Kurds in Syria
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| estimates from 2.0 million to 2.5 million | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Al-Hasakah, Qamishli, Tell Tamer, Kobanî, Afrin | |
| Languages | |
| mainly Kurdish (Kirmanji), but also Arabic, Syriac | |
| Religion | |
| Sunni Islam, Shia Islam, Yazidism, Kurdish Christianity | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| other Iranian peoples |
Kurds in Syria refers to people born in or residing in Syria who are of Kurdish origin. The Kurds are the largest ethnic minority in Syria, comprising between 10% and 15% of the country's population according to the Minority Rights Group International, CIA and pro-government sources. Syrian Kurds have faced routine discrimination and harassment by the government.
"Syrian Kurdistan" (Kurdish: Kurdistana Sûriyê) is an unofficial name used by some to describe the Kurdish inhabited regions of northern and northeastern Syria. The northeastern Kurdish inhabited region covers the greater part of Hasakah Governorate. The main cities in this region are (Qamishlo) Qamishli and Al-Hasakah. Another region with significant Kurdish population is Kobanî (officially known as Ayn al-Arab) in the northern part of Syria near the town of Jarabulus and also the city of Afrin and its surroundings along the Turkish border.
Many Kurds seek political autonomy for the Kurdish inhabited areas of Syria, similar to Iraqi Kurdistan in Iraq, or outright independence as part of Kurdistan. The name Rojava (Kurdish: Rojavayê Kurdistanê) is also used by Kurds to name the Syrian Kurdish inhabited areas in relation to Kurdistan.
Kurds are the largest ethnic minority in Syria, and make up between 7 and 15 percent of the Syrian population as of 2011—between 1.6 and 2.5 million people. The Kurdish population in Syria is relatively small in comparison to the Kurdish populations in nearby countries, such as Turkey (14.4 - 16 million), Iran (7.9 million), and Iraq (4.7 - 6.2 million). The majority of Syrian Kurds speak Kurmanji, a Kurdish dialect spoken in Turkey and northeastern Iraq and Iran.
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