Mediaboss Marketing

Iraq,country of southwestern Asia.

During ancient times the lands now comprising Iraq were known as Mesopotamia (Land Between the Rivers), a region whose extensive alluvial plains gave rise to some of the worlds earliest civilizations, including those of Sumer, Akkad, Babylon, and Assyria. This wealthy region, constituting much of what is called the Fertile Crescent, later became a valuable part of larger imperial polities, including sundry Persian, Greek, and Roman dynasties, and after the 7th century became a central and integral part of the Islamic world. Iraqs capital, Baghdad, became the capital of the Abbsid Caliphate in the 8th century. The modern nation-state of Iraq was created following World War I (191418) from the Ottoman provinces of Baghdad, Al-Barah, and Mosul and derives its name from the Arabic term used in the premodern period to describe a region that roughly corresponded to Mesopotamia (Irq Arab, Arabian Iraq) and modern northwestern Iran (Irq ajam, foreign [i.e., Persian] Iraq).

Iraq gained formal independence in 1932 but remained subject to British imperial influence during the next quarter century of turbulent monarchical rule. Political instability on an even greater scale followed the overthrow of the monarchy in 1958, but the installation of an Arab nationalist and socialist regimethe Bath Partyin a bloodless coup 10 years later brought new stability. With proven oil reserves second in the world only to those of Saudi Arabia, the regime was able to finance ambitious projects and development plans throughout the 1970s and to build one of the largest and best-equipped armed forces in the Arab world. The partys leadership, however, was quickly assumed by addm ussein, a flamboyant and ruthless autocrat who led the country into disastrous military adventuresthe Iran-Iraq War (198088) and the Persian Gulf War (199091). These conflicts left the country isolated from the international community and financially and socially drained, but through unprecedented coercion directed at major sections of the populationparticularly the countrys disfranchised Kurdish minority and Shite majorityaddm himself was able to maintain a firm hold on power into the 21st century. He and his regime were toppled in 2003 during the Iraq War.

Iraq is one of the easternmost countries of the Arab world, located at about the same latitude as the southern United States. It is bordered to the north by Turkey, to the east by Iran, to the west by Syria and Jordan, and to the south by Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Iraq has 12 miles (19 km) of coastline along the northern end of the Persian Gulf, giving it a tiny sliver of territorial sea. Followed by Jordan, it is thus the Middle Eastern state with the least access to the sea and offshore sovereignty.

Iraqs topography can be divided into four physiographic regions: the alluvial plains of the central and southeastern parts of the country; Al-Jazrah (Arabic: the Island), an upland region in the north between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers; deserts in the west and south; and the highlands in the northeast. Each of these regions extends into neighbouring countries, although the alluvial plains lie largely within Iraq.

The plains of lower Mesopotamia extend southward some 375 miles (600 km) from Balad on the Tigris and Al-Ramd on the Euphrates to the Persian Gulf. They cover more than 51,000 square miles (132,000 square km), almost one-third of the countrys area, and are characterized by low elevation, below 300 feet (100 metres), and poor natural drainage. Large areas are subject to widespread seasonal flooding, and there are extensive marshlands, some of which dry up in the summer to become salty wastelands. Near Al-Qurnah, where the Tigris and Euphrates converge to form the Shatt al-Arab, there are still some inhabited marshes. The alluvial plains contain extensive lakes. The swampy Lake Al-ammr (Hawr al-ammr) extends 70 miles (110 km) from Al-Barah (Basra) to Sq al-Shuykh; its width varies from 8 to 15 miles (13 to 25 km).

North of the alluvial plains, between the Tigris and the Euphrates rivers, is the arid Al-Jazrah plateau. Its most prominent hill range is the Sinjr Mountains, whose highest peak reaches an elevation of 4,448 feet (1,356 metres). The main watercourse is the Wadi Al-Tharthr, which runs southward for 130 miles (210 km) from the Sinjr Mountains to the Tharthr (Salt) Depression. Milat Ashqar is the largest of several salt flats (or sabkhahs) in the region.

Western and southern Iraq is a vast desert region covering some 64,900 square miles (168,000 square km), almost two-fifths of the country. The western desert, an extension of the Syrian Desert, rises to elevations above 1,600 feet (490 metres). The southern desert is known as Al-ajarah in the western part and as Al-Dibdibah in the east. Al-ajarah has a complex topography of rocky desert, wadis, ridges, and depressions. Al-Dibdibah is a more sandy region with a covering of scrub vegetation. Elevation in the southern desert averages between 300 and 1,200 feet (100 to 400 metres). A height of 3,119 feet (951 metres) is reached at Mount Unayzah (Unzah) at the intersection of the borders of Jordan, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. The deep Wadi Al-Bin runs 45 miles (75 km) in a northeast-southwest direction through Al-Dibdibah. It has been recognized since 1913 as the boundary between western Kuwait and Iraq.

The mountains, hills, and plains of northeastern Iraq occupy some 35,500 square miles (92,000 square km), about one-fifth of the country. Of this area only about one-fourth is mountainous; the remainder is a complex transition zone between mountain and lowland. The ancient kingdom of Assyria was located in this area. North and northeast of the Assyrian plains and foothills is Kurdistan, a mountainous region that extends into Turkey and Iran.

The relief of northeastern Iraq rises from the Tigris toward the Turkish and Iranian borders in a series of rolling plateaus, river basins, and hills until the high mountain ridges of Iraqi Kurdistan, associated with the Taurus and Zagros mountains, are reached. These mountains are aligned northwest to southeast and are separated by river basins where human settlement is possible. The mountain summits have an average elevation of about 8,000 feet (2,400 metres), rising to 10,00011,000 feet (3,0003,300 metres) in places. There, along the Iran-Iraq border, is the countrys highest point, Ghundah Zhur, which reaches 11,834 feet (3,607 metres). The region is heavily dissected by numerous tributaries of the Tigris, notably the Great and Little Zab rivers and the Diyl and Uaym (Adhaim) rivers. These streams weave tortuously south and southwest, cutting through ridges in a number of gorges, notably the R Kuchk gorge, northeast of Barzn, and the Bkma gorge, west of Rawndz town. The highest mountain ridges contain the only forestland in Iraq.

Read more:
Iraq -- Encyclopedia Britannica