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{{Infobox Ethnic group|group = Kurds|image = |caption = [Medes] • [Saladin] • [Jalal Talabani] • [Şivan Perwer|region2 = |pop2 = Around 14-18 million|ref2 = |region3 = |pop3 = 4.8 to 6.6 million|ref3 =

|languages = [Kurdish language]|religions = Predominantly [Sunni Muslim]also some [Shia], [Yazidism], [Yarsan], [Judaism], [Christianity([Talysh people] [Baloch people] [Guilak] [Bakhtiari] [Persian people])-->The Kurds are an ethnic group who are [indigenous peoples] to a region often referred to as [Kurdistan], an area which includes adjacent parts of [Iran], [Iraq], [Syria], and [Turkey]. Kurdish communities can also be found in [Lebanon], [Armenia], [Azerbaijan] ([Kalbajar] and [Lachin], to the west of [Nagorno Karabakh]) and, in recent decades, some European countries and the [United States] (see [Kurdish diaspora]). Ethnically related to other [Iranian peoples],Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia, s.v. Iran, (by Eric Hooglund), section 3A (accessed 24 July 2006). they speak [Kurdish language], an [Indo-European languages] language of the [Iranian languages] branch. However, the Kurds' ethnic origins are uncertain.Encyclopedia Britannica Online, s.v. Kurds, (accessed 4 August 2006) According to [Columbia Encyclopedia], Kurds are commonly identified with the ancient [Corduene] which was in turn inhabited by the [Carduchi].The Columbia Encyclopedia, s.v. http://www.bartleby.com/65/ku/Kurds.html Kurds], (accessed 17 July 2007)

Origins There are various ethnonyms reminiscent of Kurd in ancient sources, such as Karda in the 3rd millennium BCEDriver, G.K.: The Name Kurd and its Philological Connections; JRAS, 1923, or the Kardouchoi of [Xenophon], Persian Gord or Kord, [Syriac language] ([Aramaic language]) Qardu or Qadu and [Hebrew language] Kurdaye.Hennerbichler 2004: Die Kurden by Ferdinand Hennerbichler, ISBN 963-214-575-5, pubd by the author, Dr. Ferdinand Hennerbichler, Edition fhe, Albert es Hennerbichler Bt., H-9200 Mosonmagyarovar, Slovakia, 2004.

According to [Vladimir Fedorovich Minorsky] There is no doubt that the term Mar ([Medians]) refers to Kurds. Furthermore he writes that in the curious Armenian manuscript containing samples of alphabets and languages, written some time before A.D. 1446, a prayer in Kurdish figures as specimen of the language of the Medians. V. MINORSKY, Studies in Caucasian History. London: Taylor's Foreign Press, 1953

One of the earliest records of the name Kurd is to be found in a [Pahlavi] [Sassanid] text in which the battle between [Sassanid] King [Ardashir I] and Madig King of the Kurds in the early 3rd century CE is mentioned Book of the Deeds of Ardashir son of Babag, Darab Dastur Peshotan Sanjana, Chapter 5, 1896..

The name of the Kurds proper however can only be dated with certainty to the Kurdish tribes' conversion to [Islam] in the 7th century AD.Encyclopedia Britannica Online, s.v. Kurd, (accessed 4 August 2006).

According to [Columbia Encyclopedia], Kurds are commonly identified with the ancient [Corduene] which was inhabited by the [Carduchi].The Columbia Encyclopedia, s.v. http://www.bartleby.com/65/ku/Kurds.html Kurds], (accessed 17 July 2007)

on the [Tigris] River.From about the 10th century BCE, [Iranian tribes] spread in the area, among them [Medes], speakers of a [Northwest Iranian] dialect. Gradual [language assimilation] of the various indigenous peoples to this [Median language] in the course of the Iron Age marks the beginning of Kurdish [ethnogenesis].A. Arnaiz-Villena, J. Martiez-Lasoa and J. Alonso-Garcia, The correlation Between Languages and Genes: The Usko-Mediterranean Peoples Human Immunology 62 (2001) No. 9:1057.

History Ancient period The present-day home of the Kurds, the high mountain region south and south-east of [Lake Van] between Persia and Mesopotamia, was in the possession of Kurds before the time of the [Ancient Greece] [historian] [Xenophon], and was known as the country of the Carduchi, Cardyene or [Cordyene]. Xenophon referred to the Kurds in the [Anabasis (Xenophon)] as "Kardukhi...a fierce and protective mountain-dwelling people" who attacked Greek armies in [400] BCE.http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16167/16167-h/raw7a.htm

The kingdom of Cordyene or [Corduene] was a high mountain region south and south-east of [Lake Van] between Persia and Mesopotamia, and it was situated to the east of [Tigranocerta]http://italian.classic-literature.co.uk/history-of-rome/05-the-establishment-of-the-military-monarchy/ebook-page-24.asp (east and south of present-day [Diyarbakır]).The word Corduene is no doubt the ancient representative of the modern [Kurdistan], and means a country in which Kurds dwelt. Now Kurds seem to have been at one time the chief inhabitants of the Mons Masius, the modern Jebel Kara Dagh and Jebel Tur, which was thence called Gordyene, or the Gordisean mountain chain. The tract to this day known as Kurdistan, the high mountain region south and south-east of Lake Van between Persia and Mesopotamia, was in the possession of Kurds from before the time of Xenophon, and was known as the country of the Carduchi, as Cardyene, and as Cordyenehttp://www.gutenberg.org/files/16167/16167-h/raw7a.htm George Rawlinson, The Seven Great Monarchies of the Ancient Eastern World, Volume III, Chapter VI.

