Surname Iskender - Meaning and Origin

Iskender: What does the surname Iskender mean?

The last name Iskender is believed to have originated in the Turkish language. The name Iskender evolved from the Ottoman Turkish İskender, which is a combination of the Arabic words “Isa”, meaning Jesus, and “Qandhar”, meaning “victorious”. Iskender was made popular in the Eastern Ottoman Empire in the 16th century by Alexander the Great, a notable king of the Hellenistic era.

The name Iskender is a popular last name given to those who have a great sense of courage and leadership. It is also associated with strength, courage, and heroism.

In the United States, the Iskender surname is most commonly found amongst Afghan, Turkish, and Kurdish descent. It is also commonly found amongst Arab, Greek and Albanian families.

The name Iskender is derived from the Arabic Ishaq and although the origin of the name remains widely debatable, Iskender is now widely known as a given name amongst different cultures. Different forms of the name can also be seen in some countries such as Iskandard in Turkey, Iskandar in the Middle East, and Alexander in many Western countries.

Overall, the last name Iskender implies a sense of greatness, power, and strength. Iskender is a name of both persistence and pride. This benevolence of the name has made it a popular last name amongst many generations and cultures.

Iskender: Where does the name Iskender come from?

The last name Iskender is most commonly found in the Middle East and Central Asia. Iskender is a Turkish name, and is derived from the Turkish Alexander, which was originally the Greek form of the name. As such, it is mostly found in the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea, such as Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq.

The population of Turkey is the highest among countries with people who are known to have the Iskender surname. However, Iskender is also common in countries such as Republic of Georgia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Albania, North Macedonia, Armenia, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.

The name Iskender has spread to other parts of the world, including North America, Europe, and Australia. In the United States, Iskender is especially prominent in California, where it is often linked to the large Turkish American population.

There were around 650 people in the United States with the Iskender surname according to the last US census. The name Iskender is much more common in Turkey, however, with over 1000 people bearing this surname in the country.

In total, Iskender is estimated to be the last name of at least 33,000 people around the world. It is most common in the Middle East and Central Asia, but can be found elsewhere as well.

Variations of the surname Iskender

Iskender is an uncommon Turkish surname, derived from the given name Iskender, the Turkish form of Alexander, which is ultimately derived from the Greek name Alexandros. The spelling has remained consistent across languages, with Iskender even being used in Albanian and sometimes in German and Italian.

In Turkish, Iskender is sometimes spelled Iskandaroo, Iskandar, or Iskinder, as variants of the main spelling. Sometimes other Turkish suffixes such as -oğlu, -iz, and -er are added to the surname, producing different spellings of Iskender such as Iskendoğlu, Iskenderiz, and Iskenderler. In some cases, Iskender may even be anglicised to Skender.

Other surnames which are variants of Iskender, deriving from similar given name roots, include Iskaki (Greek form of Alexander) and Eskander (Persian form of Alexander). Older surnames, now out of fashion, include Ekaterinopoulos and Ekaterinides (Greek forms of Catherine as opposed to Alexander), and Szkander (Hungarian variant of Iskender).

In total, there are many variants of the Iskender surname which express the same origin. They demonstrate the linguistic evolution of surnames which come from given name origins, particularly in the case of Iskender, which underwent changes across languages to become the surname as it is known today.

Famous people with the name Iskender

• Mehmet Iskender, Turkish actor
• Ferhat Iskender, Albanian footballer
• Ozcan Iskender, Turkish Olympic wrestler
• Faik Iskender, Turkish singer
• Yücel Iskender, Turkish singer
• Orhan Iskender, Turkish singer
• Gunay Iskender, Azerbaijani singer
• Elvan Iskender, Turkish volleyball player
• Mustafa Iskender, Turkish football referee
• Berrin Iskender, Turkish footballer

Other surnames

Iskenderoglu