El Camino Kurdish -

Perhaps the most radical divergence of the El Camino Kurdish from its Spanish counterpart is the role of women. On the traditional Camino de Santiago, women walked as followers, nuns, or wives. On the Kurdish camino, women lead the way.

Thus, the El Camino Kurdish became a secret classroom. In the remote mezhe (villages), elders would teach poetry by Ahmad Khani or the revolutionary verses of Cigerxwîn in hushed tones. During the 1990s in Turkish Kurdistan, speaking Kurdish in public could lead to arrest. So, the pilgrimage moved underground. To speak Kurmanji was to walk the path. To sing a dengbêj (storytelling ballad) was to mark a waypoint. el camino kurdish

Several locations in Kurdish regions are pilgrimage sites, each with distinct narratives: Perhaps the most radical divergence of the El