About 30 million Kurds share a distinct language and culture. Most are Muslim, and many still live in the mountainous region known as Kurdistan. The Kurds make up at least 10% of the population of Turkey, Iraq, and Iran, and slightly less in Syria, with smaller groups in nearby countries. The Kurds expected to become an independent nation after World War I, but Turkish leader Kemal Ataturk managed to reassert control over much of the region.
Modern Kurdish Life
Oil wealth has brought changes to some parts of Kurdistan. Sulaymaniyah in northern Iraq is home to nomadic pastoralists and the thirty-nine-story Grand Millennium Sulaimani Hotel. The Turks and other host nations have encouraged the Kurds to give up their cultural identity and assimilate into the local populations. The Turkish government has referred to the Kurds as “mountain Turks,” though their language and culture have nothing in common with Turkish. Until recently, the Turks have banned the Kurdish language in schools.
Conflict and Autonomy
Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein used chemical weapons against the Kurds in 1988 during the Anfal campaign, claiming they had supported Iran in the war. The United Nations forced Saddam to make the Kurdish region of Iraq a semi-autonomous region after the Gulf War in 1991.
Resources
Mr. Donn has an excellent website that includes a section on the Middle East and North Africa.