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Polish names have two main elements: the
given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...
, and the
surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...
. The usage of
personal name A personal name, full name or prosoponym (from Ancient Greek ''prósōpon'' – person, and ''onoma'' –name) is the set of names by which an individual person or animal is known. When taken together as a word-group, they all relate to that on ...
s in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
is generally governed by civil law, church law, personal taste and family custom. The law requires a given name to indicate the person's gender. Almost all Polish female names end in the vowel ''-a'', and most male names end in a consonant or a vowel other than ''a''. There are, however, a few male names that end in ''a'', which are often old and uncommon, such as Barnaba, Bonawentura, Jarema, Kosma, Kuba (formerly only a diminutive of Jakub, nowadays also a given name on its own) and Saba.
Maria Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...
is a female name that can be used also as a second name for males. Since the
High Middle Ages The High Middle Ages, or High Medieval Period, was the periodization, period of European history between and ; it was preceded by the Early Middle Ages and followed by the Late Middle Ages, which ended according to historiographical convention ...
, Polish-sounding surnames ending with the masculine ''-ski''
suffix In linguistics, a suffix is an affix which is placed after the stem of a word. Common examples are case endings, which indicate the grammatical case of nouns and adjectives, and verb endings, which form the conjugation of verbs. Suffixes can ca ...
, including ''-cki'' and ''-dzki'', and the corresponding feminine suffix ''-ska/-cka/-dzka'' were associated with the
nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...
(Polish ''
szlachta The ''szlachta'' (; ; ) were the nobility, noble estate of the realm in the Kingdom of Poland, the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Depending on the definition, they were either a warrior "caste" or a social ...
''), which alone, in the early years, had such suffix distinctions. Zenon Klemensiewicz, ''Historia języka polskiego'' (History of Polish), PWN, Warsaw 1985, . (in Polish) They are widely popular today. Minor regional spelling differences also exist depending on whether the surname originated in
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...
,
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...
or Slovak (''-sky/-ský'').


Given names

A child in Poland is usually given one or two names; Polish registry offices do not register more than two. Among Catholics, who form the vast majority of the population, it is customary to adopt the name of a saint as an informal, third given name at
confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant (religion), covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on o ...
, however, this does not have any legal effect. (This is reminiscent of the pre-Christian rite of the "first haircut" (), which also involved giving the child a new name.) In the past, there was no restrictions on the number of the given names. In formal situations, multiple given names were presented in the following style: "Zygmunt, Józef, Erazm 3-ga imion Kaczkowski, urodził sie dnia 2 maja 1825 roku..." (Zygmunt, Józef, Erazm of three names Kaczkowski, was born on the day of the 2nd of May, in the year of 1825...) In the case of two first names the qualifier "of two names" (dwojga imion) was used; four names: "of 4 names" (4-ga imion), etc. Parents normally choose from a long list of traditional names, which includes: *
Christian name A Christian name, sometimes referred to as a baptismal name, is a religious personal name given on the occasion of a Christian baptism, though now most often given by parents at birth. In English-speaking cultures, a person's Christian name ...
s, i.e., Biblical names and
saint's name A saint's name, which is usually also a biblical name, is the name of a saint given to individuals at their baptism or confirmation within the Catholic Church, as well as in certain parts of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Chur ...
s; *
Slavic names Given names originating from the Slavic languages are most common in Slavic peoples, Slavic countries. The main types of Slavic names: * Two-base names, often ending in mir/měr (''Ostromir/měr'', ''Tihomir/měr'', ''Niemir, Němir/měr''), * ...
of pre-Christian origin. The names of Slavic saints, such as
Wojciech Wojciech () is a Polish name, equivalent to Czech Vojtěch , Slovak Vojtech, and German Woitke. The name is formed from two Slavic roots: * ''wój'' (Slavic: ''voj''), a root pertaining to war. It also forms words like ''wojownik'' ("warrior" ...
( St Adalbert), Stanisław ( St Stanislaus), or
Kazimierz Kazimierz (; ; ) is a historical district of Kraków and Kraków Old Town, Poland. From its inception in the 14th century to the early 19th century, Kazimierz was an independent city, a royal city of the Crown of the Polish Kingdom, located sou ...
( St Casimir), belong to both of these groups. Slavic names used by historical Polish monarchs, e.g. Bolesław, Lech,
Mieszko Mieszko is a Slavic given name of uncertain origin. Onomastics There are three major theories concerning the origin and meaning of the name of Duke Mieszko I of Poland. The most popular theory, proposed by Jan Długosz, explains that Mieszko is a ...
, Władysław, are common as well. Additionally, a few names of
Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...
n origin, such as Olgierd (
Algirdas Algirdas (; , ;  – May 1377) was List of Lithuanian monarchs, Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1345 to 1377. With the help of his brother Kęstutis (who defended the western border of the Duchy) he created an empire stretching from the pre ...
), Witold (
Vytautas Vytautas the Great (; 27 October 1430) was a ruler of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. He was also the prince of Grodno (1370–1382), prince of Lutsk (1387–1389), and the postulated king of the Hussites. In modern Lithuania, Vytautas is revere ...
) or
Danuta Danuta is a Polish feminine given name. Its diminutive is Danusia. Notable people named Danuta include: *Danuta Bartoszek (born 1961), long-distance runner for Canada * Danuta Bułkowska (born 1959), former Polish champion in high jumping * Danut ...
, are quite popular in Poland. Traditionally, the names are given at a child's
baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...
. Non-Christian, but traditional, Slavic names are usually accepted, but the priest may encourage parents to pick at least one Christian name. In the past, two Christian names were given to a child so that they had two
patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...
s instead of just one. At
confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant (religion), covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on o ...
, people usually adopt yet another (second or third) Christian name, however, it is never used outside church documents. In Eastern Poland, as in many other Catholic countries, people celebrate name days () on the day of their patron saint. On the other hand, in Western Poland,
birthday A birthday is the anniversary of the birth of a person or figuratively of an institution. Birthdays of people are celebrated in numerous cultures, often with birthday gifts, birthday cards, a birthday party, or a rite of passage. Many religion ...
s are more popular. Today, in Eastern Poland, birthdays remain relatively intimate celebrations, as often only relatives and close friends know a person's date of birth. Name days, on the other hand, are often celebrated together with co-workers and other less-intimate friends. Information about whose name is associated with a given day can be found in most Polish calendars and on the Internet. The choice of a given name is largely influenced by fashion. Many parents name their child after a national hero or heroine, or a character from a book, film, or TV show. In spite of this, a great number of popular names have been in use since the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
.
Diminutive A diminutive is a word obtained by modifying a root word to convey a slighter degree of its root meaning, either to convey the smallness of the object or quality named, or to convey a sense of intimacy or endearment, and sometimes to belittle s ...
s are popular in everyday usage and are by no means reserved for children. The Polish language allows for a great deal of creativity in this field. Most diminutives are formed by adding a suffix. For male names it may be ''-ek'' or the more affectionate ''-uś''; for female names it may be ''-ka'', or ''-nia'' / ''-dzia'' / ''-sia'' / ''cia'' respectively. For example,
Maria Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial * 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 * Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...
(a name which was once reserved to refer to the
Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...
; now the archaic form "Maryja" is used for this), has diminutives Marysia, Maryśka, Marysieńka, Mania, Mańka, Maniusia, etc. Alternatively,
augmentative An augmentative (abbreviated ) is a morphological form of a word which expresses greater intensity, often in size but also in other attributes. It is the opposite of a diminutive. Overaugmenting something often makes it grotesque and so in so ...
forms (Polish: ''zgrubienie'') may be colloquially used, often with scornful or disdainful intention. For example, Maria may be called Marycha or Marychna. As in many other cultures, a person may informally use a
nickname A nickname, in some circumstances also known as a sobriquet, or informally a "moniker", is an informal substitute for the proper name of a person, place, or thing, used to express affection, playfulness, contempt, or a particular character trait ...
(''pseudonim, ksywa'') or instead of a given name. In 2009, the most popular female names in Poland were Anna, Maria and Katarzyna (Katherine). The most popular male names were Piotr (Peter), Krzysztof (Christopher) and Andrzej (Andrew).


