Türkiye Soyadları A sourced dictionary of Turkish surnames

SURNAMEEntry 3,837

Sencer

Sencer /senˈdʒeɾ/

“name of Sultan Sanjar; ‘piercer’”2

Letters / syllables
6 / 2
Formation
Plain noun
Vowel harmony
front
Initial
S
Contents§1–§10
  1. §1Pronunciation
  2. §2Meaning
  3. §3Root tree
  4. §4Formation & 1934
  5. §5Spellings
  6. §6As a first name
  7. §7Abroad
  8. §8Sources
  9. §9Questions
  10. §10Related

How do you pronounce Sencer?

Sencer

IPA /senˈdʒeɾ/

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

What does the surname Sencer mean?

Sencer is the name of the Great Seljuk sultan Ahmad Sanjar. Bosworth takes Sanjar as a Turkic name meaning “he who pierces, he who thrusts”, while early sources link it to Sinjar, the town of the sultan’s birth.2

The origin is disputed. The views put forward are:

  1. A Turkic name meaning “he who pierces” (Bosworth).
  2. From Sinjar, the town of the sultan’s birth (Rāvandi, Ibn al-Jawzi).

What is Sencer made of?

Sencer is a single Turkic root: Sencer (Sencer: name of the Great Seljuk sultan Sanjar).

Sencer root Sencer Sencer: name of the GreatSeljuk sultan Sanjar TURKIC Sencer “Turkic name, ‘he whopierces, he who…’” Sencer Sencer root Sencer: name of the Great Seljuksultan Sanjar Sencer TURKIC “Turkic name, ‘he who pierces, hewho thrusts’ (Bosworth)”
Sencer: parts and root words
  • Sencer Turkic — Turkic name, “he who pierces, he who thrusts” (Bosworth)2

How was the name Sencer formed?

Sencer is the word Sencer (“Sencer: name of the Great Seljuk sultan Sanjar”), taken unchanged as a surname.

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

How else is Sencer spelled?

Sancarspelling

Is Sencer also a first name?

Yes. Sencer is given as a first name too, carrying the same sense: name of Sultan Sanjar; “piercer”.

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

How is Sencer written and pronounced abroad?

The name has no Turkish-specific letters and is written Sencer abroad as well; the Turkish c is pronounced like English j in “jam”.

Where do these facts come from?

  1. 1 Wikimedia Wikipedia: Ahmad Sanjar accessed 9 November 2026
  2. 2 Wikimedia Vikisözlük: Sencer accessed 9 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 turkiyenames.com Türkiye İsimleri (turkiyenames.com) accessed 9 November 2026

Common questions about Sencer

Q1

What does the surname Sencer mean?

Sencer is the name of the Great Seljuk sultan Ahmad Sanjar. Bosworth takes Sanjar as a Turkic name meaning “he who pierces, he who thrusts”, while early sources link it to Sinjar, the town of the sultan’s birth.
Q2

What is the origin of the surname Sencer?

The root word of Sencer is Sencer (Turkic): ‘Turkic name, “he who pierces, he who thrusts” (Bosworth)’. There are 3 competing views on where Sencer comes from, all set out on this page.
Q3

How do you pronounce Sencer?

Sen·cer, 2 syllables; IPA: /senˈdʒeɾ/.