Yezidi Endogamy

by Ricardo Gustavo Espeja

1.- Introduction

2.- Specificity of Endogamy amongst the Yezidi Kurds

3.- Violence and Endogamy

4.- References and Other Sources

1. Introduction

I believe that the following concepts are the first step in approaching the large-scaled issue of the endogamic tradition amongst the Yezidi Kurds.

The method used is a very old but effective one and it has been invented by Ibn Khaldoun: ”Within societies with a same structural typology, similar laws rule, unless these societies were separated by time or geography” (1).

In the specific case of Yezidi endogamy, which is different from other groups belonging to the Kurdish people practising endogamy, there may be similarities with Hindu castes’ endogamy.

Since the Yezidis represent a group that preserved old customs in the most pure form, it is possible that we can trace back some elements of the original of endogamy in the Kurdish society.

The rightful question is why should we analyse the endogamy factor in India? As is well known, Iranian, Kurdish and in general Indo-European peoples are of Aryan origins. Therefore, it is not surprising that a part of the Kurdish people was able to preserve an original manner of endogamy which is very similar to another Indo-European people.

Another important question one may put is whether external factors such as violence could explain the roots of Yezidi endogamy?

I maintain that it is an unproven opinion of some and that is why I do not share it. The reason of my scepticism is that if external factors indeed affected Yezidi endogamy, its forms would have been changed or at least widely discussed. Out of many examples that I can provide, I could now refer to the Agotes of the Basques valleys of Roncal and Baztan. They lived six centuries as a discriminated community.

These people were a Spanish group with clear Gothic anthropological origin (namely blond hair, clear eyes and white skin). Remarkably, they followed the Arrian religious movement which supported Unitarian theology. The Arrians had been the most important religious current in Spain, prior to the Muslim Caliphate. Not surprisingly, a major group of Spanish Muslims had previously been Arrians who would later find in Islam a similar theological concept.

Was their religious origin what we could name as “original sin porter”? Or they were regarded leprous, as Julio Caro Baroja states, because they used to go to leproseries for meal and free bed? Or maybe economic reasons played a role, as the historian Alizia Stürze proposes: “The mountains of Euskal Herria (Pays Basque) wer poor and for the regime of progeniture all of goods of a hamlet went for only one son. There was no place for foreigners .”(2)

The Agotes wandered in search of their origin and they could work as timbers and carpenters (similar to the Tahtadjis, currently living in Turkey) and endogamy they either inherited or established was indeed meant to to marry with the Basques. Needless to say, there have been exceptions: such was the case in the 14th century of a nobleman called Ursua, who did it under the condition that in exchange for protection and land the Agotes must work for him and pay very high taxes.

Once the economy of their archaic regime with communal land and wood properties allowed selling and privatisation, the discrimination of the Agotes lost any sense. According to Stürze, the integration into the society was achieved and only some clues of the Agotes remain now in such proper names as Bidegain, Errotaberea, Zaldua and Maistruarena.

There is a huge difference however: whereas the Agotes had an endogamy imposed by external factors, in Hindus and Yezidi traditions endogamy is a part of the inner structure.

What I further suggest is an opinion only that requires inter-disciplinary academic discussions by experts in various fields.

2. Specificity of Endogamy between Kurdish Yezidis

Endogamy is a characteristic of Kurdish society expressed in “preference for marriage with the father’s brother’s daughter” (2). Yet, we witness amongst the Yezidis a special form of endogamy which is practiced within the caste.

The mentioned element is actually absent in Kurdish society with the assumption that before Islamization it might have been a common endogamy principle of all the Kurds. Why do I think so?

I believe that the reason of giving up endogamy was because Islam has been against castes by strongly advancing the idea of the Umma (community of believers). The theological premises of the Umma included the view of equality of all faithful (even in Shiism) and the fact that the marriage monogamy or polygamy is being ruled by the Family Code.

We may well add a number of other factors such as economic, social and cultural ones and conclude that in the real historical life the situation is more complex than as it is to expect.

Thus, amongst the Kurdish Muslims we can often observe a very special form of endogamy, that is, when a man has privileged rights on the father’s brother’s daughter. Going back to the Yezidis, the real issue is to establish whether the caste system as social phenomena had been always existed or it was later incorporated?

My hypothesis, which is currently impossible to prove, is that before Islamisation - when the main part of Kurdish population had had Yezidi religion - the endogamy within caste was a reality. As Pîr Dr. Mamou Othman indicated: “The fact, that Sheik Adi Ibin Mustafa (ca.1162 after Christ) introduced a radical change in the Yezidi-religion hang like a dark curtain in front of the Yezidi past. It is unanimously held, that this religion existed before Sheik-Adi, but with other names as well as definitely with other customs and traditions”(3) Undoubtedly, the essence of this religion, whatever name it had, persisted. Then, the caste system must have also been in place before Sheikh Adi’s arrival.

The communal structure of “odd names” (yeknav) Mirids and “even names” (dunav) Pîrs were the traditional Kurdish communal structure before Islam . I suppose that Sheikh Adi found this structure and after long process of discussions the Sheikhs entered the already existing simple division in two castes. Their joining brought a new complexity and resulted in with the following lineal structure:

1.- Adani

2.- Qatani

3.- Shemsani

4.- Pirani

5.- Mirid (4)

This division became an outcome of introduction of Sufi hierarchy into the Yezidi community.
The caste of Yezidis differ strong from Hindu caste system which are based on religious purity and division of work with certain castes impure.

The difference is that in Yezidism religious (im)purity is not limited to certain castes and there is no single custom and ritual that would be regarded impure to one caste. In other words, there is nothing comparable to “dulits” in Hinduism.

However, I think that endogamy within the caste in both Yezidism and Hinduism is a remnant of their common Aryan past.

3. Violence and endogamy

As we understood from the case of the Agotes, endogamy ceases to exist once external pressure, like violence from political power, disappears. The changed conditions make endogamy a story of the past.

However, if external factors enable isolated forms of violence, there is a good possibility to have endogamy within castes (marriage in the community) reinforced or rather rethought. As the example of the Alevi Kurds demonstrated, their endogamy has a very relative character: they were not allowed to marry with Sunni Muslims but they could marry with Christians. Violence in Alevi Kurdish endogamy tradition is not a decisive factor, neither does it have an important role for the Yezidi endogamy.

I underline that the concept I presented is only the first step in the long scale. Nevertheless, I am privileged to invite scholars to make contributions to this issue.

4. References

(1) Ibn Khaldoun. Prolegommena, 1968.

(2) Quoted by Ainara Iraeta Usabiaga from: Stürze, Alicia. Agotak, juduak eta ijitoak Euskal Herrian.

(3) Pîr Dr. M. Othman. “Yezidism before Sheikh Adi” in Dengê Êzidiyan, 1998.

(4) Karawane. Yezidis and Yezidism.

Other Sources

Baroja, Julio Caro. Formas complejas de vida religiosa, 1982.

“Los Agotes Ainara Iraeta Usabiaga”, original in Euskal “Agotak” Euskonews, 2000.

Nikitine, Basile. Kurdes et Kurdistan, 1956.

Vinogradov. Kurd cultural summary.

van Bruinessen, Martin. “The Nature and Uses of Violence in the Kurdish Conflict”, paper at the International Colloquium Ethnic construction and Political Violence, 2002.

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