Humans of North - Humans of Kurdistan

“There used to be many water wells in our village. Our forefathers also did peace work. After them we started. 50 years ago, we brought water to ash and we continued this work. For the past 35 years we have been building on the water tap. Everything we do is natural. The corners here are free of fertilizer. We open them here, wash them and fry them on the fire. With the power of water, we also make tea. There is nothing to do with electricity here. Everything is natural. Things that existed before and were good for human health are just that. We raised 14 children with this job. We make up to 120 pounds a day and sell it for 35 pounds a kilo. Those who receive from us are very pleased. "Because it is close to the Xebur gate, people who go to the border gate leave from here." ...

Jan 12 2022

January 12, 2022

“I have been a band seller for 45 years. This job was left to my father. Mi ordered the music. There used to be a lot of interest but now no one is showing interest. Everything has gone digital. I see my childhood and my whole life in this work. My factory is small but so far, I have archived about 20 thousand bands. From local artists to famous artists and artists whose names have been forgotten, the band has everything in my archive. They are amazed when artists come to my workshop and see their band. Because they too have forgotten their bands and have nothing in their hands. Ever since I started this business, I have always been selling a band or even picking it up for my archive. If a band is left in my hand to give me a worldly home, I will not sell it. Because I gave the order to this work and it means a lot to me. They come from many countries and receive bands from me. Some want 10, some 20 bands. I really want to sell the band to people who know their value. "Because ignorant people listen once and then drop it." ...

Jul 03 2021

July 3, 2021

“When people visit Mardin, they spot kites in the sky. Flying kites has become a culture in Mardin. There are always kites in the skies of Mardin. As the youth of Mardin, I would like to resume this culture and further introduce it. Flying kites is every child’s cherished dream, mine as well; I made my first ever from nylon and hovered it. I am now fulfilling my childhood dream. I have visited 26 countries and participated in international festivals. When I participated, I was enlightened to Mesopotamian culture. I wish every child could fly kites. I have launched workshops and have taught 10,000 children so far”. ...

Jan 24 2021

January 24, 2021

“I have been fishing in the Tigris since I was a kid, I have spent my childhood on this river. A lot has changed now, we used to sell fish on the river, there was a lot of it, we used to sell about 150 kilos of all kinds, but it's not the same anymore. The Tigris is now polluted, there is a dam built here to water the farmlands, but they do it without proper knowledge and it pollutes the water. Tigris used to be very clean, but now the variety has lessened. Nowadays, I catch about 10 kilos or less, because of the dam, the water has many fluctuations and the fish leave the river and go somewhere else. We want the Tigris to be a natural river without any human interference”. ...

Jan 22 2021

January 22, 2021

“There was dam built in our village in 2010, and after it collected some water, our houses and lands were all flooded. We also have land on the other side of the dam, but even the way to the other side was flooded. The distance to our village had increased about 20 to 30 kilometers so we couldn't visit our farmland easily. While they were building the dam, we didn't say anything because we were expecting them to build a bridge as well. However, the way is now cut off, and some of our land is on this side while the rest is on the other side, our village has been separated into two parts. Our attempts to convince the people in charge was useless. Just to be able to travel across our village, we bought a boat in Ezmir. Students, farmers, and patients now can travel using this boat. It can carry 69 people each fair, they told us that it can even go under water, but we haven't tried that yet”. ...

Jan 20 2021

January 20, 2021

“I have been doing art work for a long time, and now I'm a teacher. I started first by drawing, and then started teaching sculpting from metals and wire. I now create portraits using wires. I made 18 sculptures about a year ago, I get a very distinctive feeling while sculpting with wires, they are truly valuable for me. Wires are a part of my art, I shape them and turn them into art. I look at the wires and imagine the model, then sketch it on a paper and start creating. At a first glance, you might think that they are drawings on the wall, but once you lean forward you can see that they are all wires, the sculptures are not real, but they give you the feeling that they are. Working with wires are not very familiar here, some people believe that it's my own invention, but it's not. This art is widely known in Europe”. ...

Jan 11 2021

January 11, 2021

“I have been working in this shop for 60 years. I first started in 1960, and spent most of my days here. I raised three children doing this job. We used to work a lot in the past, we used to work day and night and still couldn't meet people's demands, but no one uses hats nowadays. There used to be many people who made hats in Diyar Bakr, but now it's just me, and I can't continue and will stop after a short while. Then, there will be no one else that makes hats. These hats used to be a part of our culture, nowadays only senior people wear them, young people don't really know much about it. There are many things that are fading away same as this, and I'm afraid that this will, too. I would've loved my kids to learn this job, but they are busy with their lives now. A big part of our culture is vanishing and will be erased from our memories”. ...

Jan 06 2021

January 6, 2021

“Along with three friends of mine, we survived the Roboski Massacre in 2011. That night, it was about 3 or 4 in the morning, we rode our horses and went to the border, and when we arrived the roads were open without the existence of any soldiers. We crossed the border, loaded gasoline and went back to Turkey. While we were going back, we heard a loud bang, and on the border, we reached a village, and no one said whether we should go or not. The villagers there did not warn us about the number of soldiers that were planted there and that the place was surrounded. We waited for a while, and then I rode my horse and went ahead a bit, and at that moment there was a bright flash and the airstrikes began. I fell off, and so I hid myself beneath the snow, when I was conscious again, I saw my friends teared apart. I called to the people of the village and they came to my rescue. I will never forget the moment where the flashes of the airstrike hit my eyes. Where do you reckon they will strike this time? Everytime I pass that cemetery, I feel like we had just buried those 34 bodies”. ...

Jan 04 2021

January 4, 2020

I quitted my job six years ago and I became a traveler. I was traveling city to city, village to village. So far, I have visited 81 cities in Turkey, and about ten thousand villages. Four years ago, I visited several villages that had nothing for kids to entertain themselves. I thought about what I could do when I left. I stated making bracelets and tizbehs, and traded them for toys for the kids. Whoever gave me five toys, I gave them a bracelet, and if someone had given me 50 toys, I would have given them an expensive tizbeh. It was similar to a campaign, I collected about 12,000 toys and gave them to kids in the villages. Since I was traveling to almost everywhere, I wanted my traveling to have a meaning, and that's why I started the campaign. I hope all other travelers take toys with them when they visit the villages to give to kids. When you see the delight in their faces when you give them the toys means everything in the world ...

Dec 28 2020

December 28, 2020

“I started this job in 1960, I had an Armenian man working for me. The leather we use for making shoes is bull's leather, I also use 2 or 3 years of age cow's leather, too. Big Bull's skin is usually used for the bottom of the shoes because it's a dry skin. We make some shoes out of goat's skin as well. When I was young, I was making eight pairs of shoes in a day, but now I can only make one or two pairs. Forty years ago, in Amed, there were about 100 to 150 shops doing what we do, there are now about 10. Anyone who personally knows me, or knows the value of handmade shoes will buy their shoes here. People with special needs or people who have big feet will need handmade shoes. However, people now buy shoes and only look at the brands regardless if they are good or bad quality, but handmade shoes are very comfortable. I hope more people buy these shoes because this is a part of our history and we have to continue doing it”. ...

Dec 19 2020

December 19, 2020