Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 1,943

Kayabaşı

Kayabaşı /kajabaˈʃɯ/ ASCII Kayabasi

“top of the rock; a folk tune”1

Letters / syllables
8 / 4
Formation
Compound
Vowel harmony
back
Initial
K
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 Kayabaşı?

Kayabaşı

IPA /kajabaˈʃɯ/

The stress usually falls on syllable 4 (marked). In everyday Turkish, stress in surnames varies by speaker and region.

What does the surname Kayabaşı mean?

Kayabaşı literally means “top of the rock”. The dictionary also records it as the name of an Anatolian folk tune and of the verse sung to it, a kind of shepherd’s song in folk literature. Villages of this name exist in Amasya, Ankara, Antalya and other provinces.1,2

Grammar kaya + baş + -ı (possessive): indefinite noun compound.

That Kayabaşı goes back to kaya and kayabaşı is probable rather than proven: the dictionaries cited agree on it.

Kayabaşı is also an ordinary word in everyday Turkish.

What is Kayabaşı made of?

Kayabaşı breaks into 2 parts: kaya (rock) + baş-ı (head, top (with possessive)).

Kayabaşı ++ root kaya rock TURKIC kaya “rock” suffix baş-ı head, top (withpossessive) TURKIC kayabaşı “a kind of Anatolian folktune and verse sung to…” Kayabaşı kaya root rock kaya TURKIC “rock” baş-ı suffix head, top (with possessive) kayabaşı TURKIC “a kind of Anatolian folk tuneand verse sung to it”
Kayabaşı: parts and root words
  • kaya Turkic — rock1
  • kayabaşı Turkic — a kind of Anatolian folk tune and verse sung to it2

How was the name Kayabaşı formed?

Kayabaşı belongs to the “compound” class of surnames (kaya + baş-ı).

Which surnames are related to Kayabaşı?

Kayabaşı Kaya Akkaya Çetinkaya Karakaya Sarıkaya Özkaya Yalçınkaya Kayalı Kızılkaya Şahinkaya Yerlikaya Kayacan
Circle area shows the number of bearers; dashed circle: no national count published. Solid line: same root; dashed line: same affix.
#SurnameRelationRankPeople
01 Kaya same root 2 899,722
02 Akkaya same root – –
03 Çetinkaya same root – –
04 Karakaya same root – –
05 Sarıkaya same root – –
06 Özkaya same root – –
07 Yalçınkaya same root – –
08 Kayalı same root – –
09 Kızılkaya same root – –
10 Şahinkaya same root – –
11 Yerlikaya same root – –
12 Kayacan same root – –

Who are some well-known people named Kayabaşı?

  1. Mustafa Kayabaşı association football player 1988–
  2. Çağdaş Kayabaşı basketball player 2000–
  3. Çağla Kayabaşı researcher

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

How is Kayabaşı written and pronounced abroad?

Outside Turkey the name is often written Kayabasi.

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Wikimedia Vikisözlük: kayabaşı accessed 8 November 2026
  2. 2 Wikimedia Vikisözlük: Kayabaşı accessed 8 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
  5. 5 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Nizamnamesi (Bakanlar Kurulu Kararı 2/1759) accessed 8 November 2026
  6. 6 Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK)ADNKS TÜİK Nüfus İsim Portalı: En çok kullanılan soyisimler (ADNKS) accessed 8 November 2026

Common questions about Kayabaşı

Q1

What does the surname Kayabaşı mean?

Kayabaşı literally means “top of the rock”. The dictionary also records it as the name of an Anatolian folk tune and of the verse sung to it, a kind of shepherd’s song in folk literature. Villages of this name exist in Amasya, Ankara, Antalya and other provinces.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Kayabaşı?

The root word of Kayabaşı is kaya (Turkic): “rock”.
Q3

How do you pronounce Kayabaşı?

Ka·ya·ba·şı, 4 syllables; IPA: /kajabaˈʃɯ/.