The Political-Religious Relations between Kurds and the Ottoman Empire

Abstract

The Kurds are an ethnic group that has undergone a lot of friction with other countries such as Persia, Arabia, Mongols, and Turkey. However, the Kurdish and the Ottoman Empire had established a completely distinct relation, including the mutual attraction of the Islamic Faith, school of thought, and the problem of nationalism. Islam discerns no people due to ethnicity they belong to, but it is a devotion that distinguishes their degree before God. This article attempts to examine how the Kurds have been able to survive under the auspices of the Ottoman Empire, an empire that was considered a substitute for the previous Islamic caliphate that ruled based on Islamic shari‘a. This study finds that the political and legal transformation in the body of the Ottoman Empire made the Kurds extremely depressed and agitated. This has subsequently brought about the rise of their nationalism and intention to establish an independent state. Unfortunately, this was difficult to realize since the map of the region is shaped by the winning countries of World War I. These countries did not recognize what so-called Kurdistan State. Besides, the surrounding countries like Turkey, Iran, Syria, and Iraq did not want to lose their territory.