View source for Sorbs

{{Short description|West Slavic ethnic group}}
{{distinguish|Serbs}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
| group            = Sorbs
| flag             = [[Image:Flag of Sorbs.svg|200px|border]]
| flag_caption     = Sorbian flag, in [[pan-Slavic colours]], introduced in 1842
| image            = [[File:Sorbs national-costume1.jpg|180px]]
| caption          = Traditional female costume of [[Lower Lusatia]] (Spreewald)
| population       = 80,000<ref name="gebel"/>{{page needed|date=August 2022}} (est.)<br />• 45,000–60,000 Upper Sorbs{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}<br />• 15,000–20,000 Lower Sorbs{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}
| popplace         = 
| region1          = {{flag|Germany}}
| pop1             = 60,000 Sorbs in Germany (20,000 of which still speak Sorbian) <small>(2007 Reuters estimate)</small><ref name="Chambers">{{Cite web |title=Germany's Sorb minority struggles for survival |last=Chambers |first=Madeline |work=Reuters |date=26 November 2007 |access-date=18 August 2022 |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/germany-sorbs-idUKL2243639820071126}}</ref>
| region2          = {{flag|Czech Republic}}
| pop2             = 2,000{{citation needed|date=January 2025}}
| region3          = {{flag|Poland}}
| pop3             = fewer than 1,000{{citation needed|date=August 2022}}
| region4          = {{flag|United States}}
| pop4             = 1,245 <small>(2000)</small><ref>{{cite web |title=Table 1. First, Second, and Total Responses to the Ancestry Question by Detailed Ancestry Code: 2000 |url=https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial/2000/phc/phc-t-43/tab01.pdf |website=census.gov |publisher=United States Census Bureau |access-date=18 October 2023}}</ref>
| langs            = [[Sorbian languages|Sorbian]] ([[Upper Sorbian language|Upper Sorbian]], [[Lower Sorbian language|Lower Sorbian]]), [[Polish language|Polish]] ([[New mixed dialects]]), [[German language|German]] ([[Lusatian dialects]]), [[Czech language|Czech]]
| rels             = Majority [[Roman Catholicism]],<ref>{{cite web|last=Sparrow|first=Thomas|title=Sorbs: The ethnic minority inside Germany|url=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20210615-sorbs-the-ethnic-minority-inside-germany|work=[[BBC]]|date=16 June 2021|access-date=3 April 2022}}</ref> [[Protestantism]]<ref name="Chambers"/>
| related          = Other [[West Slavs]] <br />(especially [[Czechs]] and [[Polish people|Poles]])
}}

'''Sorbs''' ({{langx|hsb|Serbja}}; {{langx|dsb|Serby}}; {{langx|de|Sorben}} {{IPA|de|ˈzɔʁbn̩|pron|De-Sorben.ogg}}; {{langx|cs|Lužičtí Srbové}}; {{langx|pl|Serbołużyczanie}}; also known as '''[[Lusatians]]''', '''Lusatian Serbs'''<ref>{{cite book|last=Oldřich Tůma|first=Jaroslav Pánek|author-link=Jaroslav Pánek, Oldřich Tůma|title= History of the Czech Lands|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R9IeAAAAMAAJ|year=2018|language=en|page=237}}</ref> and '''[[Wends]]''') are an [[Indigenous peoples|indigenous]] [[West Slavs|West Slavic]] [[ethnic group]] predominantly inhabiting the parts of [[Lusatia]] located in the German [[states of Germany|states]] of [[Saxony]] and [[Brandenburg]]. Sorbs traditionally speak the [[Sorbian languages]] (also known as "Wendish" and "Lusatian"), which are closely related to [[Czech language|Czech]] and [[Lechitic languages]]. [[Upper Sorbian]] and [[Lower Sorbian]] are officially recognized minority languages in [[Germany]].

In the [[Early Middle Ages]], the Sorbs formed their own principality, which later shortly became part of the early West Slavic [[Samo's Empire]] and [[Great Moravia]], as were ultimately conquered by the [[East Francia]] ([[Sorbian March]]) and [[Holy Roman Empire]] ([[Saxon Eastern March]], [[Margravate of Meissen]], [[March of Lusatia]]). From the [[High Middle Ages]], they were ruled at various times by the closely related [[History of Poland during the Piast dynasty|Poles]] and [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Czechs]], as well as the more distant Germans and Hungarians. Due to a gradual and increasing [[Cultural assimilation|assimilation]] between the 17<sup>th</sup> and 20<sup>th</sup> centuries, virtually all Sorbs also spoke German by the early 20<sup>th</sup> century. In the newly created [[German Empire|German nation state]] of the late 19<sup>th</sup> and early 20<sup>th</sup> centuries, policies were implemented in an effort to [[Germanize]] the Sorbs. These policies reached their climax under the [[Nazi Germany|Nazi]] regime, who denied the existence of the Sorbs as a distinct [[Slavs|Slavic people]] by referring to them as "Sorbian-speaking Germans". The community is divided religiously between [[Roman Catholicism]] (the majority) and [[Lutheranism]]. The former [[Minister president (Germany)|Minister President]] of [[Saxony]] [[Stanislaw Tillich]] is of Sorbian origin.

==Etymology==
{{main|Names of the Serbs and Serbia}}

The ethnonym "Sorbs" (''Serbja'', ''Serby'') derives from the medieval ethnic groups called "[[Sorbs (tribe)|Sorbs]]" (''Surbi'', ''Sorabi''). The original ethnonym, ''Srbi'', was retained by the Sorbs and [[Serbs]] in the [[Balkans]].{{sfn|Stone|2015|p=9}} By the 6<sup>th</sup> century, [[Slavs]] occupied the area west of the Oder formerly inhabited by [[Germanic peoples]].{{sfn|Stone|2015|p=9}} The Sorbs are first mentioned in the 6<sup>th</sup> or 7<sup>th</sup> century. In their languages, the other Slavs call them the "Lusatian Serbs", and the Sorbs call the Serbs "the south Sorbs".<ref name="DW-Lužički Srbi">{{cite web |url=http://www.dw.de/lu%C5%BEi%C4%8Dki-srbi-njema%C4%8Dki-slaveni-protestantske-vjere/a-4168316|title=Lužički Srbi - njemački Slaveni protestantske vjere|access-date=6 December 2014 |author=Deutsche Welle |language=hr|author-link=Deutsche Welle}}</ref> The name "Lusatia" was originally applied only to Lower Lusatia.{{sfn|Stone|2015|p=9}} It is generally considered that their ethnonym ''*Sŕbъ'' (plur. ''*Sŕby'') originates from [[Proto-Slavic language|Proto-Slavic]] with an appellative meaning of a "family kinship" and "alliance", however others argue a derivation from [[Scythian languages|Iranian-Sarmatian]].<ref name="Łuczyński"/><ref name="Rudnicki1959">{{cite book|last=Rudnicki|first=Mikołaj|author-link=Mikołaj Rudnicki|title=Prasłowiańszczyzna, Lechia-Polska|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=R9IeAAAAMAAJ|year=1959|publisher=Państwowe wydawn. naukowe, Oddzia ︢w Poznaniu|language=pl|page=182}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Pohl |first=Heinz-Dieter |date=1970 |title=Die slawischen Sprachen in Jugoslawien |trans-title=The Slavic languages in Yugoslavia |language=de |journal=Der Donauraum |volume=15 |issue=1–2 |page=72 |doi=10.7767/dnrm.1970.15.12.63 |s2cid=183316961 |quote=Srbin, Plural Srbi: „Serbe“, wird zum urslawischen *sirbŭ „Genosse“ gestellt und ist somit slawischen Ursprungs41. Hrvat „Kroate“, ist iranischer Herkunft, über urslawisches *chŭrvatŭ aus altiranischem *(fšu-)haurvatā, „Viehhüter“42.}}</ref><ref name="Popowska">{{cite journal|last=Popowska-Taborska |first=Hanna |date=1993 |title=Ślady etnonimów słowiańskich z elementem obcym w nazewnictwie polskim |url=http://yadda.icm.edu.pl/yadda/element/bwmeta1.element.hdl_11089_16320 |language=pl |journal=Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. Folia Linguistica |volume=27 |pages=225–230 |doi=10.18778/0208-6077.27.29 |access-date=16 August 2020|hdl=11089/16320 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

==History==

===Early Middle Ages===
{{main|Sorbs (tribe)}}

[[File:BOGUSŁAWSKI(1861) Das Siedlungsgebiet der Sorben vom 7. bis 11. Jahrhundert in Mitteldeutschland.jpg|thumb|right|A map of the Sorbian-Lusatian tribes between the 7<sup>th</sup> and 11<sup>th</sup> century, by Wilhelm Bogusławski, 1861]]

The name of the Sorbs can be traced to the 6th century or earlier when [[Vibius Sequester]] recorded ''Cervetiis''  living on the other part of the river [[Elbe]] which divided them from the [[Suevi]] (''Albis Germaniae Suevos a Cerveciis dividiit'').<ref name="Simek1955">{{cite book|last=Simek|first=Emanuel|title=Chebsko V Staré Dobe: Dnesní Nejzápadnejsi Slovanské Území|url=https://digilib.phil.muni.cz/handle/11222.digilib/103713|year=1955|publisher=Vydává Masarykova Universita v Brne|language=cs|pages=47, 269|quote=O Srbech máme zachován první historický záznam ze VI. století u Vibia Sequestra, který praví, že Labe dělí v GermaniinSrby od Suevů65. Tím ovšem nemusí být řečeno, že v končinách severně od českých hor nemohli býti Srbové již i za Labem (západně od Labe), neboť nevíme, koho Vibius Sequester svými Suevy mínil. Ať již tomu bylo jakkoli, víme bezpečně ze zpráv kroniky Fredegarovy, že Srbové měli celou oblast mezi Labem a Sálou osídlenu již delší dobu před založením říše Samovy66, tedy nejméně již v druhé polovici VI. století67. Jejich kníže Drevan se osvobodil od nadvlády francké a připojil se někdy kolem roku 630 se svou državou k říši Samově68. V následujících letech podnikali Srbové opětovně vpády přes Sálu do Durinska 69... 67 Schwarz, ON 48, dospěl k závěru, že se země mezi Labem a Sálou stala srbskou asi r. 595 a kolem roku 600 že bylo slovanské stěhování do končin západně od Labe určitě již skončeno; R. Fischer, GSl V. 58, Heimatbildung XVIII. 298, ON Falk. 59, NK 69 datuje příchod Slovanů na Chebsko do druhé polovice VI. století, G. Fischer(ová), Flurnamen 218, do VI. století. Chebský historik Sieg1 dospěl v posledním svém souhrnném díle o dějinách Chebska Eger u. Egerland 4 k závěru, že Slované (myslil na Srby) přišli do Chebska již kolem roku 490, tedy před koncem V. století.}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Sułowski |first=Zygmunt |date=1961 |title=Migracja Słowian na zachód w pierwszym tysiącleciu n. e. |url=http://bazhum.pl/bib/article/273968/ |language=pl |journal=Roczniki Historyczne |volume=27 |pages=50–52 |access-date=4 August 2020}}</ref><ref name="Tyszkiewicz1990">{{cite book|last=Tyszkiewicz|first=Lech A.|title=Słowianie w historiografii antycznej do połowy VI wieku|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7ZQTAQAAMAAJ|year=1990|publisher=Wydawn. Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego|language=pl|isbn=978-83-229-0421-3|page=124|quote=...Germaniae Suevos a Cervetiis dividit mergitur in oceanum”. Według Szafarzyka, który odrzucił emendację Oberlina Cervetiis na Cheruscis, zagadkowy lud Cervetti to nikt inny, jak tylko Serbowie połabscy.}}</ref><ref name="Dulinicz2001">{{cite book|last=Dulinicz|first=Marek|title=Kształtowanie się Słowiańszczyzny Północno-Zachodniej: studium archeologiczne|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=akYjAQAAIAAJ|year=2001|publisher=Instytut Archeologii i Etnologii Polskiej Akademii Nauk|language=pl|isbn=978-83-85463-89-4|page=17}}</ref><ref name="Moczulski2007">{{cite book|last=Moczulski|first=Leszek|author-link=Leszek Moczulski|title=Narodziny Międzymorza: ukształtowanie ojczyzn, powstanie państw oraz układy geopolityczne wschodniej części Europy w późnej starożytności i we wczesnym średniowieczu|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FY_u2_TUiFoC|year=2007|publisher=Bellona|language=pl|pages=335–336|quote=Tak jest ze wzmianką Vibiusa Sequestra, pisarza z przełomu IV—V w., którą niektórzy badacze uznali za najwcześniejszą informację o Słowianach na Polabiu: Albis Germaniae Suevon a Cervetiis dividit (Vibii Sequestris, De fluminibus, fontibus, lacubus, memoribus, paludibus, montibus, gentibus, per litteras, wyd. Al. Riese, Geographi latini minores, Heilbronn 1878). Jeśli początek nazwy Cerve-tiis odpowiadał Serbe — chodziło o Serbów, jeśli Cherue — byli to Cheruskowie, choć nie można wykluczyć, że pod tą nazwą kryje się jeszcze inny lud (por. G. Labuda, Fragmenty dziejów Słowiańszczyzny Zachodniej, t. 1, Poznań 1960, s. 91; H. Lowmiański, Początki Polski..., t. II, Warszawa 1964, s. 296; J. Strzelczyk, Vibius Sequester [w:] Slownik Starożytności Słowiańskich, t. VI, Wroclaw 1977, s. 414). Pierwsza ewentualność sygeruje, że zachodnia eks-pansja Słowian rozpoczęta się kilka pokoleń wcześniej niż się obecnie przypuszcza, druga —że rozgraniczenie pomiędzy Cheruskami a Swebami (Gotonami przez Labę względnie Semnonami przez Soławę) uksztaltowało się — być może po klęsce Marboda — dalej na południowy wschód, niżby wynikało z Germanii Tacyta (patrz wyżej). Tyle tylko, że nie będzie to sytuacja z IV w. Istnienie styku serbsko-turyńskiego w początkach VII w. potwierdza Kronika Fredegara (Chronicarum quae dicuntw; Fredegari scholastici, wyd. B., Krusch, Monu-menta Gennaniae Bisiorka, Scriptores rerum Merovingicarum, t. II, Hannover 1888, s. 130); bylby on jednak późniejszy niż styk Franków ze Slowianami (Sldawami, Winklami) w Alpach i na osi Dunaju. Tyle tylko, te o takim styku możemy mówić dopiero w końcu VI w.}}</ref> According to [[Lubor Niederle]], the Serbian district was located somewhere between [[Magdeburg]] and [[Lusatia]], and was later mentioned by the [[Ottonian dynasty|Ottonians]] as ''Ciervisti'', ''Zerbisti'' and ''Kirvisti''.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Fomina |first=Z.Ye. |date=2016 |title=Славянская топонимия в современной Германии в лингвокультуроло-гическоми лингво-историческом аспек |trans-title=Slavonic Toponymy in Linguoculturological and Linguo-historical Aspects in Germany |url=https://www.elibrary.ru/item.asp?id=25957680 |language=ru |journal=Современные лингвистические и методико-дидактические исследования |volume=1 |issue=12 |page=30 |quote=Как следует из многотомного издания „Славянские древности“ (1953) известного чешского ученого Любора Нидерле, первым историческим известием о славянах на Эльбе является запись Вибия Секвестра «De fluminibus» (VI век), в которой об Эльбе говорится: «Albis Suevos a Cervetiis dividit». Cervetii означает здесь наименованиесербскогоокруга (pagus) на правом берегу Эльбы, между Магдебургом и Лужицами, который в позднейших грамотах Оттона I, Оттона II и Генриха II упоминается под терминомCiervisti,  Zerbisti, Kirvisti,нынешний Цербст[8]. В тот период, как пишет Любор Нидерле, а именно в 782 году, началось большое, имевшее мировое значение, наступление германцев против сла-вян. ПерейдяЭльбу, славяне представляли большую опасность для империи Карла Вели-кого. Для того, чтобы создать какой-то порядок на востоке, Карл Великий в 805 году соз-дал так называемый limes Sorabicus, который должен был стать границей экономических (торговых) связеймежду германцами и славянами[8].|access-date=4 August 2020}}</ref> The information is in accordance with the Frankish 7<sup>th</sup>-century ''[[Chronicle of Fredegar]]'' according to which the ''Surbi'' lived in the [[Saale]]-[[Elbe]] valley, [[Migration Period|having settled]] in the Thuringian part of [[Francia]] since the second half of the 6<sup>th</sup> century or beginning of the 7<sup>th</sup> century and were vassals of the [[Merovingian dynasty]].<ref name="Simek1955"/><ref name="LaetHerrmann1996">{{cite book|author1=Sigfried J. de Laet|author2=Joachim Herrmann|title=History of Humanity: From the seventh century B.C. to the seventh century A.D.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WGUz01yBumEC&pg=PA284|date=1 January 1996|publisher=UNESCO|isbn=978-92-3-102812-0|pages=282–284}}</ref><ref name="Stone2015">{{cite book|author=Gerald Stone|title=Slav Outposts in Central European History: The Wends, Sorbs and Kashubs|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ABsmCwAAQBAJ|year=2015|publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing|isbn=978-1-4725-9211-8|page=6}}</ref> 

