Nauka polskiego jest ważna.

to be

Breakdown of Nauka polskiego jest ważna.

• ważny: important
• polski: Polish
• nauka: the learning

Questions & Answers about Nauka polskiego jest ważna.

What exactly does nauka mean here? Is it “learning” or “science”?

Nauka is a noun that has two main meanings in Polish:

1. learning / study – the process or activity of studying something
   
   • Nauka polskiego = the learning/study of Polish
2. science – as a field of knowledge
   
   • nauki ścisłe = the sciences (STEM fields)

In Nauka polskiego jest ważna, it clearly means “learning / studying Polish”, not “Polish science”. Context normally makes the meaning obvious.

Why is it polskiego and not polski?

This is because of case.

• The base form (dictionary form) is polski (“Polish”).
• After nauka (“learning/study”), Polish uses the genitive case:
  
  • nauka czego? (“learning of what?”) → polskiego

So:

• polski = nominative (basic form)
• polskiego = genitive singular (masculine / neuter)

Literally, the structure is like “learning of (the) Polish (language)”, so the language word goes into genitive.

Why is polskiego not capitalized, even though “Polish” is in English?