Kurds in the Geography of the Safavid State (1501-1722)

Abstract

Abstract With the establishment of the Safavid Shi'ite state (1501-1722) in Iran in the early sixteenth century, important geography and the rich regions of Kurdistan came under attack from the destructive army of Qizilbash. However, due to the rise and fall of the Safavid powers and the continued occupation of their forces over the Kurdistan Region, it is still difficult to determine the real geographical range of the Kurds in this era, because the set of influential factors such as their strengths and weaknesses of rulers and princes, the volatile nature of their internal and external conflicts, and the longing of foreign powers to occupy their wealthy territories over the instability of these borders, played a significant role. In the aftermath of this study, in order to identify the Kurdish geography and the real boundaries of the Kurdish-inhabited areas in the Safavid era, we take refuge in the historical sources of that era before identifying the borders of Kurdish emirates. There were also some remote areas such as Khorasan, Gilan, and Mazandaran, where groups of the original Kurdish tribes of Kurdistan were abducted by the Safavid kings for political and military purposes in their ancient areas and were relocated and relocated to other places. Many of them still live there. Keywords: Safavid state, Kurdish nation, Kurdish geography, Kurdish emirates, Kurdish settlements.