WAN - The book “Mohra Reş / Dunkles Siegel” by Kurdish poet Yıldız Çakar has resonated internationally by being included in Germany’s prestigious poetry selections, Lyrik-Empfehlungen 2026. Standing out with its multilingual structure, the work increases the visibility of Kurdish, while its narrative, built around memory, identity, and women’s experiences, reopens the discussion of poetry as a space for testimony, resistance, and aesthetic expression.

 

In Germany, the book “Mohra Reş / Dunkles Siegel” by Kurdish poet Yıldız Çakar has also been included in one of the important contemporary poetry selections, the Lyrik-Empfehlungen 2026 list. Yıldız Çakar’s work drew attention not only for the linguistic and aesthetic connection it establishes between Kurdish and German but also for the way it addresses themes of memory, identity, and belonging.

 

The book included in the selection is considered an important development in terms of the international visibility of Kurdish literature, while also contributing to the strengthening of multilingualism and cultural diversity in European poetry. Poet Yıldız Çakar spoke to the Mezopotamya Agency (MA) about her work.

 

A BRIDGE BETWEEN LANGUAGES

 

Noting that the inclusion of the book “Mohra Reş / Dunkles Siegel” in the Lyrik-Empfehlungen 2026 list is important for the global visibility of Kurdish, Yıldız Çakar said that this visibility is both personal and collective for her. Yıldız Çakar, who does not see her work, published along with the German translation, being on this list only as a literary achievement, said that it is also recognition of her effort to “build a bridge between languages”.

 

POEMS TELL THE STORIES OF ÊZIDÎ WOMEN

 

Yıldız Çakar, stating that the book Mohra Reş is about Êzidî (Yazidi) women sold in markets by ISIS, noted that the Kurdish people have different religious and cultural characteristics and added: “For example, the poem Mohra Reş, which gives its name to the book, speaks entirely about Kurmancê Reş. The poem Mohra Reş / Dunkles Siegel or ‘Black Seal’ tells the story of Êzidî women who were killed in the ISIS attack in Shengal and those who were sold like objects in the markets of Mosul and Raqqa as spoils. In this sense, it is an example of memory for the Êzidî community, primarily, and for the Kurdish people in general, as well as for women all over the world.”

 

Yıldız Çakar pointed out that in her previous works she addressed memory more as a witness and diary keeping the record of the past within the context of time, space, and human relations, whereas in her book Mohra Reş / Dunkles Siegel, she speaks both of memory and of forgetfulness.

 

THE RICH EMOTION OF KURDISH, THE STRONG RHYTHM OF GERMAN

 

Poet Yıldız Çakar, drawing attention to the fact that poetry translation is one of the most difficult areas, said that for this reason they both translated and rewrote the poetry. Stating that they translated her poems into a third language to make comparisons in order for the translation to have strong connections with the original language, Yıldız Çakar said that for this reason, the semantic impact of their poems is preserved. "Reading the rich emotional world of Kurdish with the strong rhythm of German means seeing the essence of poetry in many forms. This also means multiplication," she said. 

 

'TAUGHT ME SOLIDARITY'

 

Yıldız Çakar, noting that the multilingual literary environment in Germany taught her not only loneliness but also solidarity, said that the relationship she establishes with her readers is not fixed to an additional language, and therefore she considers poetry as a form of dialogue.  

“Previously, especially with my poetry book ‘Derî (Door)’, I was receiving beautiful feedback from all segments. Among German readers, however, I see a particularly strong interest from young women. This situation is even more delightful for me,” she noted.

 

'POETRY AS A FORM OF STRUGGLE'

 

Highlighting that poetry stands at the intersection of three different areas—in its own world as testimony, resistance, and an inner refuge—Yıldız Çakar concluded: “The states of oppression and fracture in the world change not the form of poetry, but its pulse. Today, even writing a single line can be a political act; yet I still see poetry as much as a space for breathe as a form of struggle.”

 

MA / Zeynep Durgut