Indonesian Journal of Islamic History and Culture Vol. 2, No. 1 (2021). 1-49 P-ISSN: 2722-8940; E-ISSN: 2722-8934 STUDYING THE IMPACT OF RELIGIO-POLITICAL CONFRONTATIONS OF ISLAMIC EMPIRES IN KURDISTAN (FROM THE BEGINNING UNTIL THE END OF THE ISLAMIC CALIPHATE) Sabah Mofidi Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study (NIAS) Email: [email protected] Abstract This article seeks to address the problem of historiography and perspective in Middle East studies concerning dominated ethno-nations, especially the Kurds, while examining the religio-political confrontations between the Islamic empires and their significant socio-political consequences in Kurdistan through a historical study (primarily) based on secondary sources. With the dominance of the early Islamic Caliphate from the 7th century, the political powers of the Kurds’ ancestors were removed and the non-Muslim population severely declined. From the middle of the Abbasid Caliphate period (750-1258) Kurdish governments grew again. After the Abbasids, various Islamic sects gained power and Kurdistan gradually becoming the battlefield of various political powers. With the emergence of two empires, the Sunni Ottoman and Shiite Safavid (and its successors) in the 16th century, the internal conflicts in the Islamic world culminated and lasted until the early 20th century. Between the 7th and the early 20th century religio-political confrontations converging in Kurdistan have severely affected the land’s socio-political situation. This article examines how the Islamic empires used religion politically as a means to fight each other, as well as engage with the Kurdish revolts. Keywords: Kurdistan; Ottomans; Safavids; Shiite; Sunni DAMPAK KONFRONTASI AGAMA DAN POLITIK DALAM KERAJAAN ISLAM DI KURDI (DARI AWAL SAMPAI AKHIR KEKHALIFAHAN ISLAM) Abstrak Artikel ini mencoba melihat persoalan historiografi dan perspektif dalam kajian Timur Tengah dalam kaitannya dengan etnis bangsa yang didominasi, terutama Kurdi, selain juga mencoba memeriksa konfrontasi politik-agama antar kerajaan Islam dan konsekuensi sosio-politik yang signifikan di Kurdi melalui studi sejarah berdasarkan sumber sekunder. Dengan adanya dominasi Kekhalifahan Islam awal pada abad ke-7, kekuatan politik Kurdi disingkirkan dan populasi non- Muslim menjadi menurun drastis. Pada pertengahan periode Kekhalifahan Abbasiyah (750-1258) pemerintah Kurdi tumbuh kembali. Setelah kekhalifahan Abbasiyah, berbagai sekte dalam Islam dan Kurdi secara bertahap menjadi medan pertempuran berbagai kekuatan politik. Dengan munculnya dua kerajaan, Utsmaniyah yang bermazhab sunni dan kerajaan Safawi yang bermazhab Syiah (dan penerusnya) pada abad ke-16, konflik internal di dunia Islam memuncak dan berlangsung hingga awal abad ke-20. Antara abad ke-7 dan awal abad ke-20 konfrontasi agama-politik yang bertemu di Kurdi telah sangat mempengaruhi situasi sosial-politik negeri itu. StudyingSubmitted: the 20 Impact-04-2021 of Religio|| Accepted:-Political 03-05 Confrontations-2021 || Published: of Islamic 31-05-2021 Empires in Kurdistan | 1 (FromCopyright the © Beginning 2021 Indonesian until the Journal End of ofthe Islamic Islamic History Caliphate) and Culture Sabah Mofidi Indonesian Journal of Islamic History and Culture Vol. 2, No. 1 (2021). 1-49 P-ISSN: 2722-8940; E-ISSN: 2722-8934 Artikel ini membahas bagaimana kerajaan Islam menggunakan agama secara politik sebagai sarana untuk melawan satu sama lain, serta terlibat dalam pemberontakan Kurdi. Kata Kunci: Kurdistan; Utsmaniyah; Safawi; Syiah; Sunni Introduction or minimized in formal discourse. In Middle East studies, the One instance is The Cambridge history of multinational countries History of Iran, in several volumes, like Iran, Turkey, Iraq and Syria has written and edited by different usually been viewed through the scholars from 1968-1991, which lens of the dominant ethno-nations was indeed an attempt to rewrite and their new states. The history of history in favour of Persian state various dynasties and tribes who nationalism. Unlike mainstream were sporadically dominant with a Arab, Turkish and Iranian studies higher authority within an unclear which are affected by the politics of and variable territory , is considered non-Kurdish states in the region, as part of the continuous history of this article focuses on Kurdistan as the states in question and is the central point of analysis to offer attributed to the dominant ethno- a historio-analytical view that can nations. For example, until the 20th be used to analyze political issues century, different non-Persian and the modern politics of the dynasties like the Safavids, Middle East. Afsharids, Zands and Qajars, with Contemporary religio- many other smaller dynasties and political confrontations and tribes, ruled