Comparison·Top 10
TÜİK · ADNKS 2025Çelik or Yıldırım?
For every Yıldırım there are about 1.08 Çeliks (2025). Since 2018, Çelik has grown 5.5% and Yıldırım 4.7%, so the gap is widening. Nationally Çelik ranks 4th and Yıldırım 7th.1
SURNAME · No. 4
Çelik
“steel; tough, resilient”
- People
- 717,655
- Per 1,000
- 8.3
- Since 2018
- +5.5%
- Provinces led
- 1
- Origin
- Turkic
- Category
- Metals and gemstones
SURNAME · No. 7
Yıldırım
“thunderbolt; lightning-fast”
- People
- 666,723
- Per 1,000
- 7.7
- Since 2018
- +4.7%
- Provinces led
- 1
- Origin
- Turkic
- Category
- Wind, rain and lightning
How have Çelik and Yıldırım changed since 2018?
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Çelik | 680,558 | 688,604 | 695,044 | 701,315 | 706,814 | 710,598 | 714,184 | 717,655 |
| Yıldırım | 636,738 | 643,571 | 648,965 | 654,066 | 658,631 | 661,503 | 664,229 | 666,723 |
| Year | Çelik | Yıldırım | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 680,558 | 636,738 | 1.07 |
| 2019 | 688,604 | 643,571 | 1.07 |
| 2020 | 695,044 | 648,965 | 1.07 |
| 2021 | 701,315 | 654,066 | 1.07 |
| 2022 | 706,814 | 658,631 | 1.07 |
| 2023 | 710,598 | 661,503 | 1.07 |
| 2024 | 714,184 | 664,229 | 1.08 |
| 2025 | 717,655 | 666,723 | 1.08 |
Which one leads in which provinces?
In the 2025 province lists, Çelik ranks above Yıldırım in 55 provinces and Yıldırım above Çelik in 26 provinces.1
Çelik ahead
The most populous entries are shown; the figure is the count in that province.
Do they share a root?
Both Çelik and Yıldırım go back to words of Turkic origin, and both are of the plain noun type.
- Çelik Çelik is steel, the iron-carbon alloy that is quenched to make it hard and springy. Figuratively it describes someone tough and resilient, çelik gibi, “like steel”. The word has the same form in Ottoman Turkish and is also a male given name.
- Yıldırım The word for a thunderbolt, the lightning that strikes the ground. In phrases it comes to mean “lightning-fast”, as in yıldırım hızıyla, “at lightning speed”. The surname carries this image of sudden power and speed, and Yıldırım is also a male given name.
How is this comparison made?
Sources
- 1Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK) · ADNKS, TÜİK Nüfus İsim Portalı: En çok kullanılan soyisimler (ADNKS)
- 2Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK) · ADNKS, TÜİK ADNKS: Cinsiyete göre nüfus, Türkiye ve 81 il