The Saale-Elbe line marked the approximate limit of Slavic westward migration.{{sfn|Vlasto|1970|p=142}} Under the leadership of ''dux'' (duke) [[Dervan (duke)|Dervan]] ("Dervanus dux gente Surbiorum que ex genere Sclavinorum"), they joined the Slavic [[Samo's Empire|tribal union]] of [[Samo]], after Samo's decisive victory against Frankish King [[Dagobert I]] in 631.<ref name="LaetHerrmann1996"/><ref name="Stone2015"/> Afterwards, these Slavic tribes continuously raided [[Duchy of Thuringia|Thuringia]].<ref name="LaetHerrmann1996"/> The fate of the tribes after Samo's death and dissolution of the union in 658 is undetermined, but it is considered that they subsequently returned to Frankish vassalage.<ref name="Pronk-Tiethoff2013">{{cite book|author=Saskia Pronk-Tiethoff|title=The Germanic loanwords in Proto-Slavic|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0iWLAgAAQBAJ|year=2013|publisher=Rodopi|isbn=978-94-012-0984-7|pages=68–69}}</ref> 

According to a 10<sup>th</sup>-century source {{lang|la|[[De Administrando Imperio]]}}, they lived "since the beginning" in the region called by them as ''[[White Serbia|Boiki]]'' which was a neighbor to Francia, and when two brothers succeeded their father, one of them migrated with half of the people to the [[Balkans]] during the rule of [[Heraclius]] in the first half of the 7<sup>th</sup> century.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Živković|first=Tibor|author-link=Tibor Živković|year=2002|title=Јужни Словени под византијском влашћу (600-1025)|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oE-gAAAAMAAJ|location=Belgrade|publisher=Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts|page=198|isbn=9788677430276}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Živković|first=Tibor|author-link=Tibor Živković|title=De conversione Croatorum et Serborum: A Lost Source|year=2012|location=Belgrade|publisher=The Institute of History|url=https://www.academia.edu/1231887|pages=152–185}}</ref> According to some scholars, the [[unnamed 7th-century Serbian ruler|unnamed 7<sup>th</sup>-century Serbian ruler]] who led the White Serbs to the Balkans was most likely a son, brother or other relative of Dervan.<ref>{{cite book|author=Sava S. Vujić, Bogdan M. Basarić|title=Severni Srbi (ne)zaboravljeni narod|location=Beograd|year=1998|page=40}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Miloš S. Milojević|title=Odlomci Istorije Srba i srpskih jugoslavenskih zemalja u Turskoj i Austriji|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SuxEAQAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA59|year=1872|publisher=U državnoj štampariji|page=1}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Relja Novaković|title=Odakle su Sebl dos̆il na Balkansko poluostrvo|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5K0BAAAAMAAJ|year=1977|publisher=Istorijski institut|page=337}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Kardaras|first=Georgios|title=Byzantium and the Avars, 6th-9th Century AD: political, diplomatic and cultural relations|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1IN1DwAAQBAJ|year=2018|publisher=BRILL|isbn=978-90-04-38226-8 |editor=Florin Curta |editor2=Dušan Zupka|page=95}}</ref>

[[File:Dervan.png|thumb|left|7<sup>th</sup>-century Sorbian Duchy of [[Dervan (duke)|Dervan]]]]
[[File:Marchia Wschodnia ok. 1000.svg|thumb|left|[[Saxon Eastern March]] c. 1000 AD]]
Sorbian tribes, Sorbi/Surbi, are noted in the mid-9<sup>th</sup>-century work of the [[Bavarian Geographer]].<ref name="Łuczyński">{{cite journal |last=Łuczyński |first=Michal |date=2017 |title="Geograf Bawarski" — nowe odczytania |trans-title="Bavarian Geographer" — New readings |url=https://rcin.org.pl/dlibra/show-content/publication/edition/64469?id=64469 |language=pl |journal=Polonica |volume=XXXVII (37) |page=73 |doi=10.17651/POLON.37.9 |access-date=4 August 2020|url-access=subscription |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>V. von Keltsch, ''Der bairische Geograph'', Alpreussische Monatsschr., 23 (1886),</ref><ref>Gerhard Billig, ''Zur Rekonstruktion der ältesten slawischen Burgbezirke im obersächsisch-meißnischen Raum auf der Grundlage des Bayerischen Geographen'', Neues Archiv für sächsische Geschichte 66 (1995), s. 27-67</ref> Having settled by the Elbe, Saale, Spree, and Neisse in the 6<sup>th</sup> and early 7<sup>th</sup> century, Sorbian tribes divided into two main groups, which have taken their names from the characteristics of the area where they had settled. The two groups were separated from each other by a wide and uninhabited forest range, one around Upper Spree and the rest between the Elbe and Saale.<ref name="Sedov">{{cite book |first=Valentin Vasilyevich |last=Sedov |year=2013 |orig-year=1995 |title=Славяне в раннем Средневековье |trans-title=Sloveni u ranom srednjem veku (Slavs in Early Middle Ages) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HD4oAAAAMAAJ |publisher=Akademska knjiga |location=Novi Sad |isbn=978-86-6263-026-1 |pages=191–205}}</ref> Some scholars consider that the contemporary Sorbs are descendants of the two largest Sorbian tribes, the [[Milceni]] (Upper) and {{ill|Lusici (tribe){{!}}Lusici|de|Lusitzi|v=sup}} (Lower), and these tribes' respective dialects have developed into separate languages.{{sfn|Stone|2015|p=9}}<ref name="Sandford2013">{{cite book|author=John Sandford|title=Encyclopedia of Contemporary German Culture|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TuMsBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA412|date=3 April 2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-136-81603-1|page=412}}</ref> However, others emphasize differences between these two dialects and that their respective territories correspond to two different Slavic archeological cultures of [[Leipzig group]] ([[Upper Sorbian language]]) and [[Tornow group]] ceramics ([[Lower Sorbian language]]),<ref name="Sedov"/> both a derivation of [[Prague-Korchak culture|Prague(-Korchak) culture]].<ref>Paul M. Barford (2001). ''The Early Slavs: Culture and Society in Early Medieval Eastern Europe''. Cornell University Press. pp. 64–65, 77–78, 104–105. ISBN 9780801439773</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://doi.org/10.1017/S0003598X00112980|doi = 10.1017/S0003598X00112980|title = The beginnings of Slavic settlement east of the river Elbe|year = 2004|last1 = Brather|first1 = Sebastian|journal = Antiquity|volume = 78|issue = 300|pages = 314–329| s2cid=163828473 |url-access = subscription}}</ref>

[[File:Raddusch 07-2017 img01.jpg|thumb|The reconstructed Lusatian ''[[gord (archaeology)|gord]]'' (fortification) of Raduš (Raddusch), near [[Vetschau]], in [[Lower Lusatia]]]]
The ''Annales Regni Francorum'' state that in 806, Sorbian Duke [[Miliduch]] fought against the Franks and was killed. In 840, Sorbian Duke [[Czimislav]] was killed. From the 9<sup>th</sup> century was organized [[Sorbian March]] by the [[East Francia]] and from the 10<sup>th</sup> century the [[Saxon Eastern March]] ([[Margravate of Meissen]]) and [[March of Lusatia]] by the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. In 932, the German king [[Henry I the Fowler|Henry I]] conquered [[Lusatia]] and [[Upper Lusatia|Milsko]]. [[Gero]], [[Margrave]] of the Saxon Eastern March, reconquered Lusatia the following year and, in 939, murdered 30 Sorbian princes during a feast.<ref>*{{cite journal |last=Pech |first=Edmund |date=2015 |title=Milzener, Lusizer und Glomaci-Daleminzer Kontroversen zur frühen Geschichte der Sorben |trans-title=Milceni, Luzici and Glomaci-Daleminci. Controversies concerning the early History of the Sorbs |url=https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=296311 |journal=LĚTOPIS. Zeitschrift für sorbische Sprache, Geschichte und Kultur. Časopis za rěč, stawizny a kulturu Łužiskich Serbow |issue=2 |pages=129}}</ref> As a result, there were many Sorbian uprisings against German rule. A reconstructed castle, at Raddusch in Lower Lusatia, is the sole physical remnant from this early period.

===High and Late Middle Ages===
In 1002, the Sorbs came under the rule of their Slavic relatives, the Poles, when [[Bolesław I of Poland]] took over Lusatia. Following the subsequent [[German–Polish War (1003–1018)|German–Polish War of 1003–1018]], the [[Peace of Bautzen]] confirmed Lusatia as part of Poland; but, it returned to German rule in 1031. In the 1070s, southern Lusatia, passed into the hands of the Sorbs' other Slavic relatives, the Czechs, within their [[Duchy of Bohemia]]. There was a dense network of dynastic and diplomatic relations between German and Slavic feudal lords, e.g. [[Wiprecht of Groitzsch]] (a German) rose to power through close links with the Bohemian (Czech) king and marriage to the king's daughter.{{cn|date=August 2025}}

The [[Kingdom of Bohemia]] eventually became a politically influential member of the [[Holy Roman Empire]], but was in a constant power-struggle with neighbouring Poland. In the following centuries, at various times, parts of Lusatia passed to [[Piast dynasty|Piast]]-ruled fragmented Poland. In the German-ruled parts, Sorbs were ousted from [[guild]]s, the Sorbian language was banned and [[Ostsiedlung|German colonisation]] and Germanisation policies were enacted.{{sfn|Golecka|2003|p=57}}

From the 11<sup>th</sup> to the 15<sup>th</sup> century, agriculture in Lusatia developed and colonization by Frankish, Flemish and Saxon settlers intensified. This can still be seen today from the names of local villages which geographically form a patchwork of typical German (ending on -dorf, -thal etc.) and typical Slavic origin (ending on -witz, -ow etc.), indicating the language originally spoken by its inhabitants, although some of the present German names may be of later origin from the time of planned name changes to erase Slavic origin, especially in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1327 the first prohibitions on using Sorbian before courts and in administrative affairs in the cities of [[Altenburg]], [[Zwickau]] and [[Leipzig]] appeared. Speaking Sorbian in family and business contexts was, however, not banned, as it did not involve the functioning of the administration. Also the village communities and the village administration usually kept operating in Sorbian.

===Early modern period===
[[File:Wendische kirche senftenberg 2018-04-07 (2).jpg|thumb|Sorbian church in [[Senftenberg]] (Zły Komorow)]]
From 1376 to 1469 and from 1490 to 1635 Lusatia was part of the [[Lands of the Bohemian Crown]] under the rule of the houses of [[House of Luxembourg|Luxembourg]], [[Jagiellonian dynasty|Jagiellon]] and [[House of Habsburg|Habsburg]] and other kings, whereas from 1469 to 1490 it was ruled by King [[Matthias Corvinus]] of Hungary. Under Bohemian (Czech) rule, Sorbs were allowed to return to cities, offices and crafts, Germanisation significantly reduced and the Sorbian language could be used in public.{{sfn|Golecka|2003|p=58}} From the beginning of the 16<sup>th</sup> century the whole Sorbian-inhabited area, with the exception of Bohemian-ruled Lusatia, underwent [[Germanization]].

During the [[Thirty Years' War]], in 1635, Lusatia became a [[fiefdom]] of [[Electorate of Saxony|Saxon electors]], but it retained a considerable autonomy and largely its own legal system (see [[Lusatian League]]). The Thirty Years' War and the [[second plague pandemic|plague of the 17<sup>th</sup> century]] caused terrible devastation in Lusatia. This led to further German colonization and Germanization.

In 1667 the Prince of [[Brandenburg]], Frederick Wilhelm, ordered the immediate destruction of all Sorbian printed materials and banned saying masses in this language. At the same time, the [[Evangelical Church in Germany|Evangelical Church]] supported printing Sorbian religious literature, as a means of fighting the [[Counterreformation]]. With the formation of the Polish-Saxon union in 1697, Polish-Sorbian contacts resumed, and Poles influenced the Sorbs' national and cultural activities (see ''Relationship with Poland'' below). With the [[Age of Enlightenment]], the Sorbian national revival began and resistance to Germanization emerged.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=241}} In 1706 the Sorbian Seminary, the main centre for the education of Sorbian [[Catholic]] priests, was founded in [[Prague]].{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=241}} Sorbian preaching societies were founded by [[Evangelism|Evangelical]] students in [[Leipzig]] and [[Wittenberg]] in 1716 and 1749, respectively.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=241}}

===Late modern period===
[[File:Bramborski Serbski Casnik.jpg|thumb|upright|First issue of the ''Bramborski Serbski Casnik'' Sorbian newspaper, 1848]]
The [[Congress of Vienna]], in 1815, divided Lusatia between [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussia]] and [[Kingdom of Saxony|Saxony]]. More and more bans on the use of [[Sorbian languages]] appeared from then until 1835 in Prussia and Saxony; emigration of the Sorbs, mainly to the town of [[Serbin, Texas|Serbin]] in [[Texas]] and to Australia, increased. In 1848, 5,000 Sorbs signed a petition to the Saxon Government, in which they demanded equality for the Sorbian language with the German one in churches, courts, schools and Government departments. From 1871, the whole of Lusatia became a part of united Germany and was divided between two parts; Prussia ([[Province of Silesia|Silesia]] and [[Province of Brandenburg|Brandenburg]]), and Saxony.{{cn|date=August 2025}}

In 1871, the industrialization of the region and German immigration began; official Germanization intensified. Persecution of the Sorbs under German rule became increasingly harsh throughout the 19<sup>th</sup> century. Slavs were labeled inferior to Germanic peoples, and in 1875, the use of Sorbian was banned in German schools. As a result, almost the entire Sorbian population was bilingual by the end of the 19<sup>th</sup> century.{{Efn|name=Remus|"[A]nti-Sorbian policies throughout the Sorbian area of settlement got increasingly aggressive and, unsurprisingly, saw their climax under Nazi rule. Sorbs were declared to be "Wendish-speaking Germans" and a "Wendenabteilung was established to monitor the process of assimilation..."{{sfn|Remus|2014|p=4}} }}
[[File:Braugasse 1 HY.JPG|thumb|The place where [[Domowina]] was founded in [[Hoyerswerda]] (''Wojerecy'') in 1912]]

During [[World War I]], one of the most venerated [[Kingdom of Serbia|Serbian generals]] was [[Pavle Jurišić Šturm|Pavle Jurišić Šturm (Paul Sturm)]], a Sorb from [[Görlitz]], [[Province of Silesia]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2023}}

===Interbellum and World War II===
{{Main|Anti-Slavic sentiment}}
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 102-11632, Spreewald, Wenden-Hochzeit.jpg|thumb|A Wendish wedding procession in 1931 with the bride and groom at the front, still carried out today according to old traditions]]
Although the [[Weimar Republic]] guaranteed constitutional minority rights, it did not practice them.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Schönwälder |first=Karen |date=1996 |title=The Constitutional Protection of Minorities in Germany: Weimar Revisited |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4211979 |journal=The Slavonic and East European Review |volume=74 |issue=1 |pages=38–65 |jstor=4211979 |issn=0037-6795}}</ref>

Under [[Nazi Germany]], Sorbians were described as a German tribe who spoke a Slavic language. Sorbian costume, culture, customs, and the language was said to be no indication of a non-German origin. The Reich declared that there were truly no "Sorbs" or "Lusatians", only Wendish-speaking Germans. As such, while the Sorbs were largely safe from the Reich's policies of ethnic cleansing, the cultivation of "Wendish" customs and traditions was to be encouraged in a controlled manner and it was expected that the Slavic language would decline due to natural causes. Young Sorbs enlisted in the [[Wehrmacht]] and were sent to the front. The entangled lives of the Sorbs during [[World War II]] are exemplified by the life stories of [[Mina Witkojc]], {{Wikidata fallback link|Q159956}}<!---[[Měrčin Nowak-Njechorński]]--> and [[Jan Skala]].

