Rzeczpospolita

Rzeczpospolita (Polish pronunciation: [ʐɛt͡ʂpɔsˈpɔlʲita]; English pronunciation:/ʒɛtʃ.pɒsˈpɔːlitə/) is a traditional and official name of the Polish State – Polish:Rzeczpospolita Polska (Latin:Respublica Poloniae, English: Republic of Poland). It comes from the words: "rzecz" (thing) and "pospolita" (common), literally, a "common thing". In terms of etymology and meaning, the closest Latin phrase is "res publica" (res "thing", publica "public, common") and the closest English term is "commonwealth" (i.e. "common wealth", "common good"), but a more modern translation is republic (a form of governance). In Poland the word Rzeczpospolita is used exclusively in relation to the Republic of Poland, and any other republic is referred to in Polish as a republika, e.g., Italian Republic – Polish:Republika Włoska.