I created this website in honor of my family name. I will provide as much information as I can regarding the history of my surname. And hopefully, through my contributions and those of others, we can piece together a history of the Dragowski lineage.

They sent me two plaques: One was a family history of the Dragowski surname. And the other was the coat of arms that they say is associated with the name.

Since receiving the information, I’ve been able to perform other research, which led me to believe that not all the information they sent me is completely accurate. Take for instance the meaning of the name “Dragowski”. They say that the beginning of the word, “drag”, is another word for “pole”. However, the Polish word for “pole” is “biegun”.

Nevertheless, we can use this information as another piece of the surname puzzle as we paste together the history of the name “Drągowski”. So here is the link to the Historical Research Center version of the origins of the Dragowski surname.

Dragowski

The phrase “habitation names” is used to describe those family names witch find their origins in the location of the residence of the initial bearer. In some instances, such names are derived from the name of the town or region where the original bearer was born or resided.

Others refer to the geographic location of the original bearer’s home. While still others may refer us to a sign displayed over the door of their residence. With regard to the family name Dragowski, we have a derivation of the Old Slavic term “drag” (pole) together with the characteristic Polish habitational suffix element “..owski”, here referring to one whose house was located at or near to where they cut trees for poles.

Among the early written references to the name or a variant form we read of the christening of Johann Ferdinand Dragowski, son of Johann Wilhelm and Anna Elisabeth Kirsten Dragowski on 23^rd, February 1819 in Konigsberg, Prussia, and his sister Amanda Frederica Dragowski was christened there in September 1822. The marriage of Wilhelmina Dragowski to Jacob August Krampitz was registered on 27^th, September 1846 in Gross Nebrau, West Prussia, and on 14^th, March 1869 Carl and Josephine Straszewski Dragowski announced the birth of their son Walter Hermann Dragowski in Thorn, Prussia.

In accordance with Polish Clan system, the newly ennobled family was allocated the arms of an extant clan, and here they shared the arms of the Jastrzębiec Clan, along with about eight hundred other Polish families, constituting the largest name grouping in the overall context of the system.

The arms existed in seven variant forms taking back to the year 1363, and were widespread mainly in the regions of Cracow, Sieradz, Mazovia, and Lithuania.

The great European emigrations of the early nineteenth century introduced many Eastern European names into North America, including this one, albeit perhaps in a variant form such as Dragunzka in the year 1872.