Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Aksentowicz (-wicz always indciates a patronymic nickname meaning "son of sb") so here Aksent's son in whatever spelling.

Dorohowicz = son of Doroh (doroha - Ukr. for road/Polish: droga)

Komroske -- probably an anglo-respelling of Komorowski -- toponymic nickname for someone from Komorów (Chamberville).

KOMROFSKE: This spelling of Komorowski is even more obviously a phonetic version created for the benefit for English speakers as indicated by the "f".

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Todrzak - patronymic for "son of Todor (a forrm of Teodor, Fiodor)"
Kupec -- Ukrainian for merchant (Polish: kupiec)
Popec --- possibly Ukrainian patronymic for "priest's son)".

Peret exists in Poland as a surname in its own right but your ancestor may have shortened his from Pereta or Peretiakowicz. Possibly from Ukrainian peretyczka (bread and cakes offered to a priest on All Souls' Day).

Myśliwy: Every Yank can pronounce if you tell him: MISH as in mish-mash, LEE and VI (with a short i sound as in vim): mish-LEE-vih.

Wyrko was once a bed of slats suspended from the rafters of a peasant cottage; it is also a colloquial term for bed in general like English sack.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Fiizia - origin obscure. Possible sources: fiżka (pin cushion or diminutive of figa) or endearing form of fizylier (17-18th century or Napoloenic rifleman).

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Garbula from garb (hump) -- this would be a pejorative term for a hunchbacked woman. No known coat of arms.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Czech or Americanised spelling of Myśliwy (hunter).

Genealogy / Family Decendent of Gen. Jozef Bem [28]

Nobles of the Bem family were entitled to use the rather rare Behem c-o-a which depicts a white sheep on the red half of the vertically split shield and a green griffin on the white half.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Indeed, either a descriptive toponym for someone who lives "za rzeką" (Russian: за рекой) or a geographic one -- hailing from the village of Zarzecze (Riverville, Riverton, Riverburg).

Genealogy / Antoni Kowalski or Knop - Pabianice Poland Lodz? [2]

Parafia Najświętszej Marii Panny Różańcowej w Pabianicach
ul.Zamkowa 39 95-200 Pabianice
tel. (48 42) 215 28 23
e-mail: pabianice@misjonarze.pl

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Living in Poland - 2 veterans named Kowalski

Kowalski, Józef 01900-02-02 2 February 1900 107 Polish Russian Resides in Tursk, near Sulęcin, and fought with the Bolsheviks at the end of WWI[8][9]
Wycech, Stanisław 01902-06-27 27 June 1902 104 Polish Polish Military Organisation Enlisted at 15 years of age in 1917 and stayed in the army, eventually reaching the rank of captain[10][11]

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

There is has been a great deal of German-Yiddish-Polish and other-Slavonic interaction in the name field over the centuries with an added sprinkling of Lithuanian, Hungarian and Turkish elements thrown in...

SPANKE - none in Poland more than 500 in Germany. There are 19 Spankowskis in Poland (son of Spanke or Spanek?) and 1 peson named Spanek. Spanek suggest a spanie (sleep) related etymology. Wygodne spanko is colloquial for a comfy sack.


ŚCIORA - from the verb now archaic ściorać or ściarać (to sully, besmirch, dirty, blacken). In a physical sense possibly applicable to a soot-stained chimneysweep, morally to someone with a sullied reputation.

DATA - obviously an Italian import. Means the same (calendar date not rendez-vous!) in both languages.

SZEJWA -Polonised respelling of German/Yiddish Schewe from the adj. schief meaning lopsided, crooked, bent-over.

Popieliński probably arose as a toponymic nikcname to describe an inhabitant of Popielin or Popielno.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

WILPISZEWSKI toponymic from Wilpiszewo. Since more than half of Poland's some 30 Wilpiszewskis live in the Szczecin area, their ancestral nest must have originally been east of the River Bug.

KWIECIEŃ - April -- either the month someone was born in or converted (usually to Catholicism)

RYDLEWICZ patronymic nickname (son of a bloke nicknamed Rydel -- shovel, spade, or hailing from Rydlewo).

Genealogy / Aniela Swierczynski Born. June 21 1897 in Krakow [7]

No, that would have to be Świerszczyński. The root of Świerczyński i świerk (spruce).

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

There are 24 people named Maka in Poland and more than 3,000 using the Mąka surname. Perhaps some Austrian official igmoredf the little squiggle under the "ą", and the illiterate Polish peasant got it written that way in his documents.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]


Chorążyczewski (if you are stuck with this surname in America I truly smypathise!!!)
Etymologically the root is chorąży (standard-bearer) and the source of this tioponmyic nickanme would be some locality such as Chorążyczew or Chorążyczewo.

