Kowalski (Polish pronunciation: [kɔˈvalskʲi]; feminine: Kowalska, plural: Kowalscy) is the second most common surname in Poland (140,471 people in 2009).[1] Kowalski surname is derived from the word Kowal, meaning "[black]smith".
"Jan Kowalski" is a name that is used as a placeholder name in Poland in the meaning of "Average Joe", similar to "John Smith", its rough English-language equivalent, in English-speaking countries. (though a more direct translation would be "John Smithson").
Notable people
- Alexander Kowalski (1902–1940), Polish ice hockey player killed in the Katyn massacre
- Aleksander Kowalski, Polish Nordic combined skier
- Aleksander Kowalski (1908–1951), Polish trade union activist
- Alexander Kowalski (musician) (born 1978), German DJ, electronic music artist
- Alfred Kowalski-Wierusz (1849–1915), Polish painter
- Aneta Kowalska (born 1982), Polish pair skater
- Bernard Louis Kowalski (1929–2007), American director
- Bolesław Kowalski (1915–1944), Polish trade union activist and underground fighter (AL)
- Bronisława Kowalska, Polish politician
- Daniel Kowalski (born 1975), Australian Olympic swimmer
- Emmanuel D. Kowalski (born 1969), French historian and writer
- Faustyna Kowalska, Polish Catholic nun and mystic
- Franciszek Kowalski (1799–1862), Polish poet, insurgent of the November Uprising
- Frank Kowalski (1907–1974), American US Army soldier and United States Representative
- Grzegorz Kowalski (disambiguation)
- James Kowalski (born 1954), United States Air Force Lieutenant General, Commander of Air Force Global Strike Command Barksdale AFB
- Janusz Kowalski (born 1952), Polish cyclist
- Jerzy Kowalski (1893–1948), Polish writer and classical philologist
- Jerzy Bogdan Kowalski (1923-2017), Polish professor of theory of state and law
- Jochen Kowalski (born 1954), German singer
- John Kowalski (born c. 1951), American soccer coach
- Józef Kowalski (1900–2013), Polish supercentenarian and second-to-last Polish-Soviet war veteran
- Józef Kowalski (1911–1942), Polish Roman Catholic priest killed at Auschwitz, beatified
- Józef Wierusz-Kowalski (1866–1927), Polish physicist and diplomat
- Kasia Kowalska (born 1973), Polish pop rock singer and songwriter
- Katarzyna Kowalska (born 1985), Polish long distance runner
- Kazimierz Kowalski (1925–2007), Polish professor of zoology, ordination, mammals paleontology
- Kazimierz Maria Kowalski (born 1926), Polish writer and journalist
- Ken Kowalski (born 1945), Canadian politician
- Kerstin Kowalski (born 1976), German rower
- Ludwik Kowalski (born 1931), Polish-American nuclear physicist and professor emeritus
- Manja Kowalski (born 1976), German rower
- Maria Kowalska, Polish alpine skier
- Marian Albertovich Kowalski (1821–1884), Polish astronomer
- Saint Faustina Kowalska (1905–1938), Catholic saint
- Myron Kowalsky (born 1941), Canadian politician
- Natalia Kowalska (born 1989), Polish racing driver
- Natalia Kowalska (1918–unknown), Polish chess master
- Piotr Kowalski (1927-2004), French-Polish artist
- Richard Kowalski (born 1963), American astronomer
- Robert Kowalski (born 1941), British logician
- Sharon Kowalski, subject of groundbreaking disability and LGBT legal rights case
- Stanisław Kozyr-Kowalski (born 1936), Polish professor of sociology
- Tadeusz Kowalski (1841–1904), Polish agronomist, agricultural activist and educator
- Tadeusz Kowalski (1889–1948), Polish orientalist, expert on Middle East Muslim culture and languages
- Thomas Schmidt-Kowalski (1949–2013), German composer
- William Kowalski (born 1970), American author
- Witold Cezariusz Kowalski (1919-2004), Polish professor of geology
- Wladek Kowalski (AKA "Killer" Kowalski) (1926–2008), Polish-Canadian professional wrestler, trainer
- Władysław Kowalski (politician) (1894–1958), Polish trade union activist, writer and politician (PSL, ZSL)
- Włodzimierz Tadeusz Kowalski (1935-1990), Polish professor of modern history and publicist
- Yelizaveta Kovalskaya (1851–1943), Russian revolutionary
Fictional characters
- Kowalski, character in the 1991 parody film Hot Shots!, played by Kristy Swanson
- Kowalski, main character in the 1971 film Vanishing Point, played by Barry Newman
- Kowalski, character in the PlayStation 2 game Syphon Filter 2
- Kowalski, character in Madagascar and the TV series The Penguins of Madagascar
- Mr Kowalski, original owner of Kowalski's, Rosie Duncan's florist store in the novel Fairytale of New York
- Mrs. Kowalski, Miriam Margolyes' character in the film How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008)
- Baby Kowalski, supporting character in The Ren & Stimpy Show
- Benjamin "Ben" Kowalski in the comic series Templar, Arizona
- Major Charles Kawalsky, a character in the science fiction movie Stargate and subsequent television series Stargate SG-1
- Dick Kowalsky, character in the French animated series Funky Cops (2003)
- Jacob Kowalski, Dan Fogler's character in the film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2016)
- Joe Kowalski, character in SIGMA Force book series by author James Rollins
- Kitty Kowalski, Lex Luthor's companion in 2006 film Superman Returns, played by Parker Posey
- Leon Kowalski, character in the 1982 film Blade Runner played by Brion James
- Matt Kowalsky, George Clooney's character in the movie Gravity
- Peter "Petey" Kowalski in the video game Bully
- Private Kowalski, character in the video game Fallout: New Vegas
- Roch Kowalski, character in Sienkiewicz's novel With Fire and Sword
- Roxanne Kowalski, Daryl Hannah's character in Roxanne, the 1987 remake of Cyrano de Bergerac with Steve Martin[2][3]
- Seaman Kowalski, crewman assigned aboard the submarine SSRN Seaview, on the 1964–68 TV series Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, played by Del Monroe
- Sergei Kowalski, the titular character in the Spaghetti Western The Mercenary, played by Franco Nero.
- Sgt. Kowalski, character in Raising Arizona
- Sgt. Kowalski, character in video game Call of Duty 3
- Sophie Kowalski, Marion Cotillard's character in the 2005 French film Jeux d'Enfants, also known by its English title, Love Me If You Dare
- Stanley and Stella Kowalski, characters in the Pulitzer Prize–winning play by Tennessee Williams and 1951 film, A Streetcar Named Desire
- Detective Stanley Raymond Kowalski, character in the Gemini Award–winning television series Due South (named after the above Streetcar character)
- Steve Kowalski, character in the 2007 film Devil's Diary
- Viktor Kowalski, member of the OAS in The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Forsyth
- Walt Kowalski, protagonist of the 2008 film Gran Torino played by Clint Eastwood
See also
- All pages with titles containing Kowalski
- All pages with titles containing Kowalska
References
- ^ Ministry of Interior (Poland). Statystyka najpopularniejszych nazwisk występujących w Polsce in 2009 Archived 2013-09-28 at the Wayback Machine (The most popular surnames in Poland in 2009). Retrieved 2013-02-28.
- ^ "Roxanne (1987)". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
- ^ Maslin, Janet. "Roxanne (1987)". The New York Times. Retrieved May 22, 2010.