Misplaced Pages

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The Polish people, who in 1930 had a world-wide population of some 22 million, experienced a major population surge in the 1960s and by 2005 had attained a world-wide population of over 45 million.

This is a partial list of people who made an impact on a society (whether in a good or bad way) and are considered to be Poles by being in any way connected to the Polish (former or current land), language, ethnicity, or culture. In the interest of fairness and accuracy, the minority of persons of mixed heritage have their complete ancestries credited.

This list has been subject to dispute as to which persons may properly be listed as Poles, due to Polish terrorities having been at various times occupied by foreign countries, and due to the spirited discussions of ethnic identity across the world. Indicating ancestry is meant to encourage civility in discussions of such often complex questions. Members of the Misplaced Pages community are, of course, free and encouraged to offer their own approaches to the common effort.

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items.

Science

Astronomy

• Franciszek Armiński.
• Albert Brudzewski.
• Tadeusz Banachiewicz.
• Władysław Dziewulski.
• Felicjan Kępiński.
• Mikołaj Kopernik (Nicholas Copernicus)
• Kazimierz Kordylewski.
• Marian Albertovich Kowalski.
• Aleksander Wolszczan.
• Jan Heweliusz.
• Bohdan Paczyński.
• Konrad Rudnicki.
• Wiesław Wiśniewski.

Biology

• Joseph Babiński, physician
• Edmund Biernacki, physician

• Czesław Bieżanko, famous entomologist
• Adam Gruca, surgeon
• Stanisław Burzyński, famous physician
• Tytus Chałubiński, physician
• Napoleon Cybulski, famous neurophysiologist
• Maria Antonina Czaplicka, anthropologist
• Wiktor Dega, revolutionary surgeon
• August Dehnel, biologist
• Jozef Dietl, physician
• Władysław Taczanowski, zoologist
• Marian Gieszczykiewicz, physican
• Ryszard Gryglewski, physician
• Emil Godlewski, embryologist
• Ludwik Hirszfeld, microbiologist
• Walery Jaworski, physician
• Karol Marcinkowski, physician
• Stefan Kopec, biologist
• Rudolf Weigl, biologist
• Jan Czekanowski, anthropologist
• Feliks Paweł Jarocki, zoologist
• Marek Kotański, psychologist
• Zbigniew Kabata, biologist

• Hilary Koprowski, famous biologist
• Andrzej Wiktor Schally, endocrynologist
• Bolesław Skarżynski, biologist
• Wojciech Jastrzębowski, biologist
• Konstanty Jelski, ornithologist
• Jerzy Konorski, microbiologist
• Tadeusz Krwawicz, medical pioneer
• Marie Elizabeth Zakrzewska, physician
• Adam Prazmowski, microbiologist
• Bronisław Piłsudski, anthropologist
• Zbigniew Religa, cardiologist
• Jozef Rostafinski, biologist
• Andrew Paulukiewichz, biologist
• Eduard Adolf Strasburger, (of German descent) (born in Poland) famous 19th century Botanist
• Jan Sztolcman, ornithologist
• Zbylut Twardowski, physician
• Ferdynand Antoni Ossendowski, biologist

Chemistry

• Józef Boguski.
• Jan Czochralski.
• Maria Skłodowska-Curie.
• Tadeusz Estreicher (with German ancestors).

• Kazimierz Fajans.
• Kazimierz Funk (with German ancestors).
• Antoni Grabowski.
• Roald Safran.
• Sylwester Porowski.
• Wiktor Kemula.
• Stanisław Kostanecki.
• Marek Gatty-Kostyal
• Ignacy Mościcki.
• Jakub Natanson
• Marceli Nencki.
• Ignacy Łukasiewicz.
• Leon Marchlewski.
• Karol Olszewski.
• Tadeusz Reichstein.
• Michał Sędziwój.
• Alina Surmacka-Szczesniak.
• Wojciech Świętosławski.
• Bohdan Szyszkowski.
• Andrzej Tarkowski.
• Józef Zawadzki.
• Jędrzej Śniadecki

Engineering

• Krzysztof Arciszewski, engineer
• Karol Adamiecki, engineer
• Stefan Bryła, engineer
• Romuald Cebertowicz, hydrotechnician
• Mieczysław G. Bekker, built the first moon rover
• Zdzisław Celiński, engineer
• Casimir Gzowski, enginee

