Kurds: A Concise Handbook

Great book, just wish it was longer!

The book is great and it is indeed informative. However, I did find that it was rhetorical at points (which is not always a negative point). I also found myself doubting the religion section greatly. It does not discuss the history of Zoroastrianism and in fact dismisses it as a "failure" to convert the Kurdish nation. I believe if some in-depth research was done dating back to Zoroastrianism, it would become clear to the author that it started in the Kurdish region of what is now Iran. And as he stated in the book, the largest and most important temple of Zoroastrianism is built in the Kurdish region of Iran. For example, the goddess Anahita (goddess of water) is known as a Kurdish goddess and Zoroaster known as a Kurdish Prophet. Furthermore, the author has used as a cover to the book a picture which shows the statues of ancient Kurds, which I am pretty sure belongs to the Zoroastrian era. Thus, I cannot comprehend why the author did not touch on these issues not even to clarify if it is a myth or if they are in fact Kurdish and not Persian as it is assumed generally. I, by no means, underestimate the authors intelligence but further clarification would have been better received and it would have showed that he was indeed capable of some anthropological research, rather that the great assumption of acceptance of Islam when at many stages it was forced on the Kurds.Apart from the religion section of the book, it is hugely impressive and it has substantial evidential and cultural manifestations. It is by far better than many books I have read about the Kurds and their history. However and as I highlighted previously, if you would like some anthropological history prior to the Islamic era then this book is probably not the best.

Without doubt the most authoritative, in-depth and wide-ranging book on the Kurds and Kurdish culture, history and religion, to name but a few topics.While some books on Kurds centre on political matters this engaging book actually discusses Kurdish life, history and politics in a highly informative manner without ever dulling the reader. And the author's erudition bristles.I could not recommend this book more.

To anyone that knows a thing or two about the Middle East and Assyrian history, please read the below from a member of the community who is a researcher:...Mehrdad Izady (Ph.D) is a Kurdish-Belgian academic and author of The Kurds, published in 1992. In his book, Izady claims that Adiabene was an ancient "Kurdish kingdom" and that "Christian Kurdish" communities renounced their "Kurdish ethnic identity" and "recently adopted the ethnic name Assyrian".Note/s[1] Izady presents no sources to back up such claims. Then again, of course he wouldn't— there’s none.[2] Historically, the Christian communities of Ḥaḏyab “Adiabene” never identified themselves as Kurdāyē “Kurdish”. According to Syriac-Christian tradition and to the writings which have been passed down from our Church fathers since the early third-century AD, Adiabene had a strong Āthōrāyā “Assyrian” presence. The name, Assyrian, was never “adopted” as the identity was always there and this has been proven over and over again.[3] There is not a single shred of independent evidence to prove that there was a historic period where a significant population suddenly “renounced” their “Kurdish identity”. This claim and all others made by Izady are absolute hogwash.In conclusion, Mehrdad Izady is a historical revisionist and his writings are political rather than historical. What Izady is trying to do is to erase the Assyrian identity of Assyria, which he claims is "Central Kurdistan". Not only are these claims racist but they are highly offensive....