Corduene became a province of the [Roman Empire] in [66 BC]E and was under Roman control for four centuries until [384] CE.http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16167/16167-h/raw7a.htmThe Roman historian [Pliny the Elder], has considered Cordueni (inhabitants of Corduene) as descendants of Carduchis. He has stated, Joining on to [Adiabene] are the people formerly called the Carduchi and now the Cordueni, past whom flows the river Tigris.... The Sixth Book of Pliny: Natural History, Chapter XV.http://assembly.coe.int/Main.asp?link=/Documents/WorkingDocs/Doc06/EDOC11006.htm The people of Corduene were known to have worshipped the [Hurrian] sky God [Teshub]Olaf A. Toffteen, Notes on Assyrian and Babylonian Geography, The American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures, pp.323-357, 1907, p.341.

Medieval period , January 24, 1915).In the seventh century, the Arabs possessed the castles and fortifications of the Kurds. The conquest of the cities of [Sharazor] and Aradbaz took place in the year 643 AC.

In 846 AC, one of the leaders of the Kurds in Mosul city revolted against the Caliph Al Mo'tasam who sent the famous commander Aitakh to combat against him. In this war, Aitakh proved victorious and killed many of the Kurds. In 903 AC, during the period of Almoqtadar, the Kurds revolted again. Eventually Arabs conquered the Kurdish regions and converted the majority of Kurds to Islam.

In the second half of the tenth century, the Kurdish area was shared amongst four big Kurdish principalities. In the North were the [Shaddadid] ([951]-[1174]) in parts of present-day [Armenia] and [Arran], and the [Rawadid] ([955]-[1221]) in [Tabriz] and [Maragheh]. In the East were the [Hasanwayhid]s ([959]-[1015]) and the [Annazid] ([990]-[1117]) in [Kermanshah], [Dinawar] and [Khanaqin]. In the West were the [Marwanid] (990-[1096]) of [Diyarbakır]. After these, the [Ayyubid] ([1171]-[1250]) of [Syria] and the [Ardalan] dynasty (fourteenth century to [1867]) were established in present-day [Khanaqin], [Kirkuk] and [Sinne].

Language The [Kurdish language] belongs to the north-western sub-group of the [Iranian languages], which in turn belongs to the [Indo-Iranian] branch of the [Indo-European languages] family. Kurdish may have borrowed heavily from Caucasian and Aramaic languages given certain peculiarities which make it distinct from other [Iranian languages]. Most of the ancestors of the Kurds spoke various languages of the Indo-European family.

The older language of the Kurds was replaced by the Indo-European around [850] BCE, with the arrival of the Medes to Kurdistan.The correlation Between Languages and Genes: The Usko-Mediterranean Peoples, Human Immunology, vol. 62, p.1057, 2001 Nevertheless, Hurrian influence on Kurdish is still evident in its [Ergative-absolutive language] grammatical structure and [toponyms].A. Arnaiz-Villena, E,Gomez-Casado, J.Martinez-Laso, Population genetic relationships between Mediterranean populations determined by HLA distribution and a historic perspective, Tissue Antigens, vol.60, issue 2, p. 117, 2002

Most Kurds are [bilingual] or [polylingual], speaking the languages of the surrounding peoples such as [Arabic language], [Turkish language] and [Persian language] as a [second language]. [Kurdish Jews] and some [Kurdish Christians] (not be confused with ethnic Assyrians of Kurdistan) usually speak [Aramaic language] (for example: [Lishana Deni]) as their first language. Aramaic is a [Semitic languages] related to [Hebrew language] and Arabic rather than Kurdish.

The [Kurdish language] is comprised of two major dialects and several sub-dialects:http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9046467http://countrystudies.us/turkey/28.htm

The [Kurmanji] dialect group
The [Sorani] dialect group
The [Gorani (Kurds)], [Zazaki], Feyli, [Kermanshah]i and Laki sub-dialects.

