Category·Nature and landscape·68 surnames
Wind, rain and lightning
- Surnames
- 68
- in this dictionary
- Most common
- Yıldırım
How did these surnames come about?
Yıldırım and şimşek are not the same thing. According to TDK, şimşek is the flash of light from an electrical discharge between clouds, while yıldırım is the discharge that strikes the ground. Both are very common surnames. In TÜİK ADNKS 2025, Yıldırım ranks 7th nationally with 666,723 bearers. Şimşek ranks 20th on the same list, with 253,543.
Words of speed and force
Yıldırım is a Turkic word and belongs to a wide family of terms for lightning that appears in Old Turkic in several forms, yaşın among them. Its resemblance to yıldız, “star”, is striking, but dictionaries do not give the link as an established etymology; the idea that both share one root is disputed. As a surname Yıldırım suggests sudden force. The Ottoman epithet “Yıldırım” is well known too, yet there is no general record showing that families took their surname from it.
Wind names belong here as well. Poyraz is the cold north-easterly wind; the word comes from Greek boreas. Boran is defined in dictionaries as a squall or snowstorm that comes with a gale. Ayaz is the dry cold of clear, still weather, a hard frost. Some of these words have also become popular boys' names in recent years.
Bulut and its compounds
Bulut, “cloud”, is the most productive head word in the hub. Karabulut “dark cloud” and Akbulut “white cloud” are formed with a colour. A dark cloud brings rain; a white one belongs to fair weather. Meaning sits in the final noun, and vowel harmony is not required across the seam: back vowels run through Karabulut and Akbulut alike. Yağmur (rain) and Kar (snow) also occur on their own.
Tufan takes another route. It is the Arabic word ṭūfān, meaning a great flood or deluge, and also the Flood of religious narrative. As a surname it is filed here in its general dictionary sense.
1934 and the two-year window
Article 7 of the Surname Law gave people two years from publication to report a surname for the population registers, whether they had none or wanted to change the one they had. The paperwork was exempt from stamp duty. Yıldırım and Şimşek entered many family records in that window. No document explains why they were chosen so often.
What is left out
Season and time words such as bahar, kış and seher are in the time hub. Yıldız and güneş sit with the celestial bodies. This hub is limited to the weather itself: lightning, cloud, wind, rain, frost.
What stands out is that a plain weather word could climb this high. Yıldırım is among the ten most common surnames in Türkiye.
Which members of this group are most common?
Members of Wind, rain and lightning, ordered by TÜİK ADNKS 2025 count, then by the number of notable-person entries in this dictionary: Yıldırım, Şimşek, Akbulut.
| Surname | People | Notable people |
|---|---|---|
| Yıldırım | 666,723 | 8 |
| Şimşek | 253,543 | 8 |
| Akbulut | — | 8 |
| Ayaz | — | 8 |
| Baran | — | 8 |
| Bora | — | 8 |
| Boran | — | 8 |
| Boyraz | — | 8 |
Which province lists include members of this group?
