The great majority—nearly 80 percent—of Iraqis are Arabs. This population is split between the two great branches of Islam—Sunni Islam and Shi'i Islam. Most of the world’s Muslims are Sunnis. Shi'i Islam is dominant in Iran and in southern Iraq. While Shi’ites in general make up nearly two-thirds of Iraqi Muslims, they are less important politically than the Sunnis and usually belong to the country’s poorer classes.

The Kurds, who live in the mountains of the northeast, are the largest minority group. Inhabiting Turkey and Iran as well as Iraq, the Kurds have long sought their own independent state.

Language. Arabic is the national language of Iraq. The Kurds, who are non-Arabs, speak Kurdish. In some places, Assyrian and Armenian are also spoken.

Religion. Almost all Iraqis are Muslims, followers of the religion of Islam. About 4 percent of the population is Christian. There is also a small sect known as Yazidis whose religion combines Islam and earlier forms of worship. Thousands of Iraqi Jews immigrated to Israel after that country was founded in 1948.

Way of Life. Traditionally, most Iraqis earned their livelihood by farming or raising livestock. Farmers lived in villages, usually in houses made of sun-dried mud brick (much like the adobe used for buildings in the southwestern United States). Most produced only enough to meet their own families' needs. Wheat and other cereal grains, fruits and vegetables, and milk made up the typical diet. Meat, usually mutton (sheep) or lamb, was reserved for special occasions.

The nomadic Bedouins of Iraq’s desert regions herded livestock, particularly camels and goats. Now relatively few in number, the nomads traveled well-known routes, seeking grazing land and water for their animals.

Although farming is still the single most important occupation, less than one-third of Iraq’s labor force is now engaged in farmwork. Large numbers of country people have moved to the cities, where more than two-thirds of the population now lives.

The government provides all citizens with free medical care, education, and other benefits. Iraqi women, unlike women in many Muslim countries, can hold jobs, own land, and inherit property.

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Land Regions. Iraq is divided into four land regions: the lower Tigris-Euphrates Valley (the site of ancient Babylonia); the upper Tigris-Euphrates Valley (ancient Assyria); the mountains and hills of the northeast (inhabited by the Kurds); and the desert upland of the southwest and west.

The lower Tigris-Euphrates Valley is a poorly drained plain that begins just north of Baghdad, the capital, and reaches southward to the head of the Persian Gulf. There are several large, shallow lakes and a marsh area in the southern part of this region.

The upper Tigris-Euphrates Valley is made up of several fertile river valleys created by the Tigris River and its major tributaries. This steppe (grasslands) region is higher and much more hilly than the lower valley region.

The mountains of northeastern Iraq are a continuation of the Zagros Mountains of Iran. They are high and rugged, with peaks more than 10,000 feet (3,050 meters) high.

The western desert upland—a rather level, hard-surfaced plain—is part of the much larger Syrian desert. The Euphrates River cuts through this desert in a deep and flat-floored, steep-sided valley. The surface of the desert is marked by many wadis (river beds that are dry except during the rainy season). The desert area is uninhabited apart from the nomadic Bedouin tribes.

Rivers. The Tigris and Euphrates rivers rise in the mountains of Turkey. The Euphrates is considerably longer than the Tigris and flows across eastern Syria before it reaches Iraq. Near al Qurnah, in southern Iraq, they join to form the Shatt al-Arab, which empties into the Persian Gulf. The Shatt al-Arab marks part of the boundary between Iraq and Iran. Navigation rights on the river have sometimes been a cause of friction. The Euphrates is generally rather shallow. The Tigris is deeper and is normally navigable (allowing the passage of ships) as far upstream as Baghdad.

The waters of the Tigris-Euphrates system are the lifeblood of the country. But historically the rivers have at times caused great destruction. Their waters rise regularly in spring and early summer, flooding vast areas of the lower valley each year. Because the lower Tigris-Euphrates plain is so poorly drained, much potential farmland cannot be used. In addition, nearly half the land lies idle each year because of excessive salt in the soil.

The Iraqi government has been using some of its income from oil to develop the Tigris-Euphrates area in order to increase the amount of cropland and lessen the danger of floods. The rivers have been brought under control by a system of dams, spillways, and storage reservoirs.

