ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Thanks to growing campaigns to promote the Kurdish language by academics, politicians, and language promotion institutions, the number of students enrolling in selective Kurdish language classes is on the rise in Turkey's southeast Kurdish region (Bakur).
One of the places where selective Kurdish classes thrive is the town of Suruc, Sanliurfa province near the Syrian border.
Last year only one school had added Kurdish to their curriculum, but this year students across all schools of Suruc have chosen to study the Kurdish language as well.
Holding a master's degree in the Kurdish language, Abdulrahman Eidogdu teaches seven Kurdish language classes at two schools in Suruc.
"In the past, there was just one school where selective Kurdish classes were taught. Two other schools have recently been opened. I would like to mention that this year there was a huge campaign to promote Kurdish selective classes. Now that the number of applicants is thriving, more Kurdish teachers are needed," Eidogdu said.
He says he currently teaches 150 students the Kurdish language.
Turkey’s Kurds are allowed to study in their mother tongue at school for a few hours a week through elective courses which can only be opened when at least ten students register for. Lessons are provided in both dialects of the Kurdish language: Kurmanji and Zazaki.
Kurdish political parties, language promotion institutions, and academics as well as social media users have in recent years campaigned for elective lessons in Kurdish in Turkey through media outlets, social media platforms, and brochures. The hashtag #KurdîHilbijêre (select Kurdish) has been trending on Twitter for weeks.
The campaign has been supported by officials and leaders of ruling and opposition political parties. Some Turkish politicians have even called on Turks to register for these lessons as well.
Kurdish language has been silenced in modern Turkey since its foundation in 1923, due to the oppressive assimilation policies of successive governments and Kurdish parties. A 2019 study shows that only a small size of Turkey’s Kurdish population can speak in their mother tongue.