- 1 listed member
- 2–4 listed members
- 5+ listed members
- 0 listed members
The map covers published top-30 lists only; omission does not mean that a province has no bearers.4,5
All surnames in this category
| # | Surname | Meaning | Origin | Rank | Letters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Yıldırım | thunderbolt; lightning-fast | Turkic | 7 | 8 |
| 02 | Şimşek | lightning flash | Turkic | 20 | 6 |
| 03 | Akbulut | white cloud | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 04 | Akduman | white mist | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 05 | Akyel | white wind, clean breeze | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 06 | Alkım | rainbow | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 07 | Ayaz | dry frost of clear nights | Turkic | – | 4 |
| 08 | Balkır | glow, lightning | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 09 | Baran | rain | Persian | – | 5 |
| 10 | Baransel | rain torrent; wealthy | Arabic | – | 8 |
| 11 | Baransu | rainwater | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 12 | Bora | squall, violent wind | Turkic | – | 4 |
| 13 | Boralı | stormy | – | 6 | |
| 14 | Boralıoğlu | son of Boralı; bora: storm | – | 10 | |
| 15 | Boran | squall, thunderstorm | Mongolic | – | 5 |
| 16 | Boyraz | north-east wind | Greek | – | 6 |
| 17 | Bozyel | grey wind | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 18 | Bulut | cloud | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 19 | Bulutoğlu | son of Bulut (‘cloud’) | Turkic | – | 9 |
| 20 | Bulutoğluları | sons of Bulut (“cloud”) | Turkic | – | 13 |
| 21 | Buz | ice | Turkic | – | 3 |
| 22 | Buzluca | rather icy; icy place | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 23 | Çağın | lightning | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 24 | Çakar | flashing; lightning | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 25 | Çığ | avalanche | Turkic | – | 3 |
| 26 | Çıvgın | young shoot, twig | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 27 | Dağyeli | mountain wind | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 28 | Dulda | shelter; protection | – | 5 | |
| 29 | Duman | smoke; mist | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 30 | Dumanlı | misty, smoky | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 31 | Dumanoğlu | son of Duman | Turkic | – | 9 |
| 32 | Esin | inspiration; morning breeze | Turkic | – | 4 |
| 33 | Fırtına | storm | French | – | 7 |
| 34 | Gökbulut | cloud in the sky | Turkic | – | 8 |
| 35 | Gürlek | cascade | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 36 | Ilıcak | lukewarm, mild | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 37 | Ilıman | mild, temperate | Greek | – | 6 |
| 38 | Kar | snow | Turkic | – | 3 |
| 39 | Karabulut | dark cloud | Turkic | – | 9 |
| 40 | Karaduman | black smoke | Turkic | – | 9 |
| 41 | Karayel | north-westerly wind | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 42 | Karlı | snowy; profitable | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 43 | Karlıdağ | snowy mountain | Turkic | – | 8 |
| 44 | Kartop | snowball | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 45 | Kasırga | hurricane, whirlwind | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 46 | Kırcı | hail | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 47 | Özyıldırım | true thunderbolt | Turkic | – | 10 |
| 48 | Poyraz | north-east wind | Greek | – | 6 |
| 49 | Poyrazoğlu | son of Poyraz | Greek | – | 10 |
| 50 | Rüzgar | wind | Persian | – | 6 |
| 51 | Sam | Shem (son of Noah); desert wind | Arabic | – | 3 |
| 52 | Samyeli | hot desert wind, simoom | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 53 | Sazak | strong wind; reed bed; myrtle | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 54 | Serin | cool, fresh | Mongolic | – | 5 |
| 55 | Şimşekler | lightning flashes | Turkic | – | 9 |
| 56 | Tansel | flood of dawn; of the dawn | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 57 | Tanyel | dawn wind | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 58 | Tanyeli | dawn breeze | Turkic | – | 7 |
| 59 | Tufan | deluge, tempest | Arabic | – | 5 |
| 60 | Tuman | smoke, mist (dialect); breeches | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 61 | Yağmur | rain | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 62 | Yağmurdereli | from Yağmurdere | Persian | – | 12 |
| 63 | Yaşın | lightning | Turkic | – | 5 |
| 64 | Yel | wind | Turkic | – | 3 |
| 65 | Yeltan | dawn breeze | Turkic | – | 6 |
| 66 | Yıldırımer | hero like lightning | Turkic | – | 10 |
| 67 | Yıldırımlar | thunderbolts | Turkic | – | 11 |
| 68 | Yıldırımlı | with lightning | Turkic | – | 10 |
Common questions
- What is the difference between Yıldırım and Şimşek?
Per TDK, şimşek is the flash between clouds and yıldırım the strike that reaches the ground. In TÜİK ADNKS 2025 Yıldırım ranks 7th and Şimşek 20th.
- Do Yıldırım and Yıldız share a root?
The resemblance is striking, but dictionaries do not give it as an established etymology; a shared root is disputed.
- Where does the word Poyraz come from?
Poyraz, the north-east wind, comes from Greek boreas.
Sources
- 1Türk Dil Kurumu, TDK Güncel Türkçe Sözlük
- 2Sevan Nişanyan, Nişanyan Sözlük
- 3T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr), Soyadı Kanunu (Kanun No. 2525)
- 4Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK) · ADNKS, TÜİK Nüfus İsim Portalı: En çok kullanılan soyisimler (ADNKS)
- 5Natural Earth, Natural Earth: Admin-1 boundaries