Persecution of the Sorbs reached its climax under the Nazis, who attempted to completely assimilate and [[Germanization|Germanize]] them. Their distinct identity and culture and Slavic origins were denied by referring to them as "Wendish-speaking Germans". Under Nazi rule, the Sorbian language and practice of Sorbian culture was banned, Sorbian and Slavic place-names were changed to German ones,{{sfn|Golecka|2003|p=61}} Sorbian books and printing presses were destroyed, Sorbian organizations and newspapers were banned, Sorbian libraries and archives were closed, and Sorbian teachers and clerics were deported to German-speaking areas and replaced with German-speaking teachers and clerics. Leading figures in the Sorbian community were forcibly isolated from their community or simply arrested.{{Efn|name=Ramet|"Sorbs inhabiting Upper and Lower Lusatia, whose distinct identity and culture were simply denied by the Nazis, who described them as “Wendish-speaking” Germans and who, toward the end of the war, considered moving the Sorbs en masse to the mining districts of Alsace-Lorraine.".{{sfn|Ramet|2016|p=227}} }}{{Efn|name=Pynsent|"The Nazis intended to assimilate and permanently germanize these 'Wendish-speaking Germans' through integration into the 'National Socialist national community' and through the forbidding of the Sorbian language and manifestations of Sorbian culture, Sorbian and Slav place-names and local names of topographical features (fields, hills and so forth) were germanized, Sorbian books and printing presses confiscated and destroyed, Sorbian schoolteachers and clerics removed and put in German-speaking schools and parishes, and representatives of Sorbian cultural life were either forcibly isolated from their fellows or arrested."{{sfn|Pynsent|2000|p=115}} }}{{Efn|name=The Group|"[A]fter 1933, under the Nazi regime, the Sorbian community suffered severe repression, and their organizations were banned. Indeed, the very existence of the ethnic group was denied and replaced by the theory of the Sorbs as 'Slavic speaking Germans'. Plans were made to re-settle the Sorbian population in Alsace in order to resolve the 'Lusatian question'. The 12 years of Nazi dictatorship was a heavy blow for a separate Sorbian identity."{{sfn|The Group|1993|p=32}} }}{{Efn|"They pressed Sorbian associations to join Nazi organizations, often with Success, and the Domowina received an ultimatum to adopt a statute which defined it as a 'League of Wendish-speaking Germans'.” But the Domowina insisted upon the Slavonic character of the Sorbs. In March 1937 the Nazis forbade the Domowina and the Sorbian papers, all teaching in Sorbian was discontinued, and Sorbian books were removed from the school libraries."{{sfn|Zank|1998|p=173}} }}{{Efn|"[T]he programmatic re-invention of the Sorbian minority as wen- dischsprechende Deutsche under the Nazi regime..."{{sfn|Glaser|2007|p=275}} }} The Sorbian national anthem and flag were banned.{{sfn|Golecka|2003|p=60}} The specific ''Wendenabteilung'' was established to monitor the assimilation of the Sorbs.{{Efn|name=Remus}}

Towards the end of World War II, the Nazis considered the deportation of the entire Sorbian population to the mining districts of [[Alsace-Lorraine]].{{Efn|name=Ramet}}{{Efn|name=The Group}}

===East Germany===
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-R1012-0127, Berlin, Palast der Republik, Tanzgruppe.jpg|thumb|A Sorbian dance performance at the [[Palace of the Republic, Berlin|Palace of the Republic, East Berlin]] (the East German parliament), 1976]]
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-1990-0120-035, Klitten, Demonstration gegen Tagebau.jpg|thumb|More than 2,000 affected citizens demonstrated in [[Klitten]] against the destruction of their community by advancing open-pit mines starting in 1993. At their fifth environmental demonstration, the Sorbs demanded the preservation of Lusatia and their traditional settlement area.]]
The first Lusatian cities were captured in April 1945, when the [[Red Army]] and the [[Second Army (Poland)|Polish Second Army]] crossed the river [[Kwisa|Queis]] (Kwisa). The defeat of [[Nazi Germany]] changed the Sorbs’ situation considerably. The regions in [[East Germany]] (the German Democratic Republic) faced heavy industrialisation and a large influx of [[Expulsion of Germans after World War II|expelled Germans]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2018}} The East German authorities tried to counteract this development by creating a broad range of Sorbian institutions. The Sorbs were officially recognized as an ethnic minority, more than 100 Sorbian schools and several academic institutions were founded, the [[Domowina]] and its associated societies were re-established and a Sorbian theatre was created. Owing to the suppression of the church and forced collectivization, however, these efforts were severely affected and consequently over time the number of people speaking Sorbian languages decreased by half.
[[File:Fotothek df roe-neg 0006004 012 Sorbinnen.jpg|thumb|Two Sorbian women in Bautzen, 1950]]
The relationship between the Sorbs and the government of East Germany was not without occasional difficulties, mainly because of the high levels of religious observance and resistance to the nationalisation of agriculture. During the compulsory collectivization campaign, a great many unprecedented incidents were reported. Thus, throughout the [[Uprising of 1953 in East Germany]], violent clashes with the police were reported in Lusatia. A small uprising took place in three upper communes of Błot. There were also tensions between German and Sorbian parents in the 1950s and early 1960s, as many German families protested the state policy of mandatory instruction of the Sorbian language in schools located in bilingual areas.  As a consequence of the tensions, which split the local SED, Sorbian language classes were no longer mandatory after 1964, and a temporary but sharp decline in the number of learners occurred immediately thereafter. The number of learners increased again after 1968, when new regulations were adopted giving Domowina a greater role in consulting parents of schoolchildren. The number of learners did not decrease again until after German reunification.<ref>{{cite book |last=Dolowy-Rybinska |first=Nicole |author-link= |date=2023 |title=Upper Sorbian Language Policy in Education: Bringing the Language Back, or Bringing It Forward? |url= |location= |publisher=Brill |page=43 |isbn= 978-9004510746}}</ref>

Sorbs experienced greater representation in the German Democratic Republic than under any other German government. Domowina had status as a constituent member organization of the [[National Front of the German Democratic Republic|National Front]], and a number of Sorbs were members of the [[Volkskammer]] and [[State Council of East Germany]]. Notable Sorbian figures of the period include Domowina Chairmen [[Jurij Grós]] and [[Kurt Krjeńc]], State Council member [[Maria Schneider (politician)|Maria Schneider]], and writer and three-time recipient of the [[National Prize of the German Democratic Republic]] [[Jurij Brězan]].<ref>{{cite book |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=1973 |title=Absees: Soviet and East European Abstracts Series, Volume 4 |url= |location= |publisher=Oxford Microform Publications Limited |page=182 |isbn=}}</ref> 

In 1973, Domowina reported that 2,130 municipal councillors, 119 burgomasters, and more than 3,500 members of commissions and local bodies in East Germany were ethnic Sorbs registered with the organization.<ref>{{cite book |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=1973 |title=Absees: Soviet and East European Abstracts Series, Volume 4 |url= |location= |publisher=Oxford Microform Publications Limited |page=182 |isbn=}}</ref> Additionally, there was a seat reserved for a Sorbian representative in the Central Council of the [[Free German Youth]], the mass organization for young people in East Germany, and magazines for both the FDJ and the [[Ernst Thälmann Pioneer Organisation]] were published in the Sorbian language on a regular basis under the titles ''Chorhoj Měra'' and ''Plomjo'', respectively.<ref>{{cite book |last=Plum |first=Catherine |author-link= |date=2015 |title=Antifascism After Hitler: East German Youth and Socialist Memory, 1949-1989 |url= |location= |publisher=Routledge |page=51 |isbn= 978-1317599289}}</ref> As of 1989, there were nine schools with exclusively Sorbian language instruction, eighty-five schools that offered Sorbian-language instruction, ten Sorbian-language periodicals, and one daily newspaper.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ramet |first=Sabrina |author-link= |date=1995 |title=Social Currents in Eastern Europe: The Sources and Consequences of the Great Transformation|url= |location= |publisher=Duke University Press |page=69 |isbn= 0822315483}}</ref>

===After reunification===
{{multiple image |align=right |caption_align=center |total_width=340
| image1=Budyšin Serbski Dom.JPG
| image2=Am Schillerplatz03.jpg
| footer="[[Serbski dom|Houses of the Sorbs]]" (''Serbski dom''), chief Sorbian cultural institutions in [[Bautzen]] and [[Cottbus]]
}}
After the reunification of Germany on 3 October 1990, Lusatians made efforts to create an autonomous administrative unit; however, [[Helmut Kohl]]’s government did not agree to it.{{Citation needed|date=October 2021}} After 1989, the Sorbian movement revived, however, it still encounters many obstacles. Although Germany supports national minorities, Sorbs claim that their aspirations are not sufficiently fulfilled.{{Citation needed|date=January 2011}} The desire to unite Lusatia in one of the federal states has not been taken into consideration. [[Upper Lusatia]] still belongs to Saxony and [[Lower Lusatia]] to Brandenburg. Liquidations of Sorbian schools, even in areas mostly populated by Sorbs, still happen, under the pretext of financial difficulties or demolition of whole villages to create [[lignite]] quarries.{{Citation needed|date=November 2013}} 

Faced with growing threat of cultural extinction, the Domowina issued a memorandum in March 2008<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.domowina.sorben.com/pm/memorandum08.htm|title=DOMOWINA - Medijowe wozjewjenje - Pressemitteilung- Press release|work=sorben.com|access-date=18 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303204939/http://www.domowina.sorben.com/pm/memorandum08.htm|archive-date=2016-03-03|url-status=dead}}</ref> and called for "help and protection against the growing threat of their cultural extinction, since an ongoing conflict between the German government, Saxony and Brandenburg about the financial distribution of help blocks the financing of almost all Sorbian institutions". The memorandum also demands a reorganisation of competence by ceding responsibility from the [[States of Germany|Länder]] to the federal government and an expanded legal status. The call has been issued to all governments and heads of state of the [[European Union]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/international/Kulturhoheit;art123,2489719|title=Kulturhoheit: Sorben bitten Europa um Hilfe - International - Politik - Tagesspiegel|work=tagesspiegel.de|date=7 March 2008|access-date=18 March 2015}}</ref>

Dawid Statnik, president of Domowina, the umbrella association of Sorbs in Germany, said in an interview with [[Der Tagesspiegel|Tagesspiegel]] that he considers it dangerous that the AFD defines the issue of German citizens through an ethnic aspect. He believes that there is a concrete danger for the Sorbs if the [[Alternative for Germany|AfD]] enters the governments of the federal states of Brandenburg and Saxony in the autumn elections.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lužički Srbi strahuju od uspjeha AfD-a |url=https://www.index.hr/clanak.aspx?id=2579540 |access-date=2024-07-27 |website=www.index.hr |language=hr}}</ref> From 2008 to 2017, [[Stanislaw Tillich]], a Catholic Sorb, served as the Minister-President of Saxony – the first time a Sorb held this office. Since 2014, various sources have pointed to a rising number of right-wing extremist attacks against Sorbs.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Herwig |first=Sophie |date=3 February 2019 |title="Scheiß Sorben", brüllen sie |url=https://www.zeit.de/2019/06/rechtsextremismus-sachsen-sorben-slawische-minderheit-opfer-angriffe/komplettansicht |url-access=subscription |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=zeit.de}}</ref> 

== Population genetics ==
According to 2013 and 2015 studies, the most common [[Human Y-chromosome DNA haplogroup|Y-DNA haplogroup]] among the Sorbs who speak Upper Sorbian in [[Lusatia]] (n=123) is [[Haplogroup R1a|R1a]] with 65%, mainly its R-M458 subclade (57%). It is followed in frequency by [[Haplogroup I1|I1]] (9.8%), [[Haplogroup R1b|R1b]] (9.8%), [[Haplogroup E-M215 (Y-DNA)|E1b1b]] (4.9%), [[Haplogroup I-M438|I2]] (4.1%), [[Haplogroup J (Y-DNA)|J]] (3.3%) and [[Haplogroup G-M201|G]] (2.4%). Other haplogroups are less than 1%.<ref name="Rębała">{{Cite journal|author=Rębała, Martínez-Cruz |display-authors=etal|year=2013|title=Contemporary paternal genetic landscape of Polish and German populations: from early medieval Slavic expansion to post-World War II resettlements|journal=[[European Journal of Human Genetics]]|volume=21|issue=4|doi=10.1038/ejhg.2012.190|pmc=3598329|pmid=22968131|pages=415–422}}</ref><ref name="Kushniarevich2">{{Cite journal|author=Kushniarevich, Utevska |display-authors=etal|year=2015|title=Genetic Heritage of the Balto-Slavic Speaking Populations: A Synthesis of Autosomal, Mitochondrial and Y-Chromosomal Data|journal=[[PLOS One]]|volume=10|issue=9|pages=Table K in S1 File. Frequencies of the NRY haplogroups in Balto–Slavic populations|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0135820|pmc=4558026|pmid=26332464|bibcode=2015PLoSO..1035820K|doi-access=free}}</ref> A study from 2003 reported a similar frequency of 63.4% of [[haplogroup R1a]] among Sorbian males (n=112).<ref name="Behar20032">{{Cite journal|date=October 2003|title=Multiple origins of Ashkenazi Levites: Y chromosome evidence for both Near Eastern and European ancestries|journal=American Journal of Human Genetics|volume=73|issue=4|pages=768–779|doi=10.1086/378506|pmc=1180600|pmid=13680527|vauthors=Behar DM, Thomas MG, Skorecki K, etal}}</ref> Other studies that covered aspects of Sorbian Y-DNA include Immel et al. 2006,<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Immel |display-authors=etal |first=UD|date=January 2006|title=Y-chromosomal STR haplotype analysis reveals surname-associated strata in the East-German population|journal=European Journal of Human Genetics|volume=14, pages 577–582 (2006)|issue=5 |pages=577–82|doi=10.1038/sj.ejhg.5201572 |pmid=16435000 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Rodig et al. 2007,<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Rodig |display-authors=etal |first=Heike|date=January 2007|title=Population study and evaluation of 20 Y-chromosome STR loci in Germans|journal=Int J Legal Med|volume=121 |issue=1 |pages=24–27|doi=10.1007/s00414-005-0075-5|pmid=16710736|s2cid=40129551 }}</ref> and Krawczak et al. 2008.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Krawczak |display-authors=etal |first=M.|date=April 2008|title=Genetic Diversity in the German Population|url=http://www.els.net/WileyCDA/ElsArticle/refId-a0020801.html|journal=eLS|doi=10.1002/9780470015902.a0020801 |isbn=978-0470016176 |via=Wiley Online Library|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Significant percentage of R1a (25.7-38.3%), but strongly diminished in value because of high R1b (33.5-21.7%), and low I2 (5.8-5.1%) are in whole Saxony and ''[[Germania Slavica]]'' area as well.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Kowalski|first=Kowalski|date=December 2020|title=The Early Mediaeval Slav-German border (Limes Sorabicus) in the light of research into Y-chromosome polymorphism in contemporary and historical German populations|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/347916622|journal=[[Geographia Polonica]]|volume=93|issue=4|pages=569–596|doi=10.7163/GPol.0190|doi-access=free}}</ref>

