2/ ...meaning “assembly,” “accumulation,” or “place of gathering,” and is cognate with saṅgārāma (pious assembly).

1/ The name Sinjar/Śangāl/Śangār, used for a mountain and the district adjacent to it in Kurdistan—inhabited primarily by Ezidis—is, for some of us, reminiscent of the Hebrew Sinhar. It may or may not be related, but strikingly, the name is similar to the Indian saṅghāra...⬇️

9/ Understanding this nuance helps us see Kurds not as imperial heirs, but as part of enduring frontier societies, sharing social and geographic spaces with groups like Banu Sasan.

8/ Banu Sasan remind us that history is not just about empires, but also about outcasts, rebels, and those surviving on the edges; a pattern still visible in Kurdish history.

7/ Rather than claiming direct descent from Sasanian rulers, it’s more accurate to see Kurds as part of a long tradition of marginalized, resilient communities, echoing the Banu Sasan experience.

6/ Both Kurds and Banu Sasan operated on the margins of empires, often resisting taxation, conscription, and centralized control. Over time, Banu Sasan were depicted negatively in Arabic and Persian sources, just as Kurdish resistance was often delegitimized by empires.

5/ This makes Banu Sasan relevant to Kurdish history, not as ethnic ancestors, but as examples of frontier autonomy, survival, and social marginalization.

4/ Some Kurds likely participated in or were associated with Banu Sasan networks, sharing the frontier lifestyle, autonomy, and resistance to central authority.

3/ Banu Sasan were outcasts, vagabonds, beggars, tricksters, escaped slaves, and displaced people. They lived mostly in Iraq, Khuzistan, and the Zagros mountains.

2/ After the fall of the Sasanian Empire, the collapse of central authority created marginalized, mobile groups. Among them were the Banu Sasan, a socially excluded post-Sasanian phenomenon.

Not Emperors, But Outcasts: Kurdish Echoes in Banu Sasan 🧵 1/ Some Kurdish narratives claim a connection to the Sasanian Empire (224–651 CE). But historically, Kurds were mostly frontier tribes, not part of the imperial elite.

https://t.co/GIhy3691NG

'#Lalish,' the name of a valley and a temple, has meaning only in the Sindhi language. Though nowadays it carries a somewhat negative connotation, referring to greed or covetousness, in the Middle Ages it had a more neutral meaning of desire, making it well suited as a toponym.

Hurro-Urartian Word of the day 150 Hurrian: eḫl /eχl/ “to save, to rescue” Kurdish: gil /ɡil/ “to detain, persuade to stay, keep back, accept (a present), save (money)” The Hurrian root eḫl is also phonetically close to the Zagrosian root hêl, which has similar meanings. گل

Notably, the Ezidi tribal name “Dasini” appears to come from Sanskrit dāsinī (devotee/servant of God), reflecting historical contacts or migrations from NW India to medieval Kurdistan. A caste-like or tribal subgroup with a religious/social identity within the Ezidi community.

6️⃣ Lesson: Genes track migration. Y-DNA tracks male lines, but both native and migrant paternal lines can vanish. Culture and identity endure.

5️⃣ Similarly, many original Hurrian/Zagrosian Y-DNA lineages in native Kurdish populations were lost, even though the autosomal native ancestry remained dominant. Today, Kurds carry this native autosomal legacy, while Kurdish identity, culture and partially language have endured.

4️⃣ • Small founder size – only a few males may have migrated, making their lineages fragile. • Genetic drift – random loss of male lines over generations. • Integration – intermarriage with local Kurds could dilute or replace male lines over time.

3️⃣ Their Y-DNA lineages may persist initially, but small migrant groups are highly vulnerable to disappearance of paternal lines. Over centuries, African or southwest Indian Y-DNA could vanish entirely due to:

2️⃣ • ~150 years (≈5 generations): 10–20% African / South Asian ancestry • ~300 years (≈10 generations): 5–10% • ~450–600 years (≈15–20 generations): 1–5% • ~750–900 years (≈25–30 generations): <1% or nearly invisible