Kurdish History Journal
Articles filed under Kurdish Art and Culture.
Buka Barane is a rain-related doll procession documented among Kurdish communities and Kurmanji-speaking Yezidis in Armenia. Local accounts describe children, household gifts and water, with different purposes and endings.
Read article →At Uraman Takht in Iran’s Kurdistan province, Pir Shalyar observances bring together a wedding legend, shared food, daf music and visits to a revered shrine. Winter celebrations and spring Komsay have distinct sequences. Their importance lies in community participation, devotion and the transmission of Hawrami cultural memory.
Read article →Perî are supernatural figures in Kurdish storytelling. Their role in versions of Memê Alan gives a concrete example of how fairies can shape a story, while their names and forms vary between performers and regions.
Read article →Mor kirin, literally “sealing,” is a Yazidi water rite associated especially with Kaniya Spî at Lalish. Accounts differ on timing and regional importance; baptism is not a general route of conversion into Yazidism.
Read article →Farr connects religious power, royal legitimacy and fortune, but its meanings vary across texts. Yasht 19, Jamshid’s downfall and debated artistic symbols reveal a richer history than a single rule about good kings.
Read article →Sekandar in the Shahnameh: the Persianized Alexander, made a son of Darab, world-conqueror and seeker of the Water of Life, whose reign closes the legendary age.
Read article →Ferdowsi’s Dara is Darab’s son and Alexander’s half-brother. His betrayal, final counsel and burial create an epic account of succession that should be distinguished from Arrian’s account of Darius III’s death.
Read article →Darab’s story connects a child rescued from a river with royal recognition and a legendary genealogy for Alexander. Comparing the poem with prose romances shows why the different versions should be identified rather than blended together.
Read article →The Chinvat Bridge is a Zoroastrian crossing associated with the judgment of the dead. Avestan passages, Middle Persian narratives and illustrated manuscripts preserve different stages of its religious and literary history.
Read article →Homay in the Shahnameh: the rare reigning queen of Iran, daughter of Bahman, who ruled with justice for years and set her infant son Darab adrift to keep her throne.
Read article →Pilgrimage to Lalish connects Yazidi devotion with Sheikh Adi’s tomb, sacred springs, lamps and the autumn gathering. The valley is a living religious landscape, whose buildings and practices need to be understood in their own contexts.
Read article →Bahman, son of Esfandiyar, becomes Rostam’s pupil before attacking his family as king. Ferdowsi’s episodes connect the boulder, Faramarz’s death, Zal’s release and Homay’s succession.
Read article →Katayun in the Shahnameh: the princess of Rum who chose Goshtasp for love, became queen of Iran and mother of Esfandiyar, and pleaded in vain against his fatal duel.
Read article →Zarir, or Zarer, is a warrior in Iranian epic associated with King Vishtasp’s defence of the Zoroastrian religion. His death and his son’s response survive in different literary versions, including the Middle Persian Memorial of Zarer and Daqiqi’s verses incorporated into the Shahnameh.
Read article →The Kaka’i are a religious minority in Iraq with close connections to Yarsan and Ahl-e Haqq traditions across the Iranian border. Sacred poetry, community gatherings and local heritage belong to their history alongside displacement and struggles over identity.
Read article →Bahram in the Shahnameh: the loyal paladin son of Gudarz, who tried to save the prince Forud and met a tragic death returning for his lost whip on the battlefield.
Read article →Goshtasp links Zoroaster’s reception, conflict with Arjasp and Esfandiyar’s struggle for the crown. Reading the epic beside scholarship and manuscript painting reveals different layers of his story.
Read article →Lohrasp in the Shahnameh: the king chosen by Kay Khosrow as his heir, father of Goshtasp, builder of the sacred fire, who died defending Balkh against the Turanians.
Read article →Fariburz loses the contest for Kay Kavus’s throne but remains active in Kay Khosrow’s armies. His failed commands, victory over Kalbad and final journey give a fuller picture than the label of unsuccessful claimant.
Read article →Feqîr names a Yazidi ascetic tradition, but also has a wider family and community meaning in Sinjar. Initiation, sacred dress, religious knowledge and service at Lalish need to be understood alongside these regional differences.
Read article →Published Yarsani accounts describe souls passing through bodily forms. The garment metaphor, the number 1,001 and divine manifestation need their particular sources and contexts.
Read article →Two Shahnameh warriors share the name Gostaham. Their families distinguish Nowzar’s son from Gazhdaham’s son, whose pursuit of Piran’s brothers ends in severe wounds and rescue by Bizhan.
Read article →Trace Kurdish origin legends through Evliya Çelebi’s account of Melik Kürdim and the Iranian story of youths rescued from Zahhak. Their recorded versions differ from religious accounts of how the world was created.
Read article →The peacock tour brings sacred objects, recitation and guidance into Yazidi villages. Research explains its water, lamps and clay blessings; dated reports show both renewed visits in 2024 and postponement in April 2026.
Read article →