A 2011 paper on the Sorbs' [[Autosome|autosomal DNA]] reported that the Upper Sorbian speakers (n=289) showed the greatest [[Genealogical DNA test#Autosomal DNA (atDNA) testing|autosomal genetic similarity]] to [[Polish people|Poles]], followed by [[Czechs]] and [[Slovaks]], consistent with the linguistic proximity of [[Sorbian languages|Sorbian]] to other [[West Slavic languages|West Slavic]] languages.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Veeramah|first=Krishna R.|date=May 2011|title=Genetic variation in the Sorbs of eastern Germany in the context of broader European genetic diversity|pmc=3179365|journal=European Journal of Human Genetics|volume=v.19(9): 935–1018 2011 Sep|issue=9|pages=995–1001|pmid=21559053|doi=10.1038/ejhg.2011.65}}</ref> In another genome-wide paper from the same year on Upper Sorbs (n=977), which indicated their genetic isolation "which cannot be explained by over-sampling of relatives" and a closer proximity to Poles and Czechs than Germans. The researchers however question this proximity, as the German reference population was almost exclusively West-German, and the Polish and Czech reference population had many that were part of a German minority.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Gross|first=Arnd|date=July 2011|title=Population-genetic comparison of the Sorbian isolate population in Germany with the German KORA population using genome-wide SNP arrays|doi=10.1186/1471-2156-12-67|journal=BMC Genetics|volume=12|issue=67|article-number=67|pmid=21798003|pmc=3199861 |doi-access=free }}</ref> In a 2016 paper, Sorbs cluster autosomally again with Poles (from [[Poznań]]).<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Lazaridis|first=Iosif|date=August 2016|title=Genomic insights into the origin of farming in the ancient Near East|doi=10.1038/nature19310|pmid=27459054|pmc=5003663|journal=Nature|volume=536|issue=7617|pages=414–429|bibcode=2016Natur.536..419L}}</ref>

== Language and culture ==
{{More citations needed section|date=July 2025}}
[[Image:Bautzen Theater.JPG|thumb|[[Bautzen]], German-Sorbian folk theatre]]
{{Main|Sorbian languages}}
The oldest known relic of Sorbian literature originated in about 1530 – the [[Bautzen]] townsmen's oath. In 1548, [[Mikołaj Jakubica]] – Lower Sorbian vicar, from the village called Lubanice, wrote the first unprinted translation of the [[New Testament]] into Lower Sorbian. In 1574 the first Sorbian book was printed: [[Albin Moller]]s’ songbook. In 1688 Jurij Hawštyn Swětlik translated [[the Bible]] for Catholic Sorbs. From 1706 to 1709, the New Testament was printed in the Upper Sorbian translation was done by [[Michał Frencel]] and in Lower Sorbian by [[Jan Bogumił Fabricius]] (1681–1741). [[Jan Bjedrich Fryco]] (a.k.a. Johann Friedrich Fritze) [1747–1819], translated the [[Old Testament]] for the first time into Lower Sorbian, published in 1790.

{{multiple image |align=right |caption_align=center |perrow=2 |total_width=300
| image1=Zejler01.jpg
| image2=Jan Arnošt Smoler by Regulski.png
| image3=Mato Kosyk.png
| image4=Jakub Bart-Ćišinski.jpg
| footer=Prominent 19th-century Sorbian writers, from top left to right: [[Handrij Zejler]], [[Jan Arnošt Smoler]], [[Mato Kósyk]], [[Jakub Bart-Ćišinski]]
}}
Other Sorbian Bible translators include Jakub Buk (1825–1895), [[Michał Hórnik]] (Michael Hornig) [1833–1894], Jurij Łušćanski (a.k.a. Georg Wuschanski) [1839–1905]. In 1809 for the short period of time, there was the first printed Sorbian newspaper. In 1767 Jurij Mjeń publishes the first secular Sorbian book. Between 1841 and 1843, [[Jan Arnošt Smoler]] and Leopold Haupt (a.k.a. J.L. Haupt and J.E. Schmaler) published two-volume collection of Wendish folk-songs in Upper and Lower Lusatia. From 1842, the first Sorbian publishing companies started to appear: the poet Handrij Zejler set up a weekly magazine, the precursor of today’s Sorbian News. In 1845 in [[Bautzen]], the first festival of Sorbian songs took place. In 1875, [[Jakub Bart-Ćišinski]], the poet and classicist of Upper Sorbian literature, and Karol Arnošt Muka created a movement of young Sorbians influencing Lusatian art, science and literature for the following 50 years. A similar movement in [[Lower Lusatia]] was organized around the most prominent Lower Lusatian poets [[Mato Kósyk]] (Mato Kosyk) and [[Bogumił Šwjela]].

In 1904, mainly thanks to the Sorbs’ contribution, the most important Sorbian cultural centre (the [[Serbski dom|Sorbian House]]) was built in [[Bautzen]]. In 1912, the social and cultural organization of Lusatian Sorbs was created, the [[Domowina]] Institution – the union of Sorbian organizations. In 1919, it had 180,000 members. In 1920, Jan Skala set up a Sorbian party and in 1925 in Berlin, Skala started ''Kulturwille'' – the newspaper for the protection of national minorities in Germany. In 1920, the [[Sokol Movement]] was founded (youth movement and gymnastic organization). From 1933, the Nazi party started to repress the Sorbs. At that time the Nazis also dissolved the Sokol Movement and began to combat every sign of Sorbian culture. In 1937, the activities of the Domowina Institution and other organizations were banned as anti-national. Sorbian clergymen and teachers were forcedly deported from Lusatia; Nazi German authorities confiscated the Sorbian House, other buildings and crops.

On May 10, 1945, in [[Crostwitz]], after the [[Red Army]]'s invasion, the Domowina Institution renewed its activity. In 1948, the [[Landtag]] of [[Saxony]] passed an Act guaranteeing protection to Sorbian Lusatians; in 1949, [[Brandenburg]] resolved a similar law. Article 40 of the constitution of [[German Democratic Republic]] adopted on 7 October 1949 expressly provided for the protection of the language and culture of the Sorbs. In the times of the German Democratic Republic, Sorbian organizations were financially supported by the country, but at the same time the authorities encouraged [[Germanization]] of Sorbian youth as a means of incorporating them into the system of "building [[Socialism]]". Sorbian language and culture could only be publicly presented as long as they promoted socialist ideology. For over 1,000 years, the Sorbs were able to maintain and even develop their national culture, despite escalating Germanization and [[Polonization]], mainly due to the high level of religious observance, cultivation of their tradition and strong families (Sorbian families still often have five children). In the middle of the 20<sup>th</sup> century, the revival of the Central European nations included some Sorbs, who became strong enough to attempt twice to regain their independence. After [[World War II]], the Lusatian National Committee in Prague claimed the right to self-government and separation from Germany and the creation of a Lusatian Free State or attachment to [[Czechoslovakia]]. The majority of the Sorbs were organized in the Domowina, though, and did not wish to split from Germany.{{citation needed|date=October 2011}} Claims asserted by the Lusatian National movement were postulates of joining Lusatia to Poland or Czechoslovakia. Between 1945 and 1947 they postulated about ten petitions<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prolusatia.pl/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=159:dziaalno-wojciecha-wojcecha-kocki-w-serbouyckim-ruchu-narodowym-w-latach-1945-1950&catid=2:wszelkie-artykuy&Itemid=14|title=Działalność Wojciecha (Wojcecha) Kócki w serbołużyckim ruchu narodowym w latach 1945 - 1950|author=Administrator|work=prolusatia.pl|access-date=18 March 2015}}</ref> to the [[United Nations]], the United States, [[Soviet Union]], the United Kingdom, France, Poland and Czechoslovakia, however, it did not bring any results. On April 30, 1946, the Lusatian National Committee also postulated a petition to the Polish Government, signed by Pawoł Cyž – the minister and an official Sorbian delegate in Poland. There was also a project of proclaiming a Lusatian Free State, whose Prime Minister was supposed to be a Polish archaeologist of Lusatian origin- Wojciech Kóčka. The most radical postulates in this area ("Na swobodu so ńečeka, swobodu so beŕe !")<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.prolusatia.pl/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=154:akcja-qnarodny-partyzan-uicaq-1946-1947-i-jej-reperkusje-w-serbouyckim-ruchu-narodowym&catid=2:wszelkie-artykuy&Itemid=14|title=Akcja "Narodny Partyzan Łužica" (1946 - 1947) i jej reperkusje w serbołużyckim ruchu narodowym|author=Administrator|work=prolusatia.pl|access-date=18 March 2015}}</ref> were expressed by the Lusatian youth organization- Narodny Partyzan Łužica. Similarly, in Czechoslovakia, where before the [[Potsdam Conference]] in [[Prague]], 300,000 people demonstrated for the independence of Lusatia. The endeavours to separate Lusatia from Germany did not succeed because of various individual and geopolitical interests.

[[File:Bilinguale Straßenbeschilderung Cottbus b.jpg|thumb|Bilingual names of streets in [[Cottbus]]]]
The following statistics indicate the progression of cultural change among Sorbs: by the end of the 19<sup>th</sup> century, about 150,000 people spoke Sorbian languages. By 1920, almost all Sorbs had mastered Sorbian and German to the same degree. Nowadays, the number of people using Sorbian languages has been estimated to be no more than 40,000. A 2024 study estimates the number of Lower Sorbian speakers at a competent level to be between 50 and 100.<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 April 2025 |title=Warum nicht mehr als 100 Menschen noch kompetent Niedersorbisch sprechen |url=https://www.rbb24.de/panorama/beitrag/2025/04/brandenburg-nur-50-bis-100-sorbische-sprecher-c1.html |access-date=8 August 2025 |website=rbb24.de}}</ref>

The Israeli Slavic linguist [[Paul Wexler (linguist)|Paul Wexler]] has argued that the Yiddish language structure provides "compelling evidence of an intimate Jewish contact with the Slavs in the German and Bohemian lands as early as the 9<sup>th</sup> century", and has theorized that Sorbs may have been contributors to the Ashkenazic Jewish population in Europe from the same period.<ref>[[Paul Wexler (linguist)|Paul Wexler]], ''[https://slavica.indiana.edu/bookListings/linguistics/The_Ashkenazic_Jews The Ashkenazic Jews]'', Slavica Publishers, 1993</ref><ref name="Wexler2">[[Paul Wexler (linguist)|Paul Wexler]] (1992), "From Serb Lands to Sorb Lands," in ''The Balkan Substratum of Yiddish: A Reassessment of the Unique Romance and Greek Components'', [[Harrassowitz Verlag]], 1992, p. 111</ref>

=== Fine arts ===

=== Traditions ===
[[File:Sorbische Ostereiermalerei Schleife 4.JPG|thumb|Painted Sorbian Easter eggs in [[Görlitz|Gorlitz]]]]
Many traditions have been preserved, especially Easter horseback riding, the Bird Wedding (Lower Sorbian: ''Ptaškowa swajźba,'' Upper Sorbian: ''Ptači kwas''), and the traditional painting of Easter eggs. Numerous [[Slavic mythologies|Slavic mythological beliefs]] are still alive today, such as the [[Lady Midday]] ([[Upper Sorbian language|Upper Sorbian]]: ''Připołdnica'', [[Lower Sorbian language|Lower Sorbian]]: ''Přezpołdnica''), the [[Merman]] (''Wódny muž''), the Divine Lament (''Bože sadleško''), or the money- and luck-bringing [[Slavic dragon|dragon]] (Upper Sorbian: ''zmij'', Lower Sorbian: ''plón'').

In the Upper Sorbian core area, roughly defined by a triangle between the towns of [[Bautzen]], [[Kamenz]], and [[Wittichenau]], wayside crucifixes and those in front gardens, along with well-kept churches and chapels, are expressions of a (mostly Catholic) popular piety still practiced today, which has contributed significantly to preserving Sorbian identity.{{cn|date=August 2025}}
[[File:Sorben.jpeg|left|thumb|Sorbian costume region showing the distribution of the four traditional costumes that are still worn daily]]
The traditional costume was the customary clothing of the Sorbian rural population in the various regions of [[Upper Lusatia|Upper]] and [[Lower Lusatia]]. Until the mid-18th century, dress codes regulated which materials and ornaments could be worn by people of different social classes. After the French Revolution (1789–1794), clothing styles changed, and the traditional costume became a social expression of peasant life.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Serbske narodne drasty - Die sorbischen und wendischen Trachten |url=https://www.tourismus-sorben.de/die-sorbischen-und-wendischen-trachten.html |access-date=11 November 2025 |website=tourismus-sorben.de}}</ref>

During the Romantic period and the Sorbian national revival around the mid-19th century, the costume was reinterpreted as a symbol of ethnic affiliation and became a visible expression of Sorbian identity. However, men’s costumes disappeared as early as the 19th century. Women’s costumes lasted longer and shared a generally uniform character: they typically consisted of a skirt, underskirt, apron, blouse, small over-blouse (''Kittelchen''), bodice, neckerchief, jacket, cap, headscarf, and stockings. Even work clothing differed only slightly from festive dress.<ref name=":3" />
[[File:Frauen in Schleifer Tracht um 1900.jpg|thumb|Sorbian women and children with Schleife dress (1900)]]
Over time, however, various regional forms developed—especially in festive costumes—making it possible to distinguish specific costume regions. In most areas, traditional costumes were gradually abandoned, largely due to industrialization in the 19th century. Today, four regions are recognized where older women still wear the traditional costume daily: the areas around [[Cottbus]] in Lower Lusatia, around [[Hoyerswerda]] and [[Schleife]] in the central part of Lusatia, and the Catholic region in [[Upper Lusatia]].<ref name=":3" />

The Sorbian national costume shares common features with the traditional clothing of other [[West Slavs|Western Slavic]] peoples, especially the [[Poles (people)|Poles]]. The Lusatian ethnographer P. Nedo distinguished four complexes of women’s clothing in Lusatia: the [[Spree Forest|Spreewald]], Schleife, Hoyerswerda, and [[Bautzen]]–[[Kamenz]] types. The latter was widespread in the regions of Bautzen, Kamenz, and [[Wittichenau]].
[[File:Spreewald Impressionen - Flickr - tm-md (143).jpg|left|thumb|Sorbian costume from Spreewald with its distinguished headdress]]
The festive costume of the Bautzen–Kamenz complex includes a white linen blouse with short sleeves and a round neckline, a black woolen overskirt, and a woolen underskirt. The overskirt is sewn to a bodice, which is either laced or buttoned. The headwear of the Bautzen–Kamenz complex consists of a black cap from which two long black ribbons hang down to the knees. The headwear common in the Spreewald region is distinguished by its broad wings. Mourning attire, typically black, is combined with a white headdress.

