Welcome to the Kurdish Blogosphere-Revisited · Global Voices
Deborah Ann Dilley

Welcome to our second installment of the introduction to the Kurdish Blogosphere; where we will discuss the various types of blogs.
Cultural
Kurdish culture isn't easy to define as it varies from region to region, but it can be said that the heart of Kurdish Culture lies within the land of Kurdistan itself. There are many wonderful photoblogs of the region, the most notable (and with the most recent pictures) are: My Trip to Kurdistan, Pepuley Kurdistan, and  Maureen's Photo Blog. The following list is by no means exhaustive and there are many many Kurdish Blogs that have photo subsections, such as: Focus on the Unfocused from Medya Daily, Kurdo's photoblog from Kurdo's World, and Vladimir's photos from his blog  From Holland to Kurdistan.
Combining the Kurdish story and land, Kurdish film has been becoming more mainstream. Winning honors from the likes of the Cannes Film Festival, films such as  Zero Kilometer  have been bringing political dialouge about the Kurdish struggle to a wider audience. Other notable films that have been sparking dialouge within  film festival after  film festival are:  Vodka Lemon, A Time for Drunken Horses , and of course the immortal  Yol.
Music and dance is also an integral part of Kurdish culture. Piling from the Kurdistan Bloggers Union has an excellent link to a  Folkmusic site that focuses not only on Kurdish music but also Balkan, Greek, and other West Asian groups. Kurdish blogs are currently mourning the death of famed Kurdish singer  Marzia Fariqi. But if you would like a general introduction to Kurdish music and various popular artists the music site sponsored by the  United Youth of Kurdistan  is an excellent resource.
History
It is very difficult to discuss  Kurdish history in an apolitical way, but there are a few bloggers that excel at that task and should be noted for it. The cream of the crop would have to be Piling of the Kurdistan Bloggers Union with her blog  Incoherent Thoughts. Primarily in French, Piling often translates her articles into English for the readers of the Kurdistan Bloggers Union, her posts are always insightful and objective. Some posts of note are her historical background of  Cizre, the rose of Kurdistan, her commentary on the  condemning of the town Hasankeyf, and her more recent transcription of a conference panel centering on the  the Kurds and the new Iraqi Constitution.
Other blogs of note that focus on Kurdish history, but are not entirely apolitical, are the already mentioned  From Holland to Kurdistan and  Peshmerga Women, which is dedicated to illustrating the strength of the Peshmerga women who have given their lives for Kurdistan. If you are looking for resources on the current political history of the different regions of Kurdistan, Global Security has excellent resources for more information on  Kurdish Iraq (Northen Iraq, Southern Kurdistan),  Kurdish Iran (Western Iran, Eastern Kurdistan), and  Kurdish Turkey (Southeastern Turkey, Northern Kurdistan).
Well folks, that is all for this week, next week the fun begins: political commentary!