Methodological Approaches in Kurdish Studies

Bahar Baser is senior research fellow at the Centre for Trust, Peace, and Social Relations.Mari Toivanen is postdoctoral researcher at the University of Turku, Finland.Begum Zorlu is PhD candidate at University of London, City.Yasin Duman is PhD candidate at Coventry University.

• Ch. 1: Critical Ethnography: Emancipatory Knowledge And Alternative DialoguesVera Eccarius-KellyCh. 2: Living Structures: Methodological Considerations On People And Place Joost JongerdenCh. 3: Online-Offline Research On Diasporic Identities: Methodological Benefits, Challenges and Critical InsightsJowan MahmodCh. 4: Tracing Global History Through The Kurds In The Imperial And National Archives And BeyondMarc Sinan WinrowCh. 5: Troubled Terrain: Lines of Allegiance and Political Belonging in Northern KurdistanMarlene SchäfersCh. 6: Working Upon the Communities under the Political Domination: Subaltern Kurds in Turkey Polat AlpmanCh. 7: Feeling Solidarity in An Estranged City: Ethnography In The Post-War Diyarbakir Under SurveillanceDemet ArpacikCh. 8: Outsiders Twice Over in KurdistanFrancis O’Connor And Semih CelikCh. 9: The Omnipresent Absentee? Challenges In Researching The Kurdistan Workers’ Party In Europe And TurkeyMarlies CasierCh. 10: “She's Turkish but Good”: Researching On Kurdish Internal Displacement As A ‘Turkish’ Female ResearcherYesim MutluCh. 11: Straddling The Insider-Outsider Divide: Challenges Of Turkish Identity As An Outsider Researcher In The Kurdish Context Yasemin Gulsum Acar And Ozden Melis UlugCh. 12: Beyond The Insider-Outsider Dichotomy: Conducting Ethnographic Fieldwork As A Kurdish Returnee In Iraqi KurdistanLana Askari Ch. 13: Embedded Research and Political Violence: Kurdish Studies In Conflict AreasThomas SchmidingerConclusion: Reflections on Research: Challenges And OpportunitiesBegum Zorlu and Yasin Duman

This book is a timely and much-needed contribution to the growing literature on methodological and ethical challenges involved in conducting research in conflict settings. With a wide range of outstanding contributions from leading scholars, the volume fills an important gap on how ethnographic knowledge is primarily shaped by power relations. It serves as a stark reminder of the need to go beyond a standardized, one-size-fits-all approach to studying complex conflict environments. It is a vital resource for students and scholars of Kurdish studies, Middle Eastern studies, and those interested in conducting research in conflict zones.