He was born on January 5, 1913, in Izmir, Ottoman Empire, to Süleyman Ferit Eczacıbaşı (1885–April 18, 1973) and his wife Saffet Hanım as their first of seven sons, Vedat (1916–1961), Sedat (1917–ca. 1950), Kemal (1918–1996), Haluk (1921–1996), Melih (1923–2004), Şakir (1929–2010). His father was the first university-educated pharmacist in the city of Izmir, who, while working at a hospital in his home town, was appointed "chief pharmacist" (. The city council awarded him later in 1909 the honorific title "Eczacıbaşı" for his fruitful and successful work. Süleyman Ferit ran in later years his own pharmacy in İzmir. With the introduction of the Surname Law in 1934, Süleyman Ferit adopted his title "Eczacıbaşı" as family name.
