People & Histories
January–December 1946

The Republic of Mahabad

Under Soviet protection, Kurds in north-western Iran proclaim a small republic, which collapses within a year when the Soviets withdraw.

  • The Kurdish Republic of 1946 — William Eagleton Jr., Oxford University Press (1963)
  • A Modern History of the Kurds — David McDowall, I.B. Tauris (2004)
  • Historical Dictionary of the Kurds — Michael M. Gunter, Scarecrow Press (2011)

Well established statehoodself-rulegreat powers

During the Second World War, Britain and the Soviet Union occupied Iran, and the north-west was left in a Soviet-dominated vacuum. In the town of Mahabad, Kurdish nationalists of the Komala society, later reorganised as the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran, turned to Qazi Muhammad, a respected judge from a leading religious family.

  • The Kurdish Republic of 1946 — William Eagleton Jr., Oxford University Press (1963)
  • A Modern History of the Kurds — David McDowall, I.B. Tauris (2004)
On 22 January 1946 he proclaimed a Kurdish republic in Mahabad’s main square.

The republic was tiny, controlling only part of Iranian Kurdistan, and depended on Soviet backing. But it opened Kurdish-language schools, printed newspapers and books in Kurdish, and flew a Kurdish flag. Its army included Mustafa Barzani and several thousand followers who had fled from Iraq.

  • The Kurdish Republic of 1946 — William Eagleton Jr., Oxford University Press (1963)
  • A Modern History of the Kurds — David McDowall, I.B. Tauris (2004)
The anthem “Ey Reqîb”, written by the poet Dildar in 1938, was adopted there.
  • Kurdistan Region: Ey Reqîb — nationalanthems.info
  • Historical Dictionary of the Kurds — Michael M. Gunter, Scarecrow Press (2011)

Under American and British pressure, and after a deal with Tehran over oil, the Soviets withdrew in spring 1946. Tribal support melted away, and in December the Iranian army entered Mahabad unopposed. Qazi Muhammad, who chose not to flee, was hanged with his brother and cousin in the same square on 31 March 1947.

  • The Kurdish Republic of 1946 — William Eagleton Jr., Oxford University Press (1963)
  • A Modern History of the Kurds — David McDowall, I.B. Tauris (2004)
Barzani fought his way to the Soviet Union, where he spent the next eleven years.

Why it matters today

Kurds

Mahabad was the first modern Kurdish self-governing state, and it left lasting symbols: the flag, the anthem "Ey Reqîb", and the image of Qazi Muhammad going to the gallows. It also taught a hard lesson about depending on a great power.