Birthday-themed lectures at Gdynia's universities have begun. The series opened with ‘Secrets of Scandinavia in Gdynia, or Swedish, Norwegian and Danish traces in our city’ at the Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski Higher School of Administration and Business (WSAiB) in Gdynia.
As it turns out, Gdynia has more in common with Scandinavia than with the rest of the region. And we are not talking about the coffee and cake tradition of ‘fika’ (a ritual break from everyday life) or buying furniture in a blue and yellow chain store.
Let's start with the districts of Gdynia. While we know the origins of the names Redłowo (from 'radło', an agricultural tool), Karwin (where cows grazed) or Witomino and Chylonia (derived from male names), Oksywie may come as a surprise.
It is not a Slavic root. The first time Oksywie appears on maps is in 1214 as Oxiva. Later records of Oxhuvud confirm linguists' belief that it is a name of Scandinavian origin. Why? ‘Ox’ in Norse means ‘ox’, and ‘huvud’ is ‘head’. The characteristic protrusion of Oksywie is the head of an ox, explains Dr Maciej Zborowski.
The lecture also covered the history of the port. While the residents of Gdynia are familiar with the names of its builders and the main contractor, the Polish-French Consortium, some may not know the names of the subcontractors who were well versed in the technology of constructing similar facilities in the Baltic Sea basin. They were the Danish duo Højgaard & Schultz, who specialised in water construction. Knowing their craft, they did a titanic job. It was thanks to them that commercial, deep-sea and military activities became a reality.
The next chapter covers the exploitation of the miners' strike in Great Britain and an important shift in coal exports from Silesia from Gdynia to Scandinavia. It also mentions the first Swedish boulevard (today named after Feliks Nowowiejski), which could not withstand the forces of nature on a February night in 1949.
Another, rather less obvious trace of Scandinavia is the commemorative plaque at 57 Władysława IV Street.
There used to be an apartment house here, which served as a place of communication with foreign countries. It was from this very place that Jan Nowak-Jeziorański, aka the Courier from Warsaw, was transported to Sweden. This inconspicuous plaque commemorates this fact. He was our citizen and it was from this very place that he passed on important information, explains Zborowski.
The audience also learned about the history of the Vasa dynasty, from which Władysław IV received the name of one of the main thoroughfares in our city. The ‘Dar Pomorza’ ship, which also had a Swedish connection, namely surviving the war in a Swedish port, was mentioned as well.
On Thursdays at 6 p.m., we have more lectures prepared by Gdynia's universities coming up:
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12 March, Merito, Dr Anna Mikosik-Roczyńska: How to become a centenarian (not only in Gdynia...), or is it possible to cheat time?
- 19 March, Merito, Prof. Mariusz Lipowski: Sport for health or health for sport? A psychological perspective.
- 26 March, AMW, Prof. Paweł Kępka, Naval Academy, Dr Martyna Bartkowska: Gdynia safe for 100 years: the evolution of civil protection and civil defence in the port city of the future.
- 9 April, UMG, Magdalena Bogalecka, PhD, Prof. UMG: The Baltic Sea – our sea. What really lies beneath the waters at the gates of Gdynia?
- 16 April, WSAiB, Mariusz Zieliński, PhD, Eng.: Gdynia from the sea and dreams: the port, the city and the people, past and present.
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23 April, AMW / Gdynia City Museum, Dr Iwona Jakimowicz-Pisarska, Professor at AMW, Maria Piradoff: Secrets of Gdynia's museums: from the first initiatives to the legendary ‘Bankowiec’.
- 7 May, WSAiB, Dr Henryk Woźniak, Prof. WSAiB: Public finances of a port city, or where does Gdynia get its money from?
- 14 May, AMW, Dr Alicja Mrozowska: Contemporary challenges for city security in the context of the supply chain operated by Port Gdynia.
- 21 May, UMG, Katarzyna Gaul, MSc: What powers ships? From traditional engines to the green technologies of the future.
- 28 May, AMW, Dr Karolina Szydywar-Grabowska: The Russian cognitive offensive – strategies, tactics and impact on social polarisation.
- 11 June, WSAiB, Dr Tomasz Gutowski: The Gdynia economy in the People's Republic of Poland, or the absurdities and peculiarities of everyday life before 1989.
- 18 June, Merito, Iwona Golec, MA: Gdynia Jubilee Tax Lesson: The tax authorities on the wave – fake tax news flooding social media.
- 25 June, AMW, Dr Edyta Łońska: Chemical weapons in the Baltic Sea – are there any grounds for concern?
- 2 July, UMG, Krzysztof Wróbel, PhD: The global shipping industry and prospects for Gdynia. New trends, old problems and big money.
- 9 July, WSAiB, Dorota Simpson, PhD, Prof. WSAiB: Gdynia – a city and port as a melting pot of cultures.
- 16 July, UMG, Dr Anna Miller: Unmanned ships? Autonomy at sea – still the future or already the present?
- 23 July, UMG, Dariusz Jellonnek, MSc, Master Mariner: Maritime disasters. Can they be avoided?
- 30 July, AMW, Dr Ewa Bartuś: Can these eyes be lying... Psychophysiological research in the service of truth.
- 6 August, AMW/Gdynia City Museum, Dr Patrycja Bałdys, Dr Wojciech Ogrodnik: A fulfilled or unfulfilled city? Gdynia from an everyday perspective.
- 13 August, UMG, Dr Jarosław Cydejko, Master Mariner: Satellites over our sea. Navigation, security, independence.
- 20 August, WSAiB, Dr Wojciech Wosek: Gdynia pitawal, or the juiciest stories from the city's criminal past.
- 27 August, AMW, Jakub Syta, PhD Eng.: Cybersecurity as a pillar of the future economy.
- 3 September, WSAiB, Rafał Szyc, PhD: How much does it really cost to get around Gdynia – what you can and cannot see in urban transport.
- 10 September, UMG, Agnieszka Kerbrat, MSc: From simulation to safe navigation. How does maritime traffic modelling help to evaluate navigation solutions?
- 17 September, AMW, Jerzy Kosiński, PhD, Prof. AMW: Cybercrime and how to combat it.
- 24 September, UMG, Dr Grzegorz Rutkowski, Captain, Prof. UMG; Tymoteusz Tomczuk, MSc: How to read the sea? Maps that guide ships to the Port of Gdynia.
- 8 October, WSAiB, Dr Anna Reiwer-Kaliszewska, Prof. WSAiB: Customs duties and taxes: how do customs and tax laws affect your life?
- 15 October, AMW, Dr Karolina Grenda: Artificial intelligence in security.
- 22 October, Merito, Dr Piotr Kobzdej: Gdynia – a city on the front line.
- 29 October, WSAiB, Dr Ewelina Parysek: The residents of Gdynia targeted by disinformation.
- 5 November, WSAiB, Dr Jarosław Wróblewski: Coastal finances, or how to manage your own portfolio as a resident of Gdynia.
- 12 November, AMW, Dr Andrzej Drzewiecki, Prof. AMW: When independence was born: from idea to Gdynia.
- 19 November, Merito, Dr Małgorzata Kochańska: Safe Gdynia – from a port city to a modern metropolis.
- 26 November, UMG, Mateusz Gil, PhD: Shipping in the digital age. How is technology changing the maritime industry?
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3 December, WSAiB, Monika Gut-Winiarska, PhD: Tree houses and underwater capsules, or unusual forms of tourism.