SURNAMENo. 17
ADNKS 2025Kurt
“wolf”3
- CategoryLions, wolves and predators
- OriginTurkic
- FormPlain noun
#17 The 17th most common surname in Türkiye 289,723 peopleTÜİK ADNKS 20251
- Letters / syllables
- 4 / 1
- Formation
- Plain noun
Contents§1–§16
How do you pronounce Kurt?
What does the surname Kurt mean?
Kurt is the wolf; the word goes back to Proto-Turkic *kūrt. In Turkish folk culture the wolf stands for strength and guidance, and a seasoned, shrewd person is called a kurt, as in “an old hand”. It is also used as a male given name.3
Kurt is also an ordinary word in everyday Turkish.
What is Kurt made of?
Kurt is a single Turkic root: kurt (wolf).
- kurt Turkic — wolf; figuratively a shrewd, seasoned person3
How was the name Kurt formed?
Kurt is the word kurt (“wolf”), taken unchanged as a surname.
Which surnames are related to Kurt?
| # | Surname | Relation | Rank | People |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Bozkurt | same root | – | – |
| 02 | Karakurt | same root | – | – |
| 03 | Kurtoğlu | same root | – | – |
| 04 | Akkurt | same root | – | – |
| 05 | Kurdoğlu | same root | – | – |
| 06 | Özkurt | same root | – | – |
| 07 | Aykurt | same root | – | – |
| 08 | Baykurt | same root | – | – |
| 09 | Savaşkurt | same root | – | – |
| 10 | Altınkurt | same root | – | – |
| 11 | Cankurt | same root | – | – |
| 12 | Erkurt | same root | – | – |
How many people in Türkiye are called Kurt?
In TÜİK’s ADNKS 2025 figures, 289,723 people in Türkiye carry the surname Kurt, ranking it 17th in the top 30. That is 301 behind Kara and 3,516 ahead of Koç.1
Bearers by year
| 2018 | 275,188 |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 278,215 |
| 2020 | 280,787 |
| 2021 | 283,055 |
| 2022 | 285,258 |
| 2023 | 286,632 |
| 2024 | 288,237 |
| 2025 | 289,723 |
Kurt is growing faster than Türkiye’s population: up 14,535 people (5.3%) since 2018, against 5.0% for the population as a whole. It has held 17th place every year since 2018.1,2
How has Kurt ranked over the years?
| Year | Rank | People | Change | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 17 | 289,723 | +1,486 | [1] |
| 2024 | 17 | 288,237 | +1,605 | [1] |
| 2023 | 17 | 286,632 | +1,374 | [1] |
| 2022 | 17 | 285,258 | +2,203 | [1] |
| 2021 | 17 | 283,055 | +2,268 | [1] |
| 2020 | 17 | 280,787 | +2,572 | [1] |
| 2019 | 17 | 278,215 | +3,027 | [1] |
| 2018 | 17 | 275,188 | – | [1] |
Where in Türkiye is Kurt most common?
Kurt is not first anywhere, but it is in the top three in 1 province: Kahramanmaraş.1
- In the top three (#2–3) 1
- In the province top 30 45
- Not listed
| # | Province | Rank | People |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Istanbul | 20 | 43,577 |
| 02 | Gaziantep | 16 | 14,891 |
| 03 | Şanlıurfa | 13 | 13,369 |
| 04 | Izmir | 28 | 11,379 |
| 05 | Kahramanmaraş | 2 | 10,703 |
| 06 | Bursa | 27 | 9,765 |
How often would you meet a Kurt?
About one person in 297 in Türkiye is a Kurt; a town of 10,000 would have around 34.
289,723 ÷ 86,092,168 × 1,000 ≈ 3.4 1,2
The calculation divides bearers by the 2025 ADNKS population; a real school or class will differ by region.
How does Kurt compare with similar surnames?
Surnames in the “Lions, wolves and predators” category and the Kurt family:
Kurt is about 71% as common as Aslan.
How many people are called Mehmet Kurt?
These are estimates that assume given names and surnames are independent. In reality, families and regions do not choose names independently, so read them as orders of magnitude.
| # | Full name | Estimated people |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Mehmet Kurt | ≈4,280estimate |
| 02 | Fatma Kurt | ≈3,877estimate |
| 03 | Mustafa Kurt | ≈3,559estimate |
| 04 | Ayşe Kurt | ≈3,052estimate |
| 05 | Ahmet Kurt | ≈2,884estimate |
Who are some well-known people named Kurt?
- Sinan Kurt association football player 1996–
- Seyhan Kurt writer 1971–
- Yaşar Kurt singer-songwriter 1968–
- Ümit Kurt association football player 1991–
- Okan Kurt association football player 1995–
- Metin Kurt association football player 1948–2012
- Ümit Kurt university teacher 1984–
- Kemal Kurt writer 1947–2002
People surnamed Kurt as recorded in Wikidata, ordered by the number of Wikipedia language editions.
Is Kurt also a first name?
Yes. Kurt is given as a first name too, carrying the same sense: “wolf”.
Kurt as a first name: meaning and statistics — turkiyenames.com →
Where do these facts come from?
- 1 Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK)ADNKS TÜİK Nüfus İsim Portalı: En çok kullanılan soyisimler (ADNKS)
- 2 Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK)ADNKS TÜİK ADNKS: Cinsiyete göre nüfus, Türkiye ve 81 il
- 3 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: kurt
- 4 Wikimedia Wiktionary: kurt
- 5 Wikimedia Wiktionary: Kurt
- 6 Wikimedia Foundation Wikidata: people with this family name
- 7 Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu (TÜİK)ADNKS TÜİK Nüfus İsim Portalı — En çok kullanılan isimler (ADNKS)
- 8 T.C. Resmî Gazete / Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi (mevzuat.gov.tr) Soyadı Kanunu (Kanun No. 2525)
- 9 Natural Earth Natural Earth: Admin-1 boundaries
- 10 turkiyenames.com Türkiye İsimleri (turkiyenames.com)
Common questions about Kurt
- Q1
What does the surname Kurt mean?
- Kurt is the wolf; the word goes back to Proto-Turkic *kūrt. In Turkish folk culture the wolf stands for strength and guidance, and a seasoned, shrewd person is called a kurt, as in “an old hand”. It is also used as a male given name.
- Q2
How many people in Türkiye have the surname Kurt?
- 289,723 people, according to TÜİK ADNKS 2025, which places it at number 17 in Türkiye.
- Q3
What is the origin of the surname Kurt?
- The root word of Kurt is kurt (Turkic): “wolf; figuratively a shrewd, seasoned person”.
- Q4
How do you pronounce Kurt?
- Kurt, 1 syllable; IPA: /kuɾt/.