Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 925

Cura

Cura /d͡ʒuˈɾa/

“smallest bağlama lute”3

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

How do you pronounce Cura?

Cura

IPA /d͡ʒuˈɾa/

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

What does the surname Cura mean?

Cura is the smallest member of the bağlama family of long-necked lutes, played with a plectrum or the fingers. Nişanyan treats the word as cognate with Persian cūra, “small; a small lute”. Dictionaries also give cura the senses “small, undersized” and a small, noisy kind of falcon.3

The origin is disputed. The views put forward are:

  1. According to Nişanyan Sözlük, the word is the name of the instrument, cognate with Persian cūra.
  2. Nişanyan Adlar explains the personal name Cura as a separate Tatar and Kazakh name meaning “companion, escort”.

Cura is also an ordinary word in everyday Turkish.

What is Cura made of?

Cura is a single root: cura (smallest instrument of the bağlama family).

Cura root cura smallest instrument ofthe bağlama family PERSIAN cura “small stringedinstrument; cognate…” Cura cura root smallest instrument of the bağlamafamily cura PERSIAN “small stringed instrument;cognate with Persian cūra…”
Cura: parts and root words
  • cura Persian — small stringed instrument; cognate with Persian cūra “small; small lute”3

How was the name Cura formed?

Cura belongs to the “plain noun” class of surnames.

How else is Cura spelled?

Cürespelling

Who are some well-known people named Cura?

  1. Hüseyin Hulki Cura politician 1893–1982
  2. José Cura singer 1962–
  3. Ben Cura actor 1988–
  4. Maria Renee Cura translator 1927–2007

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

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: cura accessed 8 November 2026
  2. 2 Wikimedia Vikisözlük: cura accessed 8 November 2026
  3. 3 nisanyanadlar.com nisanyanadlar.com: Cura accessed 8 November 2026
  4. 4 Wikimedia Foundation Wikidata: people with this family name accessed 8 November 2026
  5. 5 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Kanunu (Kanun No. 2525) accessed 8 November 2026
  6. 6 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Nizamnamesi (Bakanlar Kurulu Kararı 2/1759) accessed 8 November 2026

Common questions about Cura

Q1

What does the surname Cura mean?

Cura is the smallest member of the bağlama family of long-necked lutes, played with a plectrum or the fingers. Nişanyan treats the word as cognate with Persian cūra, “small; a small lute”. Dictionaries also give cura the senses “small, undersized” and a small, noisy kind of falcon.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Cura?

The root word of Cura is cura (Persian): ‘small stringed instrument; cognate with Persian cūra “small; small lute”’. There are 3 competing views on where Cura comes from, all set out on this page.
Q3

How do you pronounce Cura?

Cu·ra, 2 syllables; IPA: /d͡ʒuˈɾa/.