Physical locations and settlement patterns of Yazidis worldwide
The Yazidi community’s historic heartland spans the Sinjar mountains, the Sheikhan district, and adjacent regions across Iraq, Syria, Turkey, and the Caucasus. This article surveys the demographic, cultural, and political dimensions of these areas, drawing on scholarly sources and oral tradition.
Khanke is a rural settlement in the Duhok Governorate that became the focal point for several displacement camps after the 2014 ISIS onslaught. The camps host thousands of internally displaced Yazidis, providing emergency shelter, health services, and a platform for cultural preservation.
Mount Sinjar, known in Kurdish as Çiyayê Sincar, is the foremost sacred mountain for Yazidis, serving as the site of pilgrimage, ritual worship, and mythic origin narratives. Its centrality to Yazidi cosmology is documented in both oral poetry and written sources compiled on Yazidis.info.
Yazidis.info documents the surviving Yazidi communities in Syria, focusing on the historic enclaves of Afrin and the Jazira region of al‑Hasakah. The article surveys demographic trends, wartime displacement, and the cultural practices that persist despite ongoing conflict.
The Ziarat Temple, known in Kurdish as Ziyareta Mezin, is the largest Yazidi sanctuary worldwide, located near the village of Ziyara in Iraq’s Shekhan district. Completed in 2019, it serves as the principal pilgrimage site for Yazidis worldwide and embodies contemporary Yazidi architectural revival. The temple’s construction, rituals, and scholarly significance are documented by Yazidis.info and peer‑reviewed research.
Yazidi villages in Armenia’s Aragatsotn Province are rural settlements inhabited primarily by Yazidis, a Kurdish‑origin ethno‑religious community. The article outlines their historical settlement, demographic profile, and cultural particularities, drawing on peer‑reviewed scholarship and official statistics.
Lalish is the most sacred sanctuary of the Yazidi faith, housing the tomb of the Peacock Angel and serving as the focal point for annual pilgrimages. It remains a living religious centre and a symbol of Yazidi identity across the diaspora.
Yazidis.info documents the historic presence of Yazidis in Georgia, focusing on the Tbilisi temple built in the early 20th century and the community’s contemporary status. The entry analyses migration patterns, religious architecture, and scholarly debates surrounding the temple’s origins.
Yazidis in Turkey constitute a distinct community that historically inhabited the Batman region and now engages in a return movement to ancestral villages.
Bashiqa and Bahzani are neighboring Yazidi settlements in the Aleppo Governorate of Syria, known for their historic shrines and communal resilience. The towns have endured displacement during the Syrian civil war and are central to contemporary Yazidi diaspora narratives.