• Edward Jan Habich, engineer
• Jacek Jędruch, engineer
• Alfred Korzybski, engineer, mathematician
• Ernest Malinowski, engineer
• Ralph Modjeski, famous bridge builder
• Henryk Magnuski, engineer
• Waclaw Olszak, engineer
• Tytus Maksymilian Huber, engineer
• Walter Golaski, biomedical engineer
• Edmund Obiala, engineer
• Wojciech Rostafiński, NASA engineer
• Kazimierz Siemienowicz, revolutionary engineer
• Avraham Stern, engineer
• Tadeusz Tański, automobile engineer
• Konstantin Tsiolkovski (Konstanty Cioŀkowski), spaceflight pioneer
• Piotr Wilniewczyc, arms constructor
• Stanisław Wigura, aviation engineer
• Jerzy Dąbrowski, aeronautical engineer, designer of the PZL.37 Łoś bomber
• Zygmunt Puławski, aeronautical engineer, designer of the PZL P-11 fighter

Invention

• Jozef Kosacki, engineer, inventor mine detector
• Leo Gerstenzang, inventor Q-Tips
• Stefan Drzewiecki, inventor
• Jozef Piotrowski, inventor
• Janusz Groszkowski, inventor
• Kazimierz Gzowski, inventor
• Rudolf Gundlach, inventor of tank periscope
• Stefan Kudelski, inventor Nagra audio recorders
• Edmund Nowak, inventor
• Jan Szczepanik, famous inventor
• Steve Wozniak "The Woz", American engineer, inventor Apple I Apple II
• Tadeusz Sendzimir, engineer, prolific inventor
• Józef Tykociński, inventor film sound
• Kazimierz Proszyński, inventor of the first cinema camera

Computer Science

• Abraham Lempel
• Adam Osborne (Polish mother)
• Jacek Karpinski
• Antoni Kilinski
• Romuald Marczynski
• Jan Weglarz

Linguists

• Jan Niecisław Baudouin de Courtenay
• Jan Czekanowski
• Jerzy Kuryłowicz
• Jan Miodek
• Jaroslav Rudnyckyj
• Antoni Józef Śmieszek
• Michel Thomas
• Uriel Weinreich
• Anna Wierzbicka
• L. L. Zamenhof (born in Poland of partial Russian descent)

Mathematics

• Stefan Banach.
• Tadeusz Banachiewicz.

• Kazimierz Bartel.
• Karol Borsuk.
• Jacob Bronowski.
• Jan Brożek.
• Albert Brudzewski
• André-Louis Choleski
• Samuel Dickstein.
• Samuel Eilenberg.
• Zygmunt Janiszewski.
• Witold Hurewicz.
• Mark Kac.
• Stefan Kaczmarz.
• Krystyna Trybulec.
• Kazimierz Kuratowski.
• Bronisław Knaster.
• Zdzisław Krygowski.
• Kazimierz Kordylewski.
• Tadeusz Kotarbiński.
• Robert Kowalski.
• Franciszek Leja.
• Stanisław Leśniewski.
• Antoni Łomnicki.
• Stanisław Łojasiewicz.
• Jerzy Łoś.
• Jan Łukasiewicz.

• Benoit Mandelbrot
• Edward Marczewski.
• Józef Marcinkiewicz.
• Stefan Mazurkiewicz.
• Stanisław Mazur.
• Andrzej Mostowski.
• Zenon Mróz.
• Jerzy Spława-Neyman,
• Marcin Poczobutt-Odlanicki.
• Władysław Orlicz.
• Emil Leon Post.
• Józef H. Przytycki.
• Helena Rasiowa.
• Marian Rejewski.
• Jerzy Różycki.
• Christoff Rudolff.
• Stanisław Ruziewicz.
• Czesław Ryll-Nardzewski.
• Stanisław Saks.
• Wacław Sierpiński.
• Roman Sikorski.
• Władysław Ślebodziński.

• Jan Śniadecki.
• Yulian Sokhotski
• Mikhail Subbotin (of Russian origin).
• Włodzimierz Stożek.
• Alfred Tarski.
• Stanisław Ulam.
• Jan Węglarz, computer scientist
• Tadeusz Ważewski.
• Józef Hoëné-Wroński.
• Kazimierz Zarankiewicz.
• Stanisław Zaremba.
• Kazimierz Żorawski.
• Henryk Zygalski.
• Antoni Zygmund

Physics

• Kazimierz Antonowicz.
• Czesław Białobrzeski.
• Georges Charpak, Nobel Prize (1995).
• Jan Kazimierz Danysz.
• Marian Danysz.
• Gabriel Fahrenheit
• James Gimzewski.
• Władysław Gosiewski.
• Leopold Infeld.

• Kazimierz Jabłczyński.
• Aleksander Jabłoński.
• Theodor Kaluza.
• Sylwester Kaliski.
• Józef Kowalski-Wierusz.
• Marian Mięsowicz.
• Stanisław Mrozowski.
• Władysław Natanson
• Georges Nomarski.
• Władysław Opęchowski.
• Jerzy Pniewski.
• Joseph Polchinski.
• Wojciech Rubinowicz.
• Maurycy Pius Rudzki
• Marian Smoluchowski (father of kinetics).
• Adam Sobiczewski.
• Witelo (medieval philosopher and scientist, specialist in optics).
• Frank Wilczek (Nobel Prize, 2004).
• Mieczysław Wolfke (Polish scientist of partial German origin).
• Zygmunt Wróblewski.
• Stanisław Ziemecki.
• Wojciech H. Zurek.

