PolishOrigins(TM) Forum

Article: How Surnames Came Into Being in Poland

jww — Wed Dec 03, 2025 1:28 pm

Author: jww

Posted: Wed Dec 03, 2025 1:28 pm

A bump more than 6 years later.
Is it fair to say that in some regions enforcement of last name requirements was lax, so that maybe only around 1830 was usage widespread in some distant places?
Also, in any areas were modern-style last names the norm before 1770?

Wegierski

jww — Wed Dec 03, 2025 1:18 pm

Author: jww

Posted: Wed Dec 03, 2025 1:18 pm

Sophia wrote:

jww wrote:

Having discovered through an interesting dive into family history that an important part of my ancestry is Wegierski, I have maybe too many questions.

I do know it means "Hungarian."

Is Wegierski distinct from Wegierska?

I can see and understand why the surname is more common in the south, but much more? How tied to the town named Wegierski?

How strongly is the name associated with Jews?

Given the -ski part and the period or periods with Polish-Hungarian monarchy, was it prestigious to some people with Hungarian ancestry? For Jews, would it be a way to drop overtly Jewish Hungarian names and try to explain away Jewish looks as Hungarian?

Hello jww,

The country name Hungary, in Polish, is Węgry. For Polish surnames, the suffix -ski means "of" or "from." Hence, Węgierski means Hungarian, just as you said. Surnames that end in -ski are used by males but the ending changes to -ska for females. So, Węgierski and Węgierska are the same name.

If you would like to read more about Polish surnames, William Hoffman is the expert. Here is a link to an article he made freely available which explains surname endings. You will probably be most interested in the part where he discusses the perception of the -ski ending being associated with nobility:

https://www.polishroots.org/Research/SurnameSearch/Surnamesendings?PageId=118

Regarding the distribution of the name Węgierski in Poland, here is a handy resource showing it on a map:

https://nazwiska-polskie.pl/W%C4%99gierski

I do not see it there as being particularly more concentrated in the southern part of Poland. People with this surname could be of Jewish or Christian religion. I would suggest that if you want to know what the religion of your ancestors was, try tracing them back in time through standard genealogical documents.

Best of luck in your search,
Sophia

Jww is a joke in a few ways and should tell you my ancestral religion is known.

Thanks for the information. I'm a little surprised at the name distribution, but people would be surprised that I found my ancestors outside the range entirely, informing my belief that the name mostly migrated Northeast. Is there a map of name distribution from circa 1700, for example?

The ski-ska thing surprises me and made me re-check some recent research in Warsaw. Is it safe to say it was uncommon for an adult male to use a -ska last name?

Alternate forms of the surname Spiżarny?

ChinPower — Mon Dec 01, 2025 2:25 am

Author: ChinPower

Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2025 2:25 am

Hi,

I am from Russia and my surname has Polish origin - Spiżarki. In Russian it is "Спижарский", or "Spizharskiy" when transliterated. This is very fascinating since both Polish and Russian versions are extremely rare.

Origins of Polish Surnames

MikeP — Sun Jun 29, 2025 4:25 pm

Author: MikeP

Posted: Sun Jun 29, 2025 4:25 pm

td85 wrote:

Could you tell me if the names Fizio, Dwulit or Kieszenia are in the book and, if so, what they mean? Thank you so much.

Hello td85,

Dwulit is similar to Dwulat. Dwulat is from dwa lata "two years". Thus, both surnames describe a physical feature. (See Page 152, Volume II.)

Fizio is close to the surname Fizia. The stem Fiz- is from the German personal name Fiess a noun meaning "sly enemy". (See Page 173, Volume II.)

I did not find Kieszenia in Hoffman's book. However, the stem Kies- is from the German personal name beginning Kess- or Kies-. Hoffman lists the following surnames with that stem: Kieś, Kieska, Kiesz, Kieszek and Kieszkiewicz. (See Page 303, Volume II.) It is possible that Kieszenia maybe a less common surname. Hoffman includes surnames borne by at least 100 Poles as of year 2002.

