Top-bottom, L-R: Aerial view of the Green Zone; Haydar-Khana Mosque • Statue of Karim Qasim
Iraq Museum • House of Sassoon Eskell Atraqchi for Art & cultural heritage • View over Baghdad and the Tigris river
Baghdad (/ˈbæɡdæd/ⓘBAG-dad or /bəɡˈdæd/bəg-DAD; Arabic: بَغْدَاد, romanized: Baghdād, [baɣˈdaːd]ⓘ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris river. In 762 AD, Baghdad was chosen as the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate, and became its most notable major development project. Within a short time, the city evolved into a significant cultural, commercial, and intellectual center of the Muslim world. This, in addition to housing several key academic institutions, including the House of Wisdom, as well as a multi-ethnic and multi-religious environment, garnered it a worldwide reputation as the "Center of Learning".
For much of the Abbasid era, during the Islamic Golden Age, Baghdad was the largest city in the world. Its population peaked at more than one million people.[3] The city was largely destroyed at the hands of the Mongol Empire in 1258, resulting in a decline that would linger through many centuries due to frequent plagues and multiple successive empires. With the recognition of Iraq as an independent state (formerly the British Mandate of Mesopotamia) in 1932, Baghdad gradually regained some of its former prominence as a significant center of Arab culture, with a population variously estimated at 6 or over 7 million.[note 1] Compared to its large population, it has a small area at just 673 square kilometers (260 sq mi).
The city has faced severe infrastructural damage due to the Iraq War, which began with the United States-led invasion of Iraq in 2003 and lasted until 2011, and the subsequent insurgency and renewed war that lasted until 2017, resulting in a substantial loss of cultural heritage and historical artifacts. During this period, Baghdad had one of the highest rates of terrorist attacks in the world. However, terrorist attacks have gradually been on the decline since the territorial defeat of the Islamic State militant group in Iraq in 2017.[8]
^Petersen, Andrew (13 September 2011). "Baghdad (Madinat al-Salam)". Islamic Arts & Architecture. Archived from the original on 16 September 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
^"Baghdad Population Live". Retrieved 16 May 2024.
^"Largest Cities Through History". Geography.about.com. 6 April 2011. Archived from the original on 27 May 2005. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
^"Iraq". The World Factbook (2024 ed.). Central Intelligence Agency. Retrieved 16 May 2020. (Archived 2020 edition.)
^"Baghdad" Archived 9 October 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. 19 July 2019.
^Gilbert Burnham; Riyadh Lafta; Shannon Doocy; Les Roberts (11 October 2006). "Mortality after the 2003 invasion of Iraq: a cross-sectional cluster sample survey". The Lancet. 368 (9545): 1421–1428. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.88.4036. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(06)69491-9. PMID 17055943. S2CID 23673934. Archived from the original on 14 May 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013. (110 KB)
^"Cities and urban areas in Iraq with population over 100,000" Archived 15 November 2006 at the Wayback Machine, Mongabay.com
^"Twin Suicide Bombings In Baghdad Market Kill At Least 32, Wound Over 100". National Public Radio. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).
Baghdad (/ˈbæɡdæd/ BAG-dad or /bəɡˈdæd/ bəg-DAD; Arabic: بَغْدَاد, romanized: Baghdād, [baɣˈdaːd] ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city...
fall, or siege of Baghdad may refer to: Siege of Baghdad (812–813), during the Fourth Fitna in the Abbasid Caliphate Siege of Baghdad (865), during the...
The siege of Baghdad took place in early 1258 at Baghdad, the historic capital of the Abbasid Caliphate. After a series of provocations from the city's...
Al-Mansur founded the city of Baghdad, near the ancient Babylonian capital city of Babylon and Persian city of Ctesiphon. Baghdad became the center of science...
Baghdad