Shabaks ( ar, الشبك; ku, شەبەک, translit=Şebek) are a group with a disputed ethnic origin. Some Shabaks identify themselves as a distinct
ethnic group
An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...
and others as ethnic
Kurds ug:كۇردلار
Kurds ( ku, کورد ,Kurd, italic=yes, rtl=yes) or Kurdish people are an Iranian ethnic group native to the mountainous region of Kurdistan in Western Asia, which spans southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Ir ...
. They live east of
Mosul
Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second large ...
in
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. However their cultural traditions are different from Kurds and Arabs. Historically the Shabak can be identified as an
ethnoreligious group
An ethnoreligious group (or an ethno-religious group) is a grouping of people who are unified by a common religious and ethnic background.
Furthermore, the term ethno-religious group, along with ethno-regional and ethno-linguistic groups, is a s ...
. According to Shabak representatives, the Kurdish authorities intend to eliminate their culture and language, with concerns expressed over any new Kurdish language schools within Shabak villages. Their origin is disputed, and they are considered
Kurds ug:كۇردلار
Kurds ( ku, کورد ,Kurd, italic=yes, rtl=yes) or Kurdish people are an Iranian ethnic group native to the mountainous region of Kurdistan in Western Asia, which spans southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Ir ...
by some scholars.
They speak
Shabaki
Shabaki is an Indo-Iranian language and belongs to the subgroup Zaza-Gorani of the Northwestern Iranian languages. The Shabaki language is spoken by the Shabak people in the Mosul region of northern Iraq. It has similarities with the Northwester ...
and live in a religious community (''ta'ifa'') in the
Nineveh Plains. The ancestors of Shabaks were followers of the
Safaviyya
The Safavid order, also called the Safaviyya ( fa, صفویه), was a tariqa ( Sufi order) founded by the Kurdish[Safi-ad-din Ardabili
Safi-ad-din Ardabili ( fa, شیخ صفیالدین اردبیلی ''Ṣāfī ad-Dīn Isḥāq Ardabīlī''; 1252/3 – 1334) was a poet, mystic, teacher and Sufi master. He was the son-in-law and spiritual heir of the Sufi master Zahed Gila ...](_blank)
in the early 14th century.
The primary Shabak religious text is called the
Buyruk or ''Kitab al-Manaqib'' (Book of Exemplary Acts), which is written in
Turkmen.
Members of the three Kurdish tribes of
Bajalan (or Bajarwans),
Zangana
The Zangana tribe is a Kurdish tribe in Kermanshah province and some parts of Iraqi Kurdistan.
They speak a distinct dialect. However, in recent years they have linguistically assimilated into the language practice of Sorani speakers in the area ...
and Dawoody live in the same villages as the Shabaks and are commonly mistaken for being Shabak.
Origins
The origins of the word ''Shabak'' are not clear. One view maintains that ''Shabak'' is an
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
word meaning ''intertwine'', indicating that the Shabak people originated from many different tribes.
Austin Henry Layard
Sir Austen Henry Layard (; 5 March 18175 July 1894) was an English Assyriologist, traveller, cuneiformist, art historian, draughtsman, collector, politician and diplomat. He was born to a mostly English family in Paris and largely raised in It ...
considered Shabak to be descendants of Kurds originating from Iran, and believed they might have affinities with the
Ali-Ilahis
Ali Illahism ( fa, علیاللّهی) is a syncretic religion which has been practiced in parts of Iranian Luristan which combines elements of Shia Islam with older religions. It centers on the belief that there have been successive incarnati ...
.
Anastas Al-Karmali
Al-Ab Anastas Mari Al-Karmali ( ar, الأب أنستاس الكرملي), Anastas the Carmelite, or Père Anastase-Marie de Saint-Élie (5 August 1866 – January 7, 1947), a Lebanese Christian priest and linguist who made important contribut ...
also argued that Shabaks were ethnic Kurds. Another theory suggest that Shabaks originated from
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
n
Turkomans, who were forced to settle in the
Mosul
Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second large ...
area after the defeat of
Ismail I
Ismail I ( fa, اسماعیل, Esmāʿīl, ; July 17, 1487 – May 23, 1524), also known as Shah Ismail (), was the founder of the Safavid dynasty of Safavid Iran, Iran, ruling as its King of Kings (''Shahanshah'') from 1501 to 1524. His re ...
at the
battle of Chaldiran
The Battle of Chaldiran ( fa, جنگ چالدران; tr, Çaldıran Savaşı) took place on 23 August 1514 and ended with a decisive victory for the Ottoman Empire over the Safavid Empire. As a result, the Ottomans annexed Eastern Anatolia an ...
.
Deportation and forced assimilation
After the 1987 census, the Iraqi regime started a revenge campaign against those Shabaks who chose to declare themselves Kurdish.
The campaign included both deportation and forced assimilation and many of them (along with
Zengana
The Zangana tribe is a Kurdish tribe in Kermanshah province and some parts of Iraqi Kurdistan.
They speak a distinct dialect. However, in recent years they have linguistically assimilated into the language practice of Sorani speakers in the area ...
and
Hawrami
Gorani ( ku, گۆرانی, Goranî, lit=song) also known by its main dialect; Hawrami (ھەورامی, ''Hewramî'') is a Northwestern Iranian language spoken by ethnic Kurds and which with Zazaki constitute the Zaza–Gorani languages. All ...
