You can walk past the same building a hundred times and still not know what happened behind its door.
Perhaps there was once a workshop there. Perhaps a woman lived upstairs whose work changed the cultural life of the city. Perhaps the courtyard was a meeting place, or an ordinary-looking flat became a gathering point for artists and intellectuals.
Poznań is full of these fragments of history. Poznanianki is an invitation to start noticing them.
As part of Poznański Tydzień Kobiet (Poznań Women’s Week), taking place from 17 to 25 October 2026, a new map will bring together places across the city connected with women who lived, worked and created here, as well as locations that commemorate their achievements.
It is a simple idea, but one that could change the way a familiar street looks.
A different map of Poznań
The Mapa Poznanianek is designed to be explored rather than simply read.
Available online and in printed form, it brings together places associated with women from different periods of Poznań's history. Some are locations where they lived or worked. Others preserve the memory of what they achieved.
There is no prescribed itinerary. You can pick up the map, choose a neighbourhood and see where it takes you. You can follow it on your phone, keep the printed version in your bag, or simply use it as inspiration for your next walk through the city.
That makes the project particularly suited to Poznań. This is a city where walking a few streets away from the centre can reveal a completely different layer of its history.
And you do not have to be a history enthusiast to take part.
The appeal is partly in that moment of recognition: I've walked past this place before. I never knew that.
Four October walks
For those who would rather hear the stories directly, Poznanianki will also include four guided walks during Poznański Tydzień Kobiet.
The programme moves between different aspects of women's lives and experiences in the city.
Contemporary Poznanianki
Saturday, 17 October 2026, 12:00
The first walk looks at contemporary women of Poznań and will be led by Natalia Goślicka of Poznańskie zakamarki.
Poznań's women artists
Sunday, 18 October 2026, 12:00
The focus then shifts to the city's artistic history. Małgorzata Maik-Ślisińska of Gosia w Poznaniu will lead a walk dedicated to Poznań's women artists.
Poznań's lesser-known heroines
Tuesday, 20 October 2026, 16:30
Some stories have survived better than others. Joanna Lip of Poznańska kamienica will lead a walk exploring women whose contributions to Poznań are less widely known.
Poznanianki who wrote their own stories
Saturday, 24 October 2026, 12:00
The final walk, led by Jakub Skrzypczak of Fifny Przewodnik, will explore women who forged their own paths and shaped their own stories in Poznań.
Further information about meeting points, registration and the individual routes is due to be announced.
Look up, look around
There is a particular pleasure in discovering local history this way.
A museum asks you to enter. A book asks you to sit down. A map asks you to walk.
You might begin with one name and end up exploring an entire neighbourhood. A story about an artist could lead you down a street you have never taken before. A location on the map might turn an otherwise unremarkable tenement into somewhere you stop and look at properly.
For international residents and visitors, Poznanianki offers a way into the city that does not depend on knowing its history beforehand. The places themselves become the starting point.
Put 17 October in your diary
The Poznanianki project will be part of Poznański Tydzień Kobiet, running across the city from 17 to 25 October 2026.
The map can be explored independently, while the four scheduled walks offer a chance to discover selected stories with local guides.
For now, the practical details are still to come. But the idea is already enough to make you look differently the next time you walk through Poznań.
Because there is a good chance that the city's next story is not somewhere you need to travel to.
It might be the building you are standing in front of.
Poznanianki is being presented as part of Poznański Tydzień Kobiet, 17–25 October 2026. Further details about the map and walks will be announced by the organisers.
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Source and image credit: Estrada Poznańska
