Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 353

Altaylar

Altaylar /aɫtajˈɫaɾ/

“the Altays; the Altay family”1

Letters / syllables
8 / 3
Formation
Suffixed
Vowel harmony
back
Initial
A
Contents§1–§9
  1. §1Pronunciation
  2. §2Meaning
  3. §3Root tree
  4. §4Formation & 1934
  5. §5Name family
  6. §6Abroad
  7. §7Sources
  8. §8Questions
  9. §9Related

How do you pronounce Altaylar?

Altaylar

IPA /aɫtajˈɫaɾ/

The stress usually falls on syllable 3 (marked). In everyday Turkish, stress in surnames varies by speaker and region.

What does the surname Altaylar mean?

The plural of Altay: “the Altays”, in a surname “the Altay family”. Altay is the Central Asian mountain range regarded as an ancient homeland of the Turks; Nişanyan Adlar notes that the name may mean “red mountain” or “golden mountain”, but there is no consensus.1

Grammar Altay + plural -lar

That Altaylar goes back to Altay is probable rather than proven: the dictionary entry cited supports it.

What is Altaylar made of?

Altaylar is Turkic in origin and breaks into 2 parts: Altay (Altay: mountain range in Central Asia; male given name) + -lar (plural suffix; “the … family”).

Altaylar + root Altay Altay: mountain range inCentral Asia; male given… TURKIC Altay “mountain range inCentral Asia” suffix -lar plural suffix; “the …family” Altaylar Altay root Altay: mountain range in Central Asia;male given name Altay TURKIC “mountain range in Central Asia” -lar suffix plural suffix; “the … family”
Altaylar: parts and root words
  • Altay Turkic — mountain range in Central Asia1

How was the name Altaylar formed?

Altaylar was formed by adding the suffix -lar (“plural suffix; “the … family””) to Altay (“Altay: mountain range in Central Asia; male given name”).

Shared note · 1934Surnames became compulsory with Surname Law No. 2525 of 21 June 1934.3

Which surnames are related to Altaylar?

Altaylar Altay Altaylı Günaltay
Circle area shows the number of bearers; dashed circle: no national count published. Solid line: same root; dashed line: same affix.
#SurnameRelationRankPeople
01 Altay same root – –
02 Altaylı same root – –
03 Günaltay same root – –

How is Altaylar written and pronounced abroad?

The name has no Turkish-specific letters and is written Altaylar abroad as well.

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Adlar: Altay accessed 8 November 2026
  2. 2 Wikimedia Wiktionary: Altay accessed 9 November 2026
  3. 3 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Kanunu (Kanun No. 2525) accessed 8 November 2026

Common questions about Altaylar

Q1

What does the surname Altaylar mean?

The plural of Altay: “the Altays”, in a surname “the Altay family”. Altay is the Central Asian mountain range regarded as an ancient homeland of the Turks; Nişanyan Adlar notes that the name may mean “red mountain” or “golden mountain”, but there is no consensus.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Altaylar?

The root word of Altaylar is Altay (Turkic): “mountain range in Central Asia”.
Q3

How do you pronounce Altaylar?

Al·tay·lar, 3 syllables; IPA: /aɫtajˈɫaɾ/.