Compared to the other Islamic societies around them, Kurdish women have often exercised more freedom and occasionally even played prominent roles in politics and the military, among others. In the territory ruled by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in Iraqi Kurdistan, women have won more rights than most of their sisters in other Middle Eastern states. Even earlier, moreover, Adila Khanem (1847-1924) was a famous and cultured chief of the Jaf tribe in what is now Iraqi Kurdistan. Although actually an Assyrian, Margaret George (Shello) was a more recent example of a Kurdish female warrior. Hero Talabani, the wife of the late Jalal Talabani (died 2017), is a well-known personality in her own right. More than 30 percent of the KRG parliament elected on September 21, 2013 was female. There are currently three gender-based studies centers in the Iraqi Kurdish region: 1.) The Gender and Violence Studies Centre at the University of Sulaimani established in 2011, 2.) The Kurdistan Centre for Gender Studies at the Soran University established in 2014, and 3.) The Centre for Gender and Development Studies at the American University in Sulaymaniya (Sulaimani) established in 2016. Bayan Sami Abdul Rahman, the KRG representative in the United States, exudes a confident leadership role among her male Kurdish associates in Washington, DC. In private talks with her, she has told me that for the most part there is no gender discrimination against her, although she sometimes is left out of the loop during male social gatherings. Nevertheless, Iraqi Kurdish parties and especially Iranian ones lag behind in leadership roles compared to the Kurds in Turkey and Syria. Despite these positive examples, women’s rights, or the lack thereof, are increasingly issues in Iraqi Kurdistan. The KRG has recently sought to deal with honor killing and female genital mutilation (FGM). Female Kurdish refugees and widows suffer more than their male counter parts. The purpose of my paper is to analyze gender and equality in Iraqi Kurdistan and compare it to the situation in Turkey, Syria, and Iran along the lines listed in this abstract. My paper will be based mostly on my fieldwork in Iraqi Kurdistan and Europe involving interviews with Kurdish leaders and the regular population. I also will use secondary sources such as academic books and articles as well as news articles.