Are they the ‘other'? The ethno-nationalism experiences of Iranian Kurdish ethnic tourists

Abstract

ABSTRACT Ethnic tourism is one of the tourism study fields, which mostly focus on ethnic minorities. However, less attention has been paid to ethnic tourism as a journey in which ethnicity, genealogy, ancestry, race, and heritage are its most important motivating factors. The purpose of this study was to describe the ethno-nationalistic identity of Iranian Kurdish tourists who had the experience of traveling to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI). Moreover, it is necessary to understand how the recent changes of KRI affect the feelings of Iranian Kurdish tourists about the environment or conditions in which they live. A qualitative methodology was used to understand ethno-nationalism with reference to the perspectives of Iranian Kurdish tourists. In this study, qualitative data was collected through 17 semi-structured interviews with Iranian Kurds who had the experience of traveling to KRI. Research findings demonstrated that the experiences of Iranian Kurdish tourists could be categorized into three main themes, including perceived social distance, the Kurdish ethnic identity convergence, and the divergence from Iranian national identity. This study added new insights to the existing literature on ethnic tourism.