Surnames

Surnames, like those in most of Europe, are hereditary and generally
patrilineal Patrilineality, also known as the male line, the spear side or agnatic kinship, is a common kinship system in which an individual's family membership derives from and is recorded through their father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritanc ...
, being passed from the father to his children. A Polish marriage certificate lists three fields, the surnames for the husband, wife, and children. The partners may choose to retain their surnames, or both adopt the surname of either partner, or a combination of both; the children must receive either the joint surname or the surname of one of the partners. However, a married woman usually adopts her husband's name, and the children usually bear the surname of the father. The wife may keep her
maiden name When a person (traditionally the wife in many cultures) assumes the family name of their spouse, in some countries and cultures that name replaces the person's previous surname, which in the case of the wife is called the maiden name ("birth name" ...
(''nazwisko panieńskie'') or add her husband's surname to hers, thus creating a
double-barrelled name A double-barrelled name is a type of compound surname, typically featuring two words (occasionally more), often joined by a hyphen. Notable people with double-barrelled names include Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Beyonc ...
(''nazwisko złożone''). However, if she already has a double-barrelled name, she must leave one of the parts out—it is illegal to use a triple- or more-barrelled name. An exception is when one of the surnames is composed of a surname proper plus
agnomen An ''agnomen'' (; : ''agnomina''), in the Roman naming convention, was a nickname, just as the ''cognomen'' had been initially. However, the ''cognomina'' eventually became family names, and so ''agnomina'' were needed to distinguish between sim ...
(''przydomek''), e.g.,
Maria Gąsienica Daniel-Szatkowska Maria Gąsienica Daniel-Szatkowska (5 February 1936 – 1 January 2016) was a Polish alpine skier. She competed at the 1956 Winter Olympics and the 1964 Winter Olympics. She was the sister of fellow Olympians Helena Gąsienica Daniel, Andrz ...
, where "
Gąsienica Gąsienica is a Polish-language surname common among the Gorals, Goral population of Zakopane region literally meaning "caterpillar". The commonality of this surname is reflected in the following question-answer joke: "Why does cabbage not grow i ...
Daniel" is her husband's surname. It is also possible, though rare, for the husband to adopt his wife's surname or to add his wife's surname to his family name (an example is businessman
Zygmunt Solorz-Żak Zygmunt Solorz (; born Zygmunt Józef Krok, August 4, 1956 in Radom) is a Polish businessman and a media tycoon known for launching Polsat, one of the largest private television channels in the country. As of 2024, he is the fifth richest perso ...
, who did both, taking his wife's name on his first marriage, and later appending his second wife's name to it). Polish triple-barreled surnames are known to exist; an example is the one borne by , a university professor and writer, living in Canada. The most widespread Polish surnames are Nowak,
Kowalski Kowalski (; feminine: Kowalska, plural: Kowalscy) is the second most common surname in Poland (140,471 people in 2009). ''Kowalski'' surname is derived from the word ''kowal'', meaning " lackmith". " Jan Kowalski" is used as a placeholder name ...
, Wiśniewski and
Wójcik Wójcik, Wojczik, Wojczyk, Wojszyk (also variants of phonetic spelling: Woicik, Woycik, Woyczik, Woytik, etc.) is one of the oldest Polish name, Polish surnames, and the fourth List of most common surnames in Europe, most common in Poland (100,064 i ...
.


