Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 20

Abla

Abla /ˈabɫa/

“elder sister”1

Letters / syllables
4 / 2
Formation
Plain noun
Vowel harmony
back
Initial
A
Contents§1–§8
  1. §1Pronunciation
  2. §2Meaning
  3. §3Root tree
  4. §4Formation & 1934
  5. §5Notable people
  6. §6Sources
  7. §7Questions
  8. §8Related

How do you pronounce Abla?

Abla

IPA /ˈabɫa/

The stress usually falls on syllable 1 (marked). In everyday Turkish, stress in surnames varies by speaker and region.

What does the surname Abla mean?

Abla is ‘elder sister’; it is also a respectful form of address to an older woman. Nişanyan traces it to Old Turkic apa ‘elder sister, mother, grandmother’, a word of nursery-language origin.1

Abla is also an ordinary word in everyday Turkish.

What is Abla made of?

Abla is a single Turkic root: abla (abla: elder sister).

Abla root abla abla: elder sister TURKIC abla “elder sister” Abla abla root abla: elder sister abla TURKIC “elder sister”
Abla: parts and root words
  • abla Turkic — elder sister1

How was the name Abla formed?

Abla is the word abla (“abla: elder sister”), taken unchanged as a surname.

Shared note · 1934Surnames became compulsory with Surname Law No. 2525 of 21 June 1934.4

Who are some well-known people named Abla?

  1. Cemile Abla film actor 1990–

People surnamed Abla as recorded in Wikidata, ordered by the number of Wikipedia language editions.

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: abla accessed 8 November 2026
  2. 2 Wikimedia Vikisözlük: abla accessed 8 November 2026
  3. 3 Wikimedia Foundation Wikidata: people with this family name accessed 8 November 2026
  4. 4 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Kanunu (Kanun No. 2525) accessed 8 November 2026

Common questions about Abla

Q1

What does the surname Abla mean?

Abla is ‘elder sister’; it is also a respectful form of address to an older woman. Nişanyan traces it to Old Turkic apa ‘elder sister, mother, grandmother’, a word of nursery-language origin.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Abla?

The root word of Abla is abla (Turkic): “elder sister”.
Q3

How do you pronounce Abla?

Ab·la, 2 syllables; IPA: /ˈabɫa/.