hey! do you know where I can learn sorani kurdish? thanks in advance. :)

hi, i've linked a few resources below! if anyone knows of any others, please feel free to add on

click here for sorani-english dictionary (not comprehensive by any means but a good start)

sorani alphabet

sorani grammar

learn kurdish language with kamo - short videos that go over basics like colours, greetings, commonly used verbs etc

what race are kurds? west asian? ty!

yes, kurds are west asian!

kurdish women, eastern kurdistan, 1979 by francois lochon

northern kurdistan, 2004 by scott wallace

kurdistan, 2002 by kaveh kazemi

kurdistan, 1965 by william carter

kurdistan, 1979 by francois lochon

kurdish women demonstrating after the arrest of PKK leader abdullah ocalan, london, united kingdom, 1999 by steve eason

kurdistan, 1965 by william carter

kurdish refugees in eastern kurdistan, 1974 by michel artault

after failing to establish an independent kurdish state following the first iraqi-kurdish war (1961-1970), tensions between the kurds and iraqis continued to rise. in 1974, mullah mustafa barzani - a prominent figure and leader of the kurdistan democratic party (KDP) - and his peshmerga troops, backed by iranians, attempted to gain control over kurdish-majority towns and cities in northern iraq. their attempts, however, were met by counterattacks from the iraqi army. in 1975, the algiers accord was signed by both iraq and iran. the iraqi government agreed to return land to iran on the condition that iranian support of the kurds ceased. saddam hussein, then president of iraq, launched several attacks on the kurdish region after the iranians withdrew support for the kurds. additionally, saddam launched the arabization campaign - a campaign that aimed to change the demographics of kurdish-majority oil-rich towns and cities by displacing kurds and moving arabs into the area. as a result of the attacks and displacement, upwards of 200,000 kurds fled to nearby iran seeking refuge. x, x

amed, northern kurdistan, 2012 by robert leutheuser

kasnazani sufi ceremony, kurdistan, 1997 by kaveh kazemi

kasnazani sufis fall under the qadiri order of sufism. the qadiri order is the oldest sufi order still followed by kurds and was named after it’s founder, abdul-qadir gilani (AD 1077-1166). most qadiris are located in the southern and eastern regions of kurdistan. naqshbandis, another sufi order followed by kurds, are primarily in northern and, to some extent, western regions of kurdistan.

as part of their dhikr (remembrance) ceremonies, qadiris perform elaborate dances, play instruments alongside chants, walk barefoot on hot coal, swallow swords, and pierce themselves. 

schoolchildren, northern kurdistan, 2004 by scott wallace

peshmergas, eastern kurdistan, 1974 by michel artault

streets of kurdistan, 2000 by david butow

introduction to kurdish: the latin alphabet

this is a brief introduction to the latin alphabet used to write in kurdish. the latin alphabet, consisting of 31 letters, was first introduced by celadet alî bedirxan in 1932 and is primarily used to write in the kurmancî dialect of kurdish. 

celadet alî bedirxan

kurmancî is widely spoken in northern and western kurdistan and in smaller numbers in eastern and southern kurdistan. soranî, a dialect of the kurdish language spoken in eastern and southern kurdistan, uses a modified perso-arabic script for writing instead.

below is the full alphabet, along with a pronunciation guide and a kurdish word that starts with/contains that letter. 

the alphabet to hear how each letter is pronounced, click here. 

Aa - long A, pronounced like the A in father | agir - fire Bb - pronounced like the B in boss | bihar - spring Cc - pronounced like the J in job | ciwan - young, beautiful Çç - ch sound, pronounced like the CH in chair | çav - eye Dd - pronounced like the D in dog | delal - dear, beloved Ee - short E, pronounced like the A in apple | evîn - love Êê - long E, pronounced like the A in ape | êvar - evening Ff - pronounced like the F in fox | fîstan - dress Gg - pronounced like the G in grape | gul - flower (specifically rose) Hh - pronounced like the H in happy | hêv - moon Ii - short I, pronounced like the I in insect | insan - human being Îî - long I, pronounced like the Y in funny | îşev - tonight Jj - pronounced like the S in pleasure (or like J in french, ex. je) | jîyan - life Kk - pronounced like the C in cat | kanî - spring (of water), source Ll - pronounced like the L in love | lêv - lip Mm - pronounced like the M in money | masî - fish Nn - pronounced like the N in new | nerm - soft Oo - long o sound, pronounced like the O in open | olan - echo Pp - pronounced like the P in paper | pel - leaf Qq - no english equivalent to this letter but it is pronounced similarly to the arabic letter ﻕ. you can hear an example of how this letter is pronounced here | qehwe - coffee Rr - R’s are rolled in kurdish. hear an example of this here | ronahî - light, brightness Ss - pronounced like the S in snake | spêda - dawn Şş - sh sound, pronounced like the SH in shadow | şervan - fighter, warrior Tt - pronounced like the T in toy | tarî - dark Uu - short U, pronounced like the U in pure | unce - clover  Ûû - long U, pronounced like the double O sound in boot | ûtî - iron Vv - pronounced like the V in van | havîn - summer Ww - pronounced like the W in wood | welat - country Xx - no english equivalent but it is pronounced similarly to the arabic letter خ. you can hear an example of how this letter is pronounced here | xezal - gazelle Yy - pronounced like the Y in yes | yek - one Zz - pronounced like the Z in zoo | ziman - language, tongue

northern kurdistan, 2007 by burak kara