This surname of ADAMOWICZ was originally from the Hebrew personal name ADAM, which was borne according to Genesis, by the first man. It is of uncertain etymolology, and often said to be from the Hebrew ADAMA (earth). The Greek legend that Zeus fashioned the first human beings from earth. It was very popular as a given name throughout Europe during the Middle Ages. The name has numerous variant spellings which include ADAMIC, ADAMI, DAMI, ADAMKSI, ADAMSKY, AZAM, ADAMINI, ADAMOLI, ADAMIK and ADEMIK, to name but a few. Surnames as we know them today were first assumed in Europe from the 11th to the 15th Century. The employment in the use of a second name was a custom that was first introduced from the Normans. They themselves had not long before adopted them. It became, in course of time, a mark of gentler blood, and it was deemed a disgrace for gentlemen to have but one single name, as the meaner sort had. At first the coat of arms was a practical matter which served a function on the battlefield and in tournaments. With his helmet covering his face, and armour encasing the knight from head to foot, the only means of identification for his followers, was the insignia painted on his shield and embroidered on his surcoat, the flowing and draped garment worn over the armour. A notable member of the name was Louis ADAMIC (1899-1951) the Yugoslav-born American writer, born in Blato, Dalmatia. The son of Slovene peasants, he emigrated to the United States in 1913. He served in the American Army, and became naturalized in 1918. He began writing short stories in the early twenties, utilizing his experiences and personal observations in his books - such as an immigrant in 'Laughing in the Jungle' (1932). Over the centuries, most people in Europe have accepted their surname as a fact of life, as irrevocable as an act of God. However much the individual may have liked or disliked the surname, they were stuck with it, and people rarely changed them by personal choice. A more common form of variation was in fact involuntary, when an official change was made, in other words, a clerical error.