Polish Surnames · Americanized names
Almost every Polish-American family has heard that the name was changed at Ellis Island. It almost never was. The name usually changed later, in America, and the records that show when and how are the ones that lead back to Poland.
The Ellis Island myth
Inspectors at Ellis Island did not write down names. The passenger manifest was prepared at the port of departure, in Hamburg, Bremen, Rotterdam or Antwerp, by shipping line clerks working from the passenger’s ticket and papers, often in the passenger’s own language. At Ellis Island the inspector checked each person against the manifest that was already there. Many inspectors spoke several languages, and interpreters were on hand.
Spelling on the manifest can still be poor, because the clerk wrote what he heard or read, and Polish sounds are hard for German and Dutch clerks. But the name on the manifest is the name the immigrant traveled under, not a new American one.
When names actually changed
- At work and school. Foremen and teachers who could not pronounce Szczepański wrote Shepanski, and the family often adopted it.
- By the family’s own choice. Many immigrants and their children changed the name to sound American, especially after the First World War and during the Depression, when a Polish name could cost a job.
- At naturalization. After 1906 the petition for naturalization allowed a formal change of name by court order, noted on the petition and the certificate.
- In the second generation. American-born children often shortened or respelled the name that their parents kept.
Common patterns
| Pattern | Polish name | American form |
|---|---|---|
| Polish letters dropped | Wiśniewski, Wójcik | Wisniewski, Wojcik |
| Spelled as it sounds | Szczepański, Dąbrowski | Shepanski, Dombrowski |
| Shortened | Kowalczyk, Pietrzykowski | Kowal, Pietrzyk |
| -ski ending dropped or changed | Nowakowski, Kaminski | Novak, Kaminsky or Kamin |
| Translated | Kowalski, Krawczyk, Młynarczyk | Smith, Taylor, Miller |
| Replaced entirely | Grzegorzewski | Gregory |
Translated and replaced names are the hardest, because nothing in the new name points back to the old one. They are also the ones that most need documentary proof.
Records that show the original name
- the naturalization petition, which records the name at arrival and any name changed by the court
- the passenger manifest and the Certificate of Arrival in the naturalization file
- the Social Security application (SS-5), which asks for other names used
- Polish-American parish registers, where priests usually wrote the Polish form
- draft cards of 1917 and 1942 and the 1940 alien registration
- obituaries in the Polish-language press, which often use the original name
First names changed too
Wojciech became Albert, Władysław became Walter, Bronisława became Bernice and Stanisław became Stanley. Our guide to Polish first names and their English equivalents lists the usual pairs, which matter as much as the surname when you search Polish indexes.
If the family says the name was changed at Ellis Island, find the manifest first. It will almost always show the original Polish name, and that is the name to search in Poland.
How we can help
Immigration & Passenger Records follows a family through every American record to recover the original name and the village, and Ancestral Village Identification takes it back to the Polish parish.
Keep reading
Why the village name on your ancestor’s papers is probably wrong