Kurds) were relocated to concentration camps (''mujamma'at'' in
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
) located in the
Harir area of
Kurdistan Region
Kurdistan Region ( ku, هەرێمی کوردستان, translit=Herêmî Kurdistan; ar, إقليم كردستان), abbr. KRI, is an autonomous region in Iraq comprising the four Kurdish-majority governorates of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, ...
. An estimated 1,160 Shabaks were killed during this period. In addition, increasing efforts have been made to force the Shabak to suppress their own identity in favour of being Arab. The Iraqi government's efforts of
forced assimilation
Forced assimilation is an involuntary process of cultural assimilation of religious or ethnic minority groups during which they are forced to adopt language, identity, norms, mores, customs, traditions, values, mentality, perceptions, way of lif ...
,
Arabization
Arabization or Arabisation ( ar, تعريب, ') describes both the process of growing Arab influence on non-Arab populations, causing a language shift by the latter's gradual adoption of the Arabic language and incorporation of Arab culture, aft ...
and religious persecution put the Shabaks under increasing threat. As one Shabak told a researcher: "The government said we are Arabs, not Kurds; but if we are, why did they deport us from our homes?"
Shabak politician Salim al-Shabaki, a representative of Shabaks in the Iraqi parliament, said "The Shabaks are part of the Kurdish nation", emphasizing that Shabaks are ethnically Kurdish.
On 21 August 2006, Shabak Democratic Party leader Hunain Qaddo proposed the creation of a separate province within the borders of the Nineveh Plain to combat the
Kurdification
Kurdification is a cultural change in which people, territory, or language become Kurdish. This can happen both naturally (as in Turkish Kurdistan) or as a deliberate government policy (as in Iraq after the 2003 invasion or in Syria after Syri ...
and
Arabization
Arabization or Arabisation ( ar, تعريب, ') describes both the process of growing Arab influence on non-Arab populations, causing a language shift by the latter's gradual adoption of the Arabic language and incorporation of Arab culture, aft ...
of Iraqi minorities. On 20 December 2006, ten Shabak representatives unanimously voted for the non-inclusion of Shabak inhabited areas of the Mosul region into the
Kurdistan Regional Government
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) ( ku, حکوومەتی هەرێمی کوردستان, ''Hikûmetî Herêmî Kurdistan'') is the official executive body of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq.
The cabinet is selected by the m ...
. A number of Shabak village aldermans noted that they were threatened into signing the incorporation petition by Kurdish authorities. On 30 June 2011, the Nineveh provincial council distributed 6,000 lots of land to state employees. According to the head of the Shabak Advisory Board Salem Khudr al-Shabaki, the majority of those lots were deliberately given to Arabs. Hunain al-Qaddo, a Shabak politician, was quoted by Human Rights Watch that: "The
Peshmerga
The Peshmerga ( ku, پێشمەرگه, Pêşmerge, lit=those who face death) is the Kurdish military forces of the autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraq. According to the Constitution of Iraq, the Peshmerga, along with their security subsidiaries, ...
have no genuine interest in protecting his community, and that Kurdish security forces are more interested in controlling Shabaks and their leaders than protecting them."
Religious beliefs
Shabaks regard themselves as
Shia Muslims
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most n ...
.
Shabaks combine elements of
Sufism
Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, r ...
with their own interpretation of ''divine reality''. According to Shabaks, divine reality is more advanced than the literal interpretation of
Qur'an
The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation from God. It is organized in 114 chapters (pl.: , sing. ...
which is known as
Sharia
Sharia (; ar, شريعة, sharīʿa ) is a body of religious law that forms a part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam and is based on the sacred scriptures of Islam, particularly the Quran and the H ...
. Shabak spiritual guides are known as ''
pirs'', and they are well versed in the prayers and rituals of the sect. Pirs are under the leadership of the Supreme Head or ''
Baba''.
Pirs act as mediators between divine power and ordinary Shabaks. Their beliefs form a syncretic faith similar to the beliefs of
Yarsanism
Yarsanism, Ahl-e Haqq or Kaka'i ( ku, یارسان, translit=Yarsan or ; fa, اهل حق, ar, كاكائي), is a syncretic religion founded by Sultan Sahak in the late 14th century in western Iran. The total number of followers of Yarsanism i ...
.
Shabaks also consider the poetry of
Ismail I
Ismail I ( fa, اسماعیل, Esmāʿīl, ; July 17, 1487 – May 23, 1524), also known as Shah Ismail (), was the founder of the Safavid dynasty of Safavid Iran, Iran, ruling as its King of Kings (''Shahanshah'') from 1501 to 1524. His re ...
to be revealed by God, and they recite Ismail's poetry during religious meetings.
Settlements
List of Shabak–majority settlements in the
Nineveh Plains:
As of March 2019, all of the above–mentioned settlements are under federal control and part of the
Disputed territories of Northern Iraq
The disputed territories of Northern Iraq ( ar, المناطق المتنازع عليها في العراق, ku, ناوچە جێناکۆکەکانی عێراق) are regions defined by article 140 of the Constitution of Iraq as being Arabised ...
.
References
Further reading
* Ali, Salah Salim. ‘Shabak: A Curious sect in Islam’. ''
Revue des études islamiques
A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own durin ...
'' 60. 2 (1992): 521-528. ()
* Ali, Salah Salim. ‘Shabak: A Curious sect in Islam’. ''
Hamdard Islamicus'' 23. 2 (April–June 2000): 73-78. ()
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shabak People
Ethnic groups in Iraq
Iranian ethnic groups