“It has become customary to begin the education of the young of both sexes with geography,” or, on the role of geography textbooks in Polish culture in the 18th century

Abstract

In the 18th c. geography gained the status of an autonomous science and became indispensable in the education of both boys and girls from gently families. Children acquired and consolidated geographical knowledge by studying textbooks and through games involving movement and the use of language. It was widely assumed that studying geography stimulated memory and imagination, developed the mind, trained the ability to think logically and infer, enhanced the powers of observation, and taught humanitarianism and patriotism. Many geography textbooks were published in the 18th c., including works “of serious matter” and lighter books “for entertainment”. Analysing their bibliographies and editorial standards can bring valuable data on the history of printing. Their contents refl ect changes in the Polish system of education, and consequently in the intellectual life of the epoch. Geography textbooks both refl ected and shaped mentality. They encouraged readers to travel and certainly for those who could not afford long expensive journeys abroad they were a substitute of travelling. Thanks to them, without much effort, risk or cost, readers were able to make long and fascinating trips in their imagination. Geography textbooks were a major source of information about other countries and the varied cultures of their inhabitants, thus shaping their images in Polish culture.