A Foreigner’s Guide to Polish Surnames
Every name – and surname in particular – has a story of its own. However, the naming system as a whole must also have its history, rules and particularities, which in the case of Polish surnames makes it a fascinating story of social, ethnic, and cultural intricacy. For the start, let’s remember that most Polish surnames were originally formed as one of these three categories (however, as you will you see, with surnames nothing is simple):
Cognominal – created from a nickname, usually based on occupation (so-called occupational surnames), a physical description, or character trait. Compare Kowalski, Głowacz or Bystroń.
Toponymic – these names are derived from place of residence, birth or family origin. Like: Brzeziński.
Patronymic – usually derived from a person’s given name and usually ends in a suffix suggesting a family relation. Think of: Piotrowicz or Staszczyk.
We’ll use them to show you that a surname is a quite complicated thing. Where do we start? Of course with the most popular Polish name suffix – the -ski.
What’s in a Polish name? Why did the Slavic names of yore almost die out? And what are Polish names…
The -ski names: Objet du désir that Became the Ultimate Polish Surname
The -ski names are by no means the oldest, but they’ve become by far the most recognizable type of Polish last name worldwide. It’s also the most popular type of surname in the country today: structure-wise, surnames with the -ski suffix (and the cognate -cki and -dzki) comprise some 35% of the 1000 most popular Polish names. Where did this kind of name come from and what does it tell us about Poland?
The Polish -ski suffix was originally used to denote topographic location or possessive relation. Thus, the oldest of these names, which started to spread in Poland around the 13th century, signify that their bearers harked from a certain locale: Tarnowski is from Tarnów, Chomętowski from Chomątów, Brzeziński from Brzezie, etc.
More: http://culture.pl/en/article/a-foreigners-guide-to-polish-surnames