Kurdistan is a historic and geographic region of the Middle East that today extends across parts of four states: Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria. Although divided by modern international borders, these regions share deep historical, cultural, and linguistic connections.

The Kurds do not have a sovereign state of Kurdistan of their own. Instead, their homeland is divided among states that define the people living within their borders through their own national and political frameworks. Kurds are therefore commonly classified as Turkish, Iranian, Iraqi, or Syrian, even when they understand themselves first and foremost as Kurdish. In different periods and in different states, this has gone far beyond terminology: Kurdish identity has at times been denied, Kurdish language and culture restricted, political organization suppressed, and equal participation in public life limited.

The result is that Kurds have developed under very different political systems and conditions, while remaining part of a people connected by history, culture, language, and a shared sense of homeland. Understanding both these differences and these connections is essential to understanding Kurdistan and the Kurdish question as a whole.

Bakur — Turkey

Bakur refers to the part of Kurdistan within the borders of present-day Turkey and is home to the largest Kurdish population. For much of the modern Turkish Republic’s history, Kurdish identity, language, political representation, and demands for recognition have faced severe restrictions and periods of outright denial. Despite decades of conflict, assimilation policies, displacement, and political repression, Kurdish society has maintained a strong cultural and political identity.

Başûr — Iraq

Home to the Kurdistan Region, the only constitutionally recognized Kurdish autonomous region, this part of Kurdistan lies within the borders of present-day Iraq.

Rojava — Syria

Known as Rojava, this part of Kurdistan lies within the borders of present-day Syria and has developed distinctive Kurdish-led institutions of self-government amid the country’s conflict and political transformation.

Rojhelat — Iran

Known as Rojhelat, this part of Kurdistan lies within the borders of present-day Iran, where Kurds have long struggled for political, cultural, and linguistic rights under successive Iranian governments.