Suffix -ski/-ska

''-ski'' (also ''-sky'' in other regions) is an adjective-forming suffix, from the
Proto-Slavic Proto-Slavic (abbreviated PSl., PS.; also called Common Slavic or Common Slavonic) is the unattested, reconstructed proto-language of all Slavic languages. It represents Slavic speech approximately from the 2nd millennium BC through the 6th ...
" ьskъ", which defined affiliation to something. It was also used with names of territories and settlements to denote possession or place of origin.Stanisław Rospond, ''Gramatyka historyczna języka polskiego z ćwiczeniami'' (Polish historical grammar..), Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN, Warsaw 2009, p. 114, . (in Polish) The suffix, ''-ski'' (feminine: ''-ska''), has been restricted to the nobility in eastern Europe and some parts of central Europe since the High Middle Ages. It was the equivalent to
nobiliary particle A nobiliary particle is a type of onomastic particle used in a surname or family name in many Western cultures to signal the nobility of a family. The particle used varies depending on the country, language and period of time. In some languages, it ...
s appearing in the names of nobility, such as in the Germanic ''
von The term () is used in German surnames either as a nobiliary particle indicating a noble patrilineality, or as a simple preposition used by commoners that means or . Nobility directories like the often abbreviate the noble term to ''v.'' ...
'' or '' zu''. Almost all surnames borne by the nobility with the ''-ski'' (or ''-sky'') suffix are preceded by a place name (toponymic) or other territorial designation derived from their main court, holdings, castle, manor or estate. For example, the Polish nobleman Jan of Tarnów whose name in Polish is "Jan z Tarnowa" was equally known by the name "Jan Tarnowski"; this highlighted his nobility unlike the preposition of "z" alone which could be construed as a regular prepositional particle. In the 19th century, a wave of seemingly noble sounding surnames began to appear among the common population, where a significant number of the
bourgeoisie The bourgeoisie ( , ) are a class of business owners, merchants and wealthy people, in general, which emerged in the Late Middle Ages, originally as a "middle class" between the peasantry and aristocracy. They are traditionally contrasted wi ...
class, and even the
peasantry A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasan ...
, began to adopt or bear the noble ''-ski'' suffix. The ''-ski'' suffix was thus attached to surnames derived from a person's occupation, characteristics,
patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...
surnames, or
toponymic surname A toponymic surname or habitational surname or byname is a surname or byname derived from a place name,
s (from a person's place of residence, birth or family origin). This caused a blur between the ''-ski'' bearing territorial toponymic surnames once a characteristic only borne by the nobility. As such, and contrary to a popular modern-day misconception, the fact of a person simply bearing the ''-ski'' suffix in their family surname or merely sharing the same toponymic surname as members of Poland's nobility, does not in itself denote that person too is a member of the nobility, of noble origin, or indeed connected to that particular family. When referring to two or more members of the same family and surname, the suffix ''-ski'' (or ''-cki'', ''-dzki'') is replaced with the plural ''-skich'', ''-scy'', ''-ccy'', or ''-dzcy'' (plural masculine or both masculine and feminine) as well as ''-skie'', ''-ckie'' or ''-dzkie'' (plural feminine). The ''-ski'' ending and similar adjectival endings (''-cki'', ''-dzki'', ''-ny'', ''-ty'') are the only ones in Polish that have feminine forms, where women have the feminine version ending in ''-ska'' (''-cka'', ''-dzka'', ''-na'', ''-ta'') instead. Historically, female versions of surnames were more complex, often formed by adding the suffix ''-owa'' for married women and ''-ówna'' or ''-wianka'' for unmarried women. In most cases, this practice is now considered archaic or rustic. Other common surname suffixes are -czyk, -czek, -czak, -czuk, and -wicz.


History, heraldry, and clan names

Family names first appeared in Poland around the 13th century and were only used by the upper
social class A social class or social stratum is a grouping of people into a set of Dominance hierarchy, hierarchical social categories, the most common being the working class and the Bourgeoisie, capitalist class. Membership of a social class can for exam ...
es of society. Over time the Polish nobility became grouped into heraldic clans (Polish ''ród herbowy'') whose names survived in their shared
coats of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic ac ...
. Members of one clan could split into separate families with different surnames, usually derived from the name of their holdings or estates. Sometimes the family name and the clan name (associated with the arms) would be used together and form a double-barrelled name. The opposite process happened as well: different families may have joined a heraldic clans by the means of
heraldic adoption Heraldic adoption () was in the Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569), Kingdom of Poland a legal form of ennoblement and adoption into an existing heraldic clan along with assuming the coat of arms of that clan. It took place as a result of an act issue ...
. To explain the formation of a particular Polish nobleman's name, e.g. Jakub Dąbrowski,
Radwan coat of arms Radwan () is a Polish knights' clan (''ród'') and a Polish coat of arms used by the noble families within the clan (''szlachta''). Blazon Gules: a Gonfanon or surmounted by a Maltese Cross of the last. Crest – on a crowned helmet – thre ...
, the process might be the following. In Polish ''dąb'' means "oak",William F. Hoffman, "Polish Surnames: Origins and Meanings" (Chicago, Cook county, ILLINOIS, U.S.A.
POLISH GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA
1993)
''dąbrowa'' means "oak forest" and ''dąbrówka'' means "oak grove". Then, by analogy with German surnames associated with noble provenance using
von The term () is used in German surnames either as a nobiliary particle indicating a noble patrilineality, or as a simple preposition used by commoners that means or . Nobility directories like the often abbreviate the noble term to ''v.'' ...
, the equivalent Polish preposition is '' z'', which means "from", followed by the name of the patrimony or estate. In Polish the expressions, ''z Dąbrówki'' and ''Dąbrowski'' mean the same thing: hailing "from Dąbrówka". More precisely, ''z Dąbrówki'' actually means owner of the estate, ''Dąbrówka'', but not necessarily originating from there. Thus ''Jakub z Dąbrówki herbu Radwan'' translates as "Jacob from Dąbrówka, with the Radwan coat of arms". But with the later addition of his
cognomen A ''cognomen'' (; : ''cognomina''; from ''co-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditar ...
or nickname, ''Żądło'', he would become known as, ''Jakub z Dąbrówki, Żądło, herbu Radwan'' - or he could be called just plain, ''Jakub Żądło''. The most striking concept of the Polish heraldic system is that a coat of arms may originate from a single family, but come to be carried by several non-related families of the Polish ''szlachta'' (nobility). Unrelated families who have joined the nobility by
heraldic adoption Heraldic adoption () was in the Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569), Kingdom of Poland a legal form of ennoblement and adoption into an existing heraldic clan along with assuming the coat of arms of that clan. It took place as a result of an act issue ...
can share the same coat of arms, even though that coat of arms bears the surname of the family who created it. Thus the total number of coats of arms in this system was relatively low — about 200 in the late Middle Ages. One side-effect of this unique arrangement was that it became customary to refer to noblemen by both their family name and their coat of arms/clan name. For example:
Jan Zamoyski Jan Sariusz Zamoyski (; 19 March 1542 – 3 June 1605) was a Polish nobleman, magnate, statesman and the 1st '' ordynat'' of Zamość. He served as the Royal Secretary from 1565, Deputy Chancellor from 1576, Grand Chancellor of the Crown f ...
''herbu''
Jelita Jelita is a Polish coat of arms. It was used by several szlachta families. History One of the oldest Polish coats of arms. First depicted on the seal of Tomisław z Mokrska from 1316. Additionally, the Polish medieval chronicler, diplomat and ...
means ''Jan Zamoyski of the clan Jelita''. From the 15th to the 17th century, the formula seems to copy the ancient
Roman naming convention Over the course of some fourteen centuries, the Romans and other peoples of Italy employed a system of nomenclature that differed from that used by other cultures of Europe and the Mediterranean Sea, consisting of a combination of personal and ...
with the classic ''tria nomina'' used by the Patricians: praenomen (or given name), nomen gentile (or
gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; : gentes ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same ''nomen gentilicium'' and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens, sometimes identified by a distinct cognomen, was cal ...
/Clan name) and
cognomen A ''cognomen'' (; : ''cognomina''; from ''co-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditar ...
(surname), following the Renaissance fashion. Thus, ''Jan Jelita Zamoyski'', forming a double-barrelled name (nazwisko złożone). Later, the double-barrelled name would be joined with a hyphen: ''Jan Jelita-Zamoyski''.


