Denys
From Greek, meaning "devoted to Dionysus", and in Poland it's carried almost entirely by Ukrainian families. A men's name through and through, still uncommon enough that meeting one tends to stick with you.
Denys Pronunciation
Denys is pronounced DE-nihs (/ˈdɛnɨs/).
What Denys means
Where Denys comes from and what it has meant to the people who carry it.
The name Denys goes back to the Greek Dionysios, built on Dionysus, the god of wine and drama. The short meaning most sources give is "devoted to Dionysus," and that reading holds. Over centuries the Greek form passed through Latin as Dionysius before Slavic speakers trimmed it down. In Ukrainian it became simply Denys.
It reads as Ukrainian now. A boy named Denys on a class register in a Polish school carries a name that sounds Slavic, though its root is Aegean. Real bearers anchor the point: Denys Shmyhal served as Ukraine's prime minister, and Denys Monastyrsky held the interior ministry until his death in 2023.
The god behind the name belonged to festivals and the stage, so the early Dionysioi were understood as devoted to him. Later Christian use scrubbed the pagan sense away, and saints named Dionysius were honored across the church while the old cult fell silent. What survives in Denys is the frame of that Greek word for "devoted to Dionysus," now worn down to two plain syllables.
How many people are named Denys
1 in 869 men in Poland is named Denys. 24,576 people carry it in the 2025 register: rank #257 among male names.
Denys's popularity over time
24 boys were given the name in 2025, ranking #479 among newborns. It is making a comeback after a low in 2011. Still the #257 name among living men, even as it slips to #479 among newborns.
Where parents choose Denys
Denys is most popular in Lower Silesian, 137% above the national average (16 boys born 2019–2025), followed by Łódź (+102%) and Lubusz (+87%). It is least common in Kuyavian-Pomeranian and Lublin, 58% and 55% below average respectively.
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Lower Silesian
+137%1 in 9,821 babies
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Łódź
+102%1 in 11,520 babies
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Lubusz
+87%1 in 12,414 babies
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Kuyavian-Pomeranian
−58%1 in 54,690 babies
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Lublin
−55%1 in 51,338 babies
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Pomeranian
−53%1 in 49,107 babies
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Lower Silesian+137% 16 born1 in 9,821 babies+137%
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Łódź+102% 11 born1 in 11,520 babies+102%
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Lubusz+87% 4 born1 in 12,414 babies+87%
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Silesian+74% 17 born1 in 13,387 babies+74%
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Masovian+25% 19 born1 in 18,646 babies+25%
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Opole+1% 2 born1 in 23,048 babies+1%
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Greater Poland−14% 8 born1 in 26,905 babies−14%
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Lesser Poland−28% 7 born1 in 32,417 babies−28%
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West Pomeranian−45% 2 born1 in 42,213 babies−45%
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Pomeranian−53% 3 born1 in 49,107 babies−53%
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Lublin−55% 2 born1 in 51,338 babies−55%
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Kuyavian-Pomeranian−58% 2 born1 in 54,690 babies−58%
Denys as a middle name
Denys is a first name for 24,576 men in Poland and a middle name for another 13, a 100/0 split. In the men's middle-name ranking it sits 2607th, between Davyd (13) and Dušan (13).
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#2605 Cyriak13
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#2606 Davyd13
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#2607 Denys13
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#2608 Dušan13
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#2609 Dzierżysław13