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 famous Polish or Polish-speaking/writing persons, or persons born on historically Polish soil. In the interest of fairness and accuracy, a minority of persons of mixed heritage have their respective 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, in recent years, of ethnic identity in the United States, Canada, the Americas, Europe, Asia, Oceania and Africa. Indicating ancestry is meant to encourage civility in discussions of such often complex questions. Members of the Wikipedia community are, of course, free and encouraged to offer their own approaches to the common effort.
Please, add names to the list in particular categories in alphabetical order. Here is Polish alphabet: aąbcćdeęfghijklłmnńoópqrsśtuvwxyzźż.
This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. |
History
- Jan Długosz — medieval historian of Poland.
- Szymon Okolski (1580-1653) - historian, theologian, specialist in Polish heraldry
- Władysław Kozaczuk — military and intelligence historian of the World War II era.
- Tadeusz Manteuffel — medievalist.
- Michael Alfred Peszke — historian of the Polish Armed Forces in World War II.
- Władysław Tatarkiewicz — historian of philosophy and esthetics.
- Richard Woytak — historian of the World War II era.
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.
- Adam Prazmowski
- 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
- Wojciech Jastrzębowski, biologist
- Konstanty Jelski, ornithologist
- Jerzy Konorski, microbiologist
- Tadeusz Krwawicz, medical pioneer
- Marie Elizabeth Zakrzewska, physician
- Andrew Paulukiewichz, biologist
- Bronisław Piłsudski, anthropologist
- Zbigniew Religa, cardiologist
- Józef Rostafiński, biologist
- Bolesław Skarżynski, 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
- Adolf Joszt
- 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
- Edward Sucharda
- Alina Surmacka-Szczesniak
- Wojciech Świętosławski
- Bohdan Szyszkowski
- Andrzej Tarkowski
- Józef Zawadzki
- Jędrzej Śniadecki
Engineering
- Karol Adamiecki, engineer
- Krzysztof Arciszewski, 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
- Tytus Maksymilian Huber, engineer
- Edmund Obiala, engineer
- Waclaw Olszak, engineer
- Walter Golaski, biomedical 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
- Henry Millicer, aviator 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
- Casimir Zeglen, first bullet-proof vest
Computer Science
- Abraham Lempel
- Adam Osborne (Polish mother)
- Jacek Karpinski
- Antoni Kilinski
- Romuald Marczynski
- Stanisław Radziszowski
- 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
- Kazimierz Bartel
- Karol Borsuk
- Jacob Bronowski
- Jan Brożek
- Albert Brudzewski
- André-Louis Choleski
- 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
- Józef H. Przytycki
- Helena Rasiowa
- Marian Rejewski — broke the World War II-era German Enigma machine cipher
- Jerzy Różycki — collaborated with Marian Rejewski on solving Enigma ciphers
- Christoff Rudolff
- Stanisław Ruziewicz
- Czesław Ryll-Nardzewski
- Stanisław Saks
- Wacław Sierpiński
- Roman Sikorski
- Władysław Ślebodziński
- Jan Śniadecki
- Yulian Sokhotski
- Włodzimierz Stożek
- Mikhail Subbotin (of Russian origin)
- Alfred Tarski
- Stanisław Ulam
- Jan Węglarz, computer scientist
- Tadeusz Ważewski
- Józef Hoëné-Wroński
- Kazimierz Zarankiewicz
- Stanisław Zaremba
- Kazimierz Żorawski
- Henryk Zygalski — collaborated with Marian Rejewski on solving Enigma ciphers
- Antoni Zygmund
Physics
- Kazimierz Antonowicz
- Czesław Białobrzeski
- Georges Charpak, Nobel Prize (1995)
- Jan Kazimierz Danysz
- Marian Danysz
- Gabriel Fahrenheit, (German origin)
- 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)
- Romuald Schild, archaeologist
- Stefan Starzyński, economist
- Antoni Józef Śmieszek, Egyptologist
- Stanisław of Skarbimierz, political scientist
- 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
- Ed Kowalczyk, lead singer for Live
- Kasia Kowalska, singer
- 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
- Roman Palester, composer
- Andrzej Panufnik, 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
- Tomasz Stańko, jazz trumpeter
- 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
- 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
- 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 — author of Fables and Parables and of the first Polish novel.