and governed their conflicts in the Middle East between relevant territories. From the different religions, ethnic ities, beginning of the 1900s, this vague nations, nationalisms and states, historical amalgam was presented especially between the Kurds and as Persian/Iranian history to create other ethno-nations, often have a modern state with a single nation historical roots that can be traced based on the Persian ethno-nation. back to troubles in the ancient and In other words, the histories of Islamic empires. Indeed, the Islamic other ethno-nations were removed powers, especially the Sunni Studying the Impact of Religio-Political Confrontations of Islamic Empires in Kurdistan | 2 (From the Beginning until the End of the Islamic Caliphate) Sabah Mofidi Indonesian Journal of Islamic History and Culture Vol. 2, No. 1 (2021). 1-49 P-ISSN: 2722-8940; E-ISSN: 2722-8934 Ottoman and Shiite Safavid empires, Kurdistan. It also considers the used religion as a political tool to socio-political impact of the achieve their goals, which affected conflicts on Kurdistan within the Kurdistan as a converging area. The context of the political situation at modern nationalists and states, the time. So, the emphasis here is on whether religious or secular, have Kurds and Kurdistan. continued in the same manner and To give a brief description of used the function based on their Kurdistan, it should be noted that societies. This article examines the the Kurds were well-known by their effects of religio-political current name in early Islamic - confrontations during the Islamic Arabic sources such as the works of period on Kurdistan – as the Dinawari (9th century), Tabari, Ibn historical site of such conflict – Wahshiyyah, Bayhaqi and so on. thereby presenting the They have mostly lived in and consequences of such actions on the around the vast mountainous area contemporary situation in the covering parts of Mesopotamia and region. the Zagros Mountain range, which The questions which this since mid-medieval times, paper tries to answer are: how did especially in the eleventh century the religio-political confrontations during the Seljuk era (1037-1194), of the Islamic empires affect has been recognized and officially Kurdistan? How did they use their documented as religion to extend their influence ‘Kurdistan/Kurdewarî’, literally into Kurdistan? Through explaining meaning the land of Kurds (see: the relationship between religion Cheriff Vanly, 1992, 143; Nebez, and politics in the Islamic period 2004, 56; Zaki, 1931, 9-11; White, and the ways in which political 2000, 15). According to Sharafadin powers used religion in their Bitlisi (1597), Kurdistan covered religio-political conflicts, the article the land between the Hormuz Sea, shows the historicity of using the Ararat Mountains (Caucasus) and political function of religion in the Mediterranean Sea. Because of Studying the Impact of Religio-Political Confrontations of Islamic Empires in Kurdistan | 2 (From the Beginning until the End of the Islamic Caliphate) Sabah Mofidi Indonesian Journal of Islamic History and Culture Vol. 2, No. 1 (2021). 1-49 P-ISSN: 2722-8940; E-ISSN: 2722-8934 the invasion of other peoples from different religions. The empires four sides, assimilation and tried to attach some parts of demographic changes, the borders Kurdistan to their own territories. of the Kurds’ land have shifted over The buffer Kurdish governments history. However, Greater and principalities were in sway Kurdistan is now a strategic region between them. However, religion located between Iran, Turkey, Iraq played an important role and and Syria. Moreover, there was a affected the empires’ politics fifth part in the Soviet Union known especially in Kurdistan. as “Red Kurdistan”, which was To examine the religio- annulled by Stalin, causing a political confrontations between diaspora to Kurdish areas in other the empires and the significant countries in the region (Nebez, socio-political consequences they 2004, 53). wrought in Kurdistan, I have used Kurdistan has historically the historical-descriptive method to been a centre and a converging report on the historio-political point of different religions, and also events and to describe the political the scene of political confrontations state of affairs. Thus, I review the by various powers who have used situation and study the religion politically since the ancient phenomenon of the practical use of period. During the Islamic religion by different rulers and Caliphate, the Muslim rulers used political powers in the period of the political function of Islam to Kurdish political history from the govern the land as they had done in arrival of Islam to the early 20 th other Islamic lands. Gradually , century. As it helps to have an within