Commenting on the differences between the "dialects" of Kurdish, Kreyenbroek clarifies that in some ways, Kurmanji and Sorani are as different from each other as English and German, giving the example that Kurmanji has grammatical gender and case-endings, but Sorani does not, and observing that referring to Sorani and Kurmanji as "dialects" of one language is supported only by "their common origin...and the fact that this usage reflects the sense of ethnic identity and unity of the Kurds"Kreyenbroek, Philip (1992). "On the Kurdish Language", in The Kurds: a contemporary overview, eds. Philip Kreyenbroek and Stefan Sperl (p. 69)

Genetic and ethnic origins According to the [Encyclopedia Britannica], "The Persians, Kurds, and speakers of other Indo-European languages in Iran are descendants of the [Aryan] tribes that began migrating from Central Asia into what is now Iran in the second millennium BC."http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-230041 According to the [Columbia Encyclopedia], the Kurds, as well as other migrant ethnic groups of the region, are of the "least mixed descent of the original Iranians."http://www.bartleby.com/65/ir/Iran.html

According to the Encyclopedia of Islam, the classification of Kurds as Aryan is mainly based on linguistic and historical data and does not prejudice the fact there is a complexity of ethnical elements incorporated in them.http://www.encislam.brill.nl/data/EncIslam/C4/COM-0544.html

According to a population study in 2001, the ancestors of the "Kurds, Armenians, Iranians, Jews, and other (Eastern and Western) Mediterranean groups seem to share a common ancestry" and were from an old Mediterranean substratum, i.e. [Hurrian] and [Hittites] groups and that these peoples have no connection with an Aryan invasion which was supposed to have happened about 1200 BCE.

"It is concluded that this invasion, if occurred, had a relatively few invaders in comparison to the already settled populations, i.e. Anatolian Hittite and Hurrian groups (older than 2000 BCE). These may have given rise to present-day Kurdish, Armenian and Turkish populations."http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11380939&dopt=Abstract

In [2001], a team of [Israeli], [German people], and [India]n scientists discovered that among the various Jewish communities, the [Ashkenazi] Jews showed a closer relationship to the [Muslim] Kurds than to the [Semitic]-speaking population further south in the [Arabian peninsula], while the Jewish Kurds and [Sephardic Jews] seemed to be closely related to each other. Most of the ninety-five Kurdish Muslim test subjects came from northern Iraq. Moreover, according to another study, the CMH ("Cohen Modal [Haplotype]") is a [Genetics] marker from the northern [Middle East] which is not unique to Jews.http://www.barzan.com/kevin_brook.htm

In another study, Kurdish Jews were found to be close to Muslim Kurds, but so were [Ashkenazim] and [Sephardim], suggesting that much if not most of the genetic similarity between Jewish and Muslim Kurds descends from ancient times.http://www.cryptojews.com/Comparing_DNA.htm

Genetic distance comparisons in another study have revealed that the [Turkic languages] and [Turkmen people] speaking peoples in the [Caspian] area cluster with the [Kurds], [Greeks] and [Ossetians] (Ossetians). In this study, the [Persian language] speakers are genetically remote from these populations; they are, however, close to the [Parsis] who migrated from [Iran] to [India] at the end of the seventh century CE.http://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/abstract/110485882/ABSTRACT

Population The exact number of Kurdish people living in the [Middle East] is unknown, due to both an absence of recent census analysis and the reluctance of the various governments in Kurdish-inhabited regions to give accurate figures.

According to the CIA Factbook, Kurds comprise 20% of the population in [Turkey], 15-20% in [Iraq], perhaps 8% in [Syria],The CIA Factbook reports all non-Arabs make up 9.7% of the Syrian population, and does not break out the Kurdish figure separately. Since Syria contains a large Armenian population, 8% may be a reasonable percentage. 7% in [Iran] and 1.3% in [Armenia]. In all of these countries except Iran, Kurds form the second largest ethnic group. Roughly 55% of the world's Kurds live in Turkey, about 20% each in Iran and Iraq, and a bit over 5% in Syria.https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html. These estimates place the total number of Kurds at somewhere between 27 and 36 million.

Modern history Kurds in Iraq Kurds led by [Mustafa Barzani] were engaged in heavy fighting against successive Iraqi regimes from [1960] to [1975]. In March [1970], Iraq announced a peace plan providing for Kurdish autonomy. The plan was to be implemented in four years.G.S. Harris, Ethnic Conflict and the Kurds in the Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, pp.118-120, 1977 However, at the same time, the Iraqi regime started an Arabization program in the oil rich regions of [Kirkuk] and [Khanaqin].http://hrw.org/reports/1993/iraqanfal/ANFALINT.htm The peace agreement did not last long, and in [1974], Iraqi government began a new offensive against the Kurds. Moreover in March [1975], Iraq and Iran signed the [Algiers Pact], according to which Iran cut supplies to Iraqi Kurds. Iraq started another wave of Arabization by moving Arabs to the oil fields in Kurdistan, particularly those around [Kirkuk].ibid., p.121 Between [1975] and [1978], two-hundred thousand Kurds were deported to other parts of Iraq.M. Farouk-Sluglett, P. Sluglett, J. Stork, Not Quite Armageddon: Impact of the War on Iraq, MERIP Reports, July-September 1984, p.24

During the [Iran-Iraq War] in the [1980s], the regime implemented anti-Kurdish policies and a de facto civil war broke out. Iraq was widely-condemned by the international community, but was never seriously punished for oppressive measures such as the mass murder of hundreds of thousands of civilians, the wholesale destruction of thousands of villages and the deportation of thousands of Kurds to southern and central Iraq. The campaign of Iraqi government against Kurds in [1988] was called Anfal ("Spoils of War"). The Anfal attacks led to destruction of two thousand villages and death of between fifty and one-hundred thousand Kurds.http://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/iraqanfal/

