KASA’s annual Kurdish language competition brought together students from across the country for a multi-round online contest testing vocabulary, reading comprehension, and listening skills in Kurmanji. The competition is designed for students who have been participating in KASA’s language program and want to measure their progress against a clear standard and against their peers.

This year’s competition drew participants ranging in age from eight to thirty-two, which is itself a small victory. The presence of adult learners — people who did not grow up speaking Kurdish fluently and are now working to acquire it — alongside children who grew up hearing it at home reflects the breadth of the program and the varied motivations that bring people to it. A college student who wants to communicate with grandparents in Kurdistan is pursuing the same goal as an eight-year-old whose parents insist on Kurdish at the dinner table, even if the path looks different.

The competition results will be shared in full on our website and social media. Congratulations to all participants, and especially to the students who placed in each age group. Your commitment to the language is the best evidence we have that it will survive.