styczeń
/ˈstɘ.t͡ʂɛɲ/inanimate, masculine
January in Polish is styczeń.
styczeń refers to the first month of the Gregorian calendar.
Meaning: first month of the Gregorian calendar (name)
How does it change in a sentence?
The noun styczeń changes its form depending on the grammatical case: use stycznia in the genitive case (for example, to indicate dates or following the preposition 'w'), styczniu in the locative case to say 'in January' (used with 'w') and styczniem in the instrumental case. If you wish to use an adjective to describe something related to January, use styczniowy.
How do you pronounce it?
The word has 2 syllables, with the stress on the 1st syllable. The IPA transcription is /ˈstɘ.tʂɛɲ/.
When do people say it?
In Poland, the first day of January is a public holiday known as Nowy Rok.
Did you know?
- The word styczeń shares a distant linguistic ancestor with the English word 'section' via the Proto-Indo-European root meaning 'to cut'.
- Unlike 'January', which refers to the two-faced god Janus, styczeń is rooted in a purely Slavic seasonal concept.
- The Polish language treats the months as common nouns rather than proper nouns in some traditional contexts, reflecting their origin as descriptions of nature.
Examples in context
- Styczeń ma trzydzieści jeden dni.January has thirty-one days.This sentence shows the number of days in styczeń.Tatoeba #12904845 by Stanislawspruss, translation #12904836 by araneo
- Styczeń jest pierwszym miesiącem roku.January is the first month of the year.This sentence uses styczeń to identify it as the first month of the year.Tatoeba #8537505 by nusia2302, translation #27821 by CK
- Styczeń, luty, marzec, kwiecień, maj, czerwiec, lipiec, sierpień, wrzesień, październik, listopad i grudzień to dwanaście miesięcy roku.January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November and December are the twelve months of the year.This sentence lists styczeń as part of the twelve months of the year.Tatoeba #10593982 by tokzyk, translation #621957 by Eldad
- pogoda styczniowaThe January weather
- W styczniu zawsze jest piękny, biały krajobraz.In January, there is always a beautiful, white landscape.
- Mrozy w styczniu bywają niezwykle mroźne.The cold in January can be extremely frosty.
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Katarzyna and Krzysztof are discussing their holiday plans.
- KatarzynaCzy planujesz urlop w styczniu?Are you planning a vacation in January?
- KrzysztofNie, styczeń jest zbyt zimny.No, January is too cold.
- KatarzynaMasz rację, to mroźny miesiąc.You are right, it is a frosty month.
- KrzysztofWolę podróżować latem.I prefer to travel in summer.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “January” translations and entries styczeń, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries styczeń, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
