Wielkopolskie genealogy relates to family history research in the Greater Poland Voivodeship, a vast swath of territory located in west-central Poland. The voivodeship, or province, is named after the term Wielkopolska (Greater Poland).
Wielkopolskie covers an area of land that stretches nearly 30,000 kilometers of square feet (11,500 square miles). Its population today is approximately 3.5 million people.[1]
The region is known as the "cradle of Poland" due to its rich history and location. The capital city of Wielkopolskie is Poznań, which historically was an important location for royal and political power. Gniezno is another city located in the province with royal roots.
History of Wielkopolskie
A central location at the heart of the early Polish state, the territory that is now Wielkopolskie was the birthplace for some of the earliest settlements of the Polish people. The cities of Poznań and Gniezno in particular played a key role in the Christian movement in Poland.[2]

Wielkopolskie was part of the Kingdom of Poland before it became a province for the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (1569-1772). Trade led to rapid economic development for the region with Poznań, Gniezno and Kalisz rising to prominence.[2]
Parts of Wielkopolskie were absorbed by Prussia in the First Partition of Poland (1772) and it was fully annexed in the Second Partition (1793). While under Prussian control, the territory was known as Posen (Poznań). In the decades that followed, a significant influx of Germans migrated to the area. Polish insurgents triumphed over the Germans in the Wielkopolskie Uprising (1918-19) and the area joined Poland again by the Treaty of Versailles (1919).[2]
The current voivodeship of Wielkopolskie was formed in 1999, a combination of land from other voivodeships.
Geography of Wielkopolskie

Wielkopolskie is mostly flat, comprised of lowlands and valleys with many lakes. Rivers that flow through the province include the Vistula, Warta, Bug, Oder, Noteć, Narew and Wieprz. A few of these rivers connect with lakes to form the Great Waterway Loop (Wielka Pętla in Polish), which is a popular route for boat travel and tourism.[3]
Forests make up about 25% of the province, most of which are pine trees.[2] Extensive road and rail networks connect the capital city of Poznań with other major cities including Berlin.
The population of Wielkopolskie predominantly resides in urban areas but four-tenths live in areas that are considered rural.[2]
Wielkopolskie is bordered by 7 other Polish voivodeships: Dolnośląskie, Kujawsko-Pomorskie, Łódzkie, Lubuskie, Pomorskie, Opolskie, and Zachodniopomorskie.
Administrative division of Wielkopolskie

Wielkopolskie is made up of 35 counties (powiats), 4 city counties and 31 land counties. The 5 most populous counties are:
- Poznań (city)
- Poznań (land)
- Ostrów Wielkopolski
- Gniezno
- Piła
The remaining counties are listed below in order of population:
Konin (land) | Kalisz (city) | Szamotuły |
Czarnków-Trzcianka | Koło | Turek |
Kalisz | Kościan | Krotoszyn |
Września | Gostyń | Nowy Tomyśl |
Konin (city) | Jarocin | Wagrowiec |
Leszno (city) | Złotów | Pleszew |
Śrem | Rawicz | Oborniki |
Słupca | Środa Wielkopolska | Wolsztyn |
Kępno | Leszno (land) | Ostrzeszów |
Grodzisk Wielkopolski | Chodzież | Międzychód |
Identifying the county for the town, village, city or parish that your family is from can be helpful to locate genealogical records. Neighboring counties should also be considered for family ties and occupational connections.
Surnames in Wielkopolskie
The most common surnames in the province of Wielkopolskie tend to be common Polish surnames in general, frequently ending in a suffix like -ski, -cki, -czyk, -ak or -ek. These include:
- Nowak
- Kowalski
- Lewandowski
- Kowalczyk
- Kaminski
- Zielinski
- Szymanski
- Wojciechowski
- Kwiatkowski
- Kaczmarek
Due to its Prussian roots, German surnames are occasionally found in Wielkopolskie.
Notable people from Wielkopolskie

These well-known people are from Wielkopolskie:
- August Cieszkowski, economist, philosopher
- Ludwik Ćwikliński, linguist, philologist
- Franciszek Dobrowolski, theater director, journalist
- Friedrich Goltz, physiologist, physician
- Anna Jantar, singer
- Marek Karpinski, mathematician, computer scientist
- Heinrich Mendelssohn, contractor, building tycoon
- Władysław Oleszcyński, sculptor
- Jerzy Różycki, mathematician, cryptographer
- Paweł Strzelecki, explorer, geologist
Types of records from Wielkopolskie
Church records and civil registration records are the primary sources available to conduct genealogical research in Wielkopolskie.
The following collections on MyHeritage contain people from Wielkopolskie:
- Poland, Gravestones, 1800-2020 on MyHeritage
- Poland, Military Personnel on MyHeritage

First identifying the town or village of your ancestor's origin in Wielkopolskie is important to find records. Volunteer-based efforts online have indexed millions of records that can provide a clue to your family's origin if you're not sure. Anyone with family from Wielkopolskie should search each of these resources for connections:
- Poznan Project: A transcription project of 19th century marriages that took place in Greater Poland (Wielkopolskie), which was known as Poznan or Posen under Prussian control. This index includes parish records and civil records. It typically provides the year, location, groom's name, and bride's name for each marriage. Parents' names are often listed for the groom and bride, and sometimes the age of the groom and bride is also recorded.
- BaSIA (Database of Archival Indexing System): A digital archive indexing births, marriages, and deaths for the Wielkopolskie region with a focus on the 18th-20th centuries. These transcriptions link to original images when they are available online. New records are constantly being added.
- Geneteka: While this project is active for the entire country of Poland, more than 1.9 million records have been added for Wielkopolskie alone. Simply click on the province on the map to begin searching. A surname (Nazwisko) is needed at a minimum. You can also do date range searches.
Another great resource for Wielkopolskie genealogy is the Polish Archives. This database is searchable by place name or surname and includes many original records and scans in digital form.
Tens of thousands of family trees on MyHeritage include people from Wielkopolskie. Search those below.
Search for families from Wielkopolskie
Explore more about Wielkopolskie genealogy
- Greater Poland Genealogical Society on WTG-Gniazdo
- Posen resources for Jewish Genealogical Research on JewishGen
- Genealogy in Poznań region on State Archives of Poznań
- Using MyHeritage to research Polish family history and to find living relatives in Poland by Zbigniew Stettner on Legacy Family Tree Webinars
- Polish genealogy online - portals and databases by Kinga Urbańska on Legacy Family Tree Webinars
References
- ↑ "GUS - Bank Danych Lokalnych". bdl.stat.gov.pl. Retrieved 2024-07-28.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 "Wielkopolskie | Poland, Map, & History | Britannica". www.britannica.com. Retrieved 2024-07-29.
- ↑ "The Great Waterway Loop of Wielkopolska | Great Waterway Loop of Wielkopolska" (in polski). Retrieved 2024-07-29.