Tarnowskie Góry (German: Tarnowitz; ) is a town in Silesia, southern Poland, located in the Silesian Highlands near Katowice. On the south it borders the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union, a megalopolis, the greater Silesian metropolitan area populated by about 5,294,000 people. The population of the town is 61,842 (2021). As of 1999, it is part of Silesian Voivodeship, previously Katowice Voivodeship. The Historic Silver Mine of Tarnowskie Góry, a UNESCO World Heritage Site is located in the town. Names and etymology The name of Tarnowskie Góry is derived from Tarnowice, name of a local village and word góry which in Old Polish meant "mines". In a Prussian document from 1750 (published in the Polish language in Berlin by Frederick the Great [1712–1786]), the town is mentioned, among other Silesian towns, as "Tarnowskie Góry". The German name Tarnowitz was introduced in the late 18th century, after the Third Silesian War (between Austria and Prussia). As a result of Germanization of the area, all Polish names received German equivalents (usually closely resembling the original, like Kattowitz for Katowice). History Early The earliest settlements around Tarnowskie Góry date back to over 20 thousand years BC. Traces of the Upper Paleolithic inhabitants were found in village of Rybna, within present-day town borders. During the Bronze Age people lived along the banks of river Stoła (Polish) or Stola, (name derived from German Stollenwasser Adit water earlier this river was known as "Rybna" (derived from a Polish word for "fish"), their tools, jewelry and weapons were excavated here, dating from between the 8th and 5th centuries BC. Silver, lead and zinc were bountiful in these grounds and the evidence of an early metal production dates back to at least 3rd century AD. Medieval and Renaissance In the Middle Ages the region was inhabited by Lechitic Polish tribes, and in the 10th century it became part of the emerging Polish state under its first ruler Mieszko I of Poland. Repty Śląskie, a village, now within Tarnowskie Góry's town limits, was mentioned in an official papal document dating from September 12, 1201. The present-day district of Stare Tarnowice was the location of a motte-and-bailey castle from the 14th century, which is now an archaeological site. According to legend, the source of silver ore (solely responsible for the town's existence) was first discovered in 1490, when local peasant-farmer named Rybka found a strange, heavy, metallic stone while plowing the