A [[Shrove Tuesday]] festival ''[[Zapust (tradition)|Zapust]]'' is the most popular tradition of the Sorbs, deeply linked to the working life of the community. Traditionally, festivities would last one week ahead of the spring sowing of the fields and would feature traditional dress, parade and dancing.<ref>[http://www.thelocal.de/society/20100312-25845.html Germany's Sorbs celebrate Zapust festival] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309203625/http://www.thelocal.de/society/20100312-25845.html |date=2021-03-09 }}. The local Germany's News in English. March 12, 2010.</ref>

[[Egg decorating in Slavic culture|Egg decorating]] (''pisanici'') is a Slavic [[Easter]] tradition maintained by Sorbs since the 17<sup>th</sup> century.<ref>[http://www.ethiopianreview.com/news/34039 German Slavic minority cultivates a colorful Easter tradition] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001213809/http://www.ethiopianreview.com/news/34039 |date=2011-10-01 }}. Ethiopian Review. March 31, 2010.</ref>{{better source needed|date=August 2016}}

=== Religion ===
[[File:Nowy zakoń Michał Frencel.jpg|thumb|Sorbian translation of the New Testament by {{ill|Michał Frencel|dsb|v=sup}}, 1717]]
[[File:WK-Crostwitz-S101-1.jpg|left|thumb|Numerous wayside crosses – like here near [[Crostwitz]] – bear witness to the Catholic faith of the population in today’s Sorbian heartland]]
Most current speakers of Upper-Sorbian are part of the Catholic denomination. Originally, the majority of Sorbs were Lutheran Protestants, and this was still the case going into the 20<sup>th</sup> Century (with a Protestant population of 86.9% recorded in 1900).<ref>According to the 1900 Census. See Ernst Tschernik: ''Die Entwicklung der Sorbischen Bevölkerung''. Akademie-Verlag, Berlin 1954, P. 34.</ref> Only the Sorbs of the Kamenz area – predominantly settled on the expansive former site of the {{ill|Saint Marienstern Monastery|de|Kloster St. Marienstern}} in [[Panschwitz-Kuckau]] – veered from the norm, with a Catholic population of 88.4%. Otherwise, the proportion of Catholics remained under 1% throughout the region of Lower Lusatia. Due to the rapid decline in language and cultural identity amongst the Protestant Sorbs – particularly during the years of the [[East Germany|GDR]] – the denominational make-up of the Sorbian-speaking population of the region has now been reversed.{{cn|date=July 2025}}
[[File:Bautzen Altstadt 59.jpg|thumb|The Sorbian-Evangelical St. Michael's Church in Bautzen]]
The differing development of language use among Catholic and Protestant Sorbs is partly due to the differing structures of the churches. While the Protestant Church is a state church (and the rulers of Sorbian territories were always German-speaking), the Catholic Church, with its ultramontane orientation toward the Vatican, has always been transnational.The Protestant Church’s closer ties to the state had a particularly negative effect on the Sorbian language area, especially in Lower Lusatia, where a policy of Germanization had been pursued since the 17th century.

On the other hand, the Catholic Church generally held the view that one’s native language is a gift from God, and that abandoning it would be sinful. This explains the increasingly emphasized close connection between Catholicism and Sorbian identity since the late 19th century—an association that still exists today.

Today, Catholic communities form the core of the remaining Sorbian majority areas, whereas in the Protestant regions in the east and north, the language has mostly disappeared. In western Upper Lusatia, it was especially the centuries-long bond between the Sorbs and the Catholic Church that played a decisive role in preserving the Sorbian mother tongue. In contrast, in Lower Lusatia, the Protestant Church, both before and after 1945—and despite the general promotion of the Sorbs in the GDR—showed no interest in maintaining the Sorbian language in religious life. Only since 1987, at the initiative of a few Lower Sorbs, have regular Wendish-language church services resumed.

Since the second half of the 20th century, there has also been a significant proportion of non-religious Sorbs.

== National symbols ==
[[File:Hymna-rukopis01.jpg|thumb|upright|Handwriting of ''[[Rjana Łužica]]'' by [[Handrij Zejler]]]]
The flag of the Lusatian Sorbs is a cloth of blue, red and white horizontal stripes. First used as a national symbol in 1842, the flag was fully recognized among Sorbs following the proclamation of [[pan-Slavic colors]] at the [[Prague Slavic Congress, 1848|Prague Slavic Congress of 1848]]. Section 25 of the Constitution of Brandenburg contains a provision on the Lusatian flag. Section 2 of the Constitution of Saxony contains a provision on the use of the coat of arms and traditional national colors of the Lusatian Sorbs. The laws on the rights of the Lusatian Sorbs of Brandenburg and Saxony contain provisions on the use of Lusatian national symbols (coat of arms and national colors).<ref>{{cite journal |author = Андреева, Г. Н. |title= Сорбы в ФРГ: ценный опыт правового регулирования статуса национального меньшинства в немецкой и российской литературе |journal= Социальные и гуманитарные науки  |year= 2005 |number= 1|pages = 40–42 }}</ref>

The national anthem of Lusatian Sorbs since the 20<sup>th</sup> century is the song [[Rjana Łužica]] (Beautiful Lusatia).<ref>{{cite book| author = Гугнин, А. А. | url = http://www.inslav.ru/images/stories/pdf/1997_Gugnin.pdf | title = Введение в историю серболужицкой словесности и литературы от истоков до наших дней |location= М. |date = 1997 | pages = 90}}</ref> Previously, the songs “Still Sorbs Have Not Perished” (written by [[Handrij Zejler]] in 1840)<ref>{{cite journal |url= https://kramerius.lib.cas.cz/view/uuid:6e2b2552-5d2b-4c41-af11-1b130df31cf1?page=uuid:a0494897-64c5-4d61-bc65-36f1396a81e1&fulltext=Zejler |title=Unknown |journal=Slovanský přehled |year= 1934 |volume=26 |number=1 |page=152 }}</ref> and “Our Sorbs Rise from the Dust” (written by M. Domashka, performed until 1945)<ref>{{cite book| author = Šołta, Jan | title = Nowy biografiski slownik k stawiznam a kulture Serbow |date = 1984 | pages = 115}}</ref> served as a hymn.

== Regions of Lusatia ==
There are three main regions of [[Lusatia]] that differ in language, religion, and customs.

=== Region of Upper Lusatia ===
{{multiple image
| align             = right
| image1            = Flagge Oberlausitz.svg
| width1            = 190
| image2            = Oberlausitz Wappen.png
| width2            = 110
| footer            = Flag and coat of arms of [[Upper Lusatia]]
}}

[[Catholic]] Lusatia encompasses 85 towns in the districts of [[Bautzen]], [[Kamenz]], and [[Hoyerswerda]], where Upper Sorbian language, customs, and tradition are still thriving. In some of these places (''e.g.'', [[Radibor]] or Radwor in Sorbian, [[Crostwitz]] or Chrósćicy, and [[Ralbitz-Rosenthal|Rosenthal]] or Róžant), Sorbs constitute the majority of the population, and children grow up speaking Sorbian.

On Sundays, during holidays, and at weddings, people wear regional costumes, rich in decoration and embroidery, encrusted with pearls.

Some of the customs and traditions observed include Bird Wedding (25 January), [[Easter]] Cavalcade of Riders, Witch Burning (30 April), Maik, singing on [[St. Martin's Day]] (Nicolay), and the celebrations of [[Saint Barbara]]’s Day and [[Saint Nicholas]]’s Day.

=== Region of Hoyerswerda (Wojerecy) and Schleife (Slepo) ===

In the area from [[Hoyerswerda]] to [[Schleife]], a dialect of Sorbian which combines characteristic features of both Upper and Lower Sorbian is spoken. The region is predominantly Protestant, highly devastated by the brown coal mining industry, sparsely populated, and to a great extent germanicized. Most speakers of Sorbian are over 60 years old.

The region distinguishes itself through many examples of [[Slavs|Slavic]] wooden architecture monuments including churches and regular houses, a diversity of regional costumes (mainly worn by elderly women) that feature white-knitting with black, cross-like embroidery, and a tradition of playing [[bagpipes]].
In several villages, residents uphold traditional festivities such as expelling of winter, ''Maik'', [[Easter]] and [[Great Friday]] singing, and the celebration of ''dźěćetko'' (disguised child or young girl giving [[Christmas]] presents).

=== Region of Lower Lusatia ===
{{multiple image
| align             = right
| image1            = Flagge Niederlausitz.svg
| width1            = 190
| image2            = Niederlausitz Wappen.png
| width2            = 110
| footer            = Flag and coat of arms of [[Lower Lusatia]]
}}

There are 60 towns from the area of [[Cottbus]] belonging to this region, where most of the older people over 60, but few young people and children can speak the Lower Sorbian language{{citation needed|date=April 2022}}; the local variant often incorporates many words taken from the German language, and in conversations with the younger generation, German is generally preferred. Some primary schools in the region teach bilingually, and in Cottbus there is an important Gymnasium whose main medium of instruction is Lower Sorbian. The region is predominantly Protestant, again highly devastated by the brown coal mining industry. The biggest tourist attraction of the region and in the whole [[Lusatia]] are the marshlands, with many [[Spreewald]]/Błóta canals, picturesque broads of the [[Spree (river)|Spree]].

Worn mainly by older but on holidays by young women, regional costumes are colourful, including a large headscarf called "lapa", rich in golden embroidering and differing from village to village.

In some villages, following traditions are observed: Shrovetide, ''Maik'', [[Easter]] bonfires, [[Rooster]]s catching/hunting. In Jänschwalde (Sorbian: Janšojce) so-called Janšojski bog (disguised young girl) gives [[Christmas]] presents.

==Relations with other Slavic nations==
===Relations with Poland===
====Medieval period====
[[File:Polska 992 - 1025.png|thumb|Lusatia was part of the Polish state between 1002 and 1031 under the rule of [[Bolesław I the Brave|Bolesław I]].]]
[[Bolesław I the Brave]] had taken control of the marches of [[Lusatia]] (Łużyce), Sorbian [[Meissen]] (Miśnia), and the cities of Budziszyn (Bautzen) and Miśnia in 1002, and refused to pay the tribute to the [[Holy Roman Empire|Empire]] from the conquered territories. The Sorbs sided with the Poles, and opened the town gates and allowed Bolesław I into Miśnia in 1002.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Wojciechowski|first=Zygmunt|year=1948|title=Bolesław Chrobry i rok 1000|journal=Przegląd Zachodni|language=pl|issue=3|page=248}}</ref> Bolesław, after the Polish-German War (1002–1018), signed the [[Peace of Bautzen]] on 30 January 1018, which made him a clear winner. The Polish ruler was able to keep the contested marches of Lusatia and Milsko not as fiefs, but as part of Polish territory.<ref>Jasienica, Pawel (2007) (in Polish). Polska Piastow. Proszynski Media. {{ISBN|978-83-7648-284-2}}</ref><ref>Bernhardt, John W (1993). Itinerant Kingship and Royal Monasteries in Early Medieval Germany, c. 936–1075. Cambridge University Press. {{ISBN|0-521-52183-1}}</ref> The Polish prince Mieszko destroyed about 100 Sorbian villages in 1030 and expelled Sorbians from urban areas, with the exception of fishermen and carpenters who were allowed to live in the outskirts.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.rastko.rs/rastko-lu/uvod/ndjordjevic-luzicani.html| title=Лужички Срби, њихова историја и култура| publisher=// rastko.rs| access-date=2016-10-24}}</ref> In 1075–1076, Polish King [[Bolesław II the Bold]] sought the restoration of Lusatia from [[Duchy of Bohemia|Bohemia]] to Poland.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=131}} In the following centuries, at various times, parts of Lusatia formed part of [[Piast dynasty|Piast]]-ruled fragmented Poland.

====18<sup>th</sup> century====
The 18<sup>th</sup> century saw increased Polish-Sorbian contacts during the reign of Kings [[Augustus II the Strong]] and [[Augustus III of Poland]] in Poland and Lusatia. Sorbian pastor {{ill|Michał Frencel|dsb|v=sup}} and his son polymath {{ill|Abraham Frencel|hsb|v=sup}} took their cues from Polish texts in their Sorbian Bible translations and philological works, respectively.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=240}} Also Polish-born Jan Bogumił Fabricius established a Sorbian printing house and translated the catechism and [[New Testament]] into Sorbian.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=242}} Polish and Sorbian students established contacts at the [[University of Leipzig]].{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=240}} Polish dignitaries traveled through Lusatia on several occasions on their way between [[Dresden]] and [[Warsaw]], encountering Sorbs.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=243}} Some [[Szlachta|Polish nobles]] owned estates in Lusatia.{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=243}}
[[File:Neschwitz Schlosspark Barockschloss 02.jpg|thumb|[[Baroque architecture|Baroque]] Palace of [[Aleksander Józef Sułkowski]] in [[Neschwitz]] ({{langx|hsb|link=no|Njeswačidło}}, {{langx|pl|link=no|Nieswacidło}})<ref>{{cite book|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|title=Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich, Tom VII|year=1886|language=pl|location=Warszawa|page=117}}</ref>]]

The first translation from Sorbian into another language was a translation of the poem ''Wottendzenje wot Liepska teho derje dostoineho wulze wuczeneho Knesa Jana Friedricha Mitschka'' by {{ill|Handrij Ruška|hsb|v=sup}} into Polish, made by Stanisław Nałęcz Moszczyński, a Polish lecturer at the University of Leipzig, and published by the famous Polish traveler [[Jan Potocki]].{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=244}}

A distinct remnant of the region's ties to Poland are the 18<sup>th</sup>-century [[milepost]]s decorated with the [[coat of arms of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]] located in various towns in the region.

