According to Kurdpress, the effort to preserve the Kurdish identity, language and culture in Syria is a story of more than a century of resistance against policies that many researchers refer to as "cultural genocide". Policies that are not based on physical removal, but on denying identity, destroying language, banning the expression of culture and gradually erasing the collective memory of the Kurds.

This research examines the process of the formation and continuation of the cultural resistance of the Syrian Kurds from the time of the Lausanne Agreement in 1923 until the previous regime in Syria; The era in which Kurds turned to journalism, education, cultural activities, literary clubs and civil struggle to preserve their language and identity.

After the Lausanne agreement and the formation of the new Republic of Türkiye, organized policies to deny the Kurdish identity began. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk issued a decree on March 3, 1924, according to which all Kurdish schools, associations and publications were banned. Using the Kurdish language was considered a crime and even using the words "Kurd" and "Kurdistan" could result in legal punishment.

These prohibitions are not limited to language. The Turkish government also adopted policies of deportation and dispersion of the Kurdish population and introduced the Kurds as "Mountain Turks" since 1932; A policy that intensified after the failure of the Ararat uprising.

In Iran, Reza Shah implemented similar policies; Among them, the deportation of Kurds to the southern provinces, the ban on teaching the Kurdish language, and the suppression of Kurdish publications and cultural symbols. Even keeping a Kurdish book could lead to several years in prison.

However, the situation was different in Syria and Iraq under French and British mandate. The more open space of these two countries allowed the relative growth of the Kurdish language and culture. In the same period, a form of government support for the development of Kurdish identity was formed in Soviet Armenia.

Shorushes Darvish, the researcher and author of this analysis, at the same time points to a phenomenon he calls "self-denial"; That is, the association of some Kurdish intellectuals with Turkish and Arab nation-building projects. Figures like Zia Gokalp or Mohammad Kurd Ali believed that modernity requires the acceptance of a new national identity. But against this trend, another stream of Kurdish intellectuals and activists insisted on preserving the independent Kurdish identity.

In the first decades of the 20th century, Syria under French tutelage became one of the most important centers of Kurdish cultural revival. The "Khoebun" movement, which was formed in 1927, as well as the activities of Jalalat and Kamran Badr Khan, played an important role in creating a kind of Kurdish national consciousness.

The Badrkhanis tried to standardize the Kurdish language and for the first time a serious project was formed to modernize the Kurdish language and literature. They were inspired by the experience of reviving the Hebrew language and Latinization reforms and tried to transform the Kurdish language from an oral state into a written and educational language.

Although France had a contradictory policy towards the Kurds issue and sometimes retreated to maintain relations with Türkiye, it sometimes supported the cultural activities of the Kurds. For example, in the Jarablus region, education in three languages, Arabic, Kurdish and Turkish, was allowed, and the Kurdish language was recognized as an educational language for the first time in an official French document.

Kamran Badrkhan even proposed the establishment of a Kurdish boarding school on the Syrian island; A project whose purpose was to train the "Kurdish national elite". He wanted to establish a farm, a village and a special educational center to educate the children of Kurdish elites and tribal chiefs.

After the failure of the Ararat uprising, a part of the Kurdish elite concluded that the cultural struggle had become more important. At this stage, Jalalat Badr Khan started the project of Latinizing the Kurdish language or choosing Latin for Kurdish writings; A project that is considered a turning point in the history of the Kurdish language.

"Havar" magazine, which was published between 1932 and 1943, was the most important tool of this evolution. This magazine not only promoted the Latin alphabet, but also provided a platform for the publication of Kurdish poetry, fiction, folklore, political articles and modern literature.

Along with "Havar", other magazines such as "Runahi", "Rozhi Nu" and "Ster" were also published and played an important role in the expansion of Kurdish culture and language. Radio Sharq in Beirut also became one of the main sources of broadcasting Kurdish music and programs.

During this period, Kurdish cultural clubs and associations were formed in Syria. Many of these associations were founded by exiled activists after the failure of the Sheikh Saeed uprising and the Ararat uprising, and they helped rebuild the social and cultural networks of the Kurds.

After the independence of Syria in 1946 and the rise of Arab nationalist currents, the space for Kurds' cultural activity was severely limited. With the establishment of the Baath Party, Arabization policies, denial of Kurdish identity and removal of Kurdish cultural symbols entered an organized stage.

During the unification of Syria and Egypt (1961-1958), the pressure on Kurdish activists increased. Requests by the Kurds to teach the Kurdish language or launch Kurdish radio programs were rejected, and thousands of political and cultural activists were arrested.

Nour al-Din Zaza, the leader of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Party, in his famous defense in the Syrian Security Court in 1960, spoke of "racial discrimination" against the Kurds and emphasized that the Kurds are a people with an independent language, music, poetry and culture.

He also mentioned actions that later became official government policy; including:

Changing the names of Kurdish cities and villages to Arabic names

Prohibiting the registration of Kurdish names for babies

Suppression of Kurdish clothing and cultural symbols

According to the author, the period of Baath rule was the worst stage for Kurdish culture and language in Syria. The government restricted or banned the speaking of the Kurdish language, Kurdish music, Kurdish naming, and cultural activities.

Between 1960 and 1980, only three books were published in the Kurdish language, and they were distributed secretly in Syria. Many poets, writers and cultural activists were persecuted and even holding a Kurdish book could lead to arrest.

However, the 1990s saw a kind of "cultural awakening". The secret teaching of the Kurdish language, the spread of underground publications, and then the arrival of the Internet, made the Kurdish language and literature grow again. After the start of the Syrian war and the formation of the "autonomous administration" structure in the north and east of Syria, a new space was provided for the development of the Kurdish language and culture.

The semi-formal teaching of the Kurdish language, the establishment of Kurdish media, radio and television channels, the publication of books and magazines, and the activity of cultural institutions led to the revival of a part of the project that began in the 1930s.

The author emphasizes that the new generation of Syrian Kurds is less aware of the suffering and costs that the previous generations paid to preserve the Kurdish language and identity. Meanwhile, previous generations fought for decades to prevent the complete disappearance of Kurdish culture.

According to him, today the protection of the Kurdish language and education is no longer just a cultural demand, but has become the most important identity demand of the Syrian Kurds, which no political structure in the future of Syria can ignore.

Institute of Kurdish Studies