Surname Cifci - Meaning and Origin
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Cifci: What does the surname Cifci mean?
The last name Cifci is an occupational surname originating in the Ottoman Empire. It is thought to derive from a Turkish word meaning ‘cobbler’ (‘cikci' in Turkish), or a Turkish word meaning ‘knife’ (‘ciftci' in Turkish).
In Turkish culture, a craftsperson who works with leather and fabric, such as a cobbler, is considered to be of higher status than a blacksmith or carpenter. This likely accounts for the popularity of the Cifci surname among those of Ottoman descent. The Cifci surname was likely adopted by people who were involved in these occupations who wanted to denote their craftsmanship.
At one point, the Cifci surname was widely found in the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans, Anatolia, and the Middle East. As people spread out from the Ottoman Empire, the surname spread as well, resulting in the prevalence of Cifci families across Europe, North America, and parts of Asia.
Today, the Cifci name is quite common among people of Turkish, Greek, Armenian, Iranian, and Syrian descent. People who have the last name can trace their roots back to the Ottoman Empire, where their ancestors likely worked as cobblers or crafted knives. Therefore, the last name Cifci symbolizes a strong connection to a once powerful and far-reaching empire.
Order DNA origin analysisCifci: Where does the name Cifci come from?
The last name Cifci is mainly found in Turkey and the Balkans today. According to WorldNameFinder, the greatest concentration of the name is in Bosnia and Herzegovina, followed by Turkey and Slovenia. The name is found in other Balkan countries, such as Serbia, Bulgaria, and Croatia, in lesser numbers.
Even outside the Balkans, the name is still quite uncommon. The name has a presence in countries such as England, Germany, the United States, and even South America. In the United Kingdom, Cifci is mainly found in large cities such as Manchester, Birmingham, and Nottingham. In the United States and South America, it is mainly found in Florida, New Jersey, California, and Brazil.
Although rare, the last name Cifci still has a presence in many countries around the world. It is most common in the Turkish and Balkan countries from which it originated. The popular cities around the globe where Cifci is most commonly found are Manchester, Birmingham, Nottingham, Florida, New Jersey, California, and Brazil.
Variations of the surname Cifci
Cifci is a surname that can have various variants, spellings, and surnames of the same origin. It is found as Cifci, Cifcı, and Cifçi, and also its spelling variations include Ciftci, Cıftcı, Çiftci, and Çifçi.
In Turkish, a suffix such as -ci is added to declare a meaning of “pertaining to” or “originating from”. So the surname Cifci can be seen as indicating an origin from a place called Cifci, if indeed there was such a place.
Cifci is likely derived from the Old Turkish/Middle Turkic word "cift", which suggests that either the original bearers of this surname operated in occupations related to 'exchange' or 'barter' (such as a merchants) or may have been farmers that grew 'double' (or two-rowed) crops such as wheat.
Additionally, the surname Cifci can be seen as belonging to two more distinct lineages, and some even argue that it is derived from the Persian word "ceft", meaning "artist" or "skilled craftsman".
In terms of surnames that could be related to Cifci, in Ottoman records, a person may have the same or similar names and surnames when they are originally from different provinces. So, for example, the variations Cifcı, Cifçi, Çıftcı, Cifci, Çifçi, and Çiftci may have been used interchangeably from different provinces in Ottoman Empire.
To conclude, Cifci is a surname with various spellings, variants, and surnames of the same origin. It is likely derived from the Old Turkish/Middle Turkic word “cift” which is related to crop farming and exchange, and it could also be related to the Persian word “ceft” meaning a “skilled artist” or “skilled craftsman”. It was likely also used interchangeably in different Ottoman provinces.
Famous people with the name Cifci
- Mehmet Cifci: Turkish footballer who plays for Galatasaray in the Turkish Super Lig
- Lossif Cifci: Albanian journalist, musicologist, librettist and public figure
- Cem Cifci: Turkish-German music producer, composer and mix-engineer
- Volkan Cifci: Turkish professional footballer
- Ali Riza Cifci: Turkish professional footballer
- Ali Cifci: Brazilian professional footballer
- Hamido Cifci: German international handball player
- Sedat Cifci: Turkish businessman, entrepreneur and former professional footballer
- Nurcan Cifci: Turkish professional volleyball player
- Temel Cifci: Turkish amateur boxer who competed in the 2006 and 2010 Summer Olympics