Mestûre Erdelanî, also known as Mah Sharaf Khanum or Mastoureh Kurdistanî, was a Kurdish poet, writer, and historian. She was born in 1805 in Sanandaj, within the Ardalan Principality, and passed away in 1848 in Sulaymaniyah, part of the Baban Principality. Most of her works were written in Kurdish (Gorani dialect). Among these, her most significant work is "History of Ardalan."
Mestûre Erdelanî was born in Sanandaj and grew up in Sulaymaniyah. She belonged to an influential family. She was also proficient in Arabic and Persian languages. She is recognized as the first female historian of the Middle East. She compiled significant historical records concerning the Ardalan family and the events of her era.
In 2005, a statue was erected in Erbil to commemorate the 200th anniversary of her birth. Her works have been translated into Persian, German, and English.
Life
Mah Sharaf Khanum, known by the pen name Mestûre, was born in Sanandaj between 1805 and 1806. Her father, Abul Hasan Muhammad, was a learned and literary man. Muhammad provided Sharaf Khanum with a distinctive education in science and literature, exceptional for women of her era.
Legacy
The Mestûre Erdelanî Library has been established in the Rezan district of Diyarbakır.
Her Books
- "Islamic Faith and Treatise on Worship." (In Persian)
- "Divan (Divan-i Masturah Kurdistanî)" - Persian and Kurdish
- "History of Ardalan (Khronika Doma Ardalan: Ta'rikh-i Ardalan/ Dîroka Erdelanê)"
- List of Kurds
- List of Kurdish philosophers
Sources
- Mestûre Erdelanî [archive] on Kurdistan Encyclopedia