Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 952

Bel

/bel/

“waist; mountain pass”1

Letters / syllables
3 / 1
Formation
Plain noun
Vowel harmony
front
Initial
B
Contents§1–§9
  1. §1Pronunciation
  2. §2Meaning
  3. §3Root tree
  4. §4Formation & 1934
  5. §5Name family
  6. §6Notable people
  7. §7Sources
  8. §8Questions
  9. §9Related

How do you pronounce Bel?

Bel

IPA /bel/

What does the surname Bel mean?

Bel is the waist, the narrow part of the body between chest and hips; it also denotes a saddle or pass on a mountain ridge. According to Nişanyan both senses are already present in Old Turkic bél. In Turkish bel is also the name of a digging spade.1

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

Bel is also an ordinary word in everyday Turkish.

What is Bel made of?

Bel is a single Turkic root: bel (bel: waist; mountain pass).

Bel root bel bel: waist; mountain pass TURKIC bél “middle of the body,waist; low pass between…” Bel bel root bel: waist; mountain pass bél TURKIC “middle of the body, waist; lowpass between mountains”
Bel: parts and root words
  • bél Turkic — middle of the body, waist; low pass between mountains1

How was the name Bel formed?

Bel is the word bel (“bel: waist; mountain pass”), taken unchanged as a surname.

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

Which surnames are related to Bel?

Bel Çamlıbel Çambel Akbel
Circle area shows the number of bearers; dashed circle: no national count published. Solid line: same root; dashed line: same affix.
#SurnameRelationRankPeople
01 Çamlıbel same root – –
02 Çambel same root – –
03 Akbel same root – –

Who are some well-known people named Bel?

  1. Selahattin Bel actor 1969–

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

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: bel accessed 8 November 2026
  2. 2 Wikimedia Vikisözlük: bel accessed 9 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 Bel

Q1

What does the surname Bel mean?

Bel is the waist, the narrow part of the body between chest and hips; it also denotes a saddle or pass on a mountain ridge. According to Nişanyan both senses are already present in Old Turkic bél. In Turkish bel is also the name of a digging spade.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Bel?

The root word of Bel is bél (Turkic): “middle of the body, waist; low pass between mountains”.
Q3

How do you pronounce Bel?

Bel, 1 syllable; IPA: /bel/.