Walczyszyn -- a Ukrainian-influenced metronymic nicknamde which worked in a rather strange way. The wife of someone named Walek (from Walenty or Walerian) was called Walczyszyna and when she Walek's son he was known as Walczyszyn (which means the son of the wife of Walek). Polish prefers straightforward patronymic nicknames such as (in this case) Walkowiak, Walczak or (in the east) Walczuk.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Nikoniuk = son of Nikon (Ukranian first name).

SURNAMES JADCZAK AND HODAR

Jadczak appears to have originated as a patronymic nickname for the son of someone named Jadam (as in Jadam i Jewa -- a dialectic peasant pronunciation).

Hodar was probably originally Chodar either from chodzić (to walk) (Jaś Chodar would be something like Johnny Walker!) or a variant spelling of Chodor (one of several different Slavonic forms of the first name Teodor which also included Todor and Fiodor).

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]


DEPTA: In dialectic peasant Polish depta was a dawdler. It may also derive from the verb deptać (to tread upon, stamp with one's feet).

STACHOWSKI: Stach is the diminutive of Stanisław and the -owski ending is usually toponymic (place-name-derived), so the English equiavlent might be something like Stanton or Stanleyville.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]


Dobosiewicz, root = dobosz (army drummer), -wicz = patronymic suffix (son of), hence Dobosiewicz originated to indicate "the drummer's boy".


'Twas probably Jurzak which originated as a patronymic nickname for the "son of Jur or Jura" (eastern-bordelrland forms of the first name Jerzy/George).

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Fornek -- probably originated as a patronynmic nickname for the son of the "fornal" (stable hand). For a complete custom-researched analysis please contact me.

Belarussian version of Gawronik; Gawron = rook, large bird of the crow family. When someone nicknamed Gawron fathered a son, the offspring would have been called Gawronik or (in the eastern broderlands) Hawranik.

No-one named Kiełbaski in Poland at present, but there are quite a few with the Kiełbaska.
surname. Yes, the sausage connection is obvious.

Dudarz = piper (someone playing Polish-style goatskin bagpipes).

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

The word kłos in Polish means an ear of grain (usually rye or wheat), so it could have arisen as a nickname for someone associated wtih grain, a miller for instance.

But it could have likewise as a toponymic nickname from some locality containing the "kłos" root.

Genealogy / Kapushka name - what is the meaning? [17]

If there is a river in Siberia called the Капуша, then Kapusha would indeed be the correct, traditional way of transcibing the Cyrillic into Latin-alphabet English.

Have you no information from any family member on where yoru ancestors were from?

Genealogy / Kapushka name - what is the meaning? [17]

It would have to be Kapusia or Kapusza in Polish, assuming that it was correctly transcribed into English spelling. But no-one currently bears either the Kapusia or Kapusza surname. There are 2 people named Kapusa in Poland.

A kapusia might be the diminutive of kapka (drop, squirt of liquid)
A kapus was once a kind of mediaeval hood.
Or possibly it originated as a corrupted form derived from kapusta (cabbage) or a toponymic nickname traceable to Kapustowo, Kapuśniki or Kapuściska (Cabbageville, Cabbageshire). All in all, rather enigmatic!

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Góralczyk = son of the highlander (patronymic nickname).
Maybe the city was Katowice -- the capital of Śląsk (Silesia).

Genealogy / Kolakowski / Kulakowski family in and around parafia Bogate and Baranowo [2]

Noit interchangebale but illiteracy was high, hence spellings often varied. Both names exist in Poland, probably toponymics from Kułaki or Kułakowice and Kołaki or Kołaków resepctively.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

The root is from olch~olsz which indeed means alder, however nearly all surnames ending in -ewski and -owski originated as toponymic nicknames. In this case Olszewski would mean the bloke from Olszew or Olszewo (Alderbury, Alderton).


Sochacki -- basic root = socha (primitive plough); perhaps also toponymically from the locality of Socha in £ódź region

Jagielski -- from jagła (millet groats); toponymically from Jagiele, Jagielno, Jagłowo, etc.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Duszek and Duczek are Polish names (the first meaning little ghost, the 2nd -- a lidded barrel for storing flour, groats, etc.). Dušek or Duèek would be their equivalents in Slovak and Czech and in the Cyrillic tongues it would be Душек and Дучек respectively.

Pińsk was part of eastern Poland until Stalin annexed one-half of Poland's territory. It became part of the Belarussian Soviet Republic and after the collapse of the USSR -- the Republic of Belarus.

