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The Gorran (Change) party and the Islamic Group, which have called for postponing the referendum to an unspecified date, boycotted the session, the parliament's first since October 2015.
In June, Kurdish leaders announced a plan to hold a vote on Kurdistan's independence and scheduled it for September 25.
Baghdad has condemned the referendum, calling it "unconstitutional" and "unilateral."
The planned referendum has also alarmed Iraq's neighbours - Turkey, Iran and Syria - that are worried it will encourage their Kurdish minorities to splinter off.
Several lawmakers from Kurdistan's main political parties expressed support for the referendum as they addressed the parliamentary session on Friday.
Lawmaker Omed Khoshnaw from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) called the referendum a "message of peace" to Baghdad and neighbours.
"We, from the KDP, believe that except for independence, there is no other way to give the people of Kurdistan a guarantee that genocide will never be repeated," he added.
In late 1980s, forces of Iraq's then autocrat Saddam Hussein unleashed several attacks on Kurdish areas, including with chemical weapons.
In recent years, there have been tensions between Baghdad and Kurdistan over power-sharing, oil revenues and territorial disputes.
The United States and other Western powers have expressed opposition to Kurdistan's independence vote, fearing it will fuel regional unrest and distract attention from ongoing campaigns to rout Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
Washington reiterated its opposition on Friday, with the White House saying in a statement that it was concerned that holding the referendum in disputed areas is "provocative and destabilizing" and calling on Kurdistan's regional government to call it off.
"The United States has repeatedly emphasized to the leaders of the Kurdistan Regional Government that the referendum is distracting from efforts to defeat ISIS and stabilize the liberated areas," the White House statement said.
The US wants the Kurds to enter into a "serious and sustained dialogue with Baghdad," talks that Washington "has repeatedly indicated it is prepared to facilitate," the statement said.
Earlier Friday, Kurdistan's President, Masoud Barzani, ruled out postponing the vote.
"To this date, we have not received an alternative that can take the place of the referendum. Therefore, it will be held as scheduled," Barzani told a pro-independence rally in the town of Amedi.
He accused Baghdad of wrecking its "partnership" with Kurdistan.
"We refuse to be their servants," he told cheering independence supporters.
"The referendum's legitimacy comes from the people of Kurdistan, not from the outside," he added.
The referendum is planned to be held in Kurdistan and disputed areas including the oil-rich province of Kirkuk.
The Iraqi parliament has rejected the referendum and sacked the governor of Kirkuk, who is backing the vote.
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In June, Kurdish leaders announced a plan to hold a vote on Kurdistan's independence and scheduled it for September 25.
Baghdad has condemned the referendum, calling it "unconstitutional" and "unilateral."
The planned referendum has also alarmed Iraq's neighbours - Turkey, Iran and Syria - that are worried it will encourage their Kurdish minorities to splinter off.
Several lawmakers from Kurdistan's main political parties expressed support for the referendum as they addressed the parliamentary session on Friday.
Lawmaker Omed Khoshnaw from the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) called the referendum a "message of peace" to Baghdad and neighbours.
"We, from the KDP, believe that except for independence, there is no other way to give the people of Kurdistan a guarantee that genocide will never be repeated," he added.
In late 1980s, forces of Iraq's then autocrat Saddam Hussein unleashed several attacks on Kurdish areas, including with chemical weapons.
In recent years, there have been tensions between Baghdad and Kurdistan over power-sharing, oil revenues and territorial disputes.
The United States and other Western powers have expressed opposition to Kurdistan's independence vote, fearing it will fuel regional unrest and distract attention from ongoing campaigns to rout Islamic State in Iraq and Syria.
Washington reiterated its opposition on Friday, with the White House saying in a statement that it was concerned that holding the referendum in disputed areas is "provocative and destabilizing" and calling on Kurdistan's regional government to call it off.
"The United States has repeatedly emphasized to the leaders of the Kurdistan Regional Government that the referendum is distracting from efforts to defeat ISIS and stabilize the liberated areas," the White House statement said.
The US wants the Kurds to enter into a "serious and sustained dialogue with Baghdad," talks that Washington "has repeatedly indicated it is prepared to facilitate," the statement said.
Earlier Friday, Kurdistan's President, Masoud Barzani, ruled out postponing the vote.
"To this date, we have not received an alternative that can take the place of the referendum. Therefore, it will be held as scheduled," Barzani told a pro-independence rally in the town of Amedi.
He accused Baghdad of wrecking its "partnership" with Kurdistan.
"We refuse to be their servants," he told cheering independence supporters.
"The referendum's legitimacy comes from the people of Kurdistan, not from the outside," he added.
The referendum is planned to be held in Kurdistan and disputed areas including the oil-rich province of Kirkuk.
The Iraqi parliament has rejected the referendum and sacked the governor of Kirkuk, who is backing the vote.
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