====19<sup>th</sup> century====
Polish-Sorbian contacts continued in the 19<sup>th</sup> century. Noted advocate for the preservation of Polish culture and language in [[Masuria]], [[Gustaw Gizewiusz]], during his visits in [[Budissin]] and Leipzig, came into close contact with Sorbian publicist {{ill|Jan Pětr Jordan|hsb|v=sup}}, and then Jordan published a study on the situation of the Poles in Masuria, including a collection of documents and journal articles from 1834–1842.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Sukertowa-Biedrawina|first=Emilia|year=1958|title=Z zagadnień walki o szkołę polską w diecezji ełckiej w pierwszej połowie XIX wieku|magazine=Komunikaty Mazursko-Warmińskie|language=pl|issue=1|page=65}}</ref> In the 1840s, [[Romanticism in Poland|Polish Romantic]] poet {{ill|Roman Zmorski|pl|v=sup}} befriended the Sorbian writer [[Jan Arnošt Smoler]] in [[Wrocław]], and then he settled in Lusatia, where he got to know other leading Sorbian national revival figures {{ill|Křesćan Bohuwěr Pful|hsb|v=sup}}, {{ill|Jaroměr Hendrich Imiš|hsb}} and {{ill|Michał Hórnik|hsb|v=sup}}.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=88}} Zmorski then issued the Polish newspaper ''Stadło'' in Budissin, translated four Smoler's poems into Polish, and published articles about the Sorbs in other Polish press.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|pp=88–89}} Michał Hórnik declared his sympathy and admiration for the Poles, popularised knowledge of [[Nicolaus Copernicus]] and [[Tadeusz Kościuszko]] through Sorbian press, reported on the events of the Polish [[January Uprising]] of 1863–1864 and made contacts with Poles during visits to Warsaw, [[Kraków]] and [[Poznań]].<ref>{{cite journal|last=Wojtal|first=Józef|year=1973|title=Michał Hornik – budziszyński przyjaciel Polski i popularyzator dzieł Kopernika|journal=Śląski Kwartalnik Historyczny Sobótka|publisher=[[Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich]]|location=Wrocław|language=pl|volume=XXVIII|issue=2|pages=184–186}}</ref> Polish historian {{ill|Wilhelm Bogusławski|pl|v=sup}} wrote the first book on Sorbian history ''Rys dziejów serbołużyckich'', published in [[Saint Petersburg]] in 1861. The book was expanded and published again in cooperation with Michał Hórnik in 1884 in [[Bautzen]], under a new title ''Historije serbskeho naroda''. Polish historian and activist {{ill|Alfons Parczewski|pl|v=sup}} was another friend of Sorbs, who from 1875 was involved in Sorbs' rights protection, participating in Sorbian meetings in Bautzen. Parczewski joined the [[Maćica Serbska]] organization in 1875, supported Sorbian publishing, wrote articles about Sorbs in Polish press and collected Sorbian magazines and books, which now form part of the Adam Asnyk Regional Public Library in [[Kalisz]].{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=91}} It was thanks to him, among others, that [[Józef Ignacy Kraszewski]] founded a scholarship for Sorbian students. His sister {{ill|Melania Parczewska|pl|v=sup}} joined the Maćica Serbska in 1878, wrote articles about Sorbs in Polish press and translated Sorbian poems into Polish.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=91}}

====Early 20<sup>th</sup> century====
[[File:Klettwitz kath. Kirche Herz Jesu.jpg|thumb|upright|left|Sacred Heart church in [[Klettwitz]] (Klěśišća), built by Polish Catholics in the 1900s<ref name=lpn/>]]
In the early 20<sup>th</sup> century, Polish slavist and professor {{ill|Henryk Ułaszyn|pl|v=sup}} met several prominent Sorbs, including [[Jan Skala]], [[Jakub Bart-Ćišinski]] and [[Arnošt Muka]].{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|pp=91–92}}

After [[World War I]] and the restoration of independent Poland, Polish linguist [[Jan Baudouin de Courtenay]] supported the Sorbs' right to self-determination and demanded that the [[League of Nations]] assume protection over them.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Orzechowski|first=Marian|year=1976|title=Kwestia serbołużycka w polskiej myśli politycznej w latach 1939–1947|journal=Śląski Kwartalnik Historyczny Sobótka|publisher=Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich, Wydawnictwo [[Polish Academy of Sciences|Polskiej Akademii Nauk]]|location=Wrocław|language=pl|volume=XXXI|issue=2|page=379}}</ref> In the interbellum, the Poles and Sorbs in Germany closely cooperated as part of the [[Association of National Minorities in Germany]], established at the initiative of the [[Union of Poles in Germany]] in 1924. Sorbian journalist, poet and activist [[Jan Skala]] was a member of the press headquarters of the Union of Poles in Germany, and was one of the authors of the ''Leksykon Polactwa w Niemczech'' ("Lexicon of Poles in Germany").<ref>{{cite journal|last=Smołka|first=Leonard|year=1978|title=Centrala prasowa Związku Polaków w Niemczech (1923–1939)|journal=Kwartalnik Historii Prasy Polskiej|language=pl|volume=XVII|issue=2|pages=52, 59}}</ref> In 1935–1936, Sorb Jurij Cyž was employed as a legal advisor of the First District of the Union of Poles in Germany, before he left for Poland under pressure of the Nazi authorities of Germany.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=133}} There were also notable Polish communities in Lusatia, such as [[Klettwitz]] ({{langx|hsb|link=no|Klěśišća}}, {{langx|pl|link=no|Kletwice}}).<ref name=lpn>{{cite book|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Leksykon Polactwa w Niemczech|year=1939|language=pl|publisher=Związek Polaków w Niemczech|location=Opole|page=364}}</ref>

In Poland, Antoni Ludwiczak, founder of the [[folk high school]] in [[Dalki, Gniezno]], offered Sorbs five tuition-free spots for each course at the school, however, after the [[Nazi Party]] came to power in Germany in 1933, enrollment of Sorbs in the school was almost completely halted.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=93}} Several Sorbs studied in Poland in the interbellum.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=94}} In 1930, the Association of Friends of the Sorbs was established in Poznań with Henryk Ułaszyn as its president.{{sfn|Lewaszkiewicz|2015|p=92}} Similar associations, the Polish Association of Friends of the Sorbian Nation (''Polskie Towarzystwo Przyjaciół Narodu Łużyckiego'') at the [[University of Warsaw]] and the Association of Friends of Lusatia (''Towarzystwo Przyjaciół Łużyc'') in [[Katowice]] were established in 1936.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=133}} The Warsaw-based organization gathered people not only from the university. Its president was Professor Stanisław Słoński, and the deputy president was Julia Wieleżyńska. The association was a legal entity. The association in Warsaw issued the Polish-language ''Biuletyn Serbo-Łużycki'' ("Sorbian Newsletter"), which reported on Serbian affairs. The association in Katowice was led by {{ill|Karol Grzesik|pl|Karol Grzesik (1890–1940)}}, who was murdered by the Russians in the [[Katyn massacre]] during [[World War II]].{{sfn|Pałys|2008|pp=133–134}}<ref>{{cite book|title=Listy katyńskiej ciąg dalszy. Straceni na Ukrainie.|year=1994|location=Warszawa|publisher=Niezależny Komitet Historyczny Badania Zbrodni Katyńskiej, Polska Fundacja Katyńska, Centralna Biblioteka Wojskowa|page=30|language=pl}}</ref>

[[File:Pomnik.Jana.Skali-Namyslow.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Jan Skala]] monument in [[Namysłów]], Poland]]
During [[World War II]], the Poles postulated that after the defeat of Germany, the Sorbs should be allowed free national development either within the borders of Poland or Czechoslovakia, or as an independent Sorbian state in alliance with Poland.<ref>Orzechowski, pp. 380–381</ref> On 22 January 1945, Jan Skala was murdered by a Soviet soldier in [[Dziedzice, Namysłów County|Dziedzice]], and his grave at the local cemetery is now a [[Cultural property protection in Poland|Polish protected cultural heritage monument]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://zabytek.pl/pl/obiekty/g-254345|title=Grób Jana Skali|website=Zabytek.pl|author=Joanna Banik|access-date=5 November 2023|language=pl}}</ref> There is also a memorial to Skala in nearby [[Namysłów]]. In 1945, Polish troops fought against German forces in several battles in Lusatia, including the largest [[Battle of Bautzen (1945)|Battle of Bautzen]]. There are memorials to Polish soldiers in Bautzen (''Budyšin''), [[Crostwitz]] (''Chrósćicy'') and [[Königswartha]] (''Rakecy'') with inscriptions in Sorbian, Polish and German.

After 1945, the Sorbs that historically lived in the eastern part of Lusatia (now part of Poland) were [[Flight and expulsion of Germans from Poland during and after World War II|expelled]], as they were German citizens. Eastern Lusatia was resettled by Poles expelled from [[Territories of Poland annexed by the Soviet Union|former eastern Poland annexed by the Soviet Union]] and has by now lost its Sorbian identity.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.bpb.de/apuz/304341/verwaistes-erbe-die-lausitz-und-die-sorbische-kultur-in-polen | title=Verwaistes Erbe | date=31 January 2020 }}</ref>

====After World War II====
Prołuż founded in [[Krotoszyn]], expanded to all Poland (3,000 members). It was the biggest non-communist organization that dealt with foreign affairs. This youth organization was created during the Soviet occupation and its motto was "Polish guard over Lusatia" (Polish: ''Nad Łużycami polska straż''). Its highest activity was in the region of [[Greater Poland]]. After the creation of [[East Germany]], Prołuż was dissolved, and its president historian from Poznań Alojzy Stanisław Matyniak was arrested.<ref>"Prołuż Akademicki Związek Przyjaciół Łużyc" Jakub Brodacki. Polska Grupa Marketingowa 2006 {{ISBN|83-60151-00-8}}</ref>

In 1946, the establishment of a gymnasium for Sorbs in [[Zgorzelec]], Poland, was initiated, and the registration of Sorbian students at Polish universities resumed.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Pałys|first=Piotr|year=2002|title=Próby utworzenia w Zgorzelcu w latach 1946–1948 gimnazjum łużyckiego|magazine=Rocznik Lubuski|language=pl|location=Zielona Góra|volume=XXVIII|issue=1|page=90|issn=0485-3083}}</ref> Despite the readiness to accept Sorbian youth in 1946, the gymnasium was not opened as the Sorbs had not yet obtained border passes to Poland.<ref>Pałys, p. 92</ref> The launch of the gymnasium was postponed by a year and free boarding and scholarships were prepared for the Sorbs, but in view of the continued lack of border passes to Poland and the establishment of a Sorbian gymnasium in Bautzen, the idea was abandoned.<ref>Pałys, pp. 94–95</ref>

One of the main centers of pro-Sorbian initiatives in post-war Poland was Wrocław, with a branch of the Prołuż organization, and several articles about the Sorbs were published in local press.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=134}} In 1946, Associations of Friends of Lusatia were founded in [[Opole]] and [[Prudnik]].{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=136}} In 1947, eight Sorbian students established the "Lusatia" Association of Sorbian Students of Higher Education of Wrocław, with eight more joining the following year.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|pp=134–135}} Also local press in Katowice, Opole and Prudnik published articles about the Sorbs and Lusatia.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=135}}

In Opole, the "Lusatian Days" (''Dni Łużyckie'') are organized annually, and the ''Pro Lusatia. Opolskie Studia Łużycoznawcze'' yearbook is published since 1999.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=136}} The Polish-Sorbian Association Pro Lusatia was established in Poland in 2004.{{sfn|Pałys|2008|p=136}}

After a proposal to rebuild a pre-war statue of [[Otto von Bismarck]] in Bautzen (''Budyšin'') appeared in 2021, the Sorbs objected and the Serbski Institut, in an open letter, reasoned the objection with the Bismarck government's repressions of the Sorbs, Poles, as well as [[Danes]] and [[French people|French]], and Bismarck's calls for the extermination of Poles.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.serbski-institut.de/offener-brief-zum-beschluss-des-hauptausschusses-des-bautzener-stadtrats-vom-6-oktober-2021-zur-wiedererrichtung-eines-bismarck-denkmals/|title=Offener Brief zum Beschluss des Hauptausschusses des Bautzener Stadtrats vom 6. Oktober 2021 zur Wiedererrichtung eines Bismarck-Denkmals|website=Serbski institut|author=Joanna Banik|date=11 October 2021|access-date=15 October 2023|language=de}}</ref>

===Relations with Czechia===
[[File:Kamenzer St.-Marien-Kirche (12).JPG|thumb|upright|Golden [[Coat of arms of the Czech Republic|Czech Lion]] at the top of the St. Mary's church in [[Kamenz]] ({{langx|hsb|link=no|Kamjenc}}, {{langx|cs|link=no|Kamenec}})]]
Lusatia was partly or wholly part of the Czech Duchy or Kingdom (also known as Bohemia, in the west) at various times between 1075 and 1635, and several remnants of Czech rule can be found in the region. When Lusatia returned from German to Bohemian (Czech) rule, Sorbs were allowed to return to cities, offices and crafts, and the Sorbian language could be used in public.{{sfn|Golecka|2003|p=58}} As result, it was in the lands under Czech rule that the Sorbian culture and language persisted, while the more western original Sorbian territory succumbed to Germanization policies. One of the remnants of Czech rule in the region are the many town coats of arms that include the [[Coat of arms of the Czech Republic|Czech Lion]], as in [[Drebkau]] (''Drjowk''), [[Görlitz]] (''Zhorjelc''), [[Guben]] (''Gubin''), [[Kamenz]] (''Kamjenc''), [[Löbau]] (''Lubij'') and [[Spremberg]] (''Grodk'').

In 1706 the Catholic Sorbian Seminary was founded in [[Prague]].{{sfn|Matyniak|1968|p=241}} In 1846, the {{ill|Serbowka|hsb|v=sup}} organization was founded by Sorbian students in Prague, and it issued the ''{{ill|Kwětki|hsb|v=sup}}'' magazine until 1892.

Calls for the incorporation of Lusatia into [[Czechoslovakia]] were made after Germany's defeats in both world wars. In 1945, the Czechs established a gymnasium for the Sorbs in [[Česká Lípa]], then relocated to [[Varnsdorf]] in 1946 and to [[Liberec]] in 1949, however, the Sorbs took their high school diploma in Bautzen after a Sorbian high school was established there.<ref>Pałys, pp. 89–90</ref>

===Relations with Yugoslavia===
First permanent cultural and political contacts between Sorbs and [[South Slavs]] were established in the mid-19<sup>th</sup> century, and the contacts reached in their peak in the early 20<sup>th</sup> century.<ref name=ds>{{cite magazine|last=Sokolović|first=Dalibor|year=2012|title="Srbska Lužica" - efemeryda czasopiśmiennictwa sorabistycznego na Bałkanach|magazine=Pro Lusatia|location=Opole|language=pl,en|volume=11|pages=15, 20}}</ref> In 1934, the first and only issue of the ''Srbska Lužica'' newspaper was published by consortium Srbska Lužica in [[Yugoslavia]].<ref name=ds/>

In November 1945, Yugoslavia declared support for the freedom aspirations of the Sorbs.{{sfn|Pałys|2012|p=149}} On 1 January 1946, the Sorbian National Council appointed Jurij Rjenč as its plenipotentiary representative in [[Belgrade]], soon confirmed by the Yugoslav authorities after his arrival and meetings with several Yugoslav officials.{{sfn|Pałys|2012|p=149}} The Military Mission of Yugoslavia (VMJ) to the [[Allied Control Council]] established contacts with Sorbian national activists and declared it imperative to legally guarantee the cultural and national rights of the Sorbs, merge Upper and Lower Lusatia into one administrative district, and to halt the settlement of German displaced persons in Sorbian villages.{{sfn|Pałys|2012|p=150}} The Military Mission of Yugoslavia assisted Sorbian activists in Berlin with accommodation and catering, and contributed to the rebuilding of the [[Serbski dom]] in Bautzen, the chief cultural institution of Sorbs.{{sfn|Pałys|2012|p=151}}

===Relations with Slovakia===
[[File:Delegation of Slovak Matica on an official cultural visit to Lusatian-Serbian Matica (Die Maćica Serbska), Domowina, Sorbian Institute (Serbski Institut) and Serbski Dom.jpg|thumb|Delegation of [[Matica slovenská|Slovak Matica]] on an official cultural visit to Lusatian-Serbian Matica (Die Maćica Serbska), Domowina, Sorbian Institute (Serbski Institut) and Serbski Dom]]

