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Older Polish Exclamations/Swears


Peregrine  1 | 1
17 Sep 2024   #1
Hello!

To preface, I'm currently writing a short fiction piece based on an actual story from my family. I've changed quite a bit (different names, ages, relationships, etc.) but the general idea is the same. That being said, the story takes place around 1935 in a rural/farmland area and I wanted a few Polish exclamations/swears I could use so it's not all in English. More specifically, I wanted to ask if there are differences between that kind thing from modern times to back then, as I know languages and how they're spoken can change quite a bit. Just from my knowledge of English, the way people swore/etc. has changed drastically since the 1930s, so I can only guess there is something similar in other languages. I've found modern-day swears and such but wanted to know if there were older ones.

I know it's a smaller detail, but I really enjoy making things more accurate/realistic in less visible ways. Sticking closer to older ways of speech, even small, feels like a good way to do that to me. Mostly what I'm interested in are older Polish swears and exclamations. Swears, of course, would be in bad situations, but other exclamations of surprise, awe, or other less negative things would be helpful too! If there really isn't as much of a difference in the language since the 1930s as I'm imagining, sorry for this whole essay I've written!
jon357  73 | 23000
17 Sep 2024   #2
few Polish exclamations/swears I could use so it's not all in English....

"Broń boże!" (God defend us/me!) is something that older friends (younger than your story, born mid-1930s) sometimes say.
GefreiterKania  31 | 1429
17 Sep 2024   #3
"Broń boże!" means "God forbid!" not "God defend me!". Polish is tricky like that.

An old-fashioned swear for your period is, for example, "Do kroćset!" (darn it, dash it).
Mr Grunwald  33 | 2131
17 Sep 2024   #4
@GefreiterKania
I would say meaning wise you are correct, it's understood more in sense of "God protect us from this" (as in not letting it happen).
Alien  23 | 5631
17 Sep 2024   #5
The full version reads: Broń cię Panie Boże.
GefreiterKania  31 | 1429
17 Sep 2024   #6
Broń cię Panie Boże

Which, of course, doesn't mean "God defend you" but "God forbid that you should do it".
Ron2
17 Sep 2024   #7
How about "psia krew!" (damn it!) or "do diabła!" (hell with it!) - still used mostly in Polish villages but not very popular any more.
OP Peregrine  1 | 1
17 Sep 2024   #8
Honestly, these all look great. Even if it's off by a few years or so, anything that generally is older should work. Could I ask about any exclamations for a good event that are older? (Like how it is in English with 'wow!' or 'thank god', that type of thing.)
Ron2
17 Sep 2024   #9
Ba! (an exclamation mark expressing uncertainty or confusion)
O jejku! (oh my!)
Hip,hip,hura! (hurray! / cheers!)
Kurka wodna! (darn!)
Lyzko  41 | 9571
17 Sep 2024   #10
Psiakrew! = Damn! (Literally, "Dog's blood!")
Miloslaw  21 | 4967
17 Sep 2024   #11
How about "Cholera"?
Lyzko  41 | 9571
17 Sep 2024   #12
Another blast from the past.

Sounds so much more classic than the omnipresent "Kurwa!".
Miloslaw  21 | 4967
17 Sep 2024   #13
Sounds so much more classic than the omnipresent "Kurwa!".

Agreed! Kurwa is just crass.
Lyzko  41 | 9571
17 Sep 2024   #14
Recently re-watched the movie "Wesele" from the mid-'00's and it
sounded as though every other word were some crass curse word.

Same as when watching a movie in English from around the early sixties
compared with a similar movie nowadays. The language is nearly unrecognizable.


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