Bakûrê Kurdistanê (“Northern Kurdistan”) is the Kurdish-majority southeast of Turkey. It is the largest of the four parts by population: estimates of Kurds living in Turkey range from 15 to 20 million, though many now live in western cities such as Istanbul, which is often called the largest Kurdish city in the world.
Key facts
- Main cities: Amed (Diyarbakır), Wan (Van), Mêrdîn (Mardin), Riha (Şanlıurfa), Colemêrg (Hakkari), Êlih (Batman), Dêrsim (Tunceli)
- Languages: Kurmanji Kurdish is the majority language; Zazaki is spoken widely around Dêrsim, Çewlîg (Bingöl) and Palu
- Landscape: Lake Van, the Munzur valley, Mount Cûdî and the headwaters of the Tigris and Euphrates
Culture
Bakûr is the heartland of the dengbêj — singers who carry history, love stories and laments in long unaccompanied songs. Amed’s Newroz celebration on 21 March draws hundreds of thousands of people each year. The old city of Amed, with its black basalt walls, and the stone town of Mêrdîn overlooking the Mesopotamian plain are both on UNESCO’s lists. The region has produced many of the best-known Kurdish musicians, from Şivan Perwer and Ciwan Haco to Aynur Doğan and Mem Ararat.
A short history
Kurdish principalities such as Botan and Bitlis governed much of the region under the Ottoman Empire until the 19th century. After the Republic of Turkey was founded in 1923, the Kurdish language and identity were restricted for decades; the uprisings of Sheikh Said (1925), Ararat (1930) and Dêrsim (1937–38) were put down harshly. From 1984 the conflict between the Turkish state and the PKK cost tens of thousands of lives. Restrictions on Kurdish broadcasting and education were eased after the 1990s, and Kurdish-language radio, television and publishing have grown since — though politics in the region remain contested.
On Kurdistan.fm
We play dengbêj classics and new Kurmanji artists from Bakûr, and cover news from Amed, Wan and the diaspora in Europe, much of which has roots here.