Other

• Henryk Arctowski, scientist, explorer.
• Gerard Ciołek, architect and historian of gardens.
• Jan Czerski, geographer and geologist.
• Aleksander Czekanowski, geologist.
• Kazimierz Dąbrowski, psychologist.
• Ignacy Domeyko, (Belarusian-Polish) geologist.
• Zygmunt Gloger, ethnographer, archeologist, historian.
• Jozef Grzybowski, geologist, paleontologist.
• Tomasz Górecki, archeologist.
• Ludwig Gumplowicz, founder of sociology.
• Mirosław Hermaszewski, the first Polish astronaut.
• Antoni Kępiński, psychiatrist.
• Mieczysław Klimaszewski, geographer, geomorphologist.
• Janusz Korczak, pedagogist.
• Józef Kostrzewski, archeologist, museologist.
• Jan Kubary, anthropologist
• Oskar Lange, economist.
• Henryk Lipszyc, specialist in Japanese culture, translator, embassador of Poland in Tokyo.
• Bronisław Malinowski, Polish-British anthropologist.
• Władysław Markiewicz, sociologist.
• Kazimierz Michałowski, archaeologist.
• Karol Myśliwiec, archaeologist.
• Stanisław Ossowski, sociologist.

• Michael Alfred Peszke, psychiatrist.
• Jan Potocki, linguist, Egyptologist, sociologist.
• Józef Rotblat (Nobel Peace Prize, 1995).
• Stefan Starzyński, economist.
• Antoni Józef Śmieszek, Egyptologist.
• Stanisław of Skarbimierz, political scientist.
• Romuald Schild, archaeologist.
• Tadeusz Sulimirski, archeaologist.
• Paweł Edmund Strzelecki, explorer.
• Paweł Włodkowic, scholar and laywer.
• Edmund Wnuk-Lipiński, sociologist.
• Florian Znaniecki, sociologist.

Music

• Michael Anthony, bass player for Van Halen
• Grażyna Bacewicz, composer
• Edyta Bartosiewicz, singer
• Tadeusz Biernacki conductor, pianist
• Fryderyk Chopin, (French father, Polish mother), composer
• Krzesimir Dębski, composer
• Andrzej Dobrowolski, composer
• Urszula Dudziak, singer
• Anna German, (German-Polish) singer
• Mikołaj Gomołka, composer
• Henryk Górecki, composer
• Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki, composer
• Martyna Jakubowicz, singer
• Anna Jantar, singer
• Adam Jarzębski, composer
• Jan A. P. Kaczmarek, film composer
• Mieczysław Karłowicz, composer
• Wojciech Kilar, composer
• Eugeniusz Knapik, composer
• Krzysztof Komeda, jazz composer
• Włodzimierz Kotoński, composer
• Kasia Kowalska, singer
• Ed Kowalczyk, lead singer for Live
• Gene Krupa, composer
• Natalia Kukulska, singer
• Hanna Kulenty, composer
• Theodor Kullak, composer

• Wanda Landowska, harpsichordist
• Franciszek Lilius, composer
• Karol Lipiński, composer
• Witold Lutosławski, composer
• Ray Manzarek, musician, keyboardist for The Doors
• Krzysztof Meyer, composer
• Carl Mikuli, composer
• Marcin Mielczewski, composer
• Moritz Moszkowski, composer
• Stanisław Moniuszko, composer
• Zygmunt Mycielski, composer
• Michał Kleofas Ogiński, composer
• Napolean Orda
• Ignacy Jan Paderewski, pianist, composer
• Andrzej Panufnik, composer
• Roman Palester, composer
• Krzysztof Penderecki, composer
• Bartłomiej Pękiel, composer
• Edyta Piecha, singer
• Zbigniew Preisner, composer
• Mikołaj z Radomia, Middle Ages composer
• Marcin Rozynek, singer
• Arthur Rubinstein, (Jewish) pianist
• Johnny Rzeznik, musician, lead singer for the Goo Goo Dolls