Mike

Fizio

td85 — Fri Mar 21, 2025 6:46 am

Author: td85

Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2025 6:46 am

Sophia wrote:

td85 wrote:

Hi everyone,

Could anyone help me with this name? I found out recently that one of my direct ancestors was named Constantine Fizio, from the village of Posada Rybotycka. I've only ever been able to find the name in this village, so I wonder if it could be a variant of something else like Pisio or Pyzio? I appreciate any help!

Hi td85 and Barb,

I checked the online search engine that was put together with data from Professor Rymut, which provides surnames as used in Poland in the 1990s (derived from the PESEL system). It is particularly helpful because it shows the voivodeship that the names were from and at that time, Poland had 49 voivodeships so it is much more specific than today's 16 voivodeships.

The name Fizio appears on that list, with 18 people using the surname (wow! that is rare!) and the breakdown is this: 1 in Poznańskie, 5 in Przemyskie and 12 in Wrocławskie.

I noticed there is also the name Fizia, still rare, with a total of 306 people using that surname. They were: 300 in Katowickie, 4 in Lubelskie, 1 in Pr and 1 in Tarnobrzeskie.

One would expect some movement of people over the decades between when your Constantine Fizio was around and the 1990s, but at least you get some idea of the distribution of the name and its rarity.

There is a contributor to the forum, MikeP, who has in the past offered to look up surnames in Hoffman's book. Here is a link to one of those conversations, and you may consider sending him a private message to ask if he will look up Fizio for you: https://forum.polishorigins.com/viewtopic.php?p=71185&highlight=hoffman#71185

Best regards,
Sophia

Thank you so much, Sophia! I think I'll do that.

I see on https://nazwiska-polskie.pl/ that the name's still found near Posada Rybotycka, in Rybotycze and Przemyśl. There are also individuals in Wroclaw.

Tracing a birth record

marcelproust — Sun Mar 16, 2025 5:31 pm

Author: marcelproust

Posted: Sun Mar 16, 2025 5:31 pm

Białkowo
Number 6

It happened in the village of Dulsk, on January 13th/25th, 1880, at 3 p.m.

We make it known that in the presence of the witnesses, Michał Baranowski, 33 years old and Mikołaj Niedziałkowski, 34 years old, workers living in Białkowo, a religious marriage was concluded, between:

Jan Melerski, a single man, a soldier with the rank of private, 25 years old, a worker living in Rudawa, who was born in the village of Rudawa, a son of the spouses: the late Wojciech Melerski and the living Katarzyna Melerska nee Anusiak

and

Tekla Zbiczyńska, a miss, 20 years old, a daughter of the spouses: the late Michał Zbiczyński and the living Marianna Zbiczyńska nee Przybulska, who was born and lives at her mother's in Białkowo.

This marriage was preceded by the three banns of marriage, announced in the parish churches in Nowogród and Dulsk, on: December 30th, 1879/January 11th, 1880, January 6th/18th, 1880 and January 13th/25th, 1880.

The newlyweds declared they did not enter into the prenuptial agreement.

The religious marriage ceremony was performer by the priest Tomasz Janowicz.

This act was read to the illiterate present and it was signed by Us only.

The administrator of the Dulsk parish, serving as Civil Registrar, priest Jan Spira.

Anglicised Polish names

Sophia — Wed Feb 26, 2025 9:30 am

Author: Sophia

Posted: Wed Feb 26, 2025 9:30 am

stewart wrote:

Thanks for the comment and the link Sophia. I looked at the Neumeyer entry and it says the record is closed until 2075. However, there are 2 names there and the Newlands in question were 2 brothers so that's interesting. Pity it doesn't indicate where they'reresident.