, meeting with U.S. officials in [Baghdad], Iraq, on April 26, 2006.After the Kurdish uprising in 1991 ([Kurdish language]:Raperîn) led by the [Patriotic Union of Kurdistan] and [Kurdistan Democratic Party], Iraqi troops recaptured the Kurdish areas and hundreds of thousand of Kurds fled to the borders. To alleviate the situation, a "safe haven" was established by the Security Council. The autonomous Kurdish area was mainly controlled by the rival parties KDP and PUK. The Kurdish population welcomed the American troops in [2003] by holding celebrations and dancing in the streets. The area controlled by [peshmerga] was expanded, and Kurds now have effective control in [Kirkuk] and parts of [Mosul]. By the beginning of 2006, the two Kurdish areas were merged into one unified region. A series of referendums are scheduled to be held in 2007, to determine the final borders of the Kurdish region.

Kurds in Turkey About half of all Kurds live in Turkey. According to the CIA Factbook they account for 20 percent of the 70 million people of Turkey, thus numbering about 15 million people.https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/tu.html#People Other estimates vary between 12 to 15 million. They are predominantly distributed in the southeastern corner of the country.http://assembly.coe.int/Main.asp?link=/Documents/WorkingDocs/Doc06/EDOC11006.htm

The best available estimate of the number of persons in Turkey speaking a [Kurdish language]-related language is about five million (1980). There are about one million speakers of [Dimli] (Southern Zaza), and about 140,000 speakers of [Kirmanjki] (Northern Zaza), which has about 70 percent lexical similarity with Dimli. These estimates are from 1999 in the case of Dimli and 1972 in the case of Kirmanjki. About 3,950,000 others speak Northern Kurdish ([Kurmanji]) (1980). Ethnologue census of languages in Asian portion of Turkey While population increase suggests that the number of speakers has grown, it is also true that use of the language has been discouraged in Turkish cities, and that many fewer ethnic Kurds live in the countryside where the language has traditionally been used. The number of speakers is clearly less than the 15 million or so persons who identify themselves as ethnic Kurds.

From [1915] to [1918], Kurds struggled to end Ottoman rule over their region. They were encouraged by [Woodrow Wilson]'s support for non-Turkish nationalities of the empire and submitted their claim for independence to the [Paris Peace Conference, 1919] in [1919]. The [Treaty of Sèvres] stipulated creation of an autonomous Kurdish state in [1920], but the subsequent [Treaty of Lausanne] in [1923] failed to mention Kurds. In [1925] and [1930] Kurdish revolts were forcibly suppressed., 1973

Following these events, the existence of distinct ethnic groups like Kurds in Turkey was officially denied and any expression by the Kurds of their ethnic identity was harshly repressed. Until 1991, the use of the Kurdish language – although widespread – was illegal. As a result of reforms inspired by the [European Union], music, radio and television broadcasts in Kurdish are now allowed albeit with severe time restrictions (for example, radio broadcasts can be no longer than sixty minutes per day nor constitute more than five hours per week while television broadcasts are subject to even greater restrictions). Additionally, education in Kurdish is now permitted though only in private institutions.

, 1909.As late as [1994], however, [Leyla Zana], the first female Kurdish representative in Turkey's Parliament, was charged for making "separatist speeches" and sentenced to fifteen years in prison. At her inauguration as an MP, she reportedly identified herself as a Kurd. [Amnesty International] reported that "he took the oath of loyalty in [Turkish language], as required by law, then added in [Kurdish language], 'I shall struggle so that the Kurdish and Turkish peoples may live together in a democratic framework.' Parliament erupted with shouts of 'Separatist!', 'Terrorist!', and 'Arrest her!'".http://www.amnestyusa.org/action/special/zana.html

The Partiya Karkerên Kurdistan ([PKK]), also known as KADEK and Kongra-Gel, is considered by the US and EU to be a terrorist organization dedicated to creating an independent Kurdish state in a territory (traditionally referred to as [Kurdistan]) consisting of parts of southeastern [Turkey], northeastern [Iraq], northeastern [Syria] and northwestern [Iran]. It is an [Ethnic nationalism] [Secession] organization using force and threat of force against both civilian and military targets for the purpose of achieving its political goal.

Between 1984 and 1999, the PKK and the Turkish military engaged in open war, and much of the countryside in the southeast was depopulated, with Kurdish civilians moving to local defensible centers such as [Diyarbakır], [Van, Turkey], and [Şırnak], as well as to the cities of western Turkey and even to western Europe. The causes of the depopulation included PKK atrocities against Kurdish clans they could not control, the poverty of the southeast, and the Turkish state's military operations.Radu, Michael. (2001). "The Rise and Fall of the PKK", Orbis. 45(1):47-64. [Human Rights Watch] has documented many instances where the Turkish military forcibly evacuated villages, destroying houses and equipment to prevent the return of the inhabitants. An estimated 3,000 Kurdish villages in Turkey were virtually wiped from the map, representing the displacement of more than 378,000 people.http://www.hrw.org/reports/2005/turkey0305/3.htm#_Toc97005223http://hrw.org/reports/2002/turkey/http://www.hrw.org/reports/2005/turkey0305/http://store.yahoo.com/hrwpubs/tur.htmlSee also: Report D612, October, 1994, "Forced Displacement of Ethnic Kurds" (A Human Rights Watch Publication).