• Bogusław Schaeffer, composer
• Xaver Scharwenka, composer
• Kazimierz Serock, composer
• Michał Spisak, composer
• Leopold Stokowski, conductor
• Zygmunt Stojowski, composer
• Witold Szalonek, composer
• Wacław z Szamotuł, composer
• Stanisław Sylwester Szarzyński, composer
• Tadeusz Szeligowski, composer
• Władysław Szpilman, (Jewish) pianist
• Karol Szymanowski, (Polish father, Swedish mother) composer
• Paweł Szymański, composer
• Tomasz Stańko, jazz trumpeter
• Barbara Trzetrzelewska, singer
• Piotr Wawrzeniuk, (Ukrainian-Polish) heavy metal drummer and vocalist
• Henryk Wieniawski, (Jewish) composer
• D'Arcy Wretzky, (Ukrainian-Polish) former bass player for The Smashing Pumpkins
• Mikołaj Zieleński, composer

Literature

• Adam Asnyk Positivist
• Agnieszka Lipska Baranowska, author
• Charles Bukowski, Polish-American father, German-born mother, poet, writer.
• Władysław Broniewski, poet
• Joseph Conrad (Teodor Józef Korzeniowski), English writer
• Lucyna Ćwierczakiewiczowa, the first Polish cook book author
• Maria Dąbrowska, novelist
• Johannes Dantiscus (Jan Dantyszek), Latin poet and Prince-Bishop of Warmia
• Tadeusz Dołęga-Mostowicz, novelist
• Jacek Dukaj, science-fiction writer
• Adolf Dygasiński - novelist
• Aleksander Fredro, humorist, artist
• Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński, poet
• Janusz Głowacki - play-writer, non-fiction writer
• Witold Gombrowicz, novelist and drama writer
• Stefan Grabiński
• Zbigniew Herbert, poet
• Paweł Huelle, essayist
• Maria Jasnorzewska-Pawlikowska - poet
• Wincenty Kadłubek political scientist, writer
• Ryszard Kapuściński, writer and journalist
• Jan Kasprowicz poet, translator, essayist
• Jan Kochanowski, poet
• Tadeusz Konwicki

• Zofia Kossak-Szczucka
• Ignacy Krasicki
• Józef Ignacy Kraszewski, famous writer
• Stanisław Lem, science-fiction writer, essayist, philosopher
• Stanisław Lubieniecki writer, astronomer
• Ewa Lipska - poet
• Adam Mickiewicz, poet
• Grazyna Miller, poet, translator, journalist
• Czesław Miłosz, Polish poet, Nobel Prize in Literature (1980).
• Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski poet, humanist
• Adam Naruszewicz poet, translator, historian
• Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz poet, playwright, independence activist
• Cyprian Kamil Norwid, poet
• Eliza Orzeszkowa Positivist, writer
• Agnieszka Osiecka - poet
• Ferdynand Antoni Ossendowski, writer
• Sergiusz Piasecki, one of the most famous Polish writers
• Krzysztof Piesiewicz, screenwriter and politician
• Halina Poświatowska- poet
• Bolesław Prus, journalist, short-story writer, novelist.
• Tomasz Łubieński - play-writer, esseist
• Ksawery Pruszyński - non-fiction writer
• Mikołaj Rej
• Władysław Reymont, writer, Nobel Prize in Literature (1924).

• Maria Rodziewiczówna - novelist
• Andrzej Sapkowski, fantasy writer
• Piotr Skarga poet, writer, humanist
• Joanna Siedlecka, noc-fiction writer
• Henryk Sienkiewicz, writer, Nobel Prize in Literature (1905).
• Jędrzej Śniadecki terminologist, writer
• Wisława Szymborska, Polish poet, Nobel Prize in Literature (1996).
• Isaac Bashevis Singer, writer, Nobel Prize in Literature (1966).
• Edward Stachura.
• Olga Tokarczuk, (Polish-Ukrainian) writer
• Jan Twardowski,poet
• Kornel Ujejski poet
• Barbara Wachowicz - non fiction writer
• Stanisław Wyspiański,, painter and writer
• Rafał A. Ziemkiewicz, writer
• Franciszek Zabłocki, comic dramatist and satirist
• Janusz A. Zajdel, science-fiction writer
• Gabriela Zapolska, novelist
• Aleksandra Ziolkowska-Boehm, (part-German) non-fiction writer
• Stefan Żeromski, novelist
• Eugeniusz Żytomirski, novelist

Philosophy

• Kazimierz Ajdukiewicz
• Roman Ingarden
• Leszek Kołakowski
• Tadeusz Kotarbiński

• Józef Maria Bocheński
• Leon Chwistek
• August Cieszkowski
• Wawrzyniec Grzymała Goślicki
• Hugo Kołłątaj
• Tadeusz Kotarbiński
• Karol Libelt
• Krzysztof Michalski
• Barbara Skarga
• Stanisław Staszic
• Alfred Tarski
• Władysław Tatarkiewicz
• Józef Tischner
• Kazimierz Twardowski
• Cezary Wodziński

Fine arts

• Magdalena Abakanowicz, sculptor
• Paweł Althamer
• Mirosław Bałka
• Krzysztof Bednarski, sculptor
• Christian Boltanski.
• Olga Boznańska, painter.
• Józef Brandt, painter.
• Józef Marian Chełmoński, painter.
• Zbigniew Dłubak, painter.
• Andrzej Dłużniewski
• Xawery Dunikowski, sculptor.
• Stefan Gierowski, painter.
• Wojciech Fangor, painter.
• Tadeusz Kantor, (1915-1990) painter, theatre director.
• Katarzyna Kobro, sculptor.
• Wojciech Kossak, painter.
• Katarzyna Kozyra, video artist.
• Zofia Kulik, performer.

