What are the Provinces of Poland?

Poland is divided into 16 provinces, called voivodeships (województwa). Each has a voivode appointed by the government and an elected regional assembly led by a marshal.

• The name comes from the medieval voivode, a military commander who governed a region for the king.
• Poland's provinces have been redrawn many times.
• From 1975 the country had 49 smaller provinces.
• The current 16 were created on 1 January 1999.
• They are mostly named after historic regions, such as Masovia, Silesia, Pomerania and Lesser Poland.