Is North Rhineland Westphalia part of ancient Silesia?

Question

Is North Rhineland Westphalia part of ancient Silesia?

Answer 1

Not exactly. But with the complicated history of the early modern fragmented states within Germany, the area the is today called "Nordrhein-Westfalen" was under Prussian rule (with the capital Berlin/Potsdam), as was Silesia (and other areas). Both Nordrhein-Westfalen and Silesia were special areas, because they were almost 100% Catholic, while an important part of Prussian national identity consisted of the Protestant religion of the central core state and the ruling dynasty - Catholics were viewed with suspicion. So poor people from Silesia who emigrated for economic reasons were more comfortable with moving to Nordrhein-Westfalen, than with moving to Protestant Berlin, for example. And as many workers were needed for the new coal mining industry of Nordrhein-Westfalen, and some people from Silesia had even some experience in that field, many Poles from Silesia moved to Nordrhein-Westfalen. You can still see a huge amount of surnames of Polish origin in this region of Germany today; some linguistis even argue whether the local accent has been influenced by Poles.

Answer 2

of course not

North-Rhine Westphalia is in Western Germany.

Silesia is mostly in Poland