ABSTRACT
Ethnic groups become involved in political conflict for many reasons that are specific to a particular time, place, and political setting. This chapter provides the information needed to gain an understanding of the historical and political circumstances that have shaped the identities and status of four peoples. It focuses on the political status of Kurds in Turkey, Iran, Iraq and Miskitos. A key cultural issue that contributed to conflict was whether the Sorani dialect of Kurdish could be the language of instruction and government in Iraqi Kurdistan. The first modern Kurdish rebellion occurred in 1943 under the leadership of Mustafa Barzani, the most influential twentieth-century Kurdish nationalist. The Miskito pastors who gradually replaced the missionaries in the twentieth century inherited this dual secular and religious authority and have been among the strongest proponents of Miskito rights and autonomy since the 1980s.