[Nelson Mandela] refused to accept the [Ataturk] Peace Award in [1992] because of the oppression of the Kurds. After the rejection, Turkish press called him An Ugly African and Terrorist Mandela Kemalism: The Parctice of a Century, Australian Institute for Holocaust and Genocide Studies..

Kurds in Iran , Iran, August 27, 1979.The Kurds constitute approximately 7% of Iran's overall population. Kurds in Iran have resisted the Iranian government's efforts, both before and after the revolution of [1979], to [Cultural assimilation] them into the mainstream of national life and, along with their fellow Kurds in adjacent regions of [Iraq] and [Turkey], has sought either regional [autonomy] or the outright establishment of an [Independence] Kurdish state.http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-230041.

In the seventeenth century, a large number of Kurds were deported by [Shah Abbas I] to [Khorasan] in Eastern Iran and forcibly resettled in the cities of [Quchan] and [Birjand]. The Kurds of Khorasan, numbering around 700,000, still use the [Kurmanji] Kurdish dialecthttp://assembly.coe.int/Main.asp?link=/Documents/WorkingDocs/Doc06/EDOC11006.htm][http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/f52bcc85689b17998025679f003f5a36?Opendocument.During nineteenth and twentieth centuries, successive Iranian governments crushed Kurdish revolts led by Kurdish notables such as Shaikh Ubaidullah (against [Qajars] in [1880]) and [Simko Shikak] (against [Pahlavi]s in the [1920]s).http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2267/is_1_70/ai_102140955/pg_25

In Januray 1946, [Republic of Mahabad] declared independence in parts of Iranian Kurdistan but only lasted eleven months. The young republic was crushed by the Iranian Army in December of the same year, and president of the republic [Qazi Muhammad] was hanged publicly in [Mahabad]. After the [military coup] in [1953], [Mohammad Reza Pahlavi] became more autocratic and suppressed most opposition including ethnic minorities such as Kurds. He also prohibited any teaching of the Kurdish language.http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2267/is_1_70/ai_102140955/pg_25

{] declared a "holy war" against the Kurds.http://www.itnet.org/kurds_today.html An image of a firing squad of Revolutionary Guards executing Kurdish prisoners around [Sanandaj] gained international fame and won the [Pulitzer Prize] in [1980]. The [Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps] fought to reestablish government control in the Kurdish regions; as a result, around ten thousand Kurds were killed.http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m2267/is_1_70/ai_102140955/pg_26 Since 1983, the Iranian government has maintained control over the area which the Kurds inhabit.http://www.alefbe.com/revolution6.htm Frequent unrest and the occasional military crackdown have occurred since the [1990s].http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGMDE130432005?open&of=ENG-IRN

In Iran, Kurds express their cultural identity freely, but are denied the right of self-government or administration. Similar to other parts of Iran, membership of any non-governmental political party in Kurdistan could be punishable by persecution, imprisonment and even death. Kurdish [human rights] activists in Iran have been threatened by Iranian authorities in connection with their work.http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGMDE130102005?open&of=ENG-370http://www.pdk-iran.org/english/doc/unhrc_iran_2002_minorities.htm Following the killing of Kurdish opposition activist [Shivan Qaderi] and two other Kurdish men by Iranian security forces in [Mahabad] on [July 9] [2005], six weeks of riots and protests erupted in Kurdish towns and villages throughout Eastern Kurdistan. Scores were killed and injured, and an untold number arrested without charge. The Iranian authorities have also shut down several major Kurdish newspapers and arrested editors and reporters. Among those was [Roya Toloui], a [womens' rights] activist and head of the Rasan ("Rising") newspaper in [Sanandaj], who was tortured for two months for alleged involvement in the organization of peaceful protests throughout Kurdistan province.http://web.amnesty.org/wire/October2005/Iran According to the [International Crisis Group], Kurds, who live in the least developed part of Iran, pose the most serious internal problem for Iran to resolve, and their apparent success in self-rule fuels their demands for greater autonomy. Iran's Waning Human Rights ([The New York Times])

Kurds in Syria at the [Damascus] citadel.Kurds account for 10% of [Syria]'s population, a total of around 1.9 million peoplehttp://www.gazetteer.de/wg.php?x=1136895927&men=gpro&lng=en&des=gamelan&dat=200&geo=-106&srt=pnan&col=aohdqcfbeimg&geo=0. This makes them the largest ethnic minority in the country. They are mostly concentrated in northeast and north but there are also significant Kurdish populations in Aleppo and Damascus. Kurds often speak Kurdish in public, unless all those present do not. Kurdish human rights activists are mistreated and persecuted.http://www.amnestyusa.org/regions/middleeast/document.do?id=80256DD400782B8480256F63006435DB No political parties are allowed for any group, Kurdish or otherwise.

