page_title: Early Kurdish nationalism
section_title: Persia
hierarchical_section_title: Early Kurdish nationalism / Persia
caption_attribution_description: English: Simko
context_page_description: The nationalist movement among the Kurdish people first emerged in the late 19th century with an uprising in 1880 led by Sheik Ubeydullah. Many Kurds worked with other opponents of the Ottoman regime within the Committee of Union and Progress. A growth in ethnic consciousness at the start of the 20th century was spearheaded by the Society for the Elevation of Kurdistan. Some Kurdish nationalist groups agitated for secession, others for autonomy.
  During the First World War, while some Kurdish nationalists were working with the British and Russian enemy powers, Kurdish tribal forces were fighting alongside Ottoman troops on the Russian front. Deaths and displacements occurred on a large scale among Kurdish civilians due to wartime conditions and deliberate ethnic cleansing policies.
  There was a brief opportunity for Kurdish nationalism after World War I with the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire. Western powers promised the Kurds they would act as guarantors for Kurdish freedom, a promise they subsequently broke.
context_section_description: After the Armistice, Kurdish nationalistic sentiments grew in Persian Kurdistan where before it had few adherents. This was due in part to the Ottoman Sultan's support. These pan-Islamic policies were designed to win over the Kurds in the region in the possibility of using them as a barrier against the Russians or Armenians.
  However, Kurdish nationalism grew in other environments. In 1918, members of the Mukri tribe of the Mahabad region were in talks with British officials discussing a possible scheme for an independent Kurdish state under British protection. Like Sharif Pasha, these individuals stressed their desire for autonomy and a desire to reach a peace agreement with the Armenians.
  Later in 1921, the Persian Kurd, Simko Shikak pursued a different strategy. Simko dealt directly with Persian and Russian officials. He became impatient with Persia's unwillingness to act on granting Kurdish autonomy, and so rebelled in 1922. In the Persian operations against Simko's rebellion, Turkish armies provided valuable support. The rebellion was quickly put down. Following this rebellion, however, Major Noel tried, unsuccessfully, to bring together Simko and other Kurdish nationalist leaders, including Shaykh Mahmud. The object was to create a Kurdish alliance to frustrate Turkish designs. No agreement was reached between these leaders.
caption: Simko Shikak, leader of the 1922 rebellion in Persia
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