The Kurdish population refers to the total number of Kurdish people in the world. The Kurds are the largest ethnic group in the world without their own state.[1]
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According to a report by KONDA, in 2006, out of the total population of 73 million people in Turkey there were 11.4 million Kurds living in Turkey (close to 16% of the total population).[2] The Turkish newspaper Milliyet has reported in 2008 that the Kurdish population in Turkey is 12.6 million; although this also includes 3 million Zazas.[3] A more recent estimate by the CIA in 2010 claims that Kurdish people make up 18% of Turkey's population (about 14 million, out of 77.8 million people).[4]
Kurds mostly live in seven province of Southeastern Anatolia (except Gaziantep and Kilis) and in Eastern Anatolia (Ağrı Province, Bingöl Province, Bitlis Province, Hakkâri Province, Kars Province, Tunceli Province, Van Province, Ardahan Province) and Istanbul Province. And large populations be found in bigger cities of western and central Anatolia (Istanbul, Bursa, Izmit, Mugla, Manisa, Izmir, Balikesir, Antalya, Mersin, Samsun, Adana, Ankara and Konya). According to Rüstem Erkan, Istanbul has the largest Kurdish population in Turkey. And the number of Kurds who are registered in the Kurdish-dominated provinces but living outside their own provinces, is 5,627,068.[5]
About 4 million) Kurdish people live in Iran mainly in the north-west region of the country which is a part of Kurdistan. A large Kurdish enclave outside Kurdistan is the Kurdish region in north Khorasan, in north-eastern Iran. Over two million Kurds currently live in this region. These Kurds are descendants of the displaced tribes during the Safavid period and their ancestors were from western Iran. Other scattered smaller communities are found in the Alburz mountain range in northern Iran, Guilan province in northern Iran and Sistan and Baluchistan province in southeastern Iran (and also in neighboring regions in Pakistan). (See[6]). A great number of Kurds live in Iranian cities like Tabriz and Tehran.
In addition to the fact that these two countries include parts of Kurdistan, there are significant Kurdish communities in metropolitan areas of these countries in Aleppo, Damascus, Baghdad etc. The Kurdish population in Iraq is thought to be in the region of 5 million and about 1,8 million in Syria.[7]
Kurds used to constitute the majority in former Kurdistan Okrug prior to mass deportations in the period 1940 - 1944. Today, most of the Kurdish communities in Kazakhstan, Russia, and Kyrgyzstan are results of these deportations. The remaining Kurds in Azerbaijan who numbered about 680,000 became refugees following Nagorno-Karabakh war. (See[8]). Most Kurds who comprise a small portion (about 3.2%) of total population arrived in Georgia at the time of the Ottoman Empire, having fled religious repression there. They now live mainly in Tbilisi or Rustavi. Kurds are mostly urbanized and socially integrated, but preserve their ethnic identity, language, and cultural traditions. Most of them are Yazidi.[9]
In Lebanon, there are about 80,000 Kurds, mainly living in Beirut.
According to the last census taken in the former Soviet Union in 1989, there were 25,425 Kurds in Kazakhstan, 14,262 in Kyrgyzstan, 56 in Tajikistan, 4,387 in Turkmenistan and 1,839 in Uzbekistan.[10]
In Denmark, there is a significant number of Iraqi political refugees, many of which are actually Kurds.[11]
In Finland, most Kurds arrived in the 1990s as Iraqi refugees.[12] Kurds in Finland have no great attachment to the Iraqi state because of their position as a persecuted minority. Thus, they feel more accepted and comfortable in Finland, many wanting to get rid of their Iraqi citizenship.[13]
In France, the Iranian Kurds make up the majority of the community.[14] However, thousands of Iraqi Kurds also arrived in the mid 1990s.[15] More recently, Syrian Kurds have been entering France illegally[16]
In Germany, Kurds from Turkey make up the majority of the community.[14] However, thousands of Iraqi Kurds also arrived in the mid 1990s.[15] Kurds in Germany are the largest community in the diaspora; 500.000 Kurds come from Turkey, 100.000 from Iraq, 15.000 from Lebanon, 4.000 to 5.000 from Iran, and 4.000 to 5.000 from Syria[17]
In Italy, some 3.000 Kurds have come from Iraq followed by Turkey.[18] The majority paid smugglers between $2,000 to $8,000 for passage to Italy by boat.[18] Most of the Iraqi Kurds arrived in the mid 1990s.[15]
In the Netherlands, Iraqi Kurds make up a large part of the community.[19]
In Sweden, Iraqi Kurds make a large proportion of the community.[19] There is a significant number of Iraqi political refugees, many of which are actually Kurds.[11]
In Switzerland, there were an estimated 60,000 ethnic Kurds as of 2006.[20]
