Kurdish Journalism Day Marks 128 Years Since the Launch of First Kurdish Newspaper Kurdistan

PUKMEDIA

The Kurdistan Newspaper.

Today, Wednesday, Kurdish journalism marks the 128th anniversary of the publication of the first Kurdish newspaper, Kurdistan, founded by Miqdad Midhat Bedirkhan in Cairo, Egypt, on 22 April 1898. This historic milestone represented the first major step in establishing Kurdish journalism and marked an important turning point in the modern history of the Kurdish people. Over four years, the newspaper’s editors produced 31 issues in both Kurdish and Turkish.

The first five editions were printed in Cairo at the Al-Hilal and Kurdistan presses. Publication later moved to Geneva in Switzerland, then returned to Cairo, before continuing in Britain and finally back to Switzerland, where the final issue, number 31, was printed before the paper ceased publication permanently in 1902. Following Kurdistan, other Kurdish newspapers gradually began to emerge, while numerous newspapers and magazines later appeared across Kurdistan of Iraq, covering a broad range of subjects.

Kurdistan Newspaper became a leading platform for Kurdish political thought and played a pioneering role in shaping national awareness and cultural identity. It is widely recognised for helping advance the causes of freedom, liberation, and cultural progress. Its publication in Cairo, far from Kurdistan itself, reflected the hardship and injustice faced by the Kurdish people, who were denied their most basic rights in their homeland and in their own language.

Despite being published abroad, the newspaper’s founder still faced harassment and persecution, forcing him to move operations repeatedly. Only six issues were printed in Cairo before publication shifted to Geneva, where issues 7 to 19 appeared. It later returned to Cairo for issues 20 to 23, then moved to London for issue 24, before relocating to Folkestone, where issues 25 to 29 were published. Its final journey was back to Geneva, where the last edition was issued on 14 April 1904.

This long and difficult journey across several countries highlights the dedication and sacrifice of the Bedirkhan family in serving Kurdish culture and strengthening national consciousness among the Kurdish people. Miqdad Midhat Bedirkhan chose the name Kurdistan for the newspaper, which was published in the Kurmanji dialect using Arabic script, as a message to Kurds across Kurdistan and a call to awaken national identity.

The newspaper played a proud and historic role in raising awareness, clarifying the aims of the Kurdish liberation movement, expressing national hopes and human aspirations, and advocating democratic values. Miqdad Midhat Bedirkhan’s chief aim was to spread education, knowledge, and culture among his people at a time when much of the region suffered from ignorance, poverty, disease, and oppression under authoritarian rule.

The launch of Kurdistan also marked the beginning of a broader intellectual resistance to the Ottoman era, a period associated with repression, exploitation, and the denial of basic human and national rights for Kurds and other peoples. Official Turkish institutions opposed the development of Kurdish culture and education.

Over the decades, the Kurdish press has passed through many stages, reflecting the struggles of an oppressed and marginalised nation. The publication of Kurdistan remains the beginning of the pen’s struggle in Kurdish history — a spark that was lit and has never been extinguished.


PUKMEDIA