Jan Kowalski (placeholder name)

Analogous names in other languages include Jean Lefèvre, Giovanni Ferrari, Ivan Kuznetsov, Sean McGowan, Hans Schmidt, Kovács János, etc.

[5] Due to its commonality, the surname "Kowalski" acquired some other connotations, which may be grouped into two classes, with close meanings: "average, typical/stereotypical dweller of Poland" and "ordinary, mundane person".

[nb 1][6] It is often difficult to classify a specific metonymic usage of the surname Kowalski, because the first class is hyponymic with respect to the second one, i.e., an average person is also an ordinary one.

[5] A major difference between the two classes may be demonstrated by the following examples: "An average Kowalski who uses the internet for purchases is in the age range of 31 to 40 years".

[5] Rutkowski's analysis of the corpus confirmed the uniqueness of the surname "Kowalski" in Polish language with respect to the mentioned connotations.