• Tamara de Lempicka, painter.
• Zbigniew Lengren, cartoonist and illustrator.
• Zbigniew Libera
• Jan Matejko, painter
• Teresa Murak, sculptor
• Jerzy Nowosielski, painter
• Roman Opałka, painter
• Aleksander Orłowski, painter
• Joanna Rajkowska
• Jan Sawka, cartoonist
• Wit Stwosz, medieval sculptor
• Henryk Stażewski, painter
• Władysław Strzemiński, painter
• Józef Szajna, sculptor, scenography designer, theatre director
• Leon Tarasewicz, painter

• Ryszard Winiarski, painter.
• Stanisław Ignacy Witkiewicz, painter.
• Leon Wyczółkowski, painter.
• Stanisław Wyspiańskim painter.
• Jan Zamoyski, painter
• Korczak Ziołkowski, sculptor.
• Artur Żmijewski.

Entertainment

• Piotr Adamczyk, actor
• Józef Arkusz, film director
• Andrzej Bartkowiak (born in 1950 in Łódź, Poland), cinematographer, director and actor.
• Cliff Bleszinski, nicknamed CliffyB, a lead designer for the successful game development company Epic Games.
• Eugeniusz Bodo, singer and actor
• Charles Bronson, (Ukrainian? or Tatar father?, Polish mother).
• Jacob Bronowski.
• Zbigniew Cybulski, actor
• Ewa Demarczyk, actress, poetry singer
• Dagmara Dominczyk, actress
• Katarzyna Figura, actress
• Marzena Godecki, actress
• Samuel Goldwyn, (Jewish) film producer
• Ilona Grabarczyk, filmmaker
• Gilda Gray, Marianna Winchalaska (or Michalski) ) actress, dancer, vaudeville performer
• Jerzy Grotowski, theatre reformer
• Klaus Kinski, (Born Nikolaus Karl Günther Nakszynski to a Polish-German father and a German mother in Zoppot, now Sopot, Poland)
• Nastassja Kinski (born Nastassja Nakszynski on January 24, 1961) is a German-born actress of Polish ancestry, and the daughter of the late Polish-German actor Klaus Kinski.

• Agnieszka Holland, film director
• Jacek Kaczmarski, protest songwriter and singer
• Jan Kiepura, singer and actor
• Krzysztof Kieślowski, film director
• Olek Krupa, actor
• Kazimierz Kutz, (part German?) film director
• Bogusław Linda, actor
• Piotr Józef Andrzejewski, actor known as Peter J. Lucas
• Helena Modrzejewska, actress (born Helena Modjeska)
• Pola Negri, actress
• Wacław Niżyński (Vaslav Nijinsky), ballet dancer and choreographer
• Teresa Orłowski, adult movie performer and producer
• Joanna Pacula, actress
• Ludwika Paleta, Polish-Mexican actress
• Dominika Peczynski, model and singer in the band Army of Lovers
• Roman Polański, (born Rajmund Liebling) (Catholic mother, Jewish father) film director and actor
• Wojciech Pszoniak, actor of Comedie Francaise
• Daniel Olbrychski, actor
• Jerzy Owsiak, broadcaster
• Izabella Scorupco, actress and singer
• Jerzy Skolimowski, film director
• Leelee Sobieski, American film actress, (French-born Polish father, Jewish mother)
• Ladislas Starevich properly: Władysław Starewicz, film director, stop-motion animator
• Andrzej Wajda, film director
• Albert, Harry and Sam Warner (Jewish)
• Lillian Wilczkowsky, (Jewish) actress known as Chesty Morgan
• Krzysztof Zanussi, (Part Italian?) film producer
• Andrzej Żuławski, film director

Royalty

• Świętosława (Gunhild), daughter of Mieszko I of Poland, mother of Canute the Great, King of England, Denmark and Norway.
• Bolesław I the Brave, first King of Poland.
• Henryk II the Pious, senior duke of Poland, commander of Polish forces in the Battle of Legnica.
• Bolesław III Wrymouth.
• Władysław I the Elbow-high.
• Kazimierz III the Great.
• Jadwiga Angevin.
• Władysław II Jagiełło.
• Władysław III of Varna (Ulászló I), King of Poland and Hungary.
• Kazimierz IV Jagiellon, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, victor in the Thirteen Years' War (1454-1466).
• Aleksandra Lisowska (Khourrem, wife of Suleiman the Magnificent).
• Stefan Batory.
• Jan III Sobieski, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, victor at the Battle of Vienna.
• Stanisław Leszczyński, King of Poland and Duke of Lorraine.
• Maria Leszczyńska, consort of Louis XV, King of France.
• Stanisław August Poniatowski.