Climate. Iraq receives little rainfall except in the high mountains of the northeast. The entire southwestern part of the country is tropical desert, receiving less than 10 inches (250 millimeters) of rain a year. The climate in the northeastern part, except in the mountains, is semiarid, with a rainfall of between 10 and 20 inches (250 and 500 millimeters). The summers (May through October) are dry. Winter (November through April) is the rainy season, when grains such as barley and wheat are grown on the steppe without irrigation. These crops are harvested in the spring or early summer. Crops grown in the desert and in the steppe during the summer must be irrigated.

Temperatures in summer are very high. The average temperature in July, the hottest month, is between 86 and 95°F (30 and 35°C). Nights are cooler but still hot. In the winter temperatures vary from about 45°F (7°C) in the north to about 55°F (13°C) in the south. Winter days are usually warm and pleasant, but winter night temperatures often come close to freezing.

Natural Resources. The natural vegetation of Iraq consists mainly of wild oak, hawthorn, willow, and pine trees. Iraq’s only forests are in the mountains. Because of the overcutting of trees, these forests have been largely reduced to scrub growth of little value, although there has been some reforestation. Steppe grass and desert scrub provide food for livestock.

Iraq has some of the largest petroleum reserves in the world. Some of the richest deposits are found in the south in the Rumelia oil field, which Iraq shares with Kuwait. Iraq also has considerable amounts of phosphate rock (used in making chemical fertilizers), sulfur, and natural gas. Rivers provide water for irrigation and are a source of hydroelectric power. The country also has large thermal and natural-gas power plants.

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Iraq is chiefly an agricultural country, but the development of its oil reserves in the latter half of the 1900’s transformed the economy. In 1960, Iraq became a founding member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

Oil is Iraq’s chief export and source of income. Since the 1990’s, however, revenues have been severely reduced due to economic sanctions imposed by the international community in response to Iraq’s continued military aggression.

Services. Services account for approximately 50 percent of Iraq’s economy and employs nearly half its workforce. Government and banking are the two strongest segments of the service industries.

Manufacturing. The extraction and refining of oil is Iraq’s chief industry. Other industries include the manufacture of chemicals, textiles, construction materials, and processed foods.

Agriculture. Modern farming methods and irrigation have greatly increased Iraq’s agricultural production. Barley and wheat are the chief cereal grains. Rice is grown in the south, where water for irrigation is abundant. Iraq is the world’s largest producer of dates, the chief export crop. Cotton, sugarcane, and sugar beets also have significant commercial value.

Livestock are also an important part of Iraq’s agricultural economy. Camels, sheep, and goats are raised in many parts of the country. Cattle are grazed in irrigated areas. Wool and animal hides are exported, and milk and meat are produced for local consumption.

Transportation. Iraq’s public transportation networks are owned by the Iraqi government. Roads, railways, and one airline connect most major cities. Most people in rural areas, however, rely on bicycles or animals for transportation. Pipelines are used to transport oil and natural gas.

Communication. Six daily newspapers are published in Iraq—four in Arabic, one in Kurdish, and one in English. The country has limited television and radio networks, and all are controlled by the government.

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Baghdad is the capital and largest city of Iraq and the center of its commerce and industry. The city is situated in the east central part of the country, on both banks of the Tigris River.

Mosul, the capital of the Nineveh province, is the major center of administration and agricultural trade in northern Iraq. It is situated on the upper Tigris River, near the ruins of the ancient city of Nineveh, once a capital of the Assyrian Empire. It has been the chief city of northern Mesopotamia since the A.D. 900’s.

Basra, the capital of the Basra province, is Iraq’s chief port and primary outlet to the Persian Gulf. Founded in A.D. 636, it is now the administrative center of southern Iraq. Much of the city was destroyed during the Iran-Iraq War (1980-88) and by bombing during and after the Persian Gulf War (1991).

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Art and Architecture. Iraqi art and handicrafts are essentially Arabic. Miniatures painted on camel bone or ivory, mosaic inlay work, as well as rugs, textiles, and copper and brass utensils, are produced for both the local market and the tourist trade.

