Kurdish History, Politics, and Autonomy Across the Middle East

Kurds

An ethnic group of roughly 30-40 million people in the Middle East

Kurdistan

The region where most Kurds live, spread across 4 countries

4 main countries with Kurds

Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria

Largest Kurdish population

Turkey

Kurdish language

An Indo-European language related to Persian; main dialects are Kurmanji and Sorani

Kurmanji

Kurdish dialect mostly spoken in Turkey and Syria

Sorani

Kurdish dialect mostly spoken in Iraq and Iran

Kurds' main religion

Mostly Sunni Muslim, with Yazidi, Alevi, Shia, and other minorities

"Largest nation without a state"

A common description of the Kurds

Treaty of Sèvres (1920)

Post-WWI treaty that proposed a possible Kurdish state

Treaty of Lausanne (1923)

Replaced Sèvres and drew borders with no Kurdish state

Kurdish independence

The long-held goal of a Kurdish nation; most groups now seek autonomy or rights instead

Autonomy

Self-rule within an existing country

Newroz

Kurdish New Year on March 21, also a political symbol of resistance

Peshmerga

Military forces of Iraqi Kurdistan; the name means "those who face death"

Kurdish Regional Government (KRG)

The official autonomous government of Iraqi Kurdistan

KRG capital

Erbil

Iraqi Kurdistan's legal status

Autonomous region recognized in Iraq's 2005 constitution

KDP

Kurdistan Democratic Party; led by the Barzani family; based in Erbil and Duhok

PUK

Patriotic Union of Kurdistan; led by the Talabani family; based in Sulaymaniyah

KDP vs PUK

The two main rival parties of Iraqi Kurdistan; fought a civil war in the 1990s

Mustafa Barzani

Founder of the KDP and a key figure in the Kurdish nationalist movement

Jalal Talabani

Founder of the PUK; became Iraq's first Kurdish president (2005-2014)

Anfal campaign

Saddam Hussein's 1986-1989 campaign that killed tens of thousands of Iraqi Kurds

Halabja (1988)

Iraqi chemical attack that killed about 5,000 Kurdish civilians

No-fly zone (1991)

US-led protection that let Iraqi Kurdistan govern itself

2017 independence referendum

Iraqi Kurds voted about 93% for independence; Baghdad rejected it

Kirkuk

Oil-rich city disputed between the KRG and Baghdad

Oil revenue dispute

Long-running fight between Erbil and Baghdad over oil sales and budget money

PKK

Kurdistan Workers' Party; armed group that fought Turkey starting in 1984

Abdullah Öcalan

Founder of the PKK; imprisoned in Turkey since 1999

PKK's terrorist designation

Listed as a terrorist group by Turkey, the US, and the EU

Turkey-PKK conflict death toll

More than 40,000 people killed since 1984

Imrali

The Turkish island prison where Öcalan is held

Democratic confederalism

Öcalan's idea of local self-government instead of a Kurdish state

DEM Party

Turkey's main pro-Kurdish political party

Kurdish rights in Turkey

Kurdish language and identity were heavily restricted for decades

Rojava

Kurdish name for the Kurdish-run region of northeast Syria

YPG

Main Kurdish militia in Syria; Turkey sees it as linked to the PKK

SDF

Syrian Democratic Forces; Kurdish-led force of Kurds and Arabs

SDF and ISIS

The SDF was the main US ally on the ground in defeating ISIS in Syria

Kobani (2014-2015)

Syrian Kurdish town where Kurdish fighters held off ISIS

Mazloum Abdi

Commander of the SDF

Turkey's view of Syrian Kurds

Sees the YPG/SDF as a security threat tied to the PKK

Iranian Kurds

Face restrictions on language and politics; several armed opposition groups exist

KDPI

Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran; main Iranian Kurdish opposition party

PJAK

Iranian Kurdish armed group linked to the PKK

Republic of Mahabad (1946)

Short-lived Kurdish state in Iran, crushed within a year

Mahsa (Jina) Amini

Iranian Kurdish woman whose 2022 death in police custody sparked nationwide protests

"Woman, Life, Freedom"

Kurdish-origin slogan that became the motto of Iran's 2022 protests

Yazidis

Kurdish-speaking religious minority targeted by ISIS genocide in 2014

Sinjar

Yazidi homeland in Iraq; site of the 2014 ISIS massacre

PKK peace process

Began in late 2024 after Turkish nationalist leader Devlet Bahçeli reached out

PKK dissolution (2025)

The PKK announced it would disband after a call from Öcalan

PKK disarmament ceremony

July 2025; 30 fighters burned weapons in northern Iraq

PKK process in 2026

Stalled over verifying disarmament and Öcalan's status

SDF-Damascus deal (Jan 2026)

After a government offensive, the SDF agreed to merge into Syria's army

SDF dissolution

The SDF announced it had dissolved in August 2026

Kurdish as a national language in Syria

Recognized by a 2026 decree from President al-Sharaa