Nobility (szlachta)

See list of szlachta. Victor Przybyla

Sports

See list of Polish sports players

• Bronko Nagurski, american football player (Born in Canada of Polish parents)

• Halina Konopacka, athlete
• Władysław Kozakiewicz, athlete
• Janusz Kusociński, athlete
• Bronisław Malinowski, athlete
• Józef Schmidt, athlete
• Tadeusz Ślusarski, athlete
• Irena Szewińska, athlete
• Stanisława Walasiewicz, athlete
• Jacek Wszoła, athlete
• Robert Korzeniowski, athlete
• Stan Coveleski, baseball player (Polish origin)
• Bill Mazeroski, baseball player (Polish origin)
• Stan Musial, baseball player (Polish origin)
• Phil Niekro, baseball player (Polish origin)
• Al Simmons, baseball player (Aloysius Szymański, polish origin)
• Carol Blazejowski, basketball player (Polish origin)
• Tom Gola, basketball player (Polish origin)
• Mike Krzyzewski, basketball player (Polish origin)
• Jerzy Kukuczka, climber
• Wanda Rutkiewicz, climber
• Zenon Jaskuła, cycler
• Robert Kubica, racing driver
• Alan Kulwicki, NASCAR driver (Polish origin)
• Jerzy Pawłowski, fencer
• Mariusz Czerkawski, ice hockey player
• Krzysztof Oliwa, ice hockey player
• Robert Sycz, rower
• Mateusz Kusznierewicz, sailor
• Adam Małysz, ski jumper
• Tomasz Sikora, biathlete
• Zbigniew Boniek, soccer player
• Kazimierz Deyna, soccer player
• Jerzy Dudek, soccer player
• Grzegorz Lato, soccer player
• Włodzimierz Lubański, soccer player
• Mariusz Pudzianowski, strongman
• Otylia Jędrzejczak, swimmer
• Miroslav Klose, (German father) soccer player (born in Poland)
• Paweł Korzeniowski, swimmer
• Wojtek Fibak, tennis player
• Frank Parker, tennis player (Franciszek Pajkowski, polish origin)
• Waldemar Baszanowski, weightlifter
• Akiba Rubinstein, chessplayer
• Jan Tomaszewski, soccer player
• Miguel Najdorf, chessplayer
• Wojtek Wolski - Colorado Avalanche Prospect

Boxing

• Aleksy Antkiewicz, Polish boxer
• Bobby Czyz, Polish-American boxer
• Andrzej Gołota, Polish boxer
• Stanisław Kiecal (known as Stanley Ketchel), Polish-American boxer
• Jerzy Kulej, Polish boxer
• Dariusz Michalczewski, boxer, nickname: "Tiger" (born on May 5, 1968 in Gdańsk, Poland)
• Zbigniew Pietrzykowski, Polish boxer
• Stanley Poreda, Polish-American boxer, known as the Jersey City Pole or the Polish Giant.
• Teddy Yarosz, boxer
• Tony Zale, boxer (real name Anthony Florian Zaleski), boxer of Polish origin. Nicknamed: "The man of steel.")

Football

• Danny Abramowicz (Jewish origin)
• Pete Banaszak
• Steve Bartkowski
• Zeke Bratkowski
• Bob Brudzinski
• Lou Creekmur
• Ziggy Czarobski
• Mike Ditka
• Forest Evashevski
• Frank Gatski
• Jim Grabowski
• Jack Ham
• Leon Hart
• Sebastian Janikowski - kicker for the Oakland Raiders
• Vic Janowicz
• Ron Jaworski (Ronald "Jaws" Jaworski), (Polish-Catholic parents) Polish-American football player
• Joe and Dan Klecko
• Ed Klewicki
• Scott Kowalkowski
• Frank Kush
• Ted Kwalick
• Johnny Lujack
• John Matuszak
• Ted Marchibroda
• Lou Michaels
• Walt Michaels
• Richard Modzelewski
• Mike Munchak
• Bill Osmanski
• Frank Piekarski
• Bob Skoronski
• Hank Stram His Polish-born father Henry Wilczek changed name.
• Richard Szymanski
• Frank Szymanski
• Frank Tripucka
• Steve Wisnewski
• Alex Wojciechowicz

