NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — In Nashville’s “Little Kurdistan,” ancient tradition is honored and celebrated.
Nashville is home to the largest population of Kurdish people in the United States, according to the Metro Government, with more than 20,000 Kurds living in Music City.
Kurdish immigrants have traveled from portions of Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and Armeia to Nashville since the 1970s.
In May 2023, Metro leaders, including then-Mayor John Cooper, visited Erbil in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. After that trip, it was declared Erbil would be a sister-city to Nashville.
Locally, “Little Kurdistan” is focused on Nolensville Road and Elysian Fields Court. A historical market was placed in the area in 2023 to honor the local Kurdish American population.
It’s where you’ll find the Salahadeen Center, widely considered to be the first Kurdish mosque in the U.S., according to Metro officials. You’ll also find Kurdish restaurants like Edessa Restaurant, as well as storefronts like Newroz Market.
Newroz Market sells made-to-order specialties — including shawarma — along with shelved delicacies shipped from across the globe. A bestseller is the store’s bread, made the same way it was thousands of years ago.
“I grew up with this,” said Newroz Market owner Mehidi Misto. “My mom, she used to make it, I remember, and we used to have our own tandoori in our backyard because most people in the Middle East, when they live in the villages, they don’t have a place to buy bread, so they make their own.”
Some of the bread options include tandoori, samoon, barbari, hawrami, and pita.
“Any food we do, we eat bread with it,” said Misto.
Misto moved to Nashville in the early 2000s from Iraq and has been building his business ever since.
“We have actually people now coming from other cities to buy bread,” said Misto.
Misto said he welcomes crowds of all cultures to come and taste tradition.
“I love Nashville because it’s a multicultural city, you know what I mean?” he said. “You see different people, different cultures, and they all live together. It’s just very nice”
