Greetings

• Poles greet one another with a courteous handshake and a greeting appropriate to the time of day. In the evening they say "dobry wieczor," and in the morning and afternoon they say "dzien dobry." They address people with the honorific title "Pan" for men and "Pani" for women.
  
  

Dining

• Table manners in Poland are continental; they hold the knife in the right hand and fork in the left hand. It is polite to remove your shoes when eating in Poland; sometimes dinner guests wear slippers when eating. The Poles eat a lot of soups due to the long and cold winters. Two of the most popular soups are lentil soup and beer soup, or "zupa piwna."
  
  

Christmas

• Poles practice "dzielenie oplatkiem" to celebrate Christmas with family or at work parties. This involves the breaking and sharing of oplatek, a thin white wafer, and wishing each other good health and prosperity for the coming year.
  
  

Catholicism

• Catholicism is the most widely practiced religion in Poland, with 89.8 percent of the population identifying with the Roman Catholic religion, and 75 percent practicing the religion. Catholicism plays an important part in major life milestones for Polish people, such as weddings, funerals and baptisms.
  
  

All Saints' Day

• Poland celebrates All Saints' Day on November 1st when people visit cemeteries to pay respects to the deceased.
  
  

Age at Marriage

• The Polish people marry at the youngest ages for any nation in the European Union. The average woman is 24 years old and the average man is 26.5 years old when getting married.
  
  

Gift Giving

• There are three major gift-giving days in Polish culture: Christmas, birthdays and name days. Name days are on the birthday of the saint after whom a person is named. Gifts are usually opened as soon as they are received.
  
  

Wedding Ceremony

• The most popular Polish wedding tradition is "Oczepiny." It involves dance contests and a game called "Passing a Rolling Pin" in which participants form a circle and pass a rolling pin to one another using only their legs. The wedding cake is not cut until midnight and the ceremony lasts into the morning hours.
  
  

Direct Communication

• The Polish people have a direct communication style. They value honesty and say exactly what they mean, although their level of honesty differs according to the closeness of the relationship.
  
  

Inner Circle

• The Poles depend on an inner circle of family and family friends to form the basis for their social and business network. People in this inner circle help them find jobs and offer them life advice.