Example

Gradually the use of family names spread to other social groups: the townsfolk (''burghers'') by the end of the 17th century, then the peasantry, and finally the
Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
s. The process ended only in the mid-19th century. After the First and Second World Wars some resistance fighters added their wartime ''noms de guerre'' to their original family names. This was yet another reason for creating double-barrelled names. Examples include
Edward Rydz-Śmigły Marshal Edward Śmigły-Rydz also called Edward Rydz-Śmigły, (11 March 1886 – 2 December 1941) was a Polish people, Polish politician, statesman, Marshal of Poland and Commander-in-Chief of Poland's armed forces, as well as a painter and ...
, Jan Nowak-Jeziorański, and
Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski Generał Tadeusz Komorowski (1 June 1895 – 24 August 1966), better known by the name Bór-Komorowski (after one of his wartime code names: ''Bór'' – "The Forest") was a Polish military leader. He was appointed commander-in-chief a day be ...
. Some artists, such as
Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński Tadeusz Kamil Marcjan Żeleński (21 December 1874 – 4 July 1941), better known by his pen name Tadeusz Boy-Żeleński or simply as Boy, was a Polish stage writer, poet, critic and, above all, the translator of over 100 French literature , Fre ...
, also added their ''noms de plume'' to their surnames.


Change of name

A Polish citizen may apply to the registry office (''Urząd Stanu Cywilnego'') with a request for a change of name or surname alongside the payment of a small administrative fee. If the change of surname is not linked to marriage, the family surname is also changed in the successful applicant's documents. A note is added to the applicant's birth certificate in the system, informing of the subsequent change of name. The request is not always successful. Certain types of request are certain to be refused: for example, the surname of a famous historical figure (where the applicant cannot demonstrate a close family connection to the surname), or where there is concern that the applicant is applying with the aim of evading criminal or civil responsibility. Every application must give a motivation for the change of name; for example, the existing name being offensive or funny, the desire to revert to a previous name, a close attachment to family members (e.g. parent, step-parent) bearing a different surname, or being commonly known in unofficial contexts by a different name.


In diasporas

When Polish individuals emigrate to countries with different languages and cultures, the often-difficult spelling and pronunciation of Polish names commonly cause them to be misspelled, changed, shortened, or
calque In linguistics, a calque () or loan translation is a word or phrase borrowed from another language by literal word-for-word or root-for-root translation. When used as a verb, "to calque" means to borrow a word or phrase from another language ...
d. For example, in English, ''w'' is often changed to ''v'' and ''sz'' to ''sh''. Similar changes occur in French. Changes in
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
can be even more extreme; a ''Spiczyński'' may become simply ''Spika'', for example, where a more rigorous transcription would produce ''de Spichiñsqui''. Another typical change is the loss of the gender distinction in adjectival surnames, especially visible for those ending in ''-ski'' (fem.: ''-ska''), ''-cki'' (fem.: ''-cka'') and ''-dzki'' (fem.: ''-dzka''). Western languages do not distinguish between male and female surnames, even if the language has gender-specific adjectives (like German, French or Spanish). As the surname is, in most cases, inherited from the father (or accepted from the husband), the Western registries of birth and marriage ascribe the masculine form (the one ending in ''-i'') to the female members of the family. Slavic countries, in contrast, would use the feminine form of the surname (the one ending in ''-a''). The form ''Anna Kowalski'' would never be met within Poland, whereas it is commonly found in the US, Germany and Argentina. However, as an exception, feminine endings like ''-ska'' apply even to some women from non-Slavic countries, not just outside Poland or English-speaking ones, who have Polish parentage or are half-Polish, namely Britain's
Ella Balinska Ella Balinska (born 4 October 1996) is an English actress who starred in the action-comedy film ''Charlie's Angels'' (2019) and the Netflix original series ''Resident Evil'' (2022). Early life and education Balinska was born on 4 October 1996 ...
, whose father has the masculine Balinski(-Jundzill), and Australians
Mia Wasikowska Mia Wasikowska ( ; born 25 October 1989) is an Australian actress. She made her screen debut on the Australian television drama '' All Saints'' in 2004, followed by her feature film debut in '' Suburban Mayhem'' (2006). She first became known t ...
and her sister, Jess, who have the same ending as their mother's. Another modification is changing the final vowel ''-i'' of the endings ''-ski'', ''-cki'' and ''-dzki'' into ''-y''. Those endings are common in Czech, Slovak and Ukrainian, as well as in English, but they never occur in Polish. When transliterated into languages that use the
Cyrillic The Cyrillic script ( ) is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic, Turkic, Mongolic, Uralic, Caucasian and Iranic-speaking countries in Southeastern Europe, Ea ...
alphabet, such as Russian or Ukrainian, alterations are usually much less drastic, as the languages involved are Slavic and less difficult for the natives, and feminine forms are preserved although the ''-ski/-ska'' ending is altered slightly to the corresponding ending in Russian (-ский/-ская) or Ukrainian (-ський/-ська). Similar alterations occur to Polish names in Belarus, Lithuania and Latvia.


