Iraq is a nation with a rich tapestry of heritage and communities, the MEPCCC project focused on nine distinct communities in Iraq: Armenian, Chaldean, Turkmen, Sabean-Mandaean, Syriac Orthodox, Kakeyîs, Assyrian, Shabak, and Yazidi.
The Middle East People’s Culture Conservation Collective’s heritage gatherers in Iraq entrenched themselves in preserving the cultural heritage of the nation’s marginalised communities by actively preserving traditions by documenting, sharing them through educational courses and the Handbook of Iraqi People’s Heritage, and ensuring these stories and practices are safeguarded for future generations despite ongoing challenges.
In Iraq, the project recruited 16 Heritage Gatherers (HGs), including three from the Armenian and Chaldean community, four from the Turkmen community, three from the Sabean-Mandaean community, four from the Syriac Orthodox community, and two from the Kakeyî community. Heritage gatherers from other communities had been recruited in a previous initiative [CREID}.
Additionally, the project collaborated with five teaching staff from five different disciplinary backgrounds the University of Duhok to create, facilitate, accredit, and teach a heritage course in the Department of Sociology and the Department of Peace and Human Rights. The teaching staff also worked directly with the heritage gatherers between August and December 2023. A further ten new faculty from different departments joined the initiative in December 2024.
Faculty from the University of Duhok was instrumental in engaging previously overlooked communities, significantly broadening the scope of heritage documentation.
The number of training workshops exceeded the original plan in both frequency and content. These efforts led to the creation of the Handbook of Iraqi People’s Heritage, an interactive e-book that brought together the histories and traditions of nine distinct communities.
In Iraq, a different methodology was used due to the significant diversity of communities. Progress was explored by capturing the impact of the heritage courses created through the University of Duhok, measuring data such as the number of students enrolled in the course and their success rates, while examining the different topics covered.
The Handbook of Iraqi People’s Heritage was launched in February 2025 in an event in the University of Duhok which was attended by over 160 representatives and young people from the different communities.
It brings to life the histories, traditions, and cultural practices of diverse communities through the dedicated work of young heritage gatherers.
The book highlights the rich heritage of nine communities: Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Kakeyîs, Sabean-Mandaeans, Shabak, Syriac Orthodox, Turkmen of Tal Afar, and Yazidis.
The e-book consists of ten chapters contributed by a total of 60 HGs across nine communities. The cumulative heritage outputs included 17 videos, 10 voice recordings, and 202 photographs.
To find out more information on the MEPCCC and a further detailed report on their work and findings, click this link.