Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Commander-in-Chief Mazloum Abdi spoke to the Kurdish Language Institute (SZK) on the occasion of 21 February, International Mother Language Day.
Mazloum Abdi stated that they want Kurdish to become a language of education and that stronger steps would be taken for the Kurdish language. He congratulated all teachers and the public on the occasion of Mother Language Day and stated: “Kurdish language education is a very important issue for us. All our citizens should send their children to schools that provide education in Kurdish. During the Baath regime, we experienced many problems in the Kurdish regions where we lived. Kurdish was always banned and had no state support. There were many obstacles. A great struggle was waged to overcome this issue.”
‘For the first time in Syria, Kurdish officially recognized as a national language’
Regarding the efforts in Rojavayê (Western) Kurdistan, Abdi recalled that comprehensive work had been undertaken after the Rojava Revolution, stating: “Together with all other languages, the path was opened for Kurdish as well. Significant progress has been made in this field. Alongside the Kurds, other components also had the opportunity to develop their languages. Greetings to everyone who has worked and labored for Kurdish over the past years. Now, as a result of the Rojava Revolution, the transitional government has announced Decree No. 13. For the first time in Syria, Kurdish has officially been recognized as a national language. We view this positively. However, this is not sufficient. Especially considering the level the language has reached thanks to the linguistic efforts in Rojavayê Kurdistan, this decree remains highly inadequate. In recent years, schools have operated in Kurdish. Thousands of students have received education in Kurdish up to university level. This level must be recognized in practice.”
Abdi stated that the issue of language was extensively discussed in recent meetings with the transitional government, saying: “In our meetings with the state, we addressed this issue in depth. We are still taking Decree No. 13 as a basis. However, it has been decided to work on Kurdish-language education. In the future, we will hold a detailed meeting with the Ministry of Education of the transitional government. We will work on Decree No. 13.”
‘We must strengthen our efforts on language’
The SDF Commander General noted that Decree No. 13 provides a foundation for language-related efforts and made the following call to the public and to those working on language: “We hope that the existing problems will be resolved and that further work will be carried out. However, we must strengthen our efforts. The issue of culture is equally important for us. We must expand Kurdish institutions. Our people should send their children to Kurdish schools. Those working on the language should focus on it more deeply, and institutions must broaden their activities. I believe we will achieve major successes in this regard.”
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