Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 2,642

Karalar

Karalar /kaɾaˈɫaɾ/

“the black ones; the Kara family”1

Letters / syllables
7 / 3
Formation
Suffixed
Vowel harmony
back
Initial
K
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 Karalar?

Karalar

IPA /kaɾaˈɫaɾ/

The stress usually falls on syllable 3 (marked). In everyday Turkish, stress in surnames varies by speaker and region.

What does the surname Karalar mean?

The name is the plural of kara ‘black’: ‘the Karas, the black ones’. According to Nişanyan, Old Turkic kara meant ‘black’ and also ‘common, ordinary’ and ‘north’. In surnames the suffix -lar can also denote a family or group.1

Grammar kara + -lar (plural).

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

What is Karalar made of?

Karalar is Turkic in origin and breaks into 2 parts: kara (black) + -lar (plural).

Karalar + root kara black TURKIC kara “black; (old) common;north” suffix -lar plural Karalar kara root black kara TURKIC “black; (old) common; north” -lar suffix plural
Karalar: parts and root words
  • kara Turkic — black; (old) common; north1

How was the name Karalar formed?

Karalar was formed by adding the suffix -lar (“plural”) to kara (“black”).

Shared note · 1934Surnames became compulsory with Surname Law No. 2525 of 21 June 1934.3

Which surnames are related to Karalar?

Karalar Kara Karataş Karahan Karaca Karakaş Karadağ Karakaya Karakoç Karaaslan Karagöz Baykara Karabulut
Circle area shows the number of bearers; dashed circle: no national count published. Solid line: same root; dashed line: same affix.
#SurnameRelationRankPeople
01 Kara same root 16 290,024
02 Karataş same root – –
03 Karahan same root – –
04 Karaca same root – –
05 Karakaş same root – –
06 Karadağ same root – –
07 Karakaya same root – –
08 Karakoç same root – –
09 Karaaslan same root – –
10 Karagöz same root – –
11 Baykara same root – –
12 Karabulut same root – –

Who are some well-known people named Karalar?

  1. Aslıhan Karalar film actor 1999–
  2. Emrah Karalar basketball player 1985–
  3. Yiğit Karalar basketball player 2003–

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

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: kara accessed 8 November 2026
  2. 2 Wikimedia Foundation Wikidata: people with this family name accessed 8 November 2026
  3. 3 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Kanunu (Kanun No. 2525) accessed 8 November 2026
  4. 4 Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK)ADNKS TÜİK Nüfus İsim Portalı: En çok kullanılan soyisimler (ADNKS) accessed 8 November 2026

Common questions about Karalar

Q1

What does the surname Karalar mean?

The name is the plural of kara ‘black’: ‘the Karas, the black ones’. According to Nişanyan, Old Turkic kara meant ‘black’ and also ‘common, ordinary’ and ‘north’. In surnames the suffix -lar can also denote a family or group.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Karalar?

The root word of Karalar is kara (Turkic): “black; (old) common; north”.
Q3

How do you pronounce Karalar?

Ka·ra·lar, 3 syllables; IPA: /kaɾaˈɫaɾ/.