[LINK] Not Vilnius or Wilno, but Vilnia

[rfmcdonald]

Stephen R. Burant's 1999 paper "Belarus and the 'Belarusian Irredenta' in Lithuania" explores a fascinating forgotten element of the history of Vilnius. The interwar question of whether Vilnius was properly Lithuanian (by virtue of its connection with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania) or Polish (by virtue of its largely Polish-speaking population) bypassed the real possibility that most of Vilnius' Slavic population was originally of Belarusian origin. As Burant notes, regardless of the historical origins of Vilnius' Polish population it identifies as Polish to this day. Potential Belarusian territorial demands on the city known as Vilnia can't be satisfied, and so won't be satisfied. It does remain worthwhile to note that once, they could have been made.