Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 3,100

Latif

Latif /ɫaˈtif/

“kind, gentle, refined”1

Letters / syllables
5 / 2
Formation
Adjective
Vowel harmony
mixed
Initial
L
Contents§1–§9
  1. §1Pronunciation
  2. §2Meaning
  3. §3Root tree
  4. §4Formation & 1934
  5. §5Notable people
  6. §6As a first name
  7. §7Sources
  8. §8Questions
  9. §9Related

How do you pronounce Latif?

Latif

IPA /ɫaˈtif/

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

What does the surname Latif mean?

Latif comes from Arabic laṭīf ‘generous, graceful, fine’ and in Turkish means pleasant, gentle and refined. It is a common male given name; Nişanyan Adlar glosses it ‘kind, delicate, soulful’. Lütuf ‘favour’ and letafet ‘grace’ share the root.1

Latif is also an ordinary word in everyday Turkish.

What is Latif made of?

Latif is a single Arabic root: latif (kind, delicate, graceful).

Latif root latif kind, delicate, graceful ARABIC latif “generous, graceful, fine” Latif latif root kind, delicate, graceful latif ARABIC “generous, graceful, fine”
Latif: parts and root words
  • latif Arabic — generous, graceful, fine1

How was the name Latif formed?

Latif is the adjective latif (“kind, delicate, graceful”), taken unchanged as a surname.

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

Who are some well-known people named Latif?

  1. Hüseyin Latif journalist

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

Is Latif also a first name?

Yes. Latif is given as a first name too, carrying the same sense: “kind, gentle, refined”.

Latif as a first name: meaning and statistics — turkiyenames.com →

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Adlar: Latif accessed 8 November 2026
  2. 2 Sevan Nişanyan Nişanyan Sözlük: latif 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 turkiyenames.com Türkiye İsimleri (turkiyenames.com) accessed 9 November 2026

Common questions about Latif

Q1

What does the surname Latif mean?

Latif comes from Arabic laṭīf ‘generous, graceful, fine’ and in Turkish means pleasant, gentle and refined. It is a common male given name; Nişanyan Adlar glosses it ‘kind, delicate, soulful’. Lütuf ‘favour’ and letafet ‘grace’ share the root.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Latif?

The root word of Latif is latif (Arabic): “generous, graceful, fine”.
Q3

How do you pronounce Latif?

La·tif, 2 syllables; IPA: /ɫaˈtif/.