Haydar
From Arabic and Turkish, where it means "lion". A rare name in Poland and one you're unlikely to meet: only about 50 men carry it, all of them, and no boys have been given it this century.
Haydar Pronunciation
Haydar is pronounced khah-IH-dahr (/xaˈɨdar/).
What Haydar means
Where Haydar comes from and what it has meant to the people who carry it.
Haydar comes from Arabic, where the word names the lion. The short meaning in Polish is simple: lew. Both Arab and Turkish families carry it, and the spelling stays close to the sound, Haydar, with the y doing the work of the older Arabic form Haidar.
The lion here is not scenery. Haydar was a byname of Ali ibn Abi Talib, cousin and son-in-law of the Prophet Muhammad, remembered in early accounts for his strength in battle. The sense of courage attached to Haydar through him, so a boy given the name inherits a very old reputation. In Turkey the name has stayed in ordinary use, and it travels wherever Arabic and Turkish communities have settled.
Poland now has such families too.
Picture a school register in a Polish city, the teacher reading down the column, and Haydar answering among the Jakubs and Kacpers. On an official form at the urząd the name sits without a Polish diminutive, because it brought none with it. That is part of its plainness. A parent can shorten it in speech, though the document keeps the full four letters. What the name means underneath all of it is one word: lion.
How many people are named Haydar
1 in 418553 men in Poland is named Haydar. 51 people carry it in the 2025 register: rank #5271 among male names.
Haydar as a middle name
Haydar is a first name for 51 men in Poland and a middle name for another 17, a 75/25 split. In the men's middle-name ranking it sits 2222nd, between Hani (17) and Hiacenty (17).
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#2220 Göran17
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#2221 Hani17
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#2222 Haydar17
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#2223 Hiacenty17
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#2224 Hiếu17