Selva Ibrahim
Selva Ibrahim dreams of a Nashville where a Kurdish grandfather can walk into the public library and check out a book to read to his grandchildren in his native language. As a circulation assistant at the Nashville Public Library’s Southeast Branch, Ibrahim found herself in the unique position to make that possible.
There are estimated to be roughly 20,000 Kurds in Nashville — the largest Kurdish population in the United States. Among these Nashvillians are people who speak, read and write only in Kurdish (which includes several different variations and dialects). But when Kurds request Kurdish-language books at the library, Ibrahim has just a slim selection to offer. Nashville Public Library spokesperson Ed Brown says few U.S. publishers offer books in Kurdish, and publishers in other countries often don’t export books to the U.S.
“Most of the books the library can access are English-Kurdish dictionaries,” says Brown, “and a few children’s books that help teach Kurdish, but very little in the way of fiction, nonfiction and other genres. If more were available, we would definitely consider getting them.”
Knowing that standard avenues for acquisition weren’t going to work, Ibrahim reached out to the Kurdish Professionals, a local youth-empowerment organization, and together they launched a book drive. They are asking community members, publishers and authors to donate Kurdish-language books to the library’s Southeast Branch.
“Libraries are a reflection of our community, and we have the largest population of Kurds outside of Kurdistan,” says Ibrahim. “It only makes sense that our libraries have more available in Kurdish, so that we can serve our community more. Walking into a local library and finding material in your native tongue — that experience is amazing. It’s vital to see a reflection of yourself.”
Ibrahim made a wish list of titles, authors and publishers, and with the help of Kurdish Professionals community outreach coordinator Dilman Yasin, she’s getting the word out. The first book they received came from Canada — a Kurdish-language translation of Emily Dickinson’s poetry. They are also in touch with authors living in Kurdistan (the region home to ethnic Kurds, which includes parts of Iraq, Syria, Iran and Turkey) who are sending over copies of their books.
When Kurds become patrons of the library, Ibrahim says, they can also access a wealth of resources and services that the library has to offer. “Essentially this is about accessibility and literacy,” says Ibrahim. “It goes hand in hand with our mission here at the library to inspire reading, learning and connecting with community.”
Part of the mission of the Kurdish Professionals is to increase representation of Kurds across careers. “Having Selva working [at the library] and realizing that there was a need for this, it’s why it’s so important to have people from all parts of the world in different roles,” says Yasin. “Her managers and people at the library were so supportive of this. … Showing that they do promote diversity and inclusion among our community is something that we really appreciate.
“With Kurds, we’re very interested in storytelling, and that comes from our history and our background of being really good storytellers,” Yasin adds. “Books and stories are the fabric of our culture. Being able to provide access to that is going to be really important for the growth of our community.”
Donated books should be in new or like-new condition and can be mailed to or dropped off at the Nashville Public Library Southeast Branch, 5260 Hickory Hollow Parkway, Suite 201, Antioch, TN 37013. The library is accepting book donations in all dialects.
