'Kurdistan and the Kurds' [‎8r] (15/122)

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Kurds and Arabs. Both Arabic and Kurdish are universally spoken, and
Turkish is generally understood ; the Kurdish spoken here is a variety of
the Mukri dialect. Wheat and barley, a little rice, beans, melons,
cucumbers, and some grapes are grown in the country-side, and large
flocks of sheep are reared in the neighbouring pastures. The water-supply
is scanty and is eked out from local wells; the river-bed is generally dry.
The market deals principally in Arab horses. Some cotton is exported ;
but the chief articles of commerce are oil, which is found in the oil-springs
at Baba Gurgur about five miles north-west of the town, wool, gall-nuts,
wheat, barley, fruit, gum, and a little wine. Fruit-trees include the vine,
lime, olive, fig, apricot, and mulberry. .
Suleimaniyah is the largest Kurdish town in Southern Kurdistan,
numbering 2,500 houses. It is 60 miles distant from Kirkuk, east by
north. The town lies on the lower slope of the hills between two spurs;
through the intervening valley an excellent supply of water flows. There
are no walls or fortifications of any kind. The inhabitants are a mixture
of Kurds, Arabs, and Turks, among whom the Kurds predominate. The
prevalent language is Kurdish, though- almost everyone understands
Persian. Until 1851 the town was ruled by a family of Kurdish race,
descended from a Kurdish priest named Mullah Ahmed; but in that year
‘Abdullah Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. and his brother, Ahmed Sayyid, siezed the town; a
garrison was put into it, and a Turk, called Ismail Pasha An Ottoman title used after the names of certain provincial governors, high-ranking officials and military commanders. , was appointed
qaimviakdin. The principal loca l industry is the manufacture of fire-arms,
which find a ready sale amongst the surrounding Kurdish tribes. Shoe-
making and saddlery are other important crafts. There is a fair supply
of cereals, vegetables and dairy-produce, which I he Kurds bring in from
the country to sell. The hills to the east are well-wooded; the water
supply is very good and comes from some large springs near the place.
The town during the last century was very prosperous, but its trade has
declined recently owing to the turbulence displayed by the different
political factions inside the city, and to the imposition of a 15% customs-
duty. It still remains a market, however, for the sale of sheep, goats,
cattle, horses, and mules, which are reared by the nomad Kurds of the
district.
The southernmost limit reached by the Kurds is Samarra, to which
the nomad tribes have been known to extend their raids. Jaif, on the
Lesser Zab, is said to be.the last Kurdish village, as the traveller enters
Mesopotamia from the north. In Baghdad there is a colony of about 5,500
Kurds. In Basra there is a market for the sale of gall-nuts exported from
Kurdistan. Here, too, karadi, or Kurdish wool, is sold; it comes from
sheep bred on the Kurdish hills to the north and west of Mosul; it has a
long, coarse, and hairy staple, and is used chiefly for carpets and other-
heavy materials ; this wool is also sold in the markets of Kut, Amara, Mosul,
and Diarbekr. Mohair, a wool which is clipped from Angora sheep in the
Kurdish hills, is also exported through Basra, as well as through Baghdad,