Classification

Based on grammatical features, Polish surnames may be divided into: * ''nominal'', derived from and declined as a
noun In grammar, a noun is a word that represents a concrete or abstract thing, like living creatures, places, actions, qualities, states of existence, and ideas. A noun may serve as an Object (grammar), object or Subject (grammar), subject within a p ...
* ''adjectival'', derived from and declined as an
adjective An adjective (abbreviations, abbreviated ) is a word that describes or defines a noun or noun phrase. Its semantic role is to change information given by the noun. Traditionally, adjectives are considered one of the main part of speech, parts of ...
. Adjectival names very often end in the suffixes, ''-ski'', ''-cki'' and ''-dzki'' (feminine ''-ska'', ''-cka'' and ''-dzka''), and are considered to be either typically Polish or typical for the Polish nobility. In the case of '-ski', it holds true if the surname contains the name of a city, town, village or other geographical location. Based on origin, Polish family names may be generally divided into three groups: cognominal, toponymic and patronymic.


Cognominal

A Polish cognominal surname (''nazwisko przezwiskowe'') derives from a person's nickname, usually based on his profession, occupation, physical description, character trait, etc. The occupational surnames often would come from the Medieval Polish serf-villages, where a whole village serving the prince, township or lord, or a few streets in a town block would be inhabited by the same kind of specialized workers, often a
guild A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular territory. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradespeople belonging to a professional association. They so ...
of professionals. These areas would often be separate from the rest of the town due to the danger of fire (bell-makers and smiths), area ownership by the guild, or due to unpleasant pollution (tanners, wool-workers). Such serf areas would bear the plural form of the profession name, such as Piekary (bakers), Garbary (tanners), Winiary (winemakers). Furthermore, the suffix -czyk, -yk, -ek was used to describe a profession as a diminutive, often, but not always, indicating a trainee - the learning assistant before achieving a full job title or seniority. Examples of cognominal surnames: *
Kowal Kowal may refer to: * Kowal (surname), a surname *Kowal (town) Kowal is a town in Włocławek County, Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship, Poland, with 3,478 inhabitants (2004). History Kowal was the birthplace of Casimir III the Great, the last P ...
,
Kowalski Kowalski (; feminine: Kowalska, plural: Kowalscy) is the second most common surname in Poland (140,471 people in 2009). ''Kowalski'' surname is derived from the word ''kowal'', meaning " lackmith". " Jan Kowalski" is used as a placeholder name ...
,
Kowalczyk Kowalczyk is the fifth most common surname in Poland (98,739 people in 2009). Ministry of Interior (Poland). Statystyka najpopularniejszych nazwisk występujących w Polsce in 2009'' (The most popular surnames in Poland in 2009). The name comes ...
, Kowalczuk, Kowalewski, Kowalewicz – from ''kowal'' (blacksmith). * Młynarz,
Młynarski Młynarski, feminine: Młynarska is a Polish surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Danuta Hübner née Młynarska (born 1948), Polish politician * Emil Młynarski (1870–1935), Polish conductor * Feliks Młynarski (1884–1972), Poli ...
,
Młynarczyk Młynarczyk is a Polish surname meaning a "small miller". Notable people with the surname include: * Henryk Młynarczyk (born 1955), Polish politician * Józef Młynarczyk (born 1953), Polish footballer {{Surname Polish-language surnames Occupa ...
– from ''młynarz'' (miller). * Nowak, Nowakowski,
Nowicki Nowicki ( ; feminine: Nowicka; plural: Nowiccy) is a Polish surname, Polish and Jewish surname, Jewish surname. It comes from place names such as Nowice (disambiguation), Nowice, which are derived from the Polish adjective wikt:nowy, nowy ("new"). ...
– from ''nowy'' (the new one). (Nowak is the most popular Polish surname. "Nowak."
MoiKrewni.pl
) *
Lis LIS or LiS may refer to: Computing * LIS (programming language) * Lis (linear algebra library), library of iterative solvers for linear systems * Laboratory information system, databases oriented towards medical laboratories * Land information sys ...
, Lisiewicz, Lisowski – from ''lis'' (fox). *
Kołodziej Kołodziej (Polish pronunciation: ) is a Polish surname meaning "wheelwright". Notable people with the surname include: * Dariusz Kołodziej (born 1982), Polish footballer * Janusz Kołodziej (politician), Janusz A. Kołodziej (born 1959), Polish p ...
,
Kołodziejski Kołodziejski (feminine: Kołodziejska; plural: Kołodziejscy) is a Polish-language occupational surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's fa ...
,
Kołodziejczak Kołodziejczak or Kolodziejczak (Polish pronunciation: ) is an occupational surname derived from the occupation ''kołodziej'', or wheelwright. Notable people with this surname include: * Timothée Kolodziejczak Timothée Christian Kolodziejczak ...
,
Kołodziejczyk Kołodziejczyk (Polish pronunciation: ) is a Polish-language occupational surname derived from the occupation of ''kołodziej'' ("wheelwright"). Notable people with this surname include: *Cody Kolodziejzyk (born 1990), Canadian Internet personality ...
– from ''kołodziej'' (wheelwright). * Kuchar, Kucharski, Kucharczyk – from ''kucharz'' (cook) * Piekarski, Piekara, Piekarczyk – from ''piekarz'' (baker) * Bednarski, Bednarek – from ''bednarz'' (barrel maker), or Garcarek – from ''garncarz'' (potter) * Krawczyk – from ''krawiec'' (tailor), Szewczyk – from ''szewc'' (shoemaker), Tokarczyk – from ''tokarz'' (wood-turner)