Techniques used to suppress the ethnic identity of Kurds in [Syria] include various bans on the use of the [Kurdish language] language, refusal to register children with Kurdish names, replacement of Kurdish place names with new names in [Arabic], prohibition of businesses that do not have Arabic names, not permitting Kurdish private schools, and the prohibition of books and other materials written in Kurdish.http://hrw.org/reports/1996/Syria.htmhttp://hrw.org/english/docs/2005/01/13/syria9812.htm Having been denied the right to Syrian nationality, around three-hundred thousand Kurds have been deprived of any social rights, in violation of international law.http://voanews.com/english/archive/2005-09/2005-09-02-voa15.cfm?CFID=46444555&CFTOKEN=26238763][http://themedialine.org/news/news_detail.asp?NewsID=12568 As a consequence, these Kurds are in effect trapped within Syria.http://hrw.org/reports/1996/Syria.htm In February 2006, however, sources reported that Syria was now planning to grant these Kurds citizenship.http://themedialine.org/news/news_detail.asp?NewsID=12568

On March 12, 2004, beginning at a stadium in [Qamishli] (a largely Kurdish city in northeastern Syria), clashes between Kurds and Syrians broke out and continued over a number of days. At least thirty people were killed and more than 160 injured. The unrest spread to other Kurdish towns along the northern border with Turkey, and then to [Damascus] and [Aleppo].http://hrw.org/english/docs/2004/03/19/syria8132.htmhttp://www.amude.net/serhildan/index.html

Kurds in Armenia Between the [1930s] and [1980]s, [Armenia] was a part of the [Soviet Union], within which Kurds, like other ethnic groups, had the status of a protected minority. Armenian Kurds were permitted their own state-sponsored newspaper, radio broadcasts and cultural events. During the conflict in [Nagorno-Karabakh], many non-Yazidi Kurds were forced to leave their homes. Following the end of the [Soviet Union], Kurds in Armenia were stripped of their cultural privileges and most fled to Russia or Western Europe.http://www.slis.indiana.edu/faculty/meho/meho-bibliography-2001.pdf, p.22

Kurds in Azerbaijan In [1920], two Kurdish inhabited areas of Jewanshir (capital [Kalbajar]) and eastern Zangazur (capital [Lachin]) were combined to form the [Kurdistan Okrug] (or "Red Kurdistan"). The period of existence of Kurdish administrative unit was brief and did not last beyond [1929]. Kurds subsequently faced many repressive measures, including deportations. As a result of the conflict in [Nagorno-Karabakh], many Kurdish areas have been destroyed and more than 150,000 Kurds have been deported since [1988].

Kurdish diaspora According to a report by the [Council of Europe], approximately 1.3 million Kurds live in [Western Europe]. The earliest immigrants were Kurds from Turkey, who settled in [Germany], [Austria], the [Benelux] countries, [Great Britain] [Switzerland] and [France] during the 1960s. Successive periods of political and social turmoil in the Middle East during 1980s and 1990s brought new waves of Kurdish refugees, mostly from Iran and Iraq under Saddam Hussein, came to Europe.http://assembly.coe.int/Main.asp?link=/Documents/WorkingDocs/Doc06/EDOC11006.htm In recent years, many Kurdish asylum seekers from both Iran and Iraq have settled in the United Kingdom (especially in the town of [Dewsbury] and in some northern areas of [London]), which has sometimes caused media controversy over their right to remain.http://www.dewsburyreporter.co.uk/news?articleid=2737475 There have been tensions between Kurds and the establish Muslim community in Dewsburyhttp://www.dewsburyreporter.co.uk/viewarticle.aspx?sectionid=28&articleid=2955186http://ukpollingreport.co.uk/guide/seat-profiles/dewsbury, which is home to very traditional mosques such as the [Markazi mosque].

There was substantial immigration of Kurds into North America, who are mainly political refugees and immigrants seeking economic opportunity. An estimated 100,000 Kurds are known to live in the [United States], with 50,000 in [Canada] and less than 15,000 in [Australia].

Religion temple in Lalish, KurdistanYazdanism refers to a group of native monotheistic religions practiced among the Kurds: [Alevi]sm, [Yarsan] and [Yazidism]. The main element in Yazdani faiths is the belief in seven angelic entities that protect the world, therefore these traditions are named as Cult of Angels Yazdanism, Encyclopaedia of the Orient. The original religion of the Kurds was Yazidism, a religion greatly influenced by Jewish, Daevic, Zoroastrian, Christian and Islamic beliefshttp://www.itnet.org/kurds_islam.htmlhttp://www.bostonreview.net/BR28.3/pocha.html. However there are significant differences between Yazdanism and Zoroasterianism, such as the belief in [re-incarnation]. Most Yazidis live in Iraqi Kurdistan, in the vicinity of [Mosul] and [Sinjar]http://kurdistanica.com/english/religion/yazdani/yezidi/yezidi.html. The [Yarsan] (or [Ahl-e Haqq]) religion is practised in western Iran, primarily around [Kermanshah]. [Kurdish Christians] and [Kurdish Jews] both are still practised in very small numbers.http://www.kurdistanica.com/english/religion/judaism/judaism.html Rabbi [Asenath Barzani], who lived in [Mosul] from 1590 to 1670, was among the very first Jewish women to become a [rabbi]., 1973Today the majority of Kurds are officially [Muslim], belonging to the [Shafi] school of [Sunni] Islam. [Mystical] practices and participation in [Sufi] orders are also widespread among Kurdshttp://www.itnet.org/kurds_islam.html. There is also a minority of Kurds that are [Shia] Muslims, primarily living in the [Ilam Province] and [Kermanshah] provinces of [Iran], Central Iraq ([Fayli] Kurds). The [Alevi]s are another religious minority among the Kurds, mainly found in Turkey.

