This study examines the legitimacy of Iraqi Kurdistan's claim to self-determination through independence. It analyzes the concept of self-determination, people, as the recipients of this right, statehood, as well as secession, the legality of secession, and the recognition of states founded through this process by the international community. The study is qualitative, library-based, and analytic, involving primary data, such as treaties, statutes, constitutions, parliamentary and ministerial reports, as well as secondary data, including books, journal articles, media, and Internet materials....