Two hundred and seventy accordion players performed together in the Pomeranian town of Kartuzy in Poland to mark the Day of Kashubian Unity on Sunday.

The day has been observed in the Kashubian region of Poland since 2004. The musicians played five traditional Kashubian tunes. Last year, a similar event brought together 252 accordion players, and two years ago, 202 musicians. 

The event was the focal point of the celebration of the Kashubian Unity Day, which commemorates the first written record about the Kashubians, contained in the document promulgated in 1238 by Pope Gregory IX. The Dukes of Pomerania were granted the title of ‘dux Slavorum et Cassubia’’, or Duke of the Slavs and the Kashubs. Duke Barnim III, who ruled in Western Pomerania in the 14th century,  used the title ‘dux Cassuborum’. 

Kashubs are one of Poland’s remaining minority populations with their own language and distinctive culture. The language was granted by parliament with official regional status in 2005, the only tongue to enjoy such a distinction in Poland. The country’s most famous Kashub is none other than Prime Minister Donald Tusk. (mk/pg)