Why every Turk has had a surname only since the 1930s, what common names mean, how to address people politely, and how to pronounce the letters that trip up visitors.
Last reviewed on 27 September 2026.
A Turkish name usually consists of one or two given names followed by a single family name — Ayşe Nur Yılmaz, Mehmet Can Kaya. It looks like the European pattern, but it is surprisingly recent: until the mid-1930s most people in Anatolia had no legal surname at all. Understanding how names were created, what they mean and how they are used in speech explains a lot about everyday politeness in Türkiye.
In the Ottoman period people were identified by their given name plus whatever was needed to tell them apart: their father's name ("Ahmet, son of Mehmet"), a place of origin, a trade, a physical trait or a nickname — Topal Osman (the lame), Kasap Ali (the butcher), Giritli Hüseyin (the Cretan). Elite families used names ending in -zade (Persian for "son of"), and many families were known collectively by a name ending in -oğulları ("sons of"). Officials carried titles such as Paşa, Bey, Efendi and Ağa, which effectively functioned as part of their names. Non-Muslim communities often did have family names.
The Surname Law (Soyadı Kanunu) was passed on 21 June 1934 as part of the reforms of the early Republic. It required every citizen to take a fixed, hereditary family name, to be registered with the state. Its aims were practical — a modern population register, taxation, conscription and property records needed stable names — and ideological: it was meant to replace Ottoman titles and lineage markers with a uniform citizenship.
Families chose their own names, within limits. The accompanying regulations barred surnames that were names of tribes or foreign nationalities, military or civil ranks, or offensive words, and encouraged Turkish words. Registrars suggested names to people who had none in mind, which is one reason a relatively small set of surnames became very common. Within a few months, a separate law abolished Ottoman titles such as Paşa, Efendi and Bey as official forms, and introduced Bay (Mr) and Bayan (Ms/Mrs) for official use.
On 24 November 1934 the Grand National Assembly passed a law giving Mustafa Kemal the surname Atatürk, "father of the Turks", and reserving it exclusively for him; no one else may take it. His sister Makbule took the surname Atadan. His prime minister İsmet took the name İnönü after the battles of İnönü he had commanded in the War of Independence. For more, see Atatürk.
Most Turkish surnames are ordinary words or compounds chosen for their meaning. Common patterns include:
Yılmaz is generally reported to be the most common surname in Türkiye, followed by names such as Kaya, Demir, Şahin, Çelik and Yıldız. Because so many unrelated families share these names, a surname alone says little about kinship.
Under the Civil Code a married woman traditionally takes her husband's surname, and since 2002 she may keep her birth surname in front of it (Ayşe Kaya Yılmaz). Whether a woman may use only her own surname has been the subject of Constitutional Court rulings and legislative debate in recent years, so for the current position, check the latest official guidance.
Turkish given names come from three main sources: Arabic and Persian names from the Islamic tradition, old Turkic names, and modern Turkish words chosen for their meaning. Almost every given name has a transparent meaning to a Turkish speaker.
Mehmet (the Turkish form of Muhammad), Ahmet, Mustafa, Ali, Hasan, Hüseyin, İbrahim, Yusuf; for women Fatma, Ayşe, Emine, Hatice, Zeynep, Meryem.
Oğuz, Timur, Cengiz, Alparslan, Kaan ("khan"), Tuğrul, Attila; for women Aybike, Türkan, Tomris.
Umut ("hope"), Barış ("peace"), Özgür ("free"), Deniz ("sea"), Ay ("moon") in Aylin, Ayla and Aysel; Gül ("rose") in Gülşen and Gülay; Yağmur ("rain"), Defne ("laurel").
Some names, such as Deniz, Umut and Evren, are used for both boys and girls. Two given names are common, and a person may be known by either — often the second. Many people also have a göbek adı ("navel name"), traditionally given at birth by an elder, which may be registered as a second name or used only in the family. Naming a child after a grandparent is widespread.
Fashions change. Names from the Islamic tradition and those evoking Turkish history have been prominent in recent years; Zeynep, Elif and Yusuf have regularly appeared near the top of the statistics office's annual lists of baby names, and many young parents also choose short, modern-sounding names.
In many families the naming of a newborn is a small religious ceremony. A grandparent, imam or respected elder holds the baby, recites the call to prayer (ezan) softly into the right ear and the kamet into the left, and then says the child's name into the ear three times. Families who are not religious often keep a version of the custom. The name must also be registered with the civil registry (nüfus müdürlüğü); hospital births are usually registered through the hospital.
Names may not be offensive or contrary to public morals, and registrars can refuse unsuitable ones. For decades, spellings using letters outside the Turkish alphabet — such as the q, w and x of Kurdish — could not be registered; this has been partly relaxed in recent years, but practice has varied.
In Türkiye, politeness attaches to the first name, not the surname. The key is to add the right word after or before it.
| Term | Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Bey | After a man's first name; polite and standard at work, in shops and with acquaintances | Ahmet Bey |
| Hanım | After a woman's first name; the female equivalent | Ayşe Hanım |
| Beyefendi / Hanımefendi | "Sir" / "Madam", used alone when you do not know the name | Buyurun, hanımefendi |
| Hocam | "My teacher": for teachers and academics, and informally for doctors, imams and colleagues | Hocam, bir sorum var |
| Abi / Abla | "Older brother" / "older sister": friendly address to someone a bit older, including shopkeepers and waiters | Abi, hesap lütfen |
| Amca / Teyze | "Uncle" / "aunt": for older strangers | Teyze, yardım edeyim mi? |
| Usta | "Master": craftsmen, cooks and drivers | Usta, burada inebilir miyim? |
| Sayın | Formal written address before a full name or title | Sayın Ahmet Yılmaz |
The official Bay and Bayan appear on forms, letters and signs (Bay and Bayan on toilet doors) but sound stiff in speech. Addressing someone as "Mr Yılmaz" in the English manner is unusual; use "Ahmet Bey". Doctors are commonly addressed as Doktor Bey or Doktor Hanım, or Hocam. Older people who have made the pilgrimage to Mecca may be addressed as Hacı. Among friends and younger people, plain first names are fine, and the informal sen replaces the polite siz.
Turkish spelling is phonetic: each letter has one sound. A few letters differ from English:
Every vowel is pronounced, and stress in names often falls on a different syllable from English habits, so listening to how people say their own names is the best guide. See the Turkish language for more on the alphabet.
Surnames became compulsory under the Surname Law of 21 June 1934. Before that, most Muslims in Anatolia were identified by their given name plus a father's name, place of origin, trade or nickname, and officials used titles such as Paşa, Bey or Efendi.
Yılmaz is generally reported to be the most common Turkish surname, followed by names such as Kaya, Demir, Şahin, Çelik and Yıldız. Most Turkish surnames are ordinary words chosen for their meaning in 1934–35.
No. A law of 24 November 1934 gave the surname Atatürk, meaning father of the Turks, to Mustafa Kemal and reserved it for him alone, so no other person may take it.
Use the first name followed by Bey for a man or Hanım for a woman, for example Ahmet Bey or Ayşe Hanım. Without a name, use Beyefendi or Hanımefendi. Friendly terms such as Abi, Abla, Amca and Teyze are common with shopkeepers and older strangers.
Hoca means teacher and was traditionally used for religious teachers. Hocam, my teacher, is now a common respectful form for teachers, academics and doctors, and is used informally among colleagues.
The soft g (ğ) is not pronounced as a consonant; it lengthens the vowel before it. Doğan sounds roughly like Doh-an and Erdoğan like Er-doh-an.