Toponymic

Toponymic surname A toponymic surname or habitational surname or byname is a surname or byname derived from a place name,
s (''nazwisko odmiejscowe'') usually derive from the name of a village or town, or the name of a topographic feature. These names are almost always of the adjectival form. Originally they referred to the village owner (lord). In the 19th century, however, surnames were often taken from the name of a person's town. Examples of
toponymic surname A toponymic surname or habitational surname or byname is a surname or byname derived from a place name,
s: * Brodowski – of Brodowo * Tarnowski – of
Tarnów Tarnów () is a city in southeastern Poland with 105,922 inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of 269,000 inhabitants. The city is situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship. It is a major rail junction, located on the strategic east– ...
* Wrzesiński – of
Września Września () is a town in west-central Poland near Poznań, with 28,600 inhabitants (1995). It is situated in the Września County, Greater Poland Voivodeship, on the Wrześnica River. History Września was first mentioned in 1256 in a docume ...
* Krakowski – of
Kraków , officially the Royal Capital City of Kraków, is the List of cities and towns in Poland, second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city has a population of 804,237 ...
* Mazur, Mazurski – of
Masuria Masuria ( ; ; ) is an ethnographic and geographic region in northern and northeastern Poland, known for its 2,000 lakes. Masuria occupies much of the Masurian Lake District. Administratively, it is part of the Warmian–Masurian Voivodeship (ad ...


Patronymic

A
patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...
surname (''nazwisko odimienne'') derives from the given name of a person, and usually ends in a suffix suggesting a family relation. Examples of
patronymic A patronymic, or patronym, is a component of a personal name based on the given name of one's father, grandfather (more specifically an avonymic), or an earlier male ancestor. It is the male equivalent of a matronymic. Patronymics are used, b ...
surnames: *
Adamczyk Adamczyk ( ) is a Polish surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Adam Adamczyk (born 1950), Polish judoka * Andrzej Adamczyk (born 1959), Polish politician * Bogdan Adamczyk (born 1935), Polish football player * Darius Adamczyk (bor ...
– derived from Adam * Łukaszewski – derived from Łukasz (Luke).


Other

* There is a class of surnames derived from past tense participles. These names usually have the formally feminine (-ła) or neuter (-ło) ending of the (ancient, now obsolete) gender-neutral active past participle, meaning "the one who has ... ome, applied, accomplished, settled, searched, found, etc..
Domagała Domagała (Polish pronunciation: ) is a surname of Polish language origin, derived from the verb ''domagać'' (to demand), "the one who demands". Notable people with this surname include: * Cezary Domagała (born 1961), Polish actor * Damian Doma ...
,
Przybyła Przybyła ( ) is a surname of Polish language Polish (, , or simply , ) is a West Slavic languages, West Slavic language of the Lechitic languages, Lechitic subgroup, within the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family, and is w ...
,
Napierała Napierała is a surname of Polish language Polish (, , or simply , ) is a West Slavic languages, West Slavic language of the Lechitic languages, Lechitic subgroup, within the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family, and is writ ...
, Dopierała,
Szukała Szukała is a surname of Polish language Polish (, , or simply , ) is a West Slavic languages, West Slavic language of the Lechitic languages, Lechitic subgroup, within the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family, and is written ...
or
Podsiadło Podsiadło is a Polish surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Dawid Podsiadło (born 1993), Polish singer-songwriter * Jacek Podsiadło Jacek Podsiadło (born 1964 in Szewna) is a Polish poet, writer, translator and essayist. Sometime ...
,
Wcisło Wcisło is a Polish surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Emilia Wcisło (born 1942), Polish politician * Marta Wcisło Marta Anna Wcisło (born 26 February 1969) is a Polish educator, politician and member of the Civic Platform. ...
, Wlazło, and Przybyło are examples of these names. A smaller number of surnames use the masculine ending, for example,
Musiał Musiał or Musial (Polish pronunciation: , plural: Musiałowie) is a Polish language, Polish surname meaning "he had to" (Musiał) or "she had to" (Musiała), from the past tense of the Polish word .''Dictionary of American Family Names''"Musial Fa ...
or Niechciał. * Another class of surnames uses the Latin disjunct ''
vel Vel () is a divine spear associated with Murugan, the Tamil Hindu god of war. Significance According to Shaiva tradition, the goddess Parvati presented the Vel to her son Kartikeya(also known as Murugan), as an embodiment of her shakti, in ...
'' ("or"). This arises when an ancestor was known by a given family name and under an alias. A case in point was when a soldier took part in an
uprising Rebellion is an uprising that resists and is organized against one's government. A rebel is a person who engages in a rebellion. A rebel group is a consciously coordinated group that seeks to gain political control over an entire state or a ...
and then pursued by the authorities, assumed another name. Subsequently, rather than lose one of his identities, he merged them using the disjunct, ''vel'' to indicate he was known under one or other name. For example, . The family then kept the form.


