Before that his name had been Jakab Pollák but, in order to understand why Jakab Pollák changed his name to Pólya, we need to look at both his career and at a little Hungarian history.
Bago na ang kanyang pangalan had been Jakab Pollák ngunit, upang maintindihan kung bakit Jakab Pollák ay nagbago ang kanyang pangalan sa Pólya, kailangan naming hanapin sa parehong kanyang karera at sa isang maliit Hungarian kasaysayan.