Daily Ancestorkawaler
Kawaler is Polish for "bachelor," a man who has never married; in a marriage record it describes a groom marrying for the first time.
Kawaler means a man who has not yet married. In a marriage entry the groom is either kawaler or wdowiec, widower, and that single word tells you whether to look for an earlier marriage.
The word came into Polish from Italian cavaliere, and in older usage it could also mean a young man, a suitor, a knight, or someone decorated with an order. In vital records the bachelor sense is the one you will meet. The related form młodzian also means young man.
Look it up: old jobs, causes of death, Latin, abbreviations, nicknames and more.
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "kawaler." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/polish/kawaler. Last checked 2026-10-28.