Nechirvan Idris Barzani (; born 21 September 1966) is a Kurdish politician serving as the second President of Kurdistan Region, Iraq. He was elected into office by the Kurdistan Region Parliament in June 2019. Nechirvan Barzani was appointed as Vice President of the Kurdistan Democratic Party since 2010. He previously served as Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government from March 2007 to August 2009 and March 2012 to May 2019. Nechirvan Barzani is also the founder of the University Of Kurdistan - Hewler, the region's top ranking university located in Erbil. His rule combines aspects of Kurdish nationalism, secularism, modernism and reforms, reforms in agriculture and women's rights. Early years Nechirvan Barzani was born in 1966 in Barzan, Kurdistan Region. The name Nêçîrvan means hunter. Barzani's surname originates from his birthplace of Barzan. He is the grandson of Mustafa Barzani, a legendary Kurdish leader who led the Kurdish Revolution and armed resistance against the regimes of Iraq and was also the founder of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP). Nechirvan Barzani's father, Idris Mustafa Barzani, was a senior KDP leader and prominent political figure, he dedicated his entire life to fighting for the rights and freedoms of the Kurdish people alongside his father and brother Masoud Barzani, who served as the first president of the Kurdistan Region. In 1975, Nechirvan Barzani and his family, along with tens of thousands of Kurds living under Iraqi rule, were forced into exile into Iran to seek safety from Iraq's Ba’ath regime which committed mass killings, forced displacement, cultural genocide, and tremendous brutality as part of its policies culminating with the Anfal genocide. Following the footsteps of his father, uncle, and grandfather, Nechirvan Barzani became actively involved in Kurdish activism and politics. Often accompanying his father on official political visits to Middle Eastern and European countries lobbying for the Kurdish cause, he began developing his platform of political positions based on bringing about peace, stability, and justice to the Kurdish people. Education and personal life Nechirvan Barzani studied politics and international relations at the University of Tehran, Iran. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Public Service degree from Washington and Jefferson College in Pennsylvania, the United States in a ceremony held on 17 May 2008. Nechirvan Barzani is fluent in Kurdish, Persian, and English. He is fond of Kurdish and Persian poetry and literature. He is married to Nabila Barzani and they have