The village has a population of 4,098, and it belongs to Lesser Poland.
Together with Żywiec, for hundreds of centuries it was administratively tied
with the city of Kraków. Jeleśnia is located on two rivers, the Sopotnia and
the Koszarawa, among the mountains and hills of the Beskidy. The area of the
gmina is 13,845 hectares, and it is largely covered by forests, with several
protected areas, such as the one around Pilsko.
First written mentions of Jeleśnia come
from the 16th century. At that time, the area of the village was sparsely
populated, and local noblemen would
