Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 1,319

Çalı

Çalı /tʃaˈɫɯ/ ASCII Cali

“bush, shrub”1

Letters / syllables
4 / 2
Formation
Plain noun
Vowel harmony
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Initial
Ç
Contents§1–§10
  1. §1Pronunciation
  2. §2Meaning
  3. §3Root tree
  4. §4Formation & 1934
  5. §5Name family
  6. §6Notable people
  7. §7Abroad
  8. §8Sources
  9. §9Questions
  10. §10Related

How do you pronounce Çalı?

Çalı

IPA /tʃaˈɫɯ/

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

What does the surname Çalı mean?

The word çalı “bush, shrub”, a small woody plant branching from the base. It is also the name of several places, among them the town of Çalı in Nilüfer, Bursa.1

Çalı is also an ordinary word in everyday Turkish.

What is Çalı made of?

Çalı is a single Turkic root: çalı (çalı: bush, shrub).

Çalı root çalı çalı: bush, shrub TURKIC çalı “bush, shrub, bramble” Çalı çalı root çalı: bush, shrub çalı TURKIC “bush, shrub, bramble”
Çalı: parts and root words
  • çalı Turkic — bush, shrub, bramble1

How was the name Çalı formed?

Çalı is the word çalı (“çalı: bush, shrub”), 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 Çalı?

Çalı Çalıkuşu Çalıkıran
Circle area shows the number of bearers; dashed circle: no national count published. Solid line: same root; dashed line: same affix.
#SurnameRelationRankPeople
01 Çalıkuşu same root – –
02 Çalıkıran same root – –

Who are some well-known people named Çalı?

  1. Onur Çalı writer 1984–

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

How is Çalı written and pronounced abroad?

In English-language records the name usually appears as Cali.

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Wikimedia Vikisözlük: çalı accessed 9 November 2026
  2. 2 Wikimedia Wiktionary: çalı 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 Çalı

Q1

What does the surname Çalı mean?

The word çalı “bush, shrub”, a small woody plant branching from the base. It is also the name of several places, among them the town of Çalı in Nilüfer, Bursa.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Çalı?

The root word of Çalı is çalı (Turkic): “bush, shrub, bramble”.
Q3

How do you pronounce Çalı?

Ça·lı, 2 syllables; IPA: /tʃaˈɫɯ/.