The Faculty of Kurdish Language and Literature begins operations in Kurdish-speaking provinces
After launching the Kurdish Language and Literature Department at the University of Kurdistan, the advisor to the governor of Kermanshah announced the establishment of the Kurdish Language and Literature Faculty. Azerbaijani Turkish language classes have also begun at the Shahriar Foundation in Tabriz.
For the first time this year, students began their studies in the Kurdish language and literature department at the University of Kurdistan. In an exclusive report (October 20/October 11), the Sharq newspaper described this “important event” as equivalent to the implementation of Article 15 of the Constitution, the same principle regarding education in ethnic languages at the University of Kurdistan.
Read more: Ministry of Education agrees to teach Kurdish language in secondary schools
According to Dr. Bakhtiar Sajjadi, head of the “Council for Establishing the Kurdish Language and Literature Department” at the University of Kurdistan, the students who have registered in this department are mainly Kurdish speakers and number 42. Local officials emphasize that the establishment of the Kurdish language and literature department was in line with the promises of the Rouhani government to the people.
Presentation of a plan to establish a Kurdish language school in Kermanshah
Following the launch of the Kurdish language and literature department in Sanandaj, now in Kermanshah province, officials of this province are also announcing the possibility of establishing a Kurdish language and literature faculty. Ramzan Dehnavi, advisor to the governor of Kermanshah for ethnic and religious affairs, announced the presentation of a plan to establish a Kurdish language faculty specifically for the Kurdish-speaking provinces of Iran, centered on Kermanshah.
In this regard, Dehnavi told IRNA that this plan has been submitted to Tehran and is scheduled to be discussed in the Supreme Council of the Cultural Revolution, and if the establishment of the Kurdish language faculty is confirmed, students can be recruited through a nationwide exam next year.
Kamal Hosseini, journalist
Kamal Hosseini, a journalist living in Kurdistan who reports for the Mokrian news agency, spoke to Deutsche Welle about the Kurds' welcome for the government's "minimum facilities": "The issue of establishing a field in a university or adding a Kurdish section to one of the news agencies affiliated with the power institution is perhaps the least this government could do in this area, but Article 15 is still pending. Our children in Kurdistan still have to study in a language other than their mother tongue when they first enter school, and at no point is Kurdish taught alongside foreign languages such as English."
This Kurdish journalist recalls: "In the field of culture, Kurdistan does not even have a national newspaper in Kurdish, and even if there is a weekly or monthly magazine, there is no possibility of free and impartial activity. There is no Kurdish language and literature academy, and cultural products specific to Kurds are very limited."
Read more: Beginning of the school year; no news about teaching the native language of the tribes
Kamal Hosseini continues that Kurds have no role in the political sphere and have not gained a share in the economic sphere as a result of the unfair distribution of wealth in the country. In his opinion, “the security perspective in Kurdistan from the beginning of the revolution to the present day” has hindered the development of this region, because in addition to the government’s excuses for infrastructure investments in Kurdistan, this type of perspective has also cut off the hands of private sector investors.
Welcome to the Shahriar Foundation's Turkish language education
Simultaneously with the cultural developments in the field of Kurdish language and literature in other ethnic regions, including East Azerbaijan, news has also been reported about the teaching of Turkish in Azerbaijan. Some news sites in this province reported that “Turkish language classes started by the Ostad Shahriar Research Foundation in Tabriz have been met with an unprecedented reception from the people, such that the number of participants in the classes has exceeded the capacity of the training facility.
Azerbaijani cultural activists told Deutsche Welle that Azerbaijani Turkish language teaching in Tabriz is held voluntarily and the government has not borne any costs for holding these classes.
According to “Tabriz Bidar”, a news and information website of Tabriz city, the classes of the Shahriar Foundation, which operates as a provincial branch of the “Persian Language and Literature Academy”, have been supported by the people due to the non-political nature of the academy. On the other hand, some other local websites in Azerbaijan reported “monetization” and “disruption” in holding these classes.
One of the participants of these classes says that the organizers of the meeting stated that participation in these classes is subject to paying a tuition fee of 60,000 Tomans and presenting a national ID card. This is despite the fact that the Shahryar Foundation is a non-profit organization and does not even charge participants for other classes it currently holds.
Read more: Ethnic languages in the constitution of Iran and neighboring countries
The launch of the Kurdish language and literature department at the University of Kurdistan and the holding of Azerbaijani Turkish language classes at the Shahriar Research Foundation in Tabriz show that there is no longer any room for hesitation in implementing Article 15 of the Constitution after 36 years of delay. According to experts on ethnic affairs, the Rouhani government needs a new approach in the cultural sphere of ethnicities to implement this important and “delayed” principle.