The Lusatian Serbs were supported by [[Ľudovít Štúr]] (he also visited this region), as well as [[Ján Kollár]] (he helped establish the Matica Serbská) and [[Martin Hattala]] (communicated with students of the Serbian Seminary in [[Prague]]).<ref>{{Cite web | title=Matica slovenská prijala pozvania Matice lužickosrbskej – Matica slovenská | url=https://matica.sk/matica-slovenska-prijala-pozvania-matice-luzickosrbskej/ | access-date=2025-08-11 | website=matica.sk | date=23 May 2025 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | title=V Lužici můžete zahlédnout odraz české duše | url=https://www.ukforum.cz/rubriky/academia/7807-v-luzici-muzete-zahlednout-zrcadlo-ceske-duse | access-date=2025-08-11 | website=www.ukforum.cz}}</ref>

The [[Matica slovenská|Slovak Matica]] cooperates with the [[Maćica Serbska]]. In 2025, a delegation of the [[Matica slovenská|Slovak Matica]] of the Sorbians ([[Domowina]] institution, [[Sorbian Institute]]; [[Bautzen]], [[Göda|Hodźij]] and Storcha) visited the Sorbs at the invitation of the [[Maćica Serbska]].<ref>{{Cite web | title=Delegácia Matice slovenskej navštívila Lužických Srbov | url=https://www.teraz.sk/najnovsie/delegacia-matice-slovenskej-navstivil/880149-clanok.html | access-date=2025-08-11 | website=www.teraz.sk | date=22 May 2025 }}</ref>

==Demography==
Estimates of demographic history of the Sorb population since 1450:<ref name="gebel">{{Cite book|url=https://eprints.mdx.ac.uk/6353/1/Gebel-Language_and_ethnic_national_identity.pdf|title=Language and ethnic national identity in Europe: the importance of Gaelic and Sorbian to the maintenance of associated cultures and ethno cultural identities.|last=Gebel|first=K.|publisher=Middlesex University|year=2002|location=London|access-date=2018-02-08|archive-date=2019-05-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190501090225/https://eprints.mdx.ac.uk/6353/1/Gebel-Language_and_ethnic_national_identity.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Víšek |first1=Zdeněk |title=Lužičtí Srbové a česko-lužickosrbské vztahy |url=http://www.listy.cz/archiv.php?cislo=131&clanek=011317 |website=Listy |access-date=29 September 2014 |language=cs |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304034335/http://www.listy.cz/archiv.php?cislo=131&clanek=011317 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VzpbDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA157|title=Nationale Minderheiten und staatliche Minderheitenpolitik in Deutschland im 19. Jahrhundert|last1=Henning Hahn|first1=Hans|last2=Kunze|first2=Peter|publisher=Akademie Verlag GmbH|year=1999|isbn=978-3-05-003343-3|location=Berlin}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://www.kosmas.cz/knihy/133435/cesi-o-luzickych-srbech|title=Češi o Lužických Srbech|last=Kaleta|first=Petr|publisher=Masarykův ústav AV ČR |year=2006|isbn=9788086495415|location=Prague|pages=15}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:right"
|-
!style="background:#f3fff3"|Year
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1450'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1700'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1750'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1790'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1858'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1861'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1880'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1900'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1905'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''1945'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''2006'''
!style="background:#f3fff3"|'''2020'''
|-
!style="background:#f3fff3"|Population
| 160,000
| 250,000
| 200,000
| 250,000
| 164,000
| 165,000
| 166,000
| 146,000
| 157,000
| 145,700
| 40,000-50,000
| 40,000
|}

Sorbian population in the middle of the 19<sup>th</sup> century:
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+Counties with large numbers of Sorbs in the middle of the 19<sup>th</sup> century<ref name=":02">{{Cite book |last=Belzyt |first=Leszek |url=https://www.deutsche-digitale-bibliothek.de/item/2MNSRPSZ4WBMIQWRISVXHHOBZCD2P2N6 |title=Sprachliche Minderheiten im preussischen Staat: 1815 - 1914 ; die preußische Sprachenstatistik in Bearbeitung und Kommentar |date=1998 |publisher=Herder-Inst. |isbn=978-3-87969-267-5 |location=Marburg}}</ref><ref name=":0" />
!Region
!County
!Census year
!Total population
!Sorbian population
!% of Sorbs
|-
|[[Regierungsbezirk Frankfurt]]
|[[Cottbus]]
|1846
|49248
|33522
|68.1%
|-
|Regierungsbezirk Frankfurt
|[[Spremberg]]
|1843
|14092
|9183
|65.2%
|-
|Regierungsbezirk Frankfurt
|[[Lübben (Spreewald)|Lübben]]
|1858
|31566
|12427
|39.4%
|-
|Regierungsbezirk Frankfurt
|[[Calau]]
|1849
|43363
|12143
|28.0%
|-
|Regierungsbezirk Frankfurt
|[[Żary|Sorau]]
|1858
|71826
|10116
|14.1%
|-
|[[Liegnitz (region)|Regierungsbezirk Liegnitz]]
|[[Hoyerswerda]]
|1855
|30068
|17223
|57.3%
|-
|Regierungsbezirk Liegnitz
|[[Rothenburg, Oberlausitz|Rothenburg]]
|1843
|42891
|14267
|33.3%
|-
|[[Saxony]]
|[[Königswartha]]
|1861
|7407
|6385
|86.2%
|-
|Saxony
|[[Weißenberg]]
|1861
|6579
|4777
|72.6%
|-
|Saxony
|[[Bautzen]]
|1861
|37096
|23148
|62.4%
|-
|Saxony
|[[Kamenz]]
|1861
|23564
|7847
|33.3%
|-
|Saxony
|[[Löbau]]
|1861
|27260
|4089
|15.0%
|-
|Saxony
|[[Schirgiswalde]]
|1861
|16636
|2196
|13.2%
|-
|Saxony
|[[Bischofswerda]]
|1861
|21051
|1642
|7.8%
|}
[[File:Sorbs in German Empire.png|thumb|Sorbian population in the German Empire in years 1843-1861]]
Sorbs are divided into two ethnographical groups:
*Upper Sorbs (about 40,000 people).<ref>Petr Kaleta: ''Češi o Lužických Srbech''. Prague,2006. Page 15.</ref>
*Lower Sorbs, who speak [[Lower Sorbian]] (about 15–20,000 people).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sorben.sachsen.de/|title=Sorben|work=sachsen.de|access-date=18 March 2015}}</ref><ref name="gebel" />

The dialects spoken vary in intelligibility in different areas.

<gallery>
Germany sorbian region.png|Map of approximate Sorb-inhabited area in Germany
Sorben.jpeg|Map of area and towns inhabited by Sorbs
Sorbisches Siedlungsgebiet-dsb.png|Detailed map of Sorb-inhabited area in Germany (in Lower Sorbian)
</gallery>

=== Diaspora ===
During the 1840s, many Sorbian émigrés travelled to Australia, along with many ethnic Germans. The first was Jan Rychtar, a Wendish [[Moravian Brethren]] missionary who settled in [[Sydney]] during 1844.<ref>Nielsen. Georg, R. In Search of a Home,(1977); Birmingham Slavonic Monographs. {{ISBN|0 70440236 X}}.</ref> There were two major migrations of Upper Sorbs and Lower Sorbs to Australia, in 1848 and 1850 respectively. The diaspora settled mainly in [[South Australia]] – especially the [[Barossa Valley]] – as well as [[Victoria, Australia|Victoria]] and [[New South Wales]].
[[File:Kilianhall.jpg|thumb|Kilian Hall, the former main building of Concordia University Texas, is named after Jan Kilian]]
A group of over 500 Sorbs, led by the Evangelical Lutheran pastor [[John Kilian|Jan Kilian]], sailed to [[Galveston, Texas|Galveston]] in 1854 aboard the ship ''Ben Nevis''. They later founded the settlement of [[Serbin, Texas|Serbin]] in [[Lee County, Texas|Lee County]], [[Wends of Texas|Texas]], near Austin. Two-thirds of the emigrants came from the Prussian part, and one-third from the Saxon part of Upper Lusatia, including about 200 Sorbs from the [[Klitten]] area. The Sorbian language, a variant of Upper Sorbian, survived in Serbin until the 1920s, though it was increasingly influenced first by German, then by English. In the past, newspapers in Sorbian were also published in Serbin. Today, the former Sorbian school in Serbin houses the Texas Wendish Heritage Museum, which tells the story of the Sorbs in the USA. Descendants of these emigrants went on to found [[Concordia University Texas]] in Austin in 1926.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.texaswendish.org/Pages/default.aspx|title=Texas Wendish Heritage|access-date=18 March 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150223021350/http://www.texaswendish.org/Pages/default.aspx|archive-date=23 February 2015}}</ref>

== Institutions ==

=== Domowina ===
{{Main|Domowina}}

[[File:Domowina-Logo 2015.svg|thumb|204x204px|Symbol of Domowina: On a red background, three silver linden leaves grow from a tree trunk with eight roots.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Satzung der Domowina - Bund Lausitzer Sorben e. V. |url=https://www.domowina.de/domowina/satzung-programm-arbeitsrichtlinien-uae/satzung/ |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=domowina.de}}</ref>]]
The ''Domowina'', founded in 1912 (a poetic Sorbian term for “homeland”), is the umbrella organization of local chapters, five regional associations, and twelve Sorbian associations active at a supraregional level,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Regionalverbände und Mitgliedsvereine der Domowina |url=https://www.domowina.de/mitgliedschaft/mitgliedsvereine/ |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=domowina.de}}</ref> with a total of around 7,300 members.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Geförderte Einrichtungen |url=https://zalozba.de/foerderung/gefoerderte-einrichtungen/ |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=zalozba.de}}</ref> Members who are part of more than one affiliated association may be counted multiple times.

=== Foundation for the Sorbian People ===
{{Main|Foundation for the Sorbian People}}

The Foundation for the Sorbian People (''Załožba za serbski lud'') serves as a joint instrument of the federal government and the states of Brandenburg and Saxony to support the preservation, development, promotion, and dissemination of the Sorbian language, culture, and traditions as an expression of the Sorbian people's identity.

It was initially established in 1991 by decree as a non-legally-capable public foundation within the Protestant Church of [[Lohsa]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Geschichte, Satzung und Finanzierung der Stiftung |url=https://zalozba.de/deutsch/stiftung/geschichte-und-finanzierung/ |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=zalozba.de}}</ref> Recognizing that the Sorbian people have no kin-state outside the Federal Republic of Germany, and based on the obligations declared in Protocol Note No. 14 to Article 35 of the [[Unification Treaty (1990)|Unification Treaty]], the necessary material framework was thus created. With the signing of the State Treaty between Brandenburg and Saxony on the establishment of the Foundation for the Sorbian People on August 28, 1998, the foundation was granted legal capacity. At the same time, the first funding agreement between the federal government and the states of Brandenburg and Saxony was signed, valid until the end of 2007. Based on the Second Funding Agreement of July 10, 2009, the foundation has since received annual contributions from Saxony, Brandenburg, and the federal government to fulfill its mission. This agreement was valid until December 31, 2013. Until the third agreement was concluded in 2016, the funding amount was determined annually.<ref name=":2" />

The annual funding amount set until 2013 was €16.8 million, divided as follows: Federal Government: €8.2 million, Saxony: €5.85 million and Brandenburg: €2.77 million.<ref name=":2" />

The largest shares of the foundation’s budget went to:

* Sorbian National Ensemble: 29%
* [[Domowina Publishing House]]: 17.2%
* [[Sorbian Institute]]: 11.3%
* Foundation administration: 11.4%<ref name=":1" />

There have been public controversies over the absolute funding volume and distribution among institutions and projects, some of which led to demonstrations.<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 May 2009 |title=Minderheit: Die Sorgen der Sorben |url=https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/die-sorgen-der-sorben-1655299.html |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=[[Der Tagesspiegel]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Essler |first=Christian |title=Bautzen - Protestdemo gegen Kulturabbau für das Sorbische National-Ensemble |url=http://www.lausitznews.de/pressebericht_7163.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015062753/http://www.lausitznews.de/pressebericht_7163.html |archive-date=2013-10-15 |access-date=2025-08-08 |website=www.lausitznews.de |language=de-DE}}</ref>

On July 20, 2021, Federal Interior Minister [[Horst Seehofer]], Brandenburg’s Minister-President [[Dietmar Woidke]], and Saxony’s Minister-President [[Michael Kretschmer]] signed the joint funding agreement for the next funding period.<ref>{{Cite web |date=20 July 2021 |title=Abkommen über die Finanzierung der Stiftung des sorbischen Volkes unterzeichnet |url=https://www.bmi.bund.de/SharedDocs/pressemitteilungen/DE/2021/07/finanzierung-stiftung-sorbisches-volk.html |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=bmi.bund.de |publisher=[[Federal Ministry of the Interior (Germany)]] |quote=Seehofer: "Wertvolle Arbeit der Stiftung ist auch in Zukunft auskömmlich finanziert"}}</ref> The agreement provides for annual funding of €23.916 million from 2021 to 2025.

=== Institute for Sorbian Studies ===
On December 10, 1716, six Sorbian theology students founded the ''“Wendish Preachers' Collegium”'' (later renamed ''“Lusatian Preachers’ Society”'') with the permission of [[Leipzig University|Leipzig University’s]] senate—the first Sorbian association ever.<ref>{{Cite web |title=17.-18. Jahrhundert |url=https://archive.ph/20130212220648/http:/www.wendisches-museum.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9&Itemid=14&lang=de |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20220625083835/https://archive.ph/20130212220648/http:/www.wendisches-museum.de/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9&Itemid=14&lang=de |archive-date=2022-06-25 |access-date=2025-08-09 |website=archive.ph |publisher=Wendisches Museum}}</ref> Their motto, which was also their greeting, was: “''Soraborum saluti!''” (For the good of the Sorbs!)

Today, the Institute for Sorbian Studies at Leipzig University is the only institute in Germany where Sorbian teachers and scholars (Sorabists) are trained. Classes are held in both Upper and Lower Sorbian. In recent years, Sorbian studies and its degree programs have attracted increasing interest, particularly from the Slavic-speaking world. Since March 1, 2003, the director of the institute has been Eduard Werner (Sorbian: ''Edward Wornar'').

=== Sorbian Institute ===
{{Main|Sorbian Institute}}

[[File:BZ-Bahnhofstr06.jpg|left|thumb|Seat of the Sorbian Institute in Bautzen]]
Since 1951, there has been a non-university research institute for Sorbian studies in Bautzen, which was part of the [[German Academy of Sciences at Berlin|German Academy of Sciences]] in East Berlin until 1991. Re-established in 1992 as the Sorbian Institute e. V. (''Serbski Institut z. t.''), it currently has about 25 permanent employees working at two locations: Bautzen (Saxony) and Cottbus (Brandenburg).{{cn|date=August 2025}}

The institute's broad mission includes research into the Sorbian language (both Upper and Lower Sorbian), as well as the history, culture, and identity of the Sorbian people in [[Upper Lusatia|Upper]] and [[Lower Lusatia]]. Through its various projects, the institute contributes to the practical preservation and development of Sorbian national substance. It is affiliated with the Sorbian Central Library and the Sorbian Cultural Archive, which collect, preserve, and share Sorbian cultural heritage spanning nearly 500 years.{{cn|date=August 2025}}

=== Domowina Publishing House ===
{{Main|Domowina Publishing House}}

[[File:Tuchmacherstraße 27 Bautzen 2.jpg|thumb|222x222px|Domowina Publishing House office at Tuchmacherstraße 27, Bautzen]]
Also located in Bautzen, the Domowina Publishing House (''Ludowe nakładnistwo Domowina'') publishes most of the Sorbian books, newspapers, and magazines. It evolved from the [[Volkseigener Betrieb|VEB]] Domowina Publishing House, founded in 1958 and reorganized as a GmbH in 1990.

