Yazidism in Georgia

Yazidism in Georgia refers to adherents of Yazidism among Kurds in Georgia. Yazidis of Georgia fled from the Ottoman Empire due to persecution in the 19th and early 20th centuries and sought refuge in Georgia.^[1][2]

Yazidism in Georgia

Sultan Ezid Temple in Tbilisi, Georgia
Total population
12,174 (2014, census)
Regions with significant populations
Tbilisi
Languages
Kurmanji Kurdish, Georgian

History

In 1919, the Yazidis received permission from the Georgian government to register an organization called The National Council of Yazidis in Tbilisi.^[3]

In the late 1990s, the main issue among the Yazidi community of Georgia was the construction of a Yazidi temple and cultural centre on the outskirts of Tbilisi, which marked a significant milestone among the Yazidis of Transcaucasus, who had previously lacked a temple. The construction of the temple was delayed due to a number of disputes and difficulties, caused by lack of resources and the economic crises during the 1990s as well as the mass emigration from the country, internal disputes within the community on the legitimacy of constructing a Yazidi temple outside historically sacred places like Lalish or Sinjar, and also the close collaboration between the Georgian state and the Orthodox Church of Georgia who opposed construction of buildings for other religions.^[4]

The temple was finally opened in 2013 on the outskirts of Tbilisi. Since 2016, another building adjacent to this temple hosts the Yezidi Academy of Theology, which is headed by a cleric, Pîr Dima, who is the President of the Spiritual Council of Yezidis of Georgia. The academy offers religious classes taught in Kurdish and Russian, as well as including Arabic courses for any Yazidi who wishes to partake. Students are trained for religious roles such as being the guardian (Micêwir) of the temple and clerics for wedding ceremonies.^[4]

In 2012, a ritual of "reconversion" to Yazidism, which was proposed by the Academy of Theology, was authorized by the top religious leaders of Yazidis, Mîr Tehsîn Beg and Babê Şêx Xurto during their visit to Tbilisi. This ritual allows Yazidis who converted to Christianity and were thus excommunicated from the community, to return to Yazidism provided they have not been married in the meantime.^[4]

The Yazidis in Georgia are among the poorest and most persecuted people in Georgia. In the Soviet Union there was almost no contact between Yazidis in Georgia and Yazidis in Armenia with the Yazidis in Iraq, Turkey and Syria. In 1989 there were 33,000 Yazidis in Georgia. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1990s, thousands of Yazidis fled from Georgia to Germany because of persecution and discrimination. In 2008, the number of Yazidis in Georgia was 12,000.^[1]

References

1. Savucu, Halil (2016-10-10). Yeziden in Deutschland: Eine Religionsgemeinschaft zwischen Tradition, Integration und Assimilation (in German). Tectum Wissenschaftsverlag. ISBN 978-3-8288-6546-4.
2. Ackermann, Rainer (2021-11-08). Um Himmels Willen: Eine religiöse Übersicht in eigenen Worten (in German). Books on Demand. ISBN 978-3-7543-9848-7.
3. Tezcür, Günes Murat (2021-01-28). Kurds and Yezidis in the Middle East: Shifting Identities, Borders, and the Experience of Minority Communities. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7556-0121-9.
4. Bozarslan, Hamit; Gunes, Cengiz; Yadirgi, Veli, eds. (2021). The Cambridge History of the Kurds. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 469–470, 550. doi:10.1017/9781108623711. ISBN 978-1-108-47335-4.