​​​​​​​Harvard University opens course to teach Kurdish language for first time in its history

​​​​​​​For the first time in its history, Harvard University opened a course to teach the Kurdish language, covering topics in Kurdish culture and history.

​​​​​​​Harvard University opens course to teach Kurdish language for first time in its history
4 October 2023   08:03
NEWSDESK

Harvard University opened a course to teach the Kurdish language for the first time in its history, after demands from university students from the Kurdish community.

Harvard University is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the United States of America. Founded in 1636, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most famous in the world.

The course, which opened this fall, will not only focus on teaching the Kurdish language, but will also address topics in Kurdish culture, history, and politics.

The university invited the anthropologist, professor at Bentley University, Ahmed Muhammad Pour, who is from Rojhilat Kurdistan, to teach in this course.

Professor Ahmed Muhammad Pour says to "The Harvard Crimson" student website: "How can we talk about Middle Eastern concepts without talking about teaching the Kurdish language or not teaching it? I am happy with this step, and that we finally have a basic course in teaching the Kurdish language".

The Kurdish language surpasses the Persian, Turkish, and Arabic languages as the eighth richest language in the world, with 918,123 words, out of 168 languages, according to data from Wiktionary, which is the dictionary section of the English Wikipedia website (merging the words wiki and dictionary).

The world is witnessing an openness towards the Kurds, as a result of the victories achieved by the Kurds over ISIS mercenaries, especially those in NE Syria, along with other components, and the achievement of cultural and administrative gains within the Autonomous Administration areas in Syria.