Editing Kurds (section)

===Architecture===
[[File:OnGozluBridge.jpg|thumb|The [[Marwanids (Diyar Bakr)|Marwanid]] [[Dicle Bridge]], [[Diyarbakir]]]]
[[File:Arbil Citadel.jpg|thumb|The [[Citadel of Erbil]]]]
The traditional Kurdish village has simple houses, made of mud. In most cases with flat, wooden roofs, and, if the village is built on the slope of a mountain, the roof on one house makes for the garden of the house one level higher. However, houses with a beehive-like roof, not unlike those in [[Harran]], are also present.

Over the centuries many Kurdish architectural marvels have been erected, with varying styles. Kurdistan boasts many examples from ancient Iranian, Roman, Greek and Semitic origin, most famous of these include [[Bisotun]] and [[Taq-e Bostan]] in Kermanshah, [[Takht-e Soleyman]] near Takab, [[Mount Nemrud]] near Adiyaman and the citadels of Erbil and Diyarbakir.

The first genuinely Kurdish examples extant were built in the 11th century. Those earliest examples consist of the Marwanid [[Dicle Bridge]] in Diyarbakir, the Shadaddid [[Ani|Minuchir Mosque]] in Ani,<ref>{{cite web|last=Sim|first=Steven|title=The Mosque of Minuchihr|publisher=VirtualANI|url=http://www.virtualani.org/minuchihrmosque/index.htm|access-date=23 January 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070120195237/http://www.virtualani.org/minuchihrmosque/index.htm|archive-date=20 January 2007}}</ref> and the [[Krak des Chevaliers|Hisn al Akrad]] near Homs.<ref>{{harvnb|Kennedy|1994|p=20}}{{full citation needed|date=August 2015|note=This ariticle does not use Harvard referencing. Use Template:Cite_book to provide proper citation details.}}</ref>

In the 12th and 13th centuries the Ayyubid dynasty constructed many buildings throughout the Middle East, being influenced by their predecessors, the Fatimids, and their rivals, the Crusaders, whilst also developing their own techniques.<ref>Peterson, 1996, p.26.</ref> Furthermore, women of the Ayyubid family took a prominent role in the patronage of new constructions.<ref>Necipoğlu, 1994, pp.35–36.</ref> The Ayyubids' most famous works are the Halil-ur-Rahman Mosque that surrounds the [[Şanlıurfa|Pool of Sacred Fish]] in Urfa, the [[Citadel of Cairo]]<ref>Harry Ades, ''A Traveller's History of Egypt'', Arris Publishing Ltd. 2007 {{ISBN|1-905214-01-4}} p.226</ref> and most parts of the [[Citadel of Aleppo]].<ref>{{Citation|title=The Citadel of Aleppo: Description, History, Site Plan and Visitor Tour (Guidebook)|url=http://archnet.org/library/documents/one-document.jsp?document_id=10623|first1=Julia|last1=Gonnella|publisher=[[Aga Khan Trust for Culture]] and the Syrian [[Directorate-General of Antiquities and Museums]]|year=2008|isbn=978-2-940212-02-6|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120609095149/http://archnet.org/library/documents/one-document.jsp?document_id=10623|archive-date=9 June 2012}}</ref> Another important piece of Kurdish architectural heritage from the late 12th/early 13th centuries is the Yezidi pilgrimage site [[Lalish]], with its trademark conical roofs.

In later periods too, Kurdish rulers and their corresponding dynasties and emirates would leave their mark upon the land in the form mosques, castles and bridges, some of which have decayed, or have been (partly) destroyed in an attempt to erase the Kurdish cultural heritage, such as the White Castle of the Bohtan Emirate. Well-known examples are [[Hosap Castle]] of the 17th century,<ref>Verity Campbell – Turkey – 2007 – 724 pages, page 643, {{ISBN|1-74104-556-8}}</ref> [[Sherwana Castle]] of the early 18th century, and the Ellwen Bridge of Khanaqin of the 19th century.

Most famous is the [[Ishak Pasha Palace]] of Dogubeyazit, a structure with heavy influences from both Anatolian and Iranian architectural traditions. Construction of the Palace began in 1685, led by Colak Abdi Pasha, a Kurdish bey of the Ottoman Empire, but the building would not be completed until 1784, by his grandson, Ishak Pasha.<ref>Lonely Planet (2012) '[http://www.lonelyplanet.com/turkey/the-black-sea-and-northeastern-anatolia/dogubayazit/sights/palace/ishak-pasa-palace Ishak Pasha Palace]'. Retrieved 7 July 2013.</ref><ref>Institut kurde de Paris (2011) '[http://www.institutkurde.org/en/publications/bulletins/pdf/318.pdf THE RESTORATION OF ISHAQ PASHA'S PALACE WILL BE COMPLETED IN 2013]'. Retrieved 7 July 2013.</ref> Containing almost 100 rooms, including a mosque, dining rooms, dungeons and being heavily decorated by hewn-out ornaments, this Palace has the reputation as being one of the finest pieces of architecture of the Ottoman Period, and of Anatolia.

In recent years, the KRG has been responsible for the renovation of several historical structures, such as Erbil Citadel and the Mudhafaria Minaret.<ref>UNESCO Office for Iraq (2007) '[http://www.unesco.org/new/en/iraq-office/culture/erbil-citadel/ Revitalization Project of Erbil Citadel]'. Retrieved 7 July 2013.</ref>