The publishing house is funded by the Foundation for the Sorbian People with €2.9 million (as of 2012). Since 1991, it has operated the Smoler’sche Verlagsbuchhandlung (''Smolerjec kniharnja''), named after the Sorbian bookstore founded in 1851 by the first Sorbian publisher [[Jan Arnošt Smoler]] (1816–1884).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Smolerjec kniharnja / Smolerʼsche Verlagsbuchhandlung in Bautzen |url=https://www.domowina-verlag.de/smolersche-verlagsbuchhandlung |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=domowina-verlag.de |publisher=Domowina-Verlag Bautzen}}</ref>

=== Sorbian Museum ===
{{Main|Sorbian Museum}}

[[File:Bautzen - Ortenburg - Sorbisches Museum 01 ies.jpg|left|thumb|Sorbian Museum]]
The Sorbian Museum (''Serbski muzej Budyšin'') is located in the Salzhaus of the Ortenburg castle complex in Bautzen. Its exhibition offers an overview of Sorbian history from the 6th century to the present, along with insights into Sorbian culture and daily life.

The museum also features rotating special exhibitions of Sorbian visual artists or exhibitions focused on specific historical themes. The museum is operated by the [[Bautzen (district)|Bautzen district]] and is supported by the Foundation for the Sorbian People and the Cultural Area of Upper Lusatia–Lower Silesia.

=== Sorbian National Ensemble ===
[[File:(20241011) Bautzen 12.jpg|thumb|Sorbian National Ensemble]]
The Sorbian National Ensemble (''Serbski ludowy ansambl'') is the only professional Sorbian music and dance theater, with departments for orchestra, ballet, and choir. Its repertoire includes dance theater, musical theater, concerts, and children's music theater—ranging from traditional Sorbian to modern styles.

The ensemble’s headquarters are located near the Röhrscheidt Bastion by the Friedensbrücke in Bautzen. Since 1952, the group has toured to over 40 countries on 4 continents, with about 14,000 guest performances.

The ensemble is managed as a non-profit limited company (GGmbH). Its sole shareholder is the Foundation for the Sorbian People, from which it receives over €5 million annually, about one-fifth of the foundation’s total budget.

=== Schools and kindergartens ===
In Saxony and Brandenburg, the Sorbian bilingual settlement areas have several bilingual Sorbian-German schools, as well as other schools where Sorbian is taught as a foreign language. In Saxony during the 2013/14 school year, there were eight bilingual elementary schools and six bilingual secondary schools and in Brandenburg, there were four bilingual elementary schools and one combined secondary school with an elementary level.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2013-01-06 |title=Allgemein bildende Schulen im Land Brandenburg |url=https://archive.ph/20130106054826/http://www.mbjs.brandenburg.de/cms/detail.php?template=schulverzeichnis_gefunden_d&_sort=schultyp,regionen,orte,ortsteil&_order=asc&_bereich=A&_region=alle&_orte=&_schultyp=&_schulname1=&_trstatus=&_fach1=Sorbisch&_sptyp1=bilingualer+Unterricht&_besonderes_grup=&_besonderes= |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20241205150128/https://archive.ph/20130106054826/http://www.mbjs.brandenburg.de/cms/detail.php?template=schulverzeichnis_gefunden_d&_sort=schultyp,regionen,orte,ortsteil&_order=asc&_bereich=A&_region=alle&_orte=&_schultyp=&_schulname1=&_trstatus=&_fach1=Sorbisch&_sptyp1=bilingualer+Unterricht&_besonderes_grup=&_besonderes= |archive-date=2024-12-05 |access-date=2025-08-09 |work=archive.ph}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Bilinguale Angebote und Fremdsprachenzertifikate |url=https://mbjs.brandenburg.de/bildung/gute-schule/bilinguale-angebote-und-fremdsprachenzertifikate.html |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=mbjs-brandenburg.de}}</ref> High school graduation in Sorbian is possible at the [[Upper Sorbian Gymnasium Bautzen|Sorbian Gymnasium]] in Bautzen and the [[Lower Sorbian Gymnasium Cottbus|Lower Sorbian Gymnasium]] in Cottbus.

There are also several Sorbian kindergartens in both states. The Sorbisches Schulverein (Sorbian School Association), which operates across state borders, launched the “''Witaj''” (Sorbian for 'welcome') project, promoting bilingual education in kindergartens and schools through language immersion—where children learn Sorbian naturally through everyday interaction.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Willkommen auf den Seiten des Sorbischen Schulvereins e. V. |url=https://www.sorbischer-schulverein.de/de |access-date=9 August 2025 |website=sorbischer-schulverein.de}}</ref>

== Media ==
[[File:Rozhlad – wudaća.jpg|thumb|Some issues of the Sorbian cultural magazine ''Rozhlad'']]
A daily Upper Sorbian newspaper, ''Serbske Nowiny'' (Sorbian Newspaper), and a weekly Lower Sorbian newspaper, ''Nowy Casnik'' (New Newspaper), are published. Additionally, there is the monthly Sorbian cultural magazine ''Rozhlad'' (Review), the children’s magazine ''Płomjo'' (Flame), the Catholic magazine ''Katolski Posoł'', and the Protestant church newspaper ''Pomhaj Bóh'' (God Help). The Sorbian Institute publishes the academic journal ''Lětopis'' (Yearbook) every six months. There is also the professional journal for educators, ''Serbska šula'' (Sorbian School).{{cn|date=August 2025}}

Furthermore, there is Sorbian radio broadcasting, with programming produced by [[Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk]] (MDR) and [[Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg]] (RBB). Every day, a few hours of Sorbian-language radio programs are broadcast from stations in [[Calau]] (RBB) and [[Hoyerswerda]] (MDR 1). All Lower Sorbian broadcasts from RBB are also available for replay online. For younger audiences, RBB broadcasts the half-hour monthly magazine ''Bubak'' on the first Thursday of each month, and MDR airs the two-hour weekly magazine ''Radio Satkula'' every Monday.{{cn|date=August 2025}}

Since April 1992, RBB has produced the half-hour Lower Sorbian television magazine ''Łužyca'' (Lusatia), aired monthly. Since September 8, 2001, MDR has produced the monthly half-hour Upper Sorbian program ''[[Wuhladko]]'' (View). In addition, MDR broadcasts ''Unser Sandmännchen'' (Our Little Sandman) every Sunday with dual audio (including Sorbian).{{cn|date=August 2025}}

== Sorbian in literature, film, and television ==

=== Literature ===
In his ''[[Wanderungen durch die Mark Brandenburg|Walks through the March of Brandenburg]]'' (1862–1889), [[Theodor Fontane]] describes not only the history but also the lifestyle, customs, and traditional dress of the Sorbs (Wends) in Lower Lusatia. In [[Wilhelm Bölsche]]’s contemporary novel ''Die Mittagsgöttin'' (The Midday Goddess) from 1891, some of the scenes are set in the [[Spree Forest|Spreewald]], including the then predominantly Lower Sorbian-speaking village of Lehde. Furthermore, the novel ''Die Mittagsfrau'' by [[Julia Franck]], published in 2007, is named after the well-known Sorbian mythical figure. The first part of the novel portrays the childhood of Martha and Helene in [[Bautzen]], whose Sorbian maid suspects the curse of the "''Mittagsfrau''" (Midday Woman) to be the cause of their mother’s mental breakdown.{{cn|date=August 2025}}

=== Film and television ===
In the GDR, documentaries were produced such as ''Wie die Sorben den Maibaum aufstellen'' (How the Sorbs Erect the Maypole) (1956) and ''Leben am Fließ – W Błotach'' (1990). The [[DEFA]] animated film ''Als es noch Wassermänner gab'' is based on a Sorbian fairy tale and also deals with Sorbian wedding customs. In 2010, the [[ZDF]] broadcast the crime film ''Der Tote im Spreewald'' (The Dead Man in the Spreewald). One of the main characters is the son of a traditionally-minded Sorbian family, who does not feel connected to his cultural roots. The film introduced Sorbian culture to a wider audience, while also reflecting on issues of homeland and minority identity.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 October 2009 |title=Extrem Düster: "Der Tote im Spreewald" |url=https://www.wp.de/wp-info/article48221/Extrem-Duester-Der-Tote-im-Spreewald.html |access-date=8 August 2025 |website=wp.de}}</ref>

In 2007, the ''Minet – Minderheitenmagazin'' aired a program on [[Rai 3|RAI 3]] ([[Rai Südtirol (TV channel)|Bozen station]]) titled ''Die Sorben – ein slawisches Volk in Deutschland'' (The Sorbs – a Slavic People in Germany).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Die Sorben – ein slawisches Volk in Deutschland |url=https://www.minet-tv.com/de/beitrage/de/die-sorben-ein-slawisches-volk-in-deutschland/ |access-date=8 August 2025 |website=minet-tv.com}}</ref> Also in 2007, [[Radiotelevisiun Svizra Rumantscha]] produced the film ''Ils Sorbs en la Germania da l’ost'' (The Sorbs in Eastern Germany) as part of its series ''Minoritads en l’Europa'' (Minorities in Europe).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Minoritads en l'Europa (Minderheiten in Europa): Ils Sorbs en la Germania (Die Sorben in Deutschland) |url=https://www.rtr.ch/play/tv/cuntrasts/video/minoritads-en-leuropa-minderheiten-in-europa-ils-sorbs-en-la-germania-die-sorben-in-deutschland?urn=urn:rtr:video:aaadd872-fffd-433a-8e94-b39cbaeecf31 |access-date=8 August 2025 |website=rtr.ch}}</ref> The 2020 documentary ''Sorben ins Kino!'' by Knut Elstermann focuses on Sorbian filmmakers, including those in the Sorbian Film production group.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Sorben ins Kino! Auf der Suche nach dem sorbischen Film |url=https://www.filmfestivalcottbus.de/de/component/festivalmanager/movie/1923.html |access-date=8 August 2025 |website=filmfestivalcottbus.de}}</ref>

In the series ''Straight Outta Crostwitz'', released exclusively on ARD Mediathek in 2022, [[Jasna Fritzi Bauer]] plays the Sorbian character Hanka.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Straight Outta Crostwitz |url=https://www.ardmediathek.de/serie/straight-outta-crostwitz/staffel-1/Y3JpZDovL21kci5kZS9zZW5kZXJlaWhlbi9hZWNiODVkMy05OTFmLTQ1ODktYjVmYS0wZmVkNzVkYzNhNTQ/1 |access-date=8 August 2025 |website=ardmediathek.de}}</ref> She sings Sorbian folk songs with her father but actually wants to make rap music. This [[Comedy drama|dramedy]]-style story of emancipation spans four episodes, each between nine and twelve minutes long, and was also filmed in [[Lusatia]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Straight Outta Crostwitz |url=https://www.mdr.de/tv/programm/straightouttacrostwitz100.html |access-date=8 August 2025 |website=mdr.de}}</ref>

On April 18, 2024, the documentary ''Bei uns heißt sie Hanka'' premiered in cinemas. Directed by Grit Lemke, the film explores the search for Sorbian identity.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Meyer |first=Lars |date=18 April 2024 |title="Bei uns heißt sie Hanka" {{!}} Film über sorbische Identität startet im Kino |url=https://www.mdr.de/nachrichten/sachsen/leipzig/leipzig-leipzig-land/dok-leipzig-film-hanka-kultur-news-102.html |access-date=8 August 2025 |website=mdr.de}}</ref>

== See also ==
* [[List of Sorbs]]
* [[Lusatia]]
* [[Polabian Slavs]]
* [[Serbs]]
* [[Wends]]
* [[Milceni]]
* [[Pavle Jurišić Šturm]]
* [[Wendish People's Party]]
* [[Wends of Texas]]
* [[List of ancient Slavic peoples and tribes]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist|2}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Sources==
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*{{cite journal |author = Veeramah | year = 2011 | title = Genetic variation in the Sorbs of eastern Germany in the context of broader European genetic diversity | journal = [[European Journal of Human Genetics]] | volume = 19 | issue =  9| pages = 995–1001 | doi = 10.1038/ejhg.2011.65 |display-authors=etal | pmid=21559053 | pmc=3179365}}
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{{Refend}}

==Further reading==
{{See also|List of Slavic studies journals}}
* Filip Gańczak ''Mniejszość w czasach popkultury'', Newsweek, nr 22/2007, 03.06.2007.
* ''W kręgu Krabata. Szkice o Juriju Brězanie, literaturze, kulturze i językach łużyckich'', pod red. J.Zarka, Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego, Katowice, 2002.
* Mirosław Cygański, Rafał Leszczyński ''Zarys dziejów narodowościowych Łużyczan'' PIN, Instytut Śląski, Opole 1997.
* ''Die Sorben in Deutschland'', pod red. M.Schiemann, Stiftung für das sorbische Volk, Görlitz 1997.
* ''Mały informator o Serbołużyczanach w Niemczech'', pod red. J.Pětrowej, Załožba za serbski lud, 1997.
* ''Dolnoserbske nałogi/Obyczaje Dolnych Łużyc'', pod red. M.Stock, Załožba za serbski lud, 1997.
* "Rys dziejów serbołużyckich" Wilhelm Bogusławski Piotrogród 1861
* "Prołuż Akademicki Związek Przyjaciół Łużyc" Jakub Brodacki. Polska Grupa Marketingowa 2006 {{ISBN|83-60151-00-8}}.
* "Polska wobec Łużyc w drugiej połowie XX wieku. Wybrane problemy", Mieczkowska Małgorzata, Szczecin 2006 {{ISBN|83-7241-487-4}}.
* Wukasch, C. (2004) ''A Rock Against Alien Waves: A History of the Wends''. Concordia University Press: Austin, TX {{ISBN|978-1-881848-07-3}}.
* "Sorbs," David Zersen, in ''Germans and the Americas: Culture, Politics and History'', 3 vols., edited by Thomas Adam. ABC-CLIO, 2005.

== External links ==
{{commons category|Sorbs}}
{{Interwiki|code=hsb}}
* {{cite EB1911|wstitle=Sorbs |volume=25 |short=x}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20050831095937/http://www.domowina.sorben.com/index.htm The Domowina Institution]
* [http://www.serbske-nowiny.de/ ''SERBSKE NOWINY'']—Sorbian newspaper
* [http://www.serbski-institut.de/ SERBSKI INSTITUT]—Sorbian history and culture
* [http://www.runjewonline.info/ Independent Sorbian internet magazine] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070826134332/http://www.runjewonline.info/ |date=2007-08-26 }}
* [http://wendishheritage.org.au/ Sorbian emigration into Australia]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20141006234521/http://www.rastko.org.rs/rastko-lu/o/index_l.html Project Rastko - Lusatia], Electronic Library of Sorbian-Serbian Ties
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090810024410/http://texaswendish.org/default.aspx Texas Wendish Heritage Society]
* [http://wendishheritage.org.au/ Wendish Heritage Society of Australia]

{{Slavic ethnic groups}}
{{Slavic ethnic groups (VII-XII century)}}
{{Ethnic groups in Germany}}
{{Stateless nationalism in Europe}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Sorbs| ]]
[[Category:West Slavs]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Germany]]
[[Category:Ethnic groups in Poland]]
[[Category:Slavic ethnic groups]]