Life / Customs - First Holy Communion in Poland [42]

First Holy Communion is yet another celerbation that has been stripped of its spiritual dimension and subjected to agrgressive pop-culture commercialism which brain-washed go-with-the-flow families feed and perpetuate. Like Sandy Clutz (Santa Claus) Christmas, it is all about spend through the nose and shop till you drop -- zero substance and mega-glitter and packaging so the filthy-rich exploiters can get even richer!

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

No, I haven't got a doctorate in szlachtology, but I have inforamlly studied this and other aspects of Polish history and culture for years. Podlasie was a place they called "laski, piaski and karaski". The latter is the cruceon (karaś -- a small fish that can survive in evaoporating, very-low-oxygen pools. They can be all head, tail and backbone covered with skin but little if any meat). Little more than potatoes grew in the sandy soil. "Boso lecz w ostrogach" (barefoot but in stirups) was also applied to the impoverished, soil-tilling gentry. Probably the percentage of szlachta in Podlasie was higher (12-15%) at different times in centuries past.

Gumishu -- I think you may find this item about the pettry gentry of Podlasie interesting.:
koc.pl/szl_podl.htm


No-one by that (Sopneski) spelling in Poland. Someone probably changed the spelling so it wouldn't get Anglo-mangled into sop-NOO-ski. Must have originally been Sopniewski -- toponymic nickname describing somerone from the village of Sopniew or Sopniewo. Possible etymolgogy: sopel (icicle) or sopeń (dialectic for supeł -- knot); hence Icicleville or Knotbury.


KUZDEBA: Could well be Russian. There are no suitable localities in Poland as possible toponymic sources, and the only word anywhere near that in Polish is kuzdroń, a dialectic name for common ivy (a plant).

There is only 1 Kuzdeba in Poland who lives in SW Poland's Opole area.


ŻAK: Etymology could incldue the following:
1. żak -- schoolboy, student, scholar
2. Żak -- Polish spelling of French Jacques
3. Zak -- Jewish rabbinical name from Hebrew contraction meaning "holy seed"
4. Toponymic nickname for someone from Żakowiec, Żakowo, Żakowice, Żaków, etc.


Eastern Polish patronymic nickname-turned-surname -- the equivalent of Stevenson.
The ethncially indigenous version would be Szczepaniak.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Indeed, dirt-poor Podlasie was known for its inordinate number of impoverished petty gentry, who hitched their old lady up to plough but had a heraldic crest and sword to show they were nobility. That was probably because often entire villages were ennobled for defending the lord's castle or manor house against an invasion or some other service rendered to a prince or king. Do you really believe most Kowalskis, Nowakowskis, Brzezińskis, Jaworowskis, Kapuścińskis, etc.

Let's imagine there were a number of people named Jan in a hamlet called Jaworów. One was Jan Kowal or Kowalski (blacksmith or native of Kowale), Jan Ciemięga (clumsy oaf), Jan Stasiak (Stan's boy), Jan Piekarczyk's (the baker's son or helper), etc, etc. But to residents of surrounding villages any of those might have been called Jan Jaworowski. At the nickname stage (before surnames took root) one person might be called different things: Adam Garbed (humpbacked), Adam Gwizdała (the whistler), Adam Jasiewicz (Johnny's kid) or Adam WiIkowski (the bloke from Wilkowo). Which name ended up as his surname that got passed down to his children is a good question. The whole area of surname emergence is full of meanders, complexities and confusion.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Szurpicki – toponymic from Szurpice (Featherton, Slovenville); probably derived from szurpa (peasant dialect) for a curly-featured fowl or slovenly housewife.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

It is a myth that -ski names are those of only the gentry. Yes, more famileis of noble ancestry have -ski names than any other single group of surnames, but the vast majority were commoners. Jan Brzeziński could indeed have been Sir John of Birchwood, but all the peasants living in that village would also be called Brzeziński by outsiders, ie inhabitants of surrounding villagers. WHere soemoen was from was ocne an important qualifier. To determine whether your ancestors were Lords of Latuszew or simple, dirt-poor peasants, you need to enlist the services of a professional genealogical firm.

Genealogy / THE MEANING AND RESEARCH OF MY POLISH LAST NAME, SURNAME? [4500]

Toponymic nickname for an inhabtiant of Latuszew or Latuszewo. Possibly translatable as Summerton, Summerville, Summerburg?

In a follow-up to the Latuszeski query, most likely some immigrant to the English-speaking world prudently dropped ther "w". If it had been left Latuszewski, the Anglos would have Anglo-mangled it into some such atrocity as "lotta-SHOE-ski". In primary school a young child with such a name might well get taunted with: "So you've got a lotta shoes, eh?"