KACZMAREK
**Kaczmarek** is a surname of Polish origin that traces back to the medieval period, evidenced by records in Poland as early as the thirteenth century. It is believed to stem from the Polish verb *kaczmáráć*, meaning “to fasten” or “bind”, or possibly from the village of Kaczmara near Bydgoszcz, which would render the surname as “of Kaczmara”.
The name is principally occupational in nature, derived in one line from the word *kaczmarz* which translates to “innkeeper” or “tavern keeper” in Polish. Thus the surname denotes an individual who owned or worked at an inn or tavern. In another tradition the surname is linked to *kaczmar*, meaning “goose herder”. Goose herding was a significant rural occupation across medieval Poland and Europe, as geese supplied valuable feather down and meat. Consequently, the surname **Kaczmarek** has long been associated with those who tended geese for a living, a role that was especially common in the Silesian region.
Today the surname is most commonly found in Poland, where more than 2.6 million people carry the name as of 2019. It is the eighth most frequently occurring surname in that country. Outside Poland, **Kaczmarek** is also encountered in Slovakia, Germany and the United States, particularly in areas with substantial Polish diaspora communities. In the United States the surname was the 8 097th most common in the 2010 census, with approximately 1 228 bearers, and the number had risen to about 16 000 by 2019.
Due to linguistic variation and migration, the surname displays a number of spellings. In Polish it appears as Kaczmark, Kacmar, Kaczmarski, Kaczmarekowicz and Kaczmarczyk. In Czech and Slovak it is rendered as Kachmárek, while Hungarian forms include Kaczmark. The name has also been documented in Jewish communities under variants such as Katchmark, Katsmark, Katsmerek and Katsmarok, often anglicised in the United States to Kashmark, Kashmar or Kashmerek. Across Eastern Europe the name is sometimes transliterated into Ukrainian as Kaczmarek, with the suffix meaning “son of”, and in Belarus it appears as Kačmarak or Kačmar.
These numerous variants reflect the surname’s extensive history and geographic spread, as well as the influence of different dialects and languages on its orthographic evolution. The surname **Kaczmarek** therefore encapsulates a rich tapestry of Polish occupational heritage, medieval pastoral economy, and the broader narrative of migration across Europe and to North America.
Typical given names associated with the Kaczmarek surname
Male
- Adam
- Krzysztof
- Lukasz
- Marcin
- Michal
- Pawel
- Peter
- Piotr
- Robert
- Sebastian
- Tomasz
- Wojciech
Female
- Agnieszka
- Aleksandra
- Anna
- Clare
- Irena
- Karolina
- Katarzyna
- Magdalena
- Malgorzata
- Marta
- Monika
- Svitlana
- Sylwia
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Kaczmarek in...
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Morse
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Semaphore
There are approximately 685 people named Kaczmarek in the UK. That makes it roughly the 9,857th most common surname in Britain. Around 11 in a million people in Britain are named Kaczmarek.
Region of origin: Europe
Country of origin: Poland
Language of origin: Polish
