Kurdistan
UK /ˈkəːdɪˌstɑːn/ · US /ˈkəɹdɪˌstæn/ proper noun
- proper noun A cultural region in West Asia inhabited mostly by the Kurds, encompassing parts of Turkey, Iraq, Iran and Syria.
- proper noun (by extension) An autonomous region in northern and northeastern Iraq, lying within the aforementioned Kurdish-majority region.
- proper noun (by extension) A province in northwestern Iran, lying within the aforementioned Kurdish-majority region.
Etymology
Either from Classical Persian کُرْدِسْتَان (kurdistān) (whence modern Iranian Persian کُرْدِسْتان (kordestân)), or from a variety of Kurdish (see کوردستان / Kurdistan). Equivalent to Kurd + -istan.
Sources: Wiktionary — from the Wiktionary entry “Kurdistan”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details