Comparison·Top 10
TÜİK · ADNKS 2025Yılmaz or Çelik?
For every Çelik there are about 1.64 Yılmazs (2025). Since 2018, Çelik has grown 5.5% and Yılmaz 3.8%, so the gap is narrowing. Nationally Yılmaz ranks 1st and Çelik 4th.1
SURNAME · No. 1
Yılmaz
“undaunted, one who never gives up”
- People
- 1,177,896
- Per 1,000
- 13.7
- Since 2018
- +3.8%
- Provinces led
- 57
- Origin
- Turkic
- Category
- Courage and resilience
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
How have Yılmaz and Çelik changed since 2018?
| 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yılmaz | 1,134,443 | 1,144,894 | 1,152,872 | 1,160,248 | 1,167,108 | 1,171,014 | 1,174,516 | 1,177,896 |
| Çelik | 680,558 | 688,604 | 695,044 | 701,315 | 706,814 | 710,598 | 714,184 | 717,655 |
| Year | Yılmaz | Çelik | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 1,134,443 | 680,558 | 1.67 |
| 2019 | 1,144,894 | 688,604 | 1.66 |
| 2020 | 1,152,872 | 695,044 | 1.66 |
| 2021 | 1,160,248 | 701,315 | 1.65 |
| 2022 | 1,167,108 | 706,814 | 1.65 |
| 2023 | 1,171,014 | 710,598 | 1.65 |
| 2024 | 1,174,516 | 714,184 | 1.64 |
| 2025 | 1,177,896 | 717,655 | 1.64 |
Which one leads in which provinces?
In the 2025 province lists, Yılmaz ranks above Çelik in 69 provinces and Çelik above Yılmaz in 12 provinces.1
Yılmaz ahead
The most populous entries are shown; the figure is the count in that province.
Do they share a root?
Both Yılmaz and Çelik go back to words of Turkic origin; Yılmaz is a from a verb and Çelik a plain noun formation.
- Yılmaz The verb yılmak means to be daunted, to lose heart and back away; the suffix -maz negates it. Yılmaz therefore describes someone who does not lose heart and does not give up in the face of hardship. It was already a male given name before the Surname Law.
- 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.
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