Dobrzeń Wi ...

the tithe from most of the villages listed in 1223 were taken from them, however Puńców was extraordinarily given to them as a possession.I. Panic, 2010, p. 286 In that year the village was conveyed to a ''Polish law''.I. Panic, 2010, p. 425 The village was again mentioned in the document of

Pope Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX (; born Ugolino di Conti; 1145 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and the ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decretales'' and instituting the Pa ...

issued in 1229 as a village belonging to the

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

Tyniec Tyniec is a historic village in Poland on the Vistula river, since 1973 a part of the city of Kraków (currently in the district of Dębniki). Tyniec is notable for its Benedictine abbey founded by King Casimir the Restorer in 1044. Etymology ...

. Later in unattested circumstances the ownership of the village changed to dukes. Politically it belonged then to the

Duchy of Opole and Racibórz The Duchy of Opole and Racibórz (, ) was one of the numerous Duchies of Silesia ruled by the Silesian branch of the royal Polish Piast dynasty. It was formed in 1202 from the union of the Upper Silesian duchies of Opole and the Racibórz, in a ra ...

and the

Castellan A castellan, or constable, was the governor of a castle in medieval Europe. Its surrounding territory was referred to as the castellany. The word stems from . A castellan was almost always male, but could occasionally be female, as when, in 1 ...

y of

Cieszyn Cieszyn ( , ; ; ) is a border town in southern Poland on the east bank of the Olza River, and the administrative seat of Cieszyn County, Silesian Voivodeship. The town has 33,500 inhabitants ( and lies opposite Český Těšín in the Czech Repu ...

, which was in 1290 formed in the process of feudal fragmentation of Poland into the

Duchy of Teschen The Duchy of Teschen (), also Duchy of Cieszyn () or Duchy of Těšín (), was one of the Duchies of Silesia centered on Cieszyn () in Upper Silesia. It was split off the Silesian Duchy of Opole and Racibórz in 1281 during the feudal divisio ...

, ruled by a local branch of Silesian Piast dynasty. In 1327 the duchy became a

fee A fee is the price one pays as remuneration for rights or services. Fees usually allow for overhead, wages, costs, and markup. Traditionally, professionals in the United Kingdom (and previously the Republic of Ireland) receive a fee in contrad ...

of the

Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia (), sometimes referenced in English literature as the Czech Kingdom, was a History of the Czech lands in the High Middle Ages, medieval and History of the Czech lands, early modern monarchy in Central Europe. It was the pr ...

, which after 1526 became a part of the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy, also known as Habsburg Empire, or Habsburg Realm (), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities (composite monarchy) that were ruled by the House of Habsburg. From the 18th century it is ...

. After

Revolutions of 1848 in the Austrian Empire The revolutions of 1848 in the Austrian Empire took place from March 1848 to November 1849. Much of the revolutionary activity had a nationalism, nationalist character: the Austrian Empire, ruled from Vienna, included ethnic Germans, Hungarians, ...

a modern municipal division was introduced in the re-established

Austrian Silesia Austrian Silesia, officially the Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia, was an autonomous region of the Kingdom of Bohemia and the Habsburg monarchy (from 1804 the Austrian Empire, and from 1867 the Cisleithanian portion of Austria-Hungary). It is la ...

. The village as a municipality was subscribed to the

political Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

and

legal district A judicial district or legal district denotes the territorial area for which a legal court (usually a district court) has jurisdiction. By continent Europe Austria In texts concerning Austria, "judicial district" () refers to the geographi ...

. According to the censuses conducted in 1880, 1890, 1900 and 1910 the population of the municipality grew from 1,009 in 1880 to 1,434 in 1910 with a growing majority being native Polish-speakers (from 98.1% in 1880 to 99.2% in 1910) accompanied by a small German-speaking minority (at most 17 or 3.1% in 1880) and a few Czech-speaking people (at most 8 or 0.7% in 1900). In terms of religion in 1910 the majority were

Protestants Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

(56.3%), followed by

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

(43.7%). The village was also traditionally inhabited by

Cieszyn Vlachs The Cieszyn Vlachs (, ) are a Silesian ethnographic group living around the towns of Cieszyn and Skoczów, one of the four major ethnographic groups in Cieszyn Silesia, the one mostly associated with wearing Cieszyn folk costume but not the on ...

, speaking

Cieszyn Silesian dialect The Cieszyn Silesian dialect or Teschen Silesian dialect (Cieszyn Silesian: ''cieszyńsko rzecz''; or '; ; Silesian: ''ćeszyński djalekt'') is one of the Silesian dialects. It has its roots mainly in Old Polish and also has strong influence ...

. After

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, fall of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

Polish–Czechoslovak War The Czechoslovak-Polish War, widely known in Czech sources as the Seven-Day War () was a military confrontation between Czechoslovakia and Poland over the territory of Cieszyn Silesia in early 1919. Czechoslovak forces invaded the Polish par ...

and the division of

in 1920, it became a part of

. It was then

annexed Annexation, in international law, is the forcible acquisition and assertion of legal title over one state's territory by another state, usually following military occupation of the territory. In current international law, it is generally held to ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

at the beginning of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. After the war it was restored to

Landmarks

There is a

Saint George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

Roman Catholic church in the village. It was built in 1518 in the late Gothic style.

Footnotes

External links

*
Description at the Gmina Goleszów website
{{Cieszyn Silesia Villages in Cieszyn County Cieszyn Silesia