It has been said that Kurds "hold their Islam lightly", meaning that their faith tends not to be as assertive as it can become in other areashttp://www.itnet.org/kurds_islam.html. One consequence, for example, has been the greater freedoms enjoyed by [Kurdish women]; they do not cover their faces, their [hijab] is less restrictive, and they do not wear full-cover garments such as the Iranian [chador] or Arabic [abaya]http://www.culturalorientation.net/kurds/krelig.html http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3770621.stm.

Culture .http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-22937Kurdish culture is a legacy from the various ancient peoples who shaped modern Kurds and their society, but primarily of three layers of indigenous ([Hurrian]), ancient Iranian ([Medes]) and [cultural Muslim] roots.

Kurdish culture is close to that of other [Iranian peoples]. Kurds, for instance, also celebrate [Newroz] (March 21) as New Year's Day.

Kurdish films mainly evoke poverty and the lack of rights of Kurdish people in the region. [Yılmaz Güney] ([Yol] http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/6302824435/002-0586942-6112800?v=glance&n=404272 ) and [Bahman Qubadi] ([A Time for Drunken Horses], [Turtles Can Fly]) are among the better-known Kurdish directors.

Music performing at a [concert] in [Sweden], 2005.Traditionally, there are three types of Kurdish Classical performers: [Storytelling] (çîrokbêj), [minstrel]s (stranbêj) and [bard]s (dengbêj). There was no specific music related to the Kurdish princely courts, and instead, music performed in night gatherings (şevbihêrk) is considered classical. Several musical forms are found in this genre. Many songs are [Epic poetry] in nature, such as the popular Lawiks, heroic [ballad]s recounting the tales of Kurdish heroes such as [Saladin]. Heyrans are love ballads usually expressing the melancholy of separation and unfulfilled love, while Lawje is a form of religious music and Payizoks are songs performed during the autumn. Love songs, dance music, wedding and other celebratory songs (dîlok/narînk), erotic poetry and [work song]s are also popular.

See also {{columns |width=240px|col1 =

[Kurdistan]
[History of the Kurdish people]
[Turkish Kurdistan]
[Kurds in Turkey]
[Iranian Kurdistan]

|col2 =

[Iraqi Kurdistan]
[Kurds in Syria]
[Kurdistan Okrug]
[List of Kurdish people]
[List of Kurdish organisations]

|col3 =

[Origins of the Kurds]
[Yazidis]
[Kurdish Jews]
[Kurdish Christians]
[Kurdish American]

-->

Modern Kurdish governments

[Iraqi Kurdistan] (1991 to date)
[Republic of Mahabad] (1946)
[Republic of Ararat] (1927-1931)
[Kingdom of Kurdistan] (1922-1924)

Notes and references Bibliography

Barth, F. 1953. Principles of Social Organization in Southern Kurdistan. Bulletin of the University Ethnographic Museum 7. Oslo.
Hansen, H.H. 1961. The Kurdish Woman's Life. Copenhagen. Ethnographic Museum Record 7:1-213.
Leach, E.R. 1938. Social and Economic Organization of the Rowanduz Kurds. London School of Economics Monographs on Social Anthropology 3:1-74.
Longrigg, S.H. 1953. Iraq, 1900-1950. London.
Masters, W.M. 1953. Rowanduz. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Michigan.

External links

Lawk Salih, Latest development of the economic progress of Kurdistan and KRG.
Kurds and Kurdistan, Encyclopaedia of Islam.
Kurds, Encyclopaedia Britannica.
Kurd, Encyclopaedia Britannica.
The Kurds: People without a country, Encyclopaedia Britannica.
The Kurdish Institute of Paris Kurdish language, history, books and latest news articles.
The Encyclopaedia of Kurdistan
Istanbul Kurdish Institute
The Kurdish Center of International Pen
Kurdish Library, supported by the [Sweden] Government.
Yazidism: Historical Roots, International Journal of Kurdish Studies, Jan. 2005.
Ethnic Cleansing and the Kurds
The Kurds in the Ottoman Hungary by Zurab Aloian
"The Other Iraq" Kurdish Information Website

The Kurdish Issue in Turkey

A report on the Kurdish IDP's - 2005
A German newspaper's take on the Kurdish issue - 2005
The Guardian - What's in a name? Too much in Turkey - 2001
The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists' take - 1999

Information Reference: Wikipedia.org

I have 3 small painting from Iran Kurd area. What are they worth and can you find them for me?

