Polish Brazilian

{{Infobox ethnic group | group = Polish Brazilians | native_name = | native_name_lang = | flag = | image = Polish descendants in Curitiba. | pop = 2 million | popplace = Brazil: Mainly Southern and Southeastern Brazil Brazilian diaspora in Canada: Toronto and Montreal; Argentina: Misiones; and Paraguay: Itapúa. | langs = PortuguesePolishYiddish | rels = Roman Catholicism (ethnic Poles)Judaism (Polish Jews)Minor: Islam (Polish Tatars) | related = Ukrainian Brazilians, White Brazilians, White Latin Americans }}Polish Brazilians' (, Polish: Polonia brazylijska) refers to Brazilians of full or partial Polish ancestry who are aware of such ancestry and remain connected, to some degree, to Polish culture, or Polish-born people permanently residing in Brazil. Also, a Polish Brazilian may have one Polish parent. Polish immigrants began arriving in Brazil in the late 19th century and their total number was estimated at around 200,000. Immigration The first Polish immigrants arrived in the port of Itajaí, Santa Catarina, in August 1869. They were 78 Poles from the area of Southern Silesia. Commandant Redlisch, of the ship Victoria, brought people from Mitteleuropa to settle in Brusque. They were in total 16 families, among them: Francisco Pollak, Nicolau Wós, Boaventura Pollak, Thomasz Szymanski, Simon Purkot, Felipe Purkot, Miguel Prudlo, Chaim Briffel, Simon Otto, Domin Stempke, Gaspar Gbur, Balcer Gbur, Walentin Weber, Antoni Kania, Franciszek Kania, André Pampuch and Stefan Kachel. The Poles were placed in the colonies Príncipe Dom Pedro and Itajaí, in the area of Brusque.