Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 676

Ayhan

Ayhan /ajˈhan/

“moon-bright khan”1

Letters / syllables
5 / 2
Formation
Compound
Vowel harmony
back
Initial
A
Contents§1–§10
  1. §1Pronunciation
  2. §2Meaning
  3. §3Root tree
  4. §4Formation & 1934
  5. §5Name family
  6. §6Notable people
  7. §7As a first name
  8. §8Sources
  9. §9Questions
  10. §10Related

How do you pronounce Ayhan?

Ayhan

IPA /ajˈhan/

The stress usually falls on syllable 2 (marked). In everyday Turkish, stress in surnames varies by speaker and region.

What does the surname Ayhan mean?

A male given name from ay “moon” and han “khan”, explained in name dictionaries as “a khan as fair and radiant as the moon”. In the Oghuz epic, Ay Han is one of the six sons of Oghuz Khagan.1

Grammar Compound ay + han.

That Ayhan goes back to ay and han is probable rather than proven: the dictionary entry cited supports it.

What is Ayhan made of?

Ayhan is Turkic in origin and breaks into 2 parts: ay (ay: moon; beauty) + han (han: khan, ruler).

Ayhan ++ first element ay ay: moon; beauty TURKIC ay “moon” suffix han han: khan, ruler TURKIC han “khan, ruler” Ayhan ay first element ay: moon; beauty ay TURKIC “moon” han suffix han: khan, ruler han TURKIC “khan, ruler”
Ayhan: parts and root words
  • ay Turkic — moon1
  • han Turkic — khan, ruler1

How was the name Ayhan formed?

Ayhan was formed by adding the suffix han (“han: khan, ruler”) to ay (“ay: moon; beauty”).

Shared note · 1934Surnames became compulsory with Surname Law No. 2525 of 21 June 1934.7

Which surnames are related to Ayhan?

Ayhan Karahan İlhan Orhan Demirhan Erhan Bayhan Özhan Yıldızhan Gökhan Beyhan Atlıhan Kayahan
Circle area shows the number of bearers; dashed circle: no national count published. Solid line: same root; dashed line: same affix.
#SurnameRelationRankPeople
01 Karahan same root – –
02 İlhan same root – –
03 Orhan same root – –
04 Demirhan same root – –
05 Erhan same root – –
06 Bayhan same root – –
07 Özhan same root – –
08 Yıldızhan same root – –
09 Gökhan same root – –
10 Beyhan same root – –
11 Atlıhan same root – –
12 Kayahan same root – –

Who are some well-known people named Ayhan?

  1. Kaan Ayhan association football player 1994–
  2. Süreyya Ayhan athletics competitor 1978–
  3. Yalçın Ayhan association football player 1982–
  4. Pınar Ayhan singer 1972–
  5. Burcu Ayhan athletics competitor 1990–
  6. Devran Ayhan association football player 1978–
  7. İbrahim Ayhan politician 1968–2018
  8. Selçuk Ayhan politician 1953–2024

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

Is Ayhan also a first name?

Yes. Ayhan is given as a first name too, carrying the same sense: “moon-bright khan”.

Ayhan as a first name: meaning and statistics — turkiyenames.com →

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: ay accessed 8 November 2026
  2. 2 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: han2 accessed 8 November 2026
  3. 3 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Adlar: Ayhan accessed 8 November 2026
  4. 4 Wikimedia Vikipedi: Ayhan accessed 8 November 2026
  5. 5 Wikimedia Vikisözlük: Ayhan accessed 8 November 2026
  6. 6 Wikimedia Foundation Wikidata: people with this family name accessed 8 November 2026
  7. 7 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Kanunu (Kanun No. 2525) accessed 8 November 2026
  8. 8 turkiyenames.com Türkiye İsimleri (turkiyenames.com) accessed 9 November 2026

Common questions about Ayhan

Q1

What does the surname Ayhan mean?

A male given name from ay “moon” and han “khan”, explained in name dictionaries as “a khan as fair and radiant as the moon”. In the Oghuz epic, Ay Han is one of the six sons of Oghuz Khagan.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Ayhan?

Ayhan is made up of two elements: ay “moon” (Turkic) and han “khan, ruler” (Turkic).
Q3

How do you pronounce Ayhan?

Ay·han, 2 syllables; IPA: /ajˈhan/.