Tribute to the Lioness Poet of Rojava: Farewell Mizgîn Hesko

Fargo Bcn
Oct 4
3 min read

By: Fargo Bcn

Mizgîn Hesko, a cherished voice of Rojava, died on October 1st in her humble home in Bielefeld, Germany, surrounded by family and loved ones. Her passing leaves a profound sorrow in the Kurdish literary circles and among all who loved her work.

Born in Qamishli in 1973 and a mother of three, Mizgîn made her home in Germany in 1992. She began writing in Kurdish poetry after the Halabja massacre and was recognized as a prolific poet for many years. Over the years, she published fourteen books of poetry; her most recent, “Ji Ristezara Elindê”, was successfully published at the end of this year's summer. In 2022, she received the Şair Tîrêj Award, an acknowledgment of a poetic career distinguished by courage, eloquence, and clarity. One of my favorite subjects in her poetry is Love as Responsibility: Her affection for her nation reads less as sentimentality and more as duty—care for the language, the wounded histories, and future generations. Many poems address ordinary lives—mothers, children, workers—giving their small labors dignity and anchoring political longing in human intimacy.

Taken together, these elements make Mizgîn Hesko's work a sustained love letter to Kurdish life and a clear-eyed manifesto for freedom, both political and cultural. Her poems keep grief and hope in conversation, asking readers not only to remember but to act, to carry language forward, and to imagine a liberated future grounded in the dignity of everyday people.

Active in the diaspora’s literary life, I was privileged to meet her at the DIAKURD Conference in Stockholm in 2022. I will never forget that vivid moment when our eyes met; I saw a look of amazement on her face as she discovered an Asian face among the Kurdish diaspora. Smiling, I was greeted with her fearless gesture of stepping forward with a handshake. Our conversation that day was filled with warmth and shared passions, including her work as a writer, poet, and journalist, as well as our many common interests. Those two days of lively discussions and meaningful exchanges about politics, arts, and the Kurdish struggle deepened a bond that has lasted beyond that initial meeting.

Our connection didn’t end when we parted ways. We stayed in touch constantly exchanging messages, sharing poems, and inspiring each other. I became a devoted admirer of her beautiful poetry, which prompted me to learn Kurdish so that I could fully understand her words. When she faced health challenges and explained why she cut her hair short, I grew even closer to her—checking in with care and concern. Mizgîn Hesko gave voice to her people even while battling cancer for nearly three years. She confided in me about her illness and her determination to turn that struggle into hope. Her confidence and openness to me were gifts I will always treasure. Despite pain that limited her public life, she released two collections in 2023 and kept writing until her last breath. When her health worsened, I struggled to find the right words, but I stayed strong for her. I respected her need for rest, trusting that she would find strength to heal. The silence from her was heart-wrenching, and when I finally received the sad news that I had feared would happen, it broke me to tears. My heart felt the weight of loss.

Mizgîn Hesko left behind more than books—a steadfast commitment to memory, a tender yet fierce love for her nation, and poems that will continue to hold and heal. We grieve her loss and honor a life devoted to language, truth, and the people she served with every line.