Tatar trail, Podlachia
The Tatar Trail (Polish: Szlak Tatarski) of Podlaskie Voivodeship in Eastern Poland consists of two marked trails along sites related to the Lipka Tatars.[1][2][3] The longer Szlak Tatarski Duży, marked in green, has 57 kilometers.[4] The blue-marked Szlak Tatarski Mały is shorter at 19 kilometers of length .[5] The attractions are mainly of historical interest. Rural tourism facilities give opportunity to meet Tatar families and learn about their culture. As it runs through the Knyszyń Forest, the trail offers insight into nature as well.[6][7]
![](../I/Meczet_w_Bohonikach_02.jpg.webp)
Trail's route
Szlak Tatarski Duży runs through Sokółka, Bohoniki, Stara Kamionka, Wierzchlesie, Talkowszczyzna, Nowa Świdziałówka and Kruszyniany.
The shorter Szlak Tatarski Mały encompasses Kruszyniany, Józefowo, Królowe Stojło and Waliły-Stacja. It connects sites related to Tatar settlement in Podlachia with the ones related to the January Uprising.
Main attractions
- Sokółka[8]
- Regional Museum (Polish: Muzeum Ziemi Sokólskiej), which has sections related to Lipka Tatar history
- 16th/17th century town square
- St. Anthony's Catholic Church, a neoclassical building erected in 1848
- St. Alexander Newski’s Orthodox Church from 1830
- Bohoniki
- Bohoniki Mosque, a wooden mosque built in 19th century
- Islamic cemetery. With three centuries of history and at 2ha, this is the oldest and the biggest still active Muslim graveyard
- Kruszyniany
- Kruszyniany Mosque, built from wood, the oldest Tatar mosque in Poland
- Muslim cemetery
Gallery
- Wooden mosque in Kruszyniany
- The Tatar Cemetery in Kruszyniany
- Mosque in Bohoniki
- Muslim cemetery in Bohoniki
- Neoclassical Church of St. Anthony in Sokółka
- Sokółka Regional Museum
- St. Alexander Newski Orthodox Church in Sokółka
References
- Svanberg, Ingvar; Westerlund, David, eds. (2015). Muslim Tatar Minorities in the Baltic Sea Region. Brill. pp. 59–61. ISBN 978-90-04-30584-7.
- Raudvere, Catharina, ed. (2017). Contested Memories and the Demands of the Past. History Cultures in the Modern Muslim World. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 169. ISBN 978-3-319-39000-0.
- Egzotyczna Wschodnia Polska: zwiedzamy Podlaski Szlak Tatarski. at Ruszaj w Drogę! website
- Szlak Tatarski Duży at Zielone Wrota touristic portal
- Szlak Tatarski Mały at Zielone Wrota touristic portal
- Tatar Trail entry at Atrakcje Podlasia touristic portal
- Szlak tatarski – odrobina orientu na Podlasiu at Polska Zachwyca website
- Sokółka official website.