My earliest interests were in geography but in secondary school my fascination with faraway countries slowly gave way to English and shortly before graduation I finally decided that I would not become a geologist or geographer but a linguist. During my freshman year I was captivated by the quirks of English article usage and translation and these two areas have remained in the forefront of may interests ever since. When my wife talked me into writing a Ph.D. dissertation in 1994, I focused my project on translation theory as I did with my M.A. thesis four years earlier. My postdoctoral dissertation successfully defended in 2002 developed in turn a theory of  English article use with proper names and the book that provided the basis for the award of the degree of state professor, the highest Polish academic degree granted by the president of Poland, undermined the myth of the zero article. 

At first I studied (1984 – 1990) and worked (1989 – 1995) at Silesian University (Uniwersytet Śląski) in Katowice, but in 1995 I moved to Wrocław University. During my time in Wrocław University English Department I have had the pleasure to launch Wroclaw University Postgraduate School of Business Translation (1998), teach a year as a visiting professor at Central Michigan University, USA (1999-2000), advise 21 doctoral students who have successfully defended their dissertations, serve as department deputy chair (1998-1999) and then as chair for three consecutive terms of office (2002-2005, 2005-2008, 2008-2012), and hold the office of associate dean of the Faculty of Letters for two terms of office (2012-2016 and 2016-2020).

Before obtaining the postdoctoral degree I also worked as a translator and interpreter for a number of financial companies and in 1995 – 2000 I served as assistant to the management board president of Bank Zachodni S.A. (now operating as Santander S.A.). The experience I gained there let me then write six books on the translation of legal and business documents, e.g. contracts, curt rulings, powers of attorney, etc. In the meantime I also started a series of December lectures on the history of Christmas traditions, St. Nicholas and his relationship to characters like Santa Claus. The series has been going on for more than fifteen years and keeps developing, so in December you’re invited to the next talk either on Wrocław University premises or online.

Besides studying English articles, translation and St. Nicholas I also enjoy backcountry walks, skiing, classical music, peace and quiet.

Book publications:

• Dialect in Translation. Wrocław,  Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego 1998.
• Articles and Proper Names. Wrocław,  Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego 2002.
• Jak czytać i rozumieć angielskie umowy? (How to Read and Understand English Contracts?) Warszawa, Wydawnictwo C.H.Beck 2007, second edition 2008, third edition 2009, fourth edition 2012, fifth edition 2014, sixth edition 2017, seventh edition 2023.
• The Myth of the Zero Article. London, New York, Continuum Publishing 2009.
• Jak czytać i rozumieć angielskie dokumenty sądowe w sprawach cywilnych? (How to Read and Understand English Civil Action Court Documents?)Warszawa, Wydawnictwo C.H. Beck 2011, second edition 2014, third edition 2017, fourth edition 2023.
• Jak czytać i rozumieć angielskie dokumenty notarialne, testamenty i pełnomocnictwa ? (How to Read and Understand English Notarial Documents, Wills and Powers of Attorney?)Warszawa, Wydawnictwo C.H. Beck 2015, second edition 2017, third edition 2021.
• Christmas Teacher Resources. PWN 2017.
• Jak  czytać, rozumieć i tłumaczyć dokumenty prawnicze i gospodarcze? (How to Read, Understand and Translate English Legal and Business Documents?) Wydawnictwo C.H. Beck 2018, second edition 2024.
• Jak czytać, rozumieć i tłumaczyć polskie umowy na język angielski? (How to Read, Understand and Translate Polish Contracts into English?) Wydawnictwo C.H. Beck 2020.
• Jak redagować przekłady angielskich dokumentów prawniczych i gospodarczych? Poprawna polszczyzna dla tłumaczy (How to Edit Polish Translations of English Legal and Business Documents? Good Polish for Translators). Wydawnictwo C.H. Beck 2022. Co-authored by Piotr Kładoczny.

Prizes & commendations:

• Wrocław University President Research Excellence Prize: 2002, 2011, 2018, 2023.
• Wrocław University President Organizational Excellence Prize: 1997, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010.
• Prize of the Polish Association of Sworn and Specialist Translators and Interpreters: 2023
• The Best of the Best – in Search of Teaching Excellence Prize: 2023
• Excellence Initiative – Research University Publication Quality Prize: 2025