Led by: Jacek Stawiski

„The Karaim, although being a very small ethnic and religious group living in the territory of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as well as in interwar Poland, have long attracted the interest of not only academics but also artists (e.g. Eliza Orzeszkowa’s novel “Meir Ezofowicz”). Much has been written about them, but these are mostly popular or fragmentary works, often tainted with unverified information which fueled further myths. There was no comprehensive and fully scientific approach to this subject. Therefore, great credit goes to Prof. Stefan Gąsiorowski for undertaking this task despite enormous difficulties, caused primarily by the dispersion of source material and the fact that the Karaim were often identified with Jews, which is also reflected in various sources. (…) As a result, extensive works were compiled, offering a comprehensive approach to the history of the Karaim in Ruthenia and Lithuania, and, subsequently, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth of the 18th century. The work describes the Karaim settlement, economy, legal status, relations with other religious groups in the country, their internal organisation, and some elements of their culture. (…) The author meticulously collected information scattered in different sources, arranged it in an orderly manner, and subjected them to critical evaluation in order to draw more general conclusions, which sometimes differ from common opinions and previously established research. In doing so, the author critically formulated his own conclusions, drawing attention to uncertain statements. The resulting work is highly valuable, both because of the very rich factual information and the scientifically supported generalisations.” – From the review by Prof. Jan M. Małecki.

In Polish. Free admission.