Presented by Mohammad Kareem, a member of Harrisonburg’s Kurdish community. Kareem is also a liaison at Harrisonburg High School and Thomas Harrison Middle School.
Short story told by Kareem:
Once there was a happy family. The family had sons. The father asked the son to break a branch one day. The son did as his father said and succeeded. Then the father asked the son to break two branched at the same time. The son tried this, and no matter how much he tried he was unable to break the branch. The morale of the story is: as long as we (Kurds) communicate together and live together, nobody can hurt us.
Who is a Kurd?
- Kurds have existed for approximately 3000 years. They originate from Zagros Mountains in Iran and Taurus Mountains in Turkey.
- Kurds are not Arabs. Kurds are a different ethnic group with a different language and culture.
- They used to live in Mesopotamia, between Euphrates and Tigris rivers long timebefore Jesus’s birth. Some used to be farmers, others were nomads.
- Currently, there are Kurdish farmers and nomads present, but many other Kurds are educated, pursue higher education. However, Kurds are still not independent (as a nation/country).
Language
- The Kurdish language belongs to the Indo-European language family.
- The Kurdish language has rich grammar and alphabet (36 letters). It is a non-Arabic language. There is some relationship between Kurdish and Farsi.
Culture
- Kurds have a distinct culture, with own national clothes, music, poetry, history, language, attitudes, values and other customs.
Where do Kurds live now?
- Many Kurds reside in Iran, which has the largest Kurdish population of 11-14 million Kurds.
- Iraq has a Kurdish population of 4-7 million.
- Syria has Kurdish population of 4-6.5 million.
- Other places with a significant Kurdish population are Afghanistan, Israel, Azerbaijan and Russia.
- In the US, Missouri has a large Kurdish population.
- In Europe, there is a large Kurdish population in Sweden, Germany and United Kingdom.
Religion
- 12 B. C. the Zoroastrianism was practiced among the Kurds.
- The Ottoman Empire brought the religion of Islam to the Kurdish regions 1500 years ago.
Children’s right before and after birth
- The parents are obligated to build a strong family that ensures a good environment for good and healthy children. In order to do so, the parents must take good care of their own health, and eat healthy food. The pregnant mother must take extra care of herself during her pregnancy and watch her diet very carefully.
- Abortion is considered a sin in the Muslim Kurdish culture. One should not abort a child out of fear of life expenses, and avoid thoughts of abortion.
- Once the child is born, the parents must choose a beautiful name for their children, often something that has a deep meaning.
- The child has a right to breastfeed for a minimum of 6 months. Some breastfeed their children up to 2 years of age. In order to make this possible, Kurdish mothers often don’t work.
- The parents must ensure that their children are kept away from all possible harm, including socialization with people engaging in drinking or drug use. Drinking and drug use is considered a sin in the Muslim Kurdish culture.
- Children also have other rights such as education. Recreational activities are highly encouraged by the parents.
- Kurdish parents use a system of punishment and reward. Punishment can include spanks or the use of a ruler. Usually the more educated the parents are, the less corporal punishment is used.
- Once the children reach the age of 18, parents begin to focus on their children’s marriage to a suitable spouse. Some parents arrange a spouse for their children, other parents allow their children to chose their own spouse, but continue to have a great say in the whole marriage procedure and wedding planning. Usually the groom’s family, often the grooms father, financially supports the wedding.
Celebrations
- Newroz: Kurdish light/bonfire festival based on the following story: Long time ago there was a king named Zohar. King Zohar was sick. He had a snakelike tumor on his shoulders and asked the doctors what to do. The doctor advised King Zohar to kill two young Kurds every day, and use their brain as medicine. This kept going on, until a blacksmith named Kawar realized what was going on. The blacksmith killed King Zohar in order to stop him from murdering innocent Kurds. After killing King Zohar, the blacksmith lit a bit fire to let the rest of the people know that the King was dead.
- Eid ul Fitr: This celebration is an Islamic holyday that is celebrated after one month of fasting. It lasts 3 days.
- Eid ul Adha or Eid of Sacrifice: This celebration is to honor prophet Abraham and his son Ishmael. The celebration is 4 days. For those who are able to afford it, a goat, lamb or cow is sacrificed and the meat distributed to the poor. This is a celebration of charity. During both Eid celebrations new clothes are worn. For those who cannot afford new clothes, clean clothes are worn. Many also exchange money, gifts and food.
Other information
- There are 120-150 Kurdish families in Harrisonburg.
- There is one Mosque in Harrisonburg. Kurds and non-Kurds share the facility equally, and gather together during daily prayers and
Sources
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_and_children
“Islam’s view of children,” By Abd Al Razzaq Hussain, ph.D., 1990
“The message of Islam,” By Abdul Rahman Al Sheha, 2002
Answers.com – Kurdish People