Hi Stewart,
Instead of searching on "Newland" in the UK National Archives, make your search term "Neumeyer." In those results, you will find two places of residence in England for Neumeyers turned Newland.
It is possible that these are members of the same family despite living in different places.
Sophia

Lukryc

Luk_Look — Thu Feb 06, 2025 9:17 am

Author: Luk_Look

Posted: Thu Feb 06, 2025 9:17 am

I have really appreciated this thread giving some insight to the Lukritz name & possible spellings as I too, have been puzzled. I have traced my family members to late 1700's, all spelt as 'Lukritz' but have now reached a full-stop & cannot find anything further no matter how many hours spent!!
Earliest link I have located: https://www.familysearch.org/en/tree/person/details/G4LZ-16M or https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Lukritz-10
It seems my branch of the family spent about 200 years around Grudziadz/Graudenz, Gardeja, Kwidzyn area but I have no further information before then, nor can I find community records, etc. Might it be possible we are both searching for the similar thread or link? I'd also love to know if there are any currently living in that area of Poland by that name too! Best Wishes & Happy Searching, Ros

Original spelling of Melisch and pronunciation?

Sophia — Wed Jan 15, 2025 5:29 am

Author: Sophia

Posted: Wed Jan 15, 2025 5:29 am

Yes, looking at your other post on the forum regarding Szamocin, their origins were in what is now Poland but was in the Prussian Partition. Their surname could be rooted in either language, Polish or German. Trish provided some info on where to look for records and you should keep some flexibility in your spelling as you search those indices, until you can zero in on how your family spelled their names.

Good luck in your search,
Sophia

TYLKA

meghanrowan — Sat Jan 11, 2025 6:16 pm

Author: meghanrowan

Posted: Sat Jan 11, 2025 6:16 pm

I have come across quite a few Tylkas in the area of Chocholow and Dzianicz - both are in the Nowy Targ district and very close to the Slovak border. One married into my Bafia family. Have discovered others who immigrated to the Mt Pleasant Pennsylvania area and then Chicago.
Supposedly Jan Tylka Kubiatka and his wife Anna Bafia contributed to the building of the church in Dzianicz
https://www.komoot.com/highlight/5143805
We were able to visit the two towns in July 2023.

Skompski

marcelproust — Sat Jan 04, 2025 4:35 pm

Author: marcelproust

Posted: Sat Jan 04, 2025 4:35 pm

Branbee29 wrote:

I am in search of my mother’s family. Joseph Skompski is my great grandfathers name. I believe he was born in Lomza and he came to America aged 23. Any details are greatly appreciated. Or leads in how to find out better information.

Give more details, everything You know. It would be easier to help.

Post subject: is LAZICKI a jewish or catholic surname?

Tdunlap — Fri Jan 03, 2025 6:17 pm

Author: Tdunlap

Posted: Fri Jan 03, 2025 6:17 pm

Hello, I see in a separate post you also inquired about Stanley Sopuch. I was a friend of Stanley’s. I don’t know much about his family but know Stanley and his brother I met several times.

Hańczaryk

Matt — Tue Oct 29, 2024 9:36 am

Author: Matt

Posted: Tue Oct 29, 2024 9:36 am

MikeP wrote:

Hi Matt,

I consulted with William Hoffman's "Polish Surnames: Origins and Meanings" 3rd edition. I was unable to find the surnames Hańczaryk and Hanczaryk. However, on Page 235 of Volume II the closest match to the root of the surname is Hanc-. The root Hanc- is from the German personal name Hanz, Hans from Johann, Johannes. Hoffman's text lists the surnames Hanczarek and Hanczaruk as associated with that root.

Best of luck with your research.

Mike

Thank you for looking Mike. It's coincidental, but my grandfather's name in America was John, and his German wife always called him "Hanz." On the ship log when he came over, he's listed as "Iwan." I wonder if his family named him Ivan and it just eventually became John. Anyway, appreciate your time. I wonder how a German root ended up in a historically Polish/Ukrainian surname.

Rollek

dmreyher — Wed Jul 31, 2024 1:36 pm

Author: dmreyher

Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2024 1:36 pm

I am descended from Polish ancestors and have a number of "Rolek" ancestors in my tree in the 1880s (also Kulpinski, Pienta, Jodlowski). Huge numbers of Osobnica residents emigrated to America in the late 1800s. There is a great group on fb called Descendants of Osobnica where you can find tons of information.