- Józef Ignacy Kraszewski, famous writer
- Stanisław Lem, science-fiction writer, essayist, philosopher
- Ewa Lipska - poet
- Stanisław Lubieniecki writer, astronomer
- Tomasz Łubieński - play-writer, esseist
- 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
- Maria Pawlikowska-Jasnorzewska - poet
- Sergiusz Piasecki, one of the most famous Polish writers
- Krzysztof Piesiewicz, screenwriter and politician
- Halina Poświatowska- poet
- Bolesław Prus — journalist, short-story writer, novelist; wrote the novel, Pharaoh.
- 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
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.
- Zygmunt Gorgolewski, architect
- 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
- Piotr Józef Andrzejewski, actor known as Peter J. Lucas
- Józef Arkusz, film director
- Tomasz Baginski, short animated movies maker, nominated to Academy Award and BAFTA Award
- Andrzej Bartkowiak (born in 1950 in Łódź, Poland), cinematographer, director and actor.
- Eugeniusz Bodo, singer and actor
- Ewa Braun, Academy Award winning set decorator, costume designer, production designer
- Jacob Bronowski
- Zbigniew Cybulski, actor
- Ewa Demarczyk, actress, poetry singer
- Dagmara Dominczyk, actress
- Pawel Edelman, cinematographer, nominated to Oscar
- Katarzyna Figura, actress
- Ilona Grabarczyk, filmmaker
- Samuel Goldwyn, (Jewish) film producer
- Gilda Gray, Marianna Winchalaska (or Michalski) ) actress, dancer, vaudeville performer
- Jerzy Grotowski, theatre reformer
- Agnieszka Holland, film director, nominated to Academy Awards and BAFTA Award
- Krystyna Janda, actress
- Jan A.P. Kaczmarek, Academy Award winning composer, nominated to BAFTA Award
- Jacek Kaczmarski, protest songwriter and singer
- Janusz Kaminski, two Oscars and BAFTA Award winning cinematographer and film director
- Bronislau Kaper, Academy Award winning composer
- Jan Kiepura, singer and actor
- Krzysztof Kieślowski, film director, nominated to Academy Awards
- Olek Krupa, actor
- Kazimierz Kutz, film director
- Bogusław Linda, actor
- Herman Mankiewicz, screenwriter, Academy Award winner
- Joseph Mankiewicz, three Oscars and Golden Globe winning director and screenwriter
- Paul Mazursky, film director, screenwriter and producer, nominated to Academy Awards
- Helena Modrzejewska, actress (born Helena Modjeska)
- Pola Negri, actress
- Wacław Niżyński (Vaslav Nijinsky), ballet dancer and choreographer
- Joanna Pacula, actress
- Alan J. Pakula, film director, screenwriter and producer, nominated to Academy Awards
- Ludwika Paleta, Polish-Mexican actress
- Roman Polański, (born Rajmund Liebling) (Catholic mother, Jewish father) film director, writer and actor, Academy Award, Golden Globe, Golden Palm, BAFTA Awards, Golden Berlin Bear, César Awards and Golden Lion winner, one of the greatest film directors of all time
- Wojciech Pszoniak, actor of Comedie Francaise
- Daniel Olbrychski, actor
- Teresa Orłowski, adult movie performer and producer
- Jerzy Owsiak, broadcaster
- Zbigniew Rybczynski, Oscar and Emmy Award winning filmmaker
- Leon Schiller, theater director.
- Izabella Scorupco, actress and singer
- Andrzej Seweryn, actor of Comédie Française
- Anna B. Sheppard, costume designer, nominated to Academy Awards and BAFTA Award
- Jerzy Skolimowski, film director
- Ladislas Starevich properly: Władysław Starewicz, film director, stop-motion animator
- Allan Starski, Oscar winning production designer, art director, set designer
- Leopold Stokowski, Academy Award winning composer
- Andrzej Wajda, Academy Award, Golden Palm, BAFTA Award, Silver Berlin Bear, César Award and Golden Lion winning film director, one of the greatest film directors of all time
- Albert, Harry and Sam Warner (Jewish)
- Samuel "Billy" Wilder, six Oscars winning film director, screenwriter and producer (Polish Jew)
- Lillian Wilczkowsky, (Jewish) actress known as Chesty Morgan
- Krzysztof Zanussi, film producer
- Andrzej Żuławski, film director
Royalty
- Mieszko I
- 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, Hungarian-born King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
- Jan III Sobieski, King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, victor at the Battle of Vienna.