Feminine forms

Adjectival surnames, like all Polish adjectives, have masculine and feminine forms. If a masculine surname ends in ''-i'' or ''-y''; its feminine equivalent ends in ''-a''. The feminine form is not just a common usage form, it is also the form of the surname that appears in all official records, such as birth, death and marriage certificates, identity cards, and passports. A female first name coupled with a male surname or vice versa sounds incongruous and wrong to the Polish ear. Surnames ending with consonants usually have no additional feminine form. In the past, when the masculine form ended in a consonant, the feminine surname could have been derived by adding the suffix '' -owa'' (possessive form) for married women and the suffix '' -ówna'' (patronymic form) for maiden surname.''Practical Handbook of the Polish Language'', 1935
p. 106
/ref> For example, Cezaria Baudouin de Courtenay, after her marriage to
Janusz Jędrzejewicz Janusz Jędrzejewicz (; 21 June 1885 – 16 March 1951) was a Polish politician and educator, a leader of the Sanacja political group, and 24th Prime Minister of Poland from 1933 to 1934. Life He joined Józef Piłsudski's Polish Socialist ...
, was named Cezaria Baudouin de Courtenay Ehrenkreutz Jędrzejewiczowa. The unmarried daughter of Jędrzejewicz would have the official surname Jędrzejewiczówna. In modern times, Jędrzejewicz may be both a masculine and a feminine surname. Another pair of archaic feminine forms are these derived from the masculine surname based on a nickname ending in vowel: "-ina" for married (
Puchała Puchała or Puchala is a Polish surname Polish names have two main elements: the given name, and the surname. The usage of personal names in Poland is generally governed by civil law (legal system), civil law, church law, personal taste and fam ...
–> Puchalina) and "-anka/-ianka" for unmarried (
Przybyła Przybyła ( ) is a surname of Polish language Polish (, , or simply , ) is a West Slavic languages, West Slavic language of the Lechitic languages, Lechitic subgroup, within the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family, and is w ...
–> Przybylanka). Still another archaic feminine forms are for surnames ending in ''-g'' or syllables starting with '-g': in this case the unmarried feminine form would use the suffix ''-żanka'': Fertig -> Fertiżanka, Szeliga -> Szeliżanka.


Neuter form

The neuter form ("rodzaj nijaki") may be used in reference to neuter nouns such as ''dziecko'', "child." For example, when talking about a child of the neighbours one may say "To małe Kowalskie jest bardzo spokojnym dzieckiem" ("That Kowalski little one is a very quiet child"), or in plural: "Wasilewskie wyjechały do babci" ("The Wasilewskis children went away to see their grandma"). Unlike the feminine form, this form is never used in official documents; it is an informal form used mostly in spoken language.


Examples of feminine and neuter forms

Nominal surnames may or may not change with gender. Like other Slavic languages, Polish has special feminine suffixes which were added to a woman's surname. A woman who was never married used her father's surname with the suffix ''-ówna'' or ''-'anka''. A married woman or a widow used her husband's surname with the suffix ''-owa'' or ''-'ina'' / ''-'yna'' (the apostrophe means that the last consonant in the base form of the surname is softened). Although these suffixes are still used by some people, mostly the elderly and in rural areas, they are now becoming outdated and there is a tendency to use the same form of a nominal surname for both a man and a woman. Furthermore, the forms "-anka" and "-ina/-yna" are going out of fashion and being replaced by "-ówna" and "-owa" respectively. Examples of old feminine forms:


Plural forms

Plural forms of surnames follow the pattern of the masculine and feminine forms, respectively, if such exist. For a married couple or a family where there is a mix of males and females, the masculine plural is used. Plural forms of names rarely follow the patterns of regular declension, even if the name is identical with a common name.


Declension of adjectival surnames

The table below shows the full declension of adjectival surnames ending in -ki (-ski, -cki, -dzki), using the surname "Kowalski" as an example.


Formal and informal use

Poles pay great attention to the correct way of referring to, or addressing other people, depending on the level of social distance, familiarity and politeness. The differences between formal and informal language include: * using surnames or given names * using or not using honorific titles, such as ''Pan'' / ''Pani'' / ''Państwo''; * using the third person singular (formal) or the second person singular (informal) forms.


Formal language


''Pan'' / ''Pani'' / ''Państwo''

''Pan'' and ''Pani'' are the basic honorific styles used in Polish to refer to a man or woman, respectively. In the past, these styles were reserved for hereditary nobles, and played more or less the same role as "Lord" or "Sir" and "Lady" or "Madame" in English. Since the 19th century, they have come to be used in all strata of society and may be considered equivalent to the English "Mr." and "Ms." or the Japanese "san" suffix, while nobles would be addressed "Jego/Jej Miłość Pan/Pani" (His/Her Grace Lord/Lady). There used to be a separate style, ''Panna'' ("Miss"), applied to unmarried women, but this is now outdated and mostly replaced by ''Pani''. "Państwo" is widely used when referring to a married couple (instead of using ''Pan'' and ''Pani'') or even a whole family. Examples: * Pan Kowalski + Pani Kowalska = Państwo Kowalscy * Pan Nowak + Pani Nowak = Państwo Nowakowie


Titles

When addressing people, scientific and other titles are always used together with "Pan" and "Pani" and the name itself is dropped. However, when a person is spoken of but not addressed directly, then both the title and the name are used and the words "Pan"/"Pani" are often omitted. Examples: * "Panie profesorze" ("Professor"), "Pan profesor powiedział" ("Professor (X) said" or "you have said, professor") * "Pani doktor" ("Doctor"), "Pani doktor powiedziała" ("Doctor (X) said" or "you have said, doctor") but: * "Pan profesor Jan Nowak" or "profesor Jan Nowak" or "profesor Nowak", * "Pani doktor Maria Kowalska" or "doktor Maria Kowalska" or "doktor Kowalska"