In the United Kingdom, Kurds first began to immigrate between 1974-75 when the rebellion of Iraqi Kurds against the Iraqi government was repressed. The Iraqi government began to destroy Kurdish villages and forced many Kurds to move to barren land in the south.[21] These events resulted in many Kurds fleeing to the United Kingdom. Thus, the Iraqi Kurds make up a large part of the community.[14][19] In 1979, Ayatollah Khomeini came to power in Iran and installed Islamic law. There was widespread political oppression and persecution of the Kurdish community. Since the late 1970s the number of people from Iran seeking asylum in Britain has remained high.[21] In 1988, Saddam Hussein launched the Anfal campaign in the northern Iraq. This included mass executions and disappearances of the Kurdish community. The use of chemical weapons against thousands of towns and villages in the region, as well as the town of Halabja increased the number of Iraq Kurds entering the United Kingdom.[21] A large number of Kurds also came to the United Kingdom following the 1980 military coup in Turkey.[21] More recently, immigration has been due to the continued political oppression and the repression of ethnic and religious minorities in Iraq and Iran.[21] Estimates of the Kurdish population in the United Kingdom are as high as 200-250,000.[21]
In the United States, it is believed that the Kurdish population is approximately 58,000,[22] the large majority of which come from Iran.[23] However, estimates may vary greatly because of the lack of official census numbers accounting for Kurdish populations in the United States. It is estimated that some 23,000 Iranian Kurds are living in the United States.[23] Iraqi Kurds also form a large part of the community in the United States.[19] During the 1991 Persian Gulf War, about 10,000 Iraqi refugees were admitted to the United States, most of which were Kurds and Shiites who had assisted or were sympathisers of the U.S –led war.[24] Nashville, Tennessee has the nation's largest population of Kurdish people, with an estimated 8,000-11,000. There are also Kurds in Southern California, Los Angeles, and San Diego.[25]
In Canada, Kurdish immigration was largely the result of the Iran-Iraq War and the Gulf War. Thus, many Iraqi Kurds immigrated to Canada due to the constant wars and suppression of Kurds and Shiites by the Iraqi government.[26]
In Australia, Kurdish migrants first arrived in in the second half of the 1960s, mainly from Turkey.[27] However, in the late 1970s families from Syria and Lebanon were also present in Australia.[27] Since the second half of the 1980s, the majority of Kurds arriving in Australia have been from Iraq and Iran; many of them were accepted under the Humanitarian Programme.[27] However, Kurds from Lebanon, Armenia and Georgia have also migrated to Australia. The majority live in Melbourne and Sydney.[27]
| Country | Population Kurdish Institute of Paris[19] |
Others | Census's | Related articles |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | 11.4[2] to 14 million[4] | Kurds in Turkey, Kurds in Central Anatolia | ||
| Iraq | Kurds in Iraq | |||
| Iran | Kurds in Iran, Kurds in Khorasan | |||
| Syria | Kurds in Syria | |||
| Germany | 600.000 - 650.000 | 500.000 (Turkish Kurds)[28][17] 100.000 (Iraqi Kurds)[17] 15.000 (Lebanese Kurds)[17] 4.000 to 5.000 (Iranian Kurds)[17] 4.000 to 5.000 (Syrian Kurds)[17] |
Kurds in Germany | |
| Afghanistan | 200.000 | Kurds in Afghanistan | ||
| Azerbaijan | 150.000 | 13.100[29] | Kurds in Azerbaijan | |
| France | 100.000 - 120.000 | Kurds in France | ||
| Lebanon | 80.000 | Kurds in Lebanon | ||
| The Netherlands | 70.000 - 80.000 | Kurds in Netherlands | ||
| Switzerland | 60.000 - 70.000 | Kurds in Switzerland | ||
| Georgia | 60.000 | Kurds in Georgia | ||
| Austria | 50.000 - 60.000 | Kurds in Austria | ||
| Belgium | 50.000 - 60.000 | Kurds in Belgium | ||
| Armenia | 45.000 | 40.620 (Yazidis) 1.519 (Kurds)[30] |
Kurds in Armenia | |
| Turkmenistan | 40.000 | Kurds in Turkmenistan | ||
| Sweden | 25.000 - 30.000 | mainly refugees from Iran and Iraq[31] | Kurds in Sweden | |
| Great Britain | 20.000 - 25.000 | 200,000-250,000[21] (mainly Iraqi Kurds)[14][19] 38,000 (Turkish Kurds)[32] |
British Kurds | |
| Greece | 20.000 - 25.000 | Kurds in Greece | ||
| United States | 15.000 - 20.000 | 35.000.[23] 23.000 (Iranian Kurds)[23] |
9,423[33] | Kurdish American |
| Australia | 10.000[28] | Kurds in Australia | ||
| Denmark | 8.000 - 10.000 | Kurds in Denmark | ||
| Canada | 6.000 | 9.205[34] | Kurds in Canada | |
| Norway | 4.000 - 5.000 | Kurds in Norway | ||
| Italy | 3.000 - 4.000 | Kurds in Italy | ||
| Finland | 2.000 - 3.000 | 550-800 (Iraqi Kurds)[28] 450-650 (Iranian Kurds)[28] 300-550 (Turkish Kurds)[28] |
Kurds in Finland |
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