Why is Ruchała a name?

Brian — Sat May 18, 2024 11:25 pm

Author: Brian

Posted: Sat May 18, 2024 11:25 pm

Thanks Mike, I appreciate it.

Szyngiel and Szyngel

MikeP — Sun Feb 04, 2024 1:17 am

Author: MikeP

Posted: Sun Feb 04, 2024 1:17 am

I checked William Hoffman's "Polish Surnames" 3rd edition. Unfortunately I did not find these surnames. Hoffman's book only lists surnames borne by 100+ Polish citizens as of year 2002. Szyngiel and Szyngel appear to be uncommon surnames. On the Geneteka Website, I found a few instances of the surname Szyngielska (the masculine form is Szyngielski) in the province of Łódzkie and a few instances of Szyngiel in the country of Białoruś.

Next step ... Do you know from which area of (partitioned) Poland the family immigrated from?

Mike

Liberski or Libera

MikeP — Thu Dec 14, 2023 11:25 pm

Author: MikeP

Posted: Thu Dec 14, 2023 11:25 pm

I checked William Hoffman's "Polish Surnames", 3rd edition for the surnames Liberski and Libera. They are discussed on Page 399. The stem Liber- is from the Latin word liber meaning "free" or from the German personal name Lieber meaning "dear one" or from a dialect term libera meaning "weakness, illness".

Where in partitioned Poland did your ancestor live? Liberski is probably a polonization of either the Latin surname Liber or the German surname Lieber.

Another information source is the Internet Dictionary of Polish Surnames https://nazwiska.ijp.pan.pl . It currently has 30,000 entries but does list Libera and Liberski.

Have you checked the Geneteka Website? What is happening in your ancestor's parish? Are all the Libera Families (with the help of the parish priest) suddenly changing their surname from Libera to Liberski?

Best of luck with your research.

Mike

Leniczek family name origins

MikeP — Sat Apr 22, 2023 12:02 am

Author: MikeP

Posted: Sat Apr 22, 2023 12:02 am

Hi Rex,

Suffixes such as -czek, -czak, -czyk, and -czuk are added to a noun stem to form a surname. They can be either patronymic or diminutive. The suffix -ek is typically a diminutive ending. An important reference book on Polish surnames is William Hoffman's "Polish Surnames: Origins and Meanings", 3rd edition. According to Hoffman's book, the stem Len- is from len, "flax" (plant or tree) or from leń, "lazy-bones" (personal trait) of from the short form of the given name Lenard a variant of Leonard. The book lists several surnames: Len, Leń, Leńczuk, Leńczyk. I've checked the Geneteka Website for the surname Leniczek. A search with an exact match showed only 7 vital records from Ukraine. This surname may not be very common. The Polish spelling of Zhovka is Żółkiew. I'm not aware of any suffix tradition. Once a family has started using a surname with or without a suffix type ending they tend to continue using that surname.

Best of luck with your research.

Mike

Prokhorskii or Prohorski

R.Prokhorskii — Thu Mar 30, 2023 8:39 am

Author: R.Prokhorskii

Posted: Thu Mar 30, 2023 8:39 am

Hello dear friends. I have a question about surname of my grandfather. His great grandfather ran away from Poland to Russia. For now, I don't have information, only that he was Polish Jew and as far as I know he hid his nationality. I haven't find any information about surnames as Prokhorskii or Prohorski at all. Any information can be helpful, thank you

William Hoffman’s “Polish Surnames “ book - look up request

Trish — Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:41 am

Author: Trish

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2023 11:41 am

MikeP wrote:

Hi Trish,

Page 520: Ostrowski is also a place name: Ostrów, Ostrowo, Ostrowsko. Hoffman indicates that there are numerous places with these names.

Page 556: Pisarski is from the verb pisać “to write”. Pisarz is a “scribe, writer”. As an adjective pisarski means “writing”.

Mike

Hi Mike,
Thank you for taking the time to look up my surnames and posting the information.

Have a wonderful day!
Trish