Q) They are from Iran and are old. They are from Kurd. And are painted on leather. I would appreicate and help. Thanks

A) put them on ebay.com

What is the source of the hatred between turk and kurd?

Q) I know they slaughtered and hate one another but why? What is the root cause? I am just tring to understand this conflict that so far is a mystery to me. Turk and kurd answers would be most appreciated. When did kurdistan exist and when was it taken?

A) There was NO hatred for the longest time. But then Turkey took over part of Kurdistan...and continues to hold it (as part of "Turkey") to this day. The Kurds in Turkey would like to have their independence again...as would the Kurds in the northern section of Iraq (which was the OTHER part of Kurdistan). Because there is lots of oil in that region, the Turks are not going to let the Kurds secede (naturally)...and the Kurds want nothing else. So there is hatred and fighting to this day..

what is kurd?

A) Kurd's are people living in Kurdistan....wich is an area of the Middle East that spans 4 countries: Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran. Prior to the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1920, Kurdistan was divided between Persia (now Iran) and the Ottoman Empire. After the end of World War I and at the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the League Of Nations (predecessor of the United Nations) created an independent Kurdish nation-state in the treaty of Sevres in 1920. But the treaty was rejected by nationalist Turks headed by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. At the end of the Greco-Turkish war in 1923, the treaty of Lausanne created modern Turkey and granted it a large part of Kurdistan. The remaining non-Persian part was divided between Iraq and Syria. Iraq was created in 1920 by the joining of the 3 former Ottoman regions of Mosul, Baghdad and Basra. It was administered under the British Mandate until it obtained its full independance from the British in 1932, when Faisal became king. Syria and Lebanon were also created in 1920 and administered under the French Mandate until they became fully independent from the French in 1943. The Kurds biggest dream is to unite these 4 parts together and to create an independent country for themselves. And the reason is: they want to be independent of the neighbouring folks. And this is their true right.

i want information kurd iran or kurdestan city?

A) kurd people are in three difrent country IRAN TURKEY AND IRAQ it has been a long time that thy try to submit a country with the name of kurdistan in this three country and all of this country have the city named KURDISTAN like iran kurdistan and iraq kurditan and the kurdish people are very strong people they believe in family and religiouse people for more information you can go to WWW.KURDISTAN.com

Do you think that united between Kurd of Iraq and Turkey has critical role to development all the region?

Q) Probably Iraq will collapse and separate too, may be the united between them is the useful choice.

A) TOO MUCH VIOLENCE, TOO MUCH PEOPLE NOT AGREEING, WHY CAN'T PEOPLE JUST PUT THEIR DIFFERENCES ASIDE AND UNITE, BE STRONG TOGETHER, "OUR DIFFERENCES MAKE US STRONG" BUT THEN AGAIN WE CAN NOT MAKE PEOPLE DO WHAT WE THINK WOULD BE GOOD FOR THEM, PEOPLE DO NOT OPERATE THAT WAY SADLY. WE HAVE TO SET AN EXAMPLE AND UNITE, THAT IS THE ONLY WAY PEOPLE WILL LEARN, BY EXAMPLE!

who like to know more abut kurd peopel?

A) sure

what is the scentific name for kurd?

Q) latin

A) Homo sapien sapien

Whats the difference between a suni, shite, kurd?

Q) I need to know this for a government test. I need things like what part of Iraq does each one live in, what language do they speak, what religion they are.... Which kind was Saddam and most of all WHY DO THEY HATE EACH OTHER!! Thanks!!!

A) Shī‘a Islam, also Shi‘ite Islam or Shi‘ism (Arabic شيعة šīʿa), is the second largest denomination of the Islamic faith after Sunni Islam. Shias adhere to the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad and the religious guidance of his family (who are referred to as the Ahl al-Bayt) or his descendents known as Shi'a Imams. Sunni Muslims are by far the largest denomination of Islam. They are also referred to as Ahlus Sunnah wal-Jamaa'h (Arabic: أهل السنة والجماعة) (people of the example (of Muhammad) and the community) which implies that they are the majority, or Ahl ul-Sunna (Arabic: أهل السنة; "The people of the example (of Muhammad)") for short. The word Sunni comes from the word sunna (Arabic : سنة ), which means the words and actions [1] or example of the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad. They represent the branch of Islam that accepted the caliphate of Abu Bakr because he was chosen by consensus. Saddam Hussein was a Sunni. The Kurds are an ethnic group who consider themselves to be indigenous to a region often referred to as Kurdistan, an area which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey. Kurdish communities can also be found in Lebanon, Armenia, Azerbaijan (Kalbajar and Lachin, to the west of Nagorno Karabakh) and, in recent decades, some European countries and the United States (see Kurdish diaspora). Ethnically related to other Iranian people groups[9] they speak Kurdish, an Indo-European language of the Iranian branch.