The present article discusses the formation and development of Kurdish nationalism and the Kurdish national movement in Iraq, Iran and Turkey. Also Kurdish nationalism is based on the ethnic Identity of the Kurdish people (Language, territory, and heritage of common history), national consciousness among the Kurds developed not before the division of Kurdistan after World War I. The formation of the Kurdish national development is the result of this division and the following suppression of the Kurdish people and it developed under the influence of European ideals of nationalism, freedom and self-determination. There are many conflicts and divisions within this national movement, which are briefly discussed here. In the second part the failure of integrating the Kurds by force is analyzed. The policy of the states with a Kurdish minority can be interpreted as internal colonialism, because Kurdish territories within these nations are underdeveloped and the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. oil) does not correlate with the investment in the infrastructure and economy of Kurdistan.
