The Khorasan Kurds
The Khorasan Kurds can be described as a cut-off Kurdistan, sometimes called the Sixth Part of Kurdistan. They live in northeastern Iran, far from the other parts of Kurdistan, but still wear their Kurdish identity with pride
They amount to about 3 million people, speak primarily Kurmanji, and the majority belong to Shia Muslim faith. They have a peculiar culture and folk tradition, which differ in expression but not in origin from other Kurdish regions.
Despite this, Iranian authorities have systematically made invisible their real numbers in official statistics and media.
The area where they live covers about 64 144 km2, which makes it larger than both Lebanon and Qatar.
Historical background
The presence of Khorasan Kurds dates back to the late 16th century. After the battle of Chaldiran and during the years 1598–1601 e. Kr. Shah Abbas I decided to forcibly relocate about 60,000 Kurdish families from the Urmia area to Khorasan.
The aim was to strengthen the eastern borders of the kingdom. An autonomous Kurdish territory was established, where the rights of the Kurds were initially respected.
When this order was later abolished by the Iranian central power, a dark period followed:
- - oppression,
- war and destruction,
- language ban (among other things from the year 1905),
- and documented abuses, including that 300 Kurdish girls were sold to Turkmen groups as tributes.
Despite repeated attempts by the Iranian state to assimilate and deny their Kurdish identity, the Khorasan Kurds have resisted. They have carried out rebellion, preserved their language, their costumes and their collective history.
Today, the Khorasan Kurds are still proud to be Kurds - despite geographical isolation, historical trauma, and long-term political oppression.
Their story is part of the entire history of Kurdistan
It deserves to be recognized, highlighted and respected
