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Kurdish people

Kurds
Kurd کورد
Roj emblem.svg
Total population
c. 30–32 million
Regions with significant populations
 Turkey estimates from 12 to 22.5 million
15.7–25%
 Iran estimates from 3.35 million to 8 million,
5–10%
 Iraq estimates from 4 to 6.5 million,
15–23%
 Syria estimates from 2 to 2.5 million,
10–15%
 Armenia 37,500
 Georgia 13,861 (as of 2015)
 Azerbaijan 6,100
Diaspora c. 2 million
 Germany 800,000
 France 150,000
 Sweden 83,600
 Belgium 80,000
 Netherlands 70,000
 Russia 63,800
 United Kingdom 50,000
 Kazakhstan 42,300
  Switzerland 35,000
 Denmark 30,000
 Jordan 30,000
 Austria 23,000
 Greece 22,000
 United States 15,400
 Kyrgyzstan 13,200
 Canada 11,685
 Finland 10,700
 Australia 7,000
Languages
Kurdish and Zaza–Gorani
In their different forms: Sorani, Kurmanji, Pehlewani, Zaza, Gorani
Religion
majority Islam since 7th century
(Sunni Muslim, but also Shia Muslim and Sufism)
with minorities of deism, agnosticism, Yazdânism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity and Judaism
Related ethnic groups
other Iranian peoples

The Kurds (Kurdish: Kurd‎, کورد) also the Kurdish people (Kurdish: Gelê Kurd‎, گەلی کورد‎) are an ethnic group in the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a contiguous area spanning adjacent parts of eastern and southeastern Turkey (Northern Kurdistan), western Iran (Eastern or Iranian Kurdistan), northern Iraq (Southern or Iraqi Kurdistan), and northern Syria (Western Kurdistan or Rojava). The Kurds are culturally and linguistically closely related to the Iranian peoples and, as a result, are often themselves classified as an Iranian people.

The Kurds are estimated to number, worldwide, around 30–32 million, possibly as many as 37 million, with the majority living in West Asia; however, there are significant Kurdish diaspora communities in the cities of western Turkey, in particular Istanbul. A recent Kurdish diaspora has also developed in Western countries, primarily in Germany. The Kurds are the majority population in the autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, and are a significant minority group in the neighboring countries Turkey and Iran, where Kurdish nationalist movements continue to pursue greater autonomy and cultural rights.


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