In Polish, the word język (like the Latin lingua) means both language and tongue. So anyone practicing the Polish language must also train their tongue – literally. And the tongue is used not only for articulating sounds but also for tasting. That’s why this is about both – speaking and tasting – specifically, about the names of Polish dishes.
Bigos – the Polish national dish with German roots
Everyone knows bigos. It’s one of the most traditional Polish dishes: cooked cabbage with meat or, in the vegetarian version, with mushrooms. Surprisingly, the word itself is not of Slavic origin. It comes from German – or more precisely, from a Germanic root. The word beigossen was used in the 17th century and is related to the older term Beiguss (sauce or gravy).
Bigos is delicious, but in metaphors it’s often used in a not-so-positive sense:
- „Mieć bigos w głowie“ – “To have bigos in your head” means not to be the brightest person.
- „Narobić sobie bigosu“ – “To make bigos for oneself” means to get oneself into trouble.
Maybe that’s because bigos mixes many ingredients together – a symbol of something delicious, yet wonderfully chaotic.
Barszcz – the soup in the colors of Poland
If I had to name the most Polish of all soups, it would undoubtedly be barszcz — if only because it comes in two colors: white and red, the national colors of Poland.
Barszcz biały is a sourdough soup, often served with pieces of sausage and boiled egg, either in or with bread.
Barszcz czerwony is made from beetroot and served with small pierogi (uszka), beans, or potatoes – or plain, as a drink.
The name barszcz comes from Proto-Indo-European, where it meant “something sharp.” Later, it referred to beets, and later still to a sour soup. The first step in preparing it is always fermentation – for barszcz biały, that of sourdough; for barszcz czerwony, that of beets.
All the more interesting is the expression „tani jak barszcz” – “cheap as barszcz” – even though making it is not that simple at all.
Chleb – more than just bread
Chleb (bread) – the most essential food, the foundation. Yet the ancient Slavs supposedly didn’t know bread; they ate roasted grain instead. They adopted it from their western neighbors – along with the name: hlaiba, today’s Laib.
Bread in Poland is deeply rooted in both pagan and Christian traditions and appears in numerous proverbs and expressions:
- „Łamiemy się chlebem“ – We share bread (a sign of community).
- „Witamy chlebem i solą“ – We greet with bread and salt.
- „Żyć o chlebie i wodzie“ – To live on bread and water – to have only the bare essentials.
- „Pracować na chleb“ – To work for bread – to earn one’s living.
- „Ciężki kawałek chleba“ – A hard-earned piece of bread.
- „Nie z jednego pieca chleb się jadło“ – One has eaten bread from many ovens – meaning, one has experienced a lot in life.
- „Nie samym chlebem człowiek żyje“ – Man does not live by bread alone.
Hardly any other food in Polish carries as much meaning and symbolism as bread – a symbol of work, life, community, and faith.
While writing this article, I used the book “Jeść!” by Jerzy Bralczyk, Bosz, 2021.
