Wisława Knapowska
7.06.1889 – 8.05.1956
Historian, educator, philologist
An expert in the 19th-century history, polyglot and poet.
1918-1923 – studies in Munich and Poznań
1923 – PhD degree
1945 – post-doctoral degree
Wisława studied modern history as well as Roman and German philology at the University of Poznań. She was a polyglot and spoke seven foreign languages. She was a diligent researcher, which can be inferred from her notes. They are very detailed and neat, even though they are written alternately in different languages. The knowledge of foreign languages helped her also to prepare her PhD thesis. She wrote it, studying previously unknown Prussian documents.
Apart from that, Knapowska gave lectures at the University on the history didactics. She was also the head of the methodology group, where she taught history teachers the best ways to spread their knowledge.
While pursuing her academic career, she was also working as a teacher. For example she taught French and literature at Dąbrówka Gymnasium for women. Besides, she wrote a paper on the history of this oldest secondary school for women in Poznań.
