Given name
Bolesław
“the most glorious”
Bolesław is a masculine given name from Proto-Indo-European. It is used in Polish.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Bolesław goes back to a word meaning “the most glorious.”
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
Its Slavonic formation brings together bole (“large”) and slav (“glory”).
Bolesław’s family of names
In Polish usage, Bolesław has a diminutive in Bolek. Bolesław shares a linguistic root with Boleslav. In Polish usage, Bolesław has a conventional equivalent in the English form BOLESLAUS.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Bolesław has relatives in 11 languages.
9 related names in 11 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 12
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- Boleslausborrowing · Latin, German
- Boleslaoequivalent
- Bolesławahas masculine form
- БолеславRussian
- Boleslovascognate · Lithuanian
- Boleslavcognate · Czech, Slovak
- Boleslasequivalent
- ΜπολέσλαφGreek
Show 4 moreShow fewer
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Bolesław
- Bolesław I the Bravefirst King of Poland (967–1025)
- Bolesław BierutPolish politician and leader of Poland (1947–1956)1892–1956
- Bolesław III Wrymouthduke of Poland between 1107 and 11381086–1138
- Bolesław II the BoldKing of Poland1042–1081
- Bolesław IV the CurlyHigh Duke of Poland1120–1173
- Bolesław V the ChasteHigh Duke of Poland1226–1279
- Bolesław LeśmianPolish writer (1877–1937)
- Bolesław the PiousDuke of Greater Poland1225–1279
- Bolesław KominekCatholic cardinal (1903-1974)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Bolesław, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Bogusław
“God” · “to celebrate”
>99% boys
Budzisław
>99% boys
Bronisław
“to protect”
>99% boys
Bořivoj
“to defend” · “warrior”
>99% boys
Bogumil
“God” · “kind”
94% boys · 6% girls
Żelisław
>99% boys
Rościsław
“to grow” · “fame, glory”
>99% boys
Milosław
>99% boys
Sibling ideas
Names that share Bolesław’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.
A brother for Bolesław