what religion are the kurds
Most Kurds today are Muslims, mainly Sunni, but Kurdish society is religiously mixed and includes several minority faiths.
Main Answer: What religion are the Kurds?
- The majority of Kurds follow Sunni Islam, especially the Shafi‘i school of law, with some communities following Hanafi and Hanbali schools.
- Significant minorities are Shia Muslims and Alevis (often called Raa Haq among Kurds), especially in parts of Iran and Turkey.
- Some Kurds belong to distinct ethno-religious traditions such as Yazidism and Yarsanism (Ahl-e Haqq), which preserve very old, syncretic beliefs with roots in pre-Islamic Iranian and Mesopotamian religions.
- Smaller numbers of Kurds are Zoroastrians and Christians, reflecting both very ancient ties to the region and modern revival or missionary movements.
At a glance (not one single religion)
| Group | Approximate role among Kurds | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sunni Islam (mainly Shafi‘i) | Largest group | Dominant in most Kurdish regions; Sufi orders like Naqshbandi and Qadiriyya are influential. | [3][9][7]
| Shia Islam | Sizeable minority | More common in southeastern parts of Kurdish areas, especially in Iran and Iraq. | [9][3]
| Alevism / Raa Haq | Important minority | Strong presence in places like Dersim (Tunceli) in Turkey. | [3][7]
| Yazidism | Largest non- Islamic Kurdish faith | Ethnic religion of many Yazidis, with ancient Mesopotamian roots and a distinct pantheon of one God and seven holy beings. | [5][7][9]
| Yarsanism (Ahl‑e Haqq) | Smaller but historic | Syncretic tradition with roots in western Iran; followed by some Kurdish groups. | [7][9]
| Zoroastrianism | Revival and heritage religion | Revived by some Kurds, and historically linked to fire‑temple worship in the region. | [1][7]
| Christianity | Small minority | Includes Kurdish converts and historic communities in mixed cities. | [9][7]
Mini context: history and identity
Historically, Kurdish regions saw layers of belief: ancient local cults, Mithraic and fire/sun worship, Zoroastrianism, then gradual Islamization after the early Islamic conquests. Today, religion and Kurdish identity interact in complex ways: some Kurdish movements emphasize a shared ethnic identity that cuts across religious differences, while others lean strongly on Islamic or Yazidi heritage.
In online forum discussions, Kurds themselves often stress that there is no single “Kurdish religion” – Kurds are an ethnic group whose members follow several religions, even if Sunni Islam is numerically dominant.
TL;DR: When people ask “what religion are the Kurds,” the most accurate answer is: mostly Sunni Muslim, with important Shia, Alevi, Yazidi, Yarsani, Zoroastrian, and Christian minorities, so there is no single Kurdish religion.
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.