From Iran's Ilam, a new voice in Kurdish poetry emerges

Shafaq News – Ilam

On Monday, Dar Bashur Publishing released Khawlwan (Dream Trainer), the first Kurdish poetry collection by Jalil Safar Beigi, marking a “new milestone” in Kurdish literature.

Beigi, born on February 3, 1975, in Ilam, holds a mathematics degree and has authored over 30 works spanning poetry, translation, and literary research.

According to a Fars News Agency report, his 209-page collection features 171 poems written in the ghazal—a classical form of rhyming couplets exploring love and longing—and the quatrain, a concise four-line structure. Together, the report said, they reflect the poet’s “deep devotion to his mother tongue and to the rhythms of Kurdish identity.”

“The collection captures the soul of Kurdish culture through vivid imagery and an authentic voice,” Fars noted.

Critics in Ilam hailed Khawlwan as a revival of modern Kurdish poetry and a reaffirmation of the language’s creative vitality. Dar Bashur described the work as “a bridge between readers and the enduring spirit of Kurdish heritage in Ilam and beyond.”

Kurdish-language writers in Iran face multiple challenges, according to the Center for Human Rights in Iran, including alleged restrictions on non-Persian education and publishing, limited digital and archival resources, and dialect fragmentation that hinders standardization and online access.