Editing Podhale

{{Short description|Region of meadows}}
{{About||a description of the dialect of Podhale and history of the inhabitants |Gorals||}}
[[File:Tatry widok z Tarasowek.jpg|thumb|300px|Podhale. View from Tarasówka, with [[Tatra Mountains]] at the [[horizon]] line]]
[[File:NowyTarg2.jpg|thumb|300px|Bird's-eye view of [[Nowy Targ]],  the capital of the region]]
[[File:"A Goral Wedding", Dom Ludowy, Bukowina Tatrzańska.jpg|thumb|left|Inhabitants of Podhale in regional costume]]
[[File:Gorals map.png|thumb|300px|Podhale on the map of the Goral Lands (regions inhabited by Gorals)]]
'''Podhale''' ({{IPA|pl|pɔtˈxalɛ|-|LL-Q809 (pol)-Olaf-Podhale.wav}}; {{literal translation|below the mountain pastures}}), sometimes referred to as the '''Polish Highlands''', is [[Poland]]'s southernmost region. The Podhale is located in the foothills of the [[Tatra Mountains|Tatra range]] of the [[Carpathian Mountains]]. It is the most famous{{cn|date=December 2022}} region of the [[Gorals#Population|Goral Lands]] which are a network of historical regions inhabited by [[Gorals]].<ref>
{{Cite web|title= Skarby Górali|url= https://mapapasji.pl/index.php/co-robimy/skarby-gorali|access-date= 2021-12-05|website= Fundacja Mapa Pasji|language= pl-pl}}</ref>

== Local folklore ==
The region is characterized by its unique [[folklore]], which is distinct from other folk cultures in Poland. Its folklore was brought there mainly by settlers from the [[Lesser Poland]] region further north and partly by [[Vlachs (social class)|Wallachian]] (Vlach) settlers in the {{nobreak|14th&ndash;17th}} centuries during their migrations. The name Podhale literally translates as "below the mountains" in English.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://info-poland.buffalo.edu/web/geography/regions/podhale/link.shtml |title=Home -Geography - Podhale and Tatry<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=2008-03-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160928184004/http://info-poland.buffalo.edu/web/geography/regions/podhale/link.shtml |archive-date=2016-09-28 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It is a combination of two words. In the Gorals dialect, the [[Alpine tundra]] is called [[:pl:Hala (pasterstwo)|hala]] (plural: hale), "pod" in Polish is the English "under".

The [[Podhale dialect]] of Polish as well as standard [[Polish language|Polish]] are spoken in the region.

==Regional attractions==
Among the region's attractions are the popular [[mountain resort]] of [[Zakopane]] and the lake known as [[Morskie Oko]] ("The Eye of the Sea"), which local legend claims, is connected to the [[Adriatic]] by subterranean passageways. [[Nowy Targ]] along the [[Dunajec]] River, located in the valley beneath the [[Gorce Mountains]], is the capital of the region. [[Ludzmierz]] is home to the area's oldest shrine, [[Our Lady of Ludźmierz]] also known as the Hostess of Podhale or in Goral ''Gaździna Podholańsko''.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

The people in this region are particularly famous for their [[oscypek]], a cheese made from a mix of cow's and sheep's milk, their music, and their ski slopes. In the winter, it is the number one{{citation needed|date=April 2019}} tourist site in Poland.

==See also==
* [[Czorsztyn]]
* [[Dunajec River Gorge]]
* [[Folk costumes of Podhale]]
* [[Gorals]]
* [[Pieniny]]
* [[Polish Tatra Sheepdog]]
* [[Niedzica]]
* [[Niedzica Castle]]
* [[Sanctuary of Our Lady of Ludźmierz]]
* [[Szczawnica]]
* [[Zakopane Style]]
* [[Janosik (disambiguation)|Janosik]]
* [[Mała Armia Janosika]]

==References==
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[[Category:Geography of Lesser Poland Voivodeship]]
[[Category:Highlands]]