Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 3,169

Köksalan

Köksalan /køksaˈɫan/ ASCII Koksalan

“one who takes root”1

Probable origin Köksalan: root entries for kök + sal- · How do we know?

Published: Last updated:

Letters / syllables
8 / 3
Formation
From a verb
Vowel harmony
mixed
Initial
K
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How do you pronounce Köksalan?

Köksalan

IPA /køksaˈɫan/

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

What does the surname Köksalan mean?

Köksalan is built on the idiom kök salmak ‘to take root’: ‘one who takes root’, settling firmly in a place. Nişanyan traces kök to Old Turkic kök ‘plant root; foundation’.1

Grammar kök + participle in -an of salmak.

That Köksalan goes back to kök and sal- is probable rather than proven: the dictionary entry cited supports it.

What is Köksalan made of?

Köksalan is Turkic in origin and breaks into 3 parts: kök (kök: root; foundation) + sal- (salmak: to let go, spread) + -an (-an: participle).

Köksalan ++ root kök kök: root; foundation TURKIC kök “plant root; foundation” root sal- salmak: to let go, spread TURKIC sal- “to let go, release” suffix -an -an: participle Köksalan kök root kök: root; foundation kök TURKIC “plant root; foundation” sal- root salmak: to let go, spread sal- TURKIC “to let go, release” -an suffix -an: participle
Köksalan: parts and root words
  • kök Turkic — plant root; foundation1
  • sal- Turkic — to let go, release1

How was the name Köksalan formed?

Köksalan was formed by adding the suffix -an (“-an: participle”) to the verb stem kök + sal-.

Shared note · 1934Surnames became compulsory with Surname Law No. 2525 of 21 June 1934.4

Which surnames are related to Köksalan?

Köksalan Köksal Ünsal Soysal Kök Özkök Köker
Circle area shows the number of bearers; dashed circle: no national count published. Solid line: same root; dashed line: same affix.
#SurnameRelationRankPeople
01 Köksal same root – –
02 Ünsal same root – –
03 Soysal same root – –
04 Kök same root – –
05 Özkök same root – –
06 Köker same root – –
07 Ünsalan same root – –
08 Kökçü same root – –
09 Köksoy same root – –
10 Köktürk same root – –
11 Dinçkök same root – –
12 Kökdemir same root – –

Who are some well-known people named Köksalan?

  1. Halil Köksalan association football player 1919–
  2. İrfan Köksalan politician 1935–

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

How is Köksalan written and pronounced abroad?

In foreign records the name often appears as Koksalan.

Which surnames have a meaning similar to Köksalan?

Ağaç, Büyükağaç and Dinçkök share gloss keywords with Köksalan within the same primary category.

Which guides add context to Köksalan?

Read the root, formation and register information for Köksalan 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?

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: kök accessed 9 November 2026
  2. 2 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Adlar: Köksalan 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

Common questions about Köksalan

Q1

What does the surname Köksalan mean?

Köksalan is built on the idiom kök salmak ‘to take root’: ‘one who takes root’, settling firmly in a place. Nişanyan traces kök to Old Turkic kök ‘plant root; foundation’.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Köksalan?

Köksalan is made up of two elements: kök “plant root; foundation” (Turkic) and sal- “to let go, release” (Turkic).
Q3

How do you pronounce Köksalan?

Kök·sa·lan, 3 syllables; IPA: /køksaˈɫan/.