Wrestling

• Alan Rogowski (better known by his stage name of Ole Anderson)
• Moose Cholak
• Reginald "The Crusher" Lisowski
• Walter "Killer" Kowalski
• "Polish Power" Ivan Putski
• Scott Putski
• Stan Stasiak, professional wrestler
• Rob Szatkowski, professional wrestler (better known by his stage name of Rob Van Dam)
• Stanley Zbyszko, professional wrestler
• "Living Legend" Larry Zbyszko

Military

• Józef Bem, military commander, commander-in-chief of Hungarian army (1849)
• Jan Karol Chodkiewicz, military commander, victor from Kircholm
• Jerzy Pajaczkowski-Dydynski, (1894-2005), 111, - Polish soldier of World War I and of the 1920-1921 Polish War against Soviet Russia. He was the oldest man in the UK at the time of his death.
• Jarosław Dąbrowski, military commander during the January Uprising and the Paris Commune
• Henryk Dembiński, military commander in the November Uprising and the Hungarian uprising of 1849
• Józef Haller, (Polish-German) politician, commander of the Polish Army in France during WWI
• Jan Nowak-Jezioranski, (1913-2005) - Polish journalist and WW2 hero
• Andrzej Karwowski - Polish general during Kościuszko's Uprising
• Franciszek Karwowski (1896-2005), 109, - Polish soldier
• Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski, commander of the Home Army during the Warsaw Uprising
• Tadeusz Kościuszko, (born in modern day Belarus) commander and revolutionist
• Ryszard Kukliński, Polish Army Colonel, anti-communist spy
• Stanisław Maczek, (1892-1994), 102, commander of the Polish Armoured Division, later C-i-C of the Polish forces in exile after WWII
• Stanisław Sosabowski, commander of the Polish 1st Independent Parachute Brigade, which saw action at Arnhem during Operation Market Garden
• Kazimierz Pułaski, military commander
• Hyman G. Rickover, U.S. Navy Admiral, Father of the Nuclear Navy
• Konstantin Rokossovsky, (born Konstanty Rokossowski) Marshall of the Soviet Union and Polish defense minister (Polish father, Russian mother)
• Stefan Rowecki, military commander, commander-in-chief of the Home Army
• Wladyslaw Sikorski
• Edward Rydz-Śmigły, military commander, successful in the Polish-Bolshevik war, C-i-C of the Polish Army in the September Campaign
• Aleksander Lisowski, commander of Lisowczycy
• Stanisław Żółkiewski, chancellor of Poland, military commander, conqueror of Moscow

Politics and diplomacy

• Józef Beck
• Marek Belka, former director of economic policy in the interim coalition administration of Iraq & Prime Minister

• Zbigniew Brzeziński , political scientist, advisor of US president Jimmy Carter
• Felix Dzerzhinsky, the founder of the Bolshevik secret police, the Cheka
• Krzysztof Grzymułtowski, diplomat and voivod of Poznań, author of the Eternal Peace Treaty with Russia
• Edward Gierek, leader of communist Poland(1970-1980)
• Wojciech Jaruzelski, the last leader of communist Poland
• Leon Jaworski, (Polish-Austrian-American) special prosecutor during the Watergate Scandal
• Wojciech Korfanty, leader Silesians during Third Silesian Uprising
• Stanislav Kosior (Stanisław Kosior), Soviet politician
• Aleksander Kwaśniewski, President of Poland
• Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, Prime Minister of Poland
• Tadeusz Mazowiecki, politician, former polish prime minister
• Janusz Onyszkiewicz, vice-president of European Parliament
• Shimon Peres, Israeli politican
• Józef Piłsudski, statesman, politician and marshall
• Adam Rapacki, politician
• Jacek Saryusz-Wolski, vice-president of European Parliament
• Lech Wałęsa, trade unionist who started dismantling of the Soviet bloc
• Edward Werner, (born in Poland to parents of German origin) vice-Minister of Finance, and Polish diplomat during World War II
• Wincenty Witos, politician of the agrarian party

Holocaust resistors

• Mordechaj Anielewicz Military Leader of Warsaw Ghetto Uprising
• Jan Karski
• Zofia Kossak-Szczucka
• Witold Pilecki
• Irena Sendlerowa
• Henryk Sławik Polish diplomat

Religion

• Baal Shem Tov,
• Saint Bogumił of Dobrow
• Casimir Jagiełło, (Polish-Lithuanian descent) (grandson of Władysław II Jagiełło)
• Adam (Albert) Chmielowski,
• Augusto Czartoryski, Beatified Prince
• Stanisław Dziwisz,
• Jacob Frank
• Saint Hyacinth,
• Marian Cardinal Jaworski, (Polish cardinal and archbishop)

