Caring for the Family: Social Support in Poland between the 19th and 21st centuries. A Historical Dictionary

Caring for the Family: Social Support in Poland between the 19th and 21st centuries. A Historical Dictionary

Principal investigator - prof. dr hab. Paweł Grata

Duration of the project - 2.02.2024 - 2.02.2029

The project was partially financed from the government budget
Financing institution - Ministry of Science and Higher Education / National Programme for the Development of Humanities

Project value - 1 716 058,20 PLN
Funding value - 1 716 058,20 PLN

Project description
The present project focuses on the history of social support in Poland, defined as assistance provided by both governmental and non-governmental organizations to help disadvantaged individuals and families navigate through challenging life circumstances they would otherwise struggle to manage. One of the key objectives is to investigate the evolution of social support in Poland, including the transition from the traditional care provided for the poor in the late 19th century to the development of a modern, specialized social care system prioritizing the welfare of those in need. This transition persisted through the socialist era, with social support eventually becoming a defined responsibility of public authorities and social organizations following the events of 1989. The geographical scope of the research mirrors the shifting boundaries of Polish territories across different historical periods. Therefore, the pre-World War II investigation included regions that were incorporated into the Second Polish Republic after World War I, while the post-war research focused on the official Polish territories.
The main aim of the project is to publish a 5-volume historical dictionary, presenting key figures, institutions, ideas, phenomena, and processes connected to social welfare in Poland. The planned outcome will fill a significant gap in the existing scholarly discourse, as no such publication has been created to date. The publication, titled  “Caring for the Family: Social Support in Poland between the 19th and 21st centuries. A Historical Dictionary ”, will contain 2000 entries spread across five volumes. Each entry will range from 1500 to 3500 characters in length and will be accompanied by a list of sources (approximately 500 characters). The entire research output, including the dictionary entries and digital versions of the printed volumes, will be accessible on a dedicated website. The publication will be distributed to libraries, academic institutions, government bodies, and organizations dealing with social welfare issues.