- Stanisław Leszczyński, King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Duke of Lorraine.
- Maria Leszczyńska, consort of Louis XV, King of France.
- Stanisław August Poniatowski, last King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, co-author of the Polish Constitution of May 3, 1791.
Nobility (szlachta)
See list of szlachta.
Sports
See list of Polish sports players
- Michael Klim, australian swimmer
- Jerzy Kukuczka, climber
- Wanda Rutkiewicz, climber
- Zenon Jaskuła, cycler
- Robert Kubica, racing driver
- 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
- Mariusz Pudzianowski, strongman
- Otylia Jędrzejczak, swimmer
- Paweł Korzeniowski, swimmer
- Wojtek Fibak, tennis player
- Waldemar Baszanowski, weightlifter
- Akiba Rubinstein, chessplayer
- Miguel Najdorf, chessplayer
- Stanley Zbyszko, professional wrestler
Athletic
- Halina Konopacka
- Robert Korzeniowski
- Janusz Kusociński
- Władysław Kozakiewicz
- Bronisław Malinowski
- Józef Schmidt
- Irena Szewińska
- Tadeusz Ślusarski
- Stanisława Walasiewicz
- Jacek Wszoła
- Aleksy Antkiewicz
- Andrzej Gołota
- Józef Grudzień
- Marian Kasprzyk
- Jerzy Kulej
- Dariusz Michalczewski, nickname: "Tiger" (born on May 5, 1968 in Gdańsk, Poland)
- Zbigniew Pietrzykowski
- Przemysław Saleta
- Hubert Skrzypczak
- Jan Szczepański
Football (soccer)
Military
- Józef Bem, military commander, commander-in-chief of Hungarian army (1849)
- Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski, commander of the Home Army during the Warsaw Uprising
- 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. [1]
- 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, politician, commander of the Polish Army in France during WWI
- Jan Nowak-Jezioranski, (1913-2005) - Polish journalist and WWII hero
- Andrzej Karwowski - Polish general during Kościuszko's Uprising
- Franciszek Karwowski (1896-2005), 109, - Polish soldier
- 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
- Władysław 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 to US President Jimmy Carter.
- Feliks Dzierżyński, 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
- 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,
- August Czartoryski, Beatified Prince
- Stanisław Dziwisz,
- Jacob Frank
- Saint Hyacinth,
- Marian Cardinal Jaworski, (Polish cardinal and archbishop)
- Karol Józef Wojtyła, John Paul II, Pope
- 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
- Krystyna Skarbek, SOE heroine of WWII
- Arkadiusz Weremczuk (Ukrainian-Polish) fashion designer, known as Arkadius
- Magdalena Wróbel, top model
- Wilfrid Michael Voynich, bibliophile
- Janusz Żurakowski, WWII fighter pilot and Avro Arrow test pilot
Criminal persons
- Władysław Mazurkiewicz, serial killer
- Severin Antoniovich Klosowski, (Russian-Polish?)Jack the Ripper suspect
- Julian Koltun, serial killer
- "Gruby" Janek, mobster
- Stanisław Modzelewski, serial killer
- Zdzisław Marchwicki, serial killer
- Leszek Pękalski, serial killer
- Łucjan Staniak, serial killer - dubbed "The Red Spider" and "The Red Ripper"
Controversial persons
- Ignacy Hryniewiecki, assassin of Tsar Alexander II of Russia
Germans born on German occupied Polish land
- Paul von Hindenburg (full name Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg) (October 2, 1847 – August 2, 1934) born in Prussian occupied Poznań on Podgorna street (Podgorna street in Poznan, Poland)
- Walther Nernst
- Maria Goeppert
- Klaus von Klitzing
Heroes and Freedom fighters
- Ordon
- Emilia Plater (family of distant German origin)
- Józef Sowiński
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.
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
- Crime in Poland
- Subject of 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
- List of ethnic Poles