Given name / surname order

The given name(s) normally comes before the surname. However, in a list of people sorted alphabetically by surname, the surname usually comes first. Hence some people may also use this order in spoken language (e.g. introducing themselves as ''Kowalski Jan'' instead of '' Jan Kowalski''), but this is generally considered incorrect or a throwback to the Communist era when this order was sometimes heard in official situations. In many formal situations, the given name is omitted altogether. Examples: * Pan Włodzimierz Malinowski * Pani Jadwiga Kwiatkowska On the other hand, it is not common to refer to public figures, while not addressing them, with "Pan" or "Pani". This is true for politicians, artists, and athletes. * "Jan Kowalski był dziś w Gdańsku." ("Jan Kowalski was in Gdansk today") and not "Pan Jan Kowalski był dziś w Gdańsku." * "Jan Kowalski uważa, że" or "Minister Kowalski uważa, że" ("Mr Kowalski maintains that") is better than "Pan Kowalski uważa, że". * "Film reżyserował Jan Kowalski." ("The film was directed by Jan Kowalski.") and not: "Film reżyserował pan Jan Kowalski." * "Złoty medal zdobyła Anna Kowalska." ("The gold medal was won by Anna Kowalska.") and never: "Złoty medal zdobyła pani Anna Kowalska." In such circumstances, preceding a name with "Pan" or "Pani" would usually be seen as being ironical.


Semi-formal levels of address

In situations of frequent contact, like at work, people who do not change their status from formal to familiar levels may remain for years at a semi-formal level, using the formal "Pan"/"Pani" form followed by the given name. That way of calling people is used not only to address them but also to refer to them to a third person with whom one remains at the same level of semi-formal contact. If two people do not have the same status, such as an employer and employee, a subordinate person is addressed by his or her given name by their superior, but the subordinate never uses the given name of the superior but instead uses the title. * the superior to a subordinate: "Panie Włodzimierzu!", "Pani Jadwigo!"; * a subordinate to the superior: "Panie Dyrektorze!" (literally: "Mr Principal!"), "Pani Kierownik!" (literally: "Mrs Manager!"). This style is to a certain degree similar to the
Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...
,
Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...
or Icelandic usage. If a superior wants to behave more politely or show a friendly attitude towards the subordinate, a diminutive form of the given name may be used: "Panie Włodku!", "Pani Jadziu!". That, however, is usually not practised when the subordinate is much older than the superior, as it may be felt by the subordinate as being overly patronised by the superior. It is rude to call a person by a surname in the presence of unknown people. In a random crowd, for example, a person calling another person should use a form of "Proszę Pana/Pani" ("I'm asking you, Sir/Madam") or use the semi-formal form with first name, like "Panie Włodzimierzu" ("Mr. Włodzimierz"). That comes from a general rule that one has the right to be anonymous in a crowd of unknown people, and the rule is observed in most Western countries. To disclose one's given name does not fall under that rule, as many people are "Włodzimierz", for instance.


Semi-informal and informal forms of address

Informal forms of address are normally used only by relatives, close friends and co-workers. In such situations diminutives are generally preferred to the standard forms of given names. At an intermediate level of familiarity (for example, among co-workers) a diminutive given name may be preceded by formal the ''Pan'' or ''Pani'' (semi-informal form of address): * Pan Włodek (but also standard semi-formal form "Pan Włodzimierz") - in direct address "Panie Włodku" (standard: "Panie Włodzimierzu") * Pani Jadzia (but also "Pani Jadwiga") - in direct address "Pani Jadziu" (standard: "Pani Jadwigo") Using the honorific style with a surname only, if used to refer to a given person directly, is generally perceived as rude. In such case, it is more polite to use just the form "Pan", without given or family name. It is very rude to address someone whom one does not know well without using "Pan" or "Pani", and with the second person singular instead of the polite third person singular pronouns and verb forms. Traditionally, the act of moving from this form to a friendly "you" must be acknowledged by both parties and it is usually a mark of a close friendly relationship between the two people. The change can only be proposed by the older or more respected person; a similar suggestion initiated by the younger or less respected person will usually be perceived as presumptuous and arrogant.


Multiple surnames of married women

Although a remarried woman who takes the new husband's surname does not formally retain the surname(s) from the previous marriages, on biographical occasions all her surnames may be listed as follows: " Maria Piłsudska, ''de domo'' Koplewska, ''primo voto'' Juszkiewicz, ''secundo voto'' Piłsudska", where ''" de domo"'' literally meaning "of house" is basically the same as ''
née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...
'', ''" primo voto"'' marks the surname by the first marriage, ''"secundo voto"'' marks the surname by the second marriage, etc.


See also

*
Family name In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...
*
Family name affixes Family name affixes are a clue for surname etymology and can sometimes determine the ethnic origin of a person. This is a partial list of affixes. Prefixes Arabic *Abu – (Arabic) "father of"; * Al – (Arabic) "Family of" or "House of" (i ...
* History of Polish *
Name of Poland The ethnonyms for the Poles (people) and Poland (their country) include endonyms (the way Polish people refer to themselves and their country) and exonyms (the way other peoples refer to the Poles and their country). Endonyms and most exonyms ...
* Polish clans *
Polish heraldry Polish heraldry is the study of the coats of arms that have historically been used in Poland and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. It treats of specifically Polish heraldic traits and of the Polish heraldic system, contrasted with heraldic sys ...
*
Slavic names Given names originating from the Slavic languages are most common in Slavic peoples, Slavic countries. The main types of Slavic names: * Two-base names, often ending in mir/měr (''Ostromir/měr'', ''Tihomir/měr'', ''Niemir, Němir/měr''), * ...
* Slavic name suffixes *
T–V distinction The T–V distinction is the contextual use of different pronouns that exists in some languages and serves to convey formality or familiarity. Its name comes from the Latin pronouns '' tu'' and '' vos''. The distinction takes a number of forms ...


References


External links


Meaning of Polish Lastnames / Surnames
*
Polish surnames Polish names have two main elements: the given name, and the surname. The usage of personal names in Poland is generally governed by civil law (legal system), civil law, church law, personal taste and family custom. The law requires a given nam ...

Slavic calendar





Repartition of Polish surnames in present day Poland (interactive maps) according to the 2001 census
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polish Name Slavic-language names Names by country