In both Poland and other Central and Eastern European countries, interpreting and the training of interpreters has been influenced by a number of factors (historical, political, economic, educational and technological). The author discusses language-training in Poland, as regards Polish and as regards foreign language training. It is typical in Poland that native-language training focuses primarily on literature-related issues. Another characteristic feature of the Polish educational system is that very often no distinction is made between translation and interpretation. The author also takes a look at the influence of language-training programs on the training of professional translators and interpreters and the interpreting market in Poland.