One distinctive type of artistic work associated with Iraq is the silverware produced by the Mandeans (a people also known as the Sabeans). The Mandeans are a small religious sect whose beliefs require that they live close to running water. Their silverware is decorated with scenes or figures well known in Iraqi life and history. Iraq is also known for its distinctive embroidered rugs.

Iraq has many places of historical interest. The ruins of Ur, one of the world’s first cities, is located in the southern part of the country. The ziggurat (Sumerian temple tower) at Ur is believed to date back to about 2500 B.C. South of Baghdad are the remains of the Arch of Ctesiphon, an imposing palace that dates to about A.D. 225, as well as a re-creation of the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. In the Baghdad suburb of Kadhimain stands a famously beautiful Shi’ite mosque (Muslim house of worship). Its two domes and four major minarets are covered with gold.

Literature. Iraq was a center of Arab learning in the Middle Ages. Its literary achievements are part of the Arabic culture as a whole.

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Under its provisional constitution, Iraq is a republic based on socialism. The highest authority is exercised by the Revolutionary Command Council, whose members include the president, who is the head of state and government. The president is elected by the Revolutionary Command Council.

The Council of Ministers handles the government administration. But the Baath (“Revival”) Party remains the most important political influence in the government. The nation’s legislature, the National Assembly, has 250 members, who serve 4-year terms. Of these, 30 are appointed by the chief of state and 220 are elected by popular vote.

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Early History. The land now known as Iraq has been called the Cradle of Civilization. The ancient Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians all developed great empires in the region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. At later times, it was ruled by the Greeks, the Romans, the Persians, and the Ottoman Turks.

Under the Abbasid rulers (750-1258), Baghdad became a center of learning for the entire Muslim world. But the Mongols invaded the region in 1258, leading to its decline. The Ottoman Turks, after a long struggle, won Baghdad and the Tigris and Euphrates Valley from Persia in 1638. The region remained a part of the vast Ottoman Empire until the end of World War I, in 1918.

Creation of Iraq. After World War I, Great Britain was given control of the region as a mandate of the League of Nations (the forerunner of today’s United Nations, or U.N.). The mandate period lasted from 1920 to 1932, when Iraq became an independent constitutional monarchy, under King Faisal I.

From the 1930’s to the 1950’s, Iraqi politics were dominated by Prime Minister Nuri es-Said, a pro-Western leader who did much to modernize Iraq. In 1945, Iraq became a founding member of the Arab League. However, in 1958 the monarchy was overthrown in a military coup led by General Abdul Karim Kassem. Nuri es-Said, King Faisal II, and all the members of the royal family were murdered, and Iraq was declared a republic.

The Republic. Between 1958 and 1968 there were several violent changes of government. Kassem himself was murdered in 1963. In 1968 the Baath Party seized power and has held it ever since, under only two leaders—Ahmad Hassan al-Bakr and Saddam Hussein, who came to power in 1979. Iraq’s abundant oil revenues were used to develop the economy and to build new schools, hospitals, and other facilities. But the government dealt harshly with its internal enemies and pursued an aggressive foreign policy.

Two Wars. In 1980, Iraq invaded Iran. Iraq’s aim was to gain control of the Shatt al-Arab waterway, and perhaps the Iranian oil fields as well. A long and costly war followed, ending in 1988 with no clear victor.

Two years later, on August 2, 1990, Iraq invaded and quickly conquered its small but oil-rich neighbor Kuwait. The Iraqi action was condemned by the U.N., and economic sanctions were imposed. When Iraq did not withdraw from Kuwait by January 15, 1991—the deadline set by the U.N.—a coalition of nations, led by the United States, went to war against Iraq and quickly liberated Kuwait.

After the war, Iraq was faced with rebellions by Shi’ite Muslims in the south and by Kurds in the north. Both groups were crushed by the military. Saddam Hussein, in spite of his defeat and the destruction caused by the war, managed to hold on to power. The U.N. continued to impose restrictions on Iraq because Hussein refused to cooperate with its arms inspectors. But, despite intermittent U.S. air strikes against Iraqi military targets, the anti-Iraq coalition slowly began to fall apart.

John R. Randall
Ohio State University

Reviewed by Arthur Campbell Turner
Author, Power and Ideology in the Middle East