Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 2,624

İşcan

İşcan /iʃˈdʒan/ ASCII Iscan

“hard-working soul”2

Probable origin İşcan: root entries for iş + can · How do we know?

Published: Last updated:

Letters / syllables
5 / 2
Formation
Compound
Vowel harmony
mixed
Initial
İ
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How do you pronounce İşcan?

İşcan

IPA /iʃˈdʒan/

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

What does the surname İşcan mean?

The name appears to join iş ‘work’ and can ‘soul, life’: ‘a soul devoted to work, a hard-working spirit’. Nişanyan Adlar refers for it to the Tarama Dergisi word list published in 1934, so the name belongs to the vocabulary of that period. İş is Turkish, can Persian.2,3

Grammar Noun-plus-noun compound: iş + can.

That İşcan goes back to iş and can is probable rather than proven: the dictionaries cited agree on it.

What is İşcan made of?

İşcan combines Turkic and Persian elements in 2 parts: iş (work) + can (soul, life).

İşcan ++ root iş work TURKIC iş “work, task” suffix can soul, life PERSIAN can “soul, life” İşcan iş root work iş TURKIC “work, task” can suffix soul, life can PERSIAN “soul, life”
İşcan: parts and root words

How was the name İşcan formed?

İşcan was formed by adding the suffix can (“soul, life”) to iş (“work”).

Shared note · 1934Surnames became compulsory with Surname Law No. 2525 of 21 June 1934.5

Which surnames are related to İşcan?

İşcan Özcan Can Ercan Demircan Candan Tezcan
Circle area shows the number of bearers; dashed circle: no national count published. Solid line: same root; dashed line: same affix.
#SurnameRelationRankPeople
01 Özcan same root 25 233,820
02 Can same root 27 230,085
03 Ercan same root – –
04 Demircan same root – –
05 Candan same root – –
06 Tezcan same root – –
07 Karacan same root – –
08 Babacan same root – –
09 Gürcan same root – –
10 Canpolat same root – –
11 Arıcan same root – –
12 Caner same root – –

Who are some well-known people named İşcan?

  1. Eray İşcan association football player 1991–
  2. Elit İşcan actor 1994–
  3. Haşim İşcan politician 1898–1968
  4. Erdoğan İşcan diplomat 1954–
  5. Selin İşcan actor 1978–
  6. Gökçe İşcan researcher
  7. Kaan İşcan researcher
  8. Mehlika Iscan researcher

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

How is İşcan written and pronounced abroad?

In English-language documents it often appears as Iscan.

Which surnames have a meaning similar to İşcan?

Durakcan, İşbir and Öziş share gloss keywords with İşcan within the same primary category.

Which guides add context to İşcan?

Read the root, formation and register information for İşcan alongside these guides: How Turkish Surnames Are Formed: Roots and Suffixes and How to Pronounce and Spell Turkish Surnames.

Where do these facts come from?

All sources accessed 8 November 2026

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Adlar: İşcan
  2. 2 Wikimedia Wiktionary: iş
  3. 3 Wikimedia Wiktionary: can
  4. 4 Wikimedia Foundation Wikidata: people with this family name
  5. 5 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Kanunu (Kanun No. 2525)
  6. 6 Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK)ADNKS TÜİK Nüfus İsim Portalı: En çok kullanılan soyisimler (ADNKS)

Common questions about İşcan

Q1

What does the surname İşcan mean?

The name appears to join iş ‘work’ and can ‘soul, life’: ‘a soul devoted to work, a hard-working spirit’. Nişanyan Adlar refers for it to the Tarama Dergisi word list published in 1934, so the name belongs to the vocabulary of that period. İş is Turkish, can Persian.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname İşcan?

İşcan is made up of two elements: iş “work, task” (Turkic) and can “soul, life” (Persian).
Q3

How do you pronounce İşcan?

İş·can, 2 syllables; IPA: /iʃˈdʒan/.