MapaBeskidu.plOldest Mentions and Ownership
The origins of Zawoja are connected with the migrations of Vlach shepherds, who cleared forests and grazed sheep in the Skawica river valley. For a long time, these areas did not have the status of an independent village and were treated as the upper part of neighboring Skawica. The first documented mention of Zawoja as a separate settlement dates back to 1646, from the inspection documents of the Lanckorona starosta. The name of the village probably comes from the Daco-Romanian word 'zavoiu', meaning a wetland forest over a steep river bend. For centuries, Zawoja was part of the royal estates. Over time, it became the property of the Habsburgs, and in 1924 Karol Stefan Habsburg sold these lands to the Polish Academy of Learning, which initiated its development as a tourist center.
Sources (1)
- Urząd Gminy Zawoja, Historia Gminy, 2024 — link