Nashville has nation's largest Kurdish community. Here's how it commemorated it Saturday
Nashville recognized and celebrated its Kurdish community Saturday by unveiling a historic marker.
Local Kurds considered the marker and a coinciding Metro Council resolution as a pivotal moment for the local immigrant community, which began to establish itself nearly 50 years ago. Most were fleeing persecution in Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
“Many Kurdish people did not choose to leave their hometown. However, they chose to be American citizens. They chose to be Nashvillians because Southern values, the hospitality, is so in sync with the Kurdish values,” Kasar Abdulla said at an event on Saturday celebrating the marker.
About 20,000 Kurds live in Nashville, the largest Kurdish community in the U.S.
The Salahadeen Center, the local Kurdish mosque, opened in 1998 and is believed to be the first Kurdish mosque in the U.S., said Nawzad Hawrami, Salahadeen Center co-founder and vice president, at Saturday’s event.
The historical marker is located near the Salahadeen Center along Nolensville Pike.
Sabina Mohyuddin, executive director of the American Muslim Advisory Council, said the Nashville region's Muslim population grew significantly with the influx of Kurds in the 1980s and 1990s.
“When I see and what we have here, for me as a Muslim, even though I’m not Kurdish, I feel like this is home," Mohyuddin said. "And that’s what it brings to the community.”
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Mayor John Cooper and Metro Council members attended the event Saturday and presented a resolution on the Kurdish community, which the council approved at its meeting Tuesday.
“Kurds fleeing horrific genocide and seeking refuge from political persecution have found a welcoming home and sense of community in Nashville,” the council resolution stated.
The resolution also said Nashville is pursuing a sister city relationship with Erbil, the capital and most populous city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Liam Adams covers religion for The Tennessean. Reach him at ladams@tennessean.com or on Twitter @liamsadams.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville commemorates robust Kurdish community with historical marker