What's in a name ?
Sangorski of Galizia.
First of all the correct spelling of our family name Sangorski is probably
" Sangórski " and "Sangórska" for the feminine. In Polish the " ó " is pronounced " u ".Sangórski is a geographic origen surname meaning " from the mountains of the (river) San ". The River San rises in the Carpathian Mountains of Eastern Galizia (now Ukraine), It then forms the border between modern day Poland and Ukraine for a while, before turning west into Poland where it meanders through the Eastern Marches of Poland.
Like most East European place name surnames, it has probably Jewish
origins also. In fact there are Sangórskis registered in Western Canada Jewish Heritage website (one Sangórski is listed as a fundraiser for the Saskatchewan community in the early 19th century). Our family comes from a very turbulent part of Europe, which historically was called the Pricipality of Galizia and Lodomiria. In its recent history Galizia (for short) has been part of Poland, Austro-Hungary (when Felix Sangórski was born) and Russia. It is today divided almost equally between the Poland and the Ukraine."What's in a name" ? Quite a lot obviously.
by Peter Sangorski