• Karol Józef Wojtyła, John Paul II, Pope (mother of Jewish extraction)
• Saint Raphael Kalinowski
• Jan Kanty,
• Saint Kinga,
• Maksymilian Maria Kolbe,
• Hugo Kołłątaj, priest, statesman
• Stanislaus Kostka,
• Faustyna Kowalska,
• Stanislaus of Szczepanów,
• Stefan Cardinal Wyszyński,

Other

• Paul Austin, TPF specialist and poet
• Florian Ceynowa
• Franciszek Czapek, watchmaker
• Michał Drzymała
• Max Factor, producer of cosmetics ---This is not a person but a company.
• [[Wincenty Gostkowski, watchmaker
• Antoni Patek, watchmaker
• Benedict the Pole (Benedictus Polonus, Benedykt Polak), explorer
• Marek Kamiński, adventure traveller
• Ryszard Kukliński, (1930-2004) CIA masterspy during the Cold War
• Daniel Libeskind, architect
• Miguel Najdorf, chess player
• Witold Rybczynski - Polish-Canadian, architect and journalist
• Krystyna Skarbek, SOE heroine of WW II
• Arkadiusz Weremczuk (Ukrainian-Polish) fashion designer, known as Arkadius
• Magdalena Wróbel, top model
• Wilfrid Michael Voynich, (Polish born German or Russian) bibliophile
• Janusz Żurakowski, WW II fighter pilot and Avro Arrow test pilot

Criminal persons

• Władysław Mazurkiewicz, serial killer
• Severin Antoniovich Klosowski, (Russian-Polish?)Jack the Ripper suspect
• Leon Czolgosz (Russian-Polish), assassin of U.S. President William McKinley
• Joseph Filkowski, mobster
• Paul Jarwarski, mobster
• Theodore Kaczynski, (Polish name) the Unabomber
• Richard Kuklinski, (born April 11, 1935), mobster
• Joseph Kuklinski, younger brother of Richard Kuklinski, Murderer
• Julian Koltun, serial killer
• Philip Carl Jablonski, (Polish name), serial killer
• Warren Glowatski, (Polish name), gang-member
• Karla Homolka, (Polish or Czech name), serial killer accomplice
• Eddie Leonski, (Polish or Polish Jewish name) - the Brownout Strangler
• George "Bugs" Moran, (Polish-Irish) mobster
• Stanislaw Modzieliewski, serial killer
• Zdzislaw Marchwicki, serial killer
• Leszek Pekalski, serial killer
• Joseph Stazek, mobster
• Thomas Paluzynski, (Polish name), (alias Pallas), mobster, member of the gang led by Paul Jarwarski
• Lucian Staniak, serial killer - dubbed "The Red Spider" and "The Red Ripper".
• Hymie Weiss, (half-Polish? half-Jewish?) (born Earl Wojciechowski) mobster

Controversial persons

• Ignacy Hryniewiecki, assassin of Tsar Alexander II of Russia
• Feliks Dzierzynski, (Part Russian or Tatar?) Cheka founder

SS Officers of Partial Polish heritage, ethnicity or descent

• Bronislaw Kaminski, (1899-1944) (SS Officer) (to a Polish father and German mother in Tsarist Russia) (born Bronislaw Vladislavovich Kaminski)
• Otto Skorzeny, (SS Officer) (born into a middle-class Austrian family of Polish heritage) (June 12, 1908 - July 5, 1975)

Germans born on current Polish land

• Werner von Blomberg (Nazi Leader) (September 2, 1878 - March 22, 1946) (born in Stargard, Pomerania, Germany (now Stargard Szczecinski, Poland))
• Paul von Hindenburg (full name Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg) (October 2, 1847 – August 2, 1934) born in what was then Posen (now Poznań) on Podgorna street (Podgorna street in Poznan, Poland), located in the Kingdom of Prussia
• Walther Nernst
• Maria Goeppert
• Klaus von Klitzing
• Manfred von Richthofen, the Red Baron

Heroes and Freedom fighters

• Emilia Plater (family of distant German origin)
• Józef Sowiński
• Ordon

Legendary persons

• John of Kolno (Jan z Kolna, Johannes Scolnus or Scolvus), (semi?)legendary explorer and discoverer of America before Columbus (1476)
• Janek Wiśniewski Freedom fighter, hero of riots in Gdynia 1970.
• Canute the Great (his mother was Partly Polish) King of Denmark, England, and Norway

Fictional characters

• Konrad Wallenrod
• William Joseph Blazkowicz of Wolfenstein 3d
• Stanley Kowalski
• Cliff Yablonski

See also

• Culture of Poland
• List of Polish Americans
• Anti-Polonism
• Ethnic Poles
• Polonia
• List of Polish composers
• List of Polish language poets
• List of Polish Jews
• Anti-Semitism
• List of Polish painters
• List of people by EU state
• List of people by nationality
• List of Silesians
• Wikiproject:List of Poles

• Lists of people by nationality
• Polish people