Questions about Polish names Pola, Gracja, and Grażyna

Hello! I have always loved Polish names, and though I'm not Polish, I recently discovered that I had some Polish heritage! So I really want to call my daughter a Polish name...would anyone be kind enough to answer some questions I have about these three names?

My questions are:

1. Is Pola a name in its own right - I mean, I know it's short for Apolonia, but would it be acceptable for someone to name their daughter just Pola? So, her full name wold be (for instance) Pola Nowak? If so, how long has Pola been a name in its own right? Is it a modern thing?

2. Can anyone tell me all the nicknames/diminutive forms for the name Gracja? I've noticed most Polish names have a number of nickname forms - is it the same for Gracja?

3. Final question! I read Grażyna was the Polish form of the name "Grace", but then I read elsewhere that Gracja was the Polish form of "Grace". Can anyone give me more information on this? Is Grażyna the Polish form of "Grace", or Gracja?

So grateful for any help anyone can give me! :D

1. Of course - Pola name is getting more and more popular in Poland now pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pola

2.


zdrobnienia.pl/gracja.htm
I don't like the first two examples provided on this site - Gracek, Gracjan sounds like a male name. I would add yet one from myself - Gracjunia.

3. I think that more direct equivalent of name Grace is Gracja, and indirect - Grażyna. Grażyna and Gracja are separate names.

Looker -- thank you so much, that's so helpful! So from what I understood of the Polish wikipedia article, Pola as a name in its own right is quite a recent thing -- do you know if it's recent in the sense that it's been used as a name in its own right for the last 10, 20 years; or for the last 60, 70 years, etc.? Was it ever used as a name in its own right before the Second World War?

Also, do you know if Gracja is an old name in Polish culture, or a more modern one? Was it a name used much before the Second World War? I'm sorry if this seems like an odd question, but it wasn't on my list of Polish names, so I wondered if it might be a more recent name!

Thanks again for the help! I'm so grateful!

Where does your daughter live?


Wrong, Polish version of the name Grace is Grażyna.

Or Gretchen, Gretta

In my body at the moment. :)


So Grażyna is definitely the Polish Grace?

As a person with experience on this field I was only trying to help...

actually according to this website dzieci.pl/word,Gra%BFyna,imie.html Grażyna is a made up by Adam Mickiewicz name that is derived from lithuanian word graži which means beautiful. To the OP: you will find all answers to your original questions on the before mentioned website; including diminutives, info about origins of names and a lot of really weird stuff about numerology of names that you may find funny or interesting, if you like that kind of things. Have fun ;)

But I'm being serious! I am currently pregnant...so I will happily accept any help you can give. :)


This is superb -- thank you so much!!

If you are going to give one of these names to a child - Grażyna is the most common of them. The other ones are quite unusual or currently not popular. Grażyna is just a normal name that won't cause any problems to your daughter in the feature. Pola would be also OK (it isn't popular but it doesn't have any connotations), but I rather wouldn't give a name Gracja since it has also a meaning as a normal word (it means just grace).

I also heard the story that the name Grażyna has been invented by Mickiewicz - from a Polish (native) language teacher. It's a name of the main character of a narrative poem whose name was just Grażyna. Another name invented by Mickiewicz - in a very similiar way, by giving it to a title character of a drama - was Balladyna, but it didn't take root. Probably because she was a negative character and nobody wanted to give her name to their children.

kpc21 -- your comments about connotations are extremely interesting. Would you be kind enough to tell me the connotations surrounding the name Genowefa? It has been on and off my list a few times, but my husband, after thinking it over, has suddenly decided that he really, really likes it!

Thank you so much!

Genowefa gives (at least me) no connotations, but is now very uncommon and sounds a bit strange, it's typical rather for someone's grandmother.

Yes. I've only come across very elderly people with that name - maybe time for a revival?

Thank you both very much!! :)

My husband is now thinking he wants a name quite similar to the English counterpart, and so we're considering Felicja. Felicia, the English form, is considered very elegant and sophisticated - how is Felicja viewed in Poland? I want a name that's classic and feminine, and I just want to make sure Felicja doesn't have a bad reputation or anything like that...

I thank everyone very much for their help! :)

Wrong, Balladyna has been written by Juliusz Słowacki.

Felicja is more common amongst elder people. It is rare in case of youth. I, personally, never met anyone with that name. To the names given in the first post: Pola reminds me of one Polish actress - Pola Raksa. She played in one of the most popular Polish series "Czterej pancerni i pies" a Russian medic in the army. Gracjana is the name my neighbour has, she is 21 now. And Grażyna reminds me of the women with whom I was in "pre-school" - she was rude, with negative attitude, dangerous, I was in fear closing myself in the toilet as I didn't want to go there. :p

Right, my mistake. But I hope that the rest agrees. It was just a similar situation with a name invented by a writer that either became a normal commonly used name, or not.

Thank you, Veles, all that is very helpful!

Names like Felicja, Genowefa are not popular in Poland. People joke about these names. With Genowefa consider pol. Eugenia or eng. Eugenie (both Genowefa and Eugenia in short are Genia or Gienia.) .A nice name, means "well born".

Pola name is also very nice, I would consider it too. Known Polish people : Pola Negri, Pola Raksa (Polish actress). It
comes from Apolonia or just Pola. Apolonia is a nice, rare name .

Also i like old Polish, slavic name Milena. Nice, rare name, means "gracious", "dear"

Genowefa reminds me of Genowefa Pigwa, a (very fuuny, at least according to some people) creation of Polish actor and comedian Bronisław Opałko:

lol Yes, it reminds me of her/him too xD (btw, Genowefa Pigwa is wearing traditional folk clothes from my region lol)

NoaSew, under no circumstances name your child "Genowefa" xD Poles consider this name as ugly and most likely funny ;)
Felicja, on the other hand, sounds nice and I wouldn't say people are making jokes about this name, although it isn't a common first name.

Unja, BohdanBazooka, and Paulina -- thank you very much, that's really helpful!

Unja -- it is so weird you should mention that about Eugenia and Milena, as my husband and I were just discussing those names!

Grażyna is a name probably polish version if Grace but i dunno. Btw this name is horrible (maybe cause its name of stereotipical old fat polish women who wears crocs and us wife of sterotipical Janusz who is old fat man who drinks all day and talks about politics. So for younger polish ppl its pretty lame). Anyway grace literally means gracja in pl and if its a name it have to be pretty old ,or its probably just translate world like eng name Daisy is stokrotka in pl (S t oh c r oh tca) and its defitinatly not a name just flower. But i like Gracja it sounds pretty cool.

And better dont call your girl Grażyna ,all kids will be like "Grażyna how do i read that?vGrayina Grajeenah. Grasina?!" and it is a reaaaally lame name

There used to be a famous US silent film star named Pola Negri, from Poland:-) Oddly enough, despite her immense popularity, her first name never caught on among girls.

Her American equivalent is most likely "Paula"/"Pauline", yes?

Barbara Apollonia Chałupiec. lol!

Gracja i Grażyna to dwa różne imiona. Bardzo rzadkie zresztą.

only English please

Exactly, Ironside! Meanwhile, her middle name didn't become popular her in the States either, save perhaps for certain Souther European Catholic immigrants:-)

What about the names Paulina or Kasia both are very feminine and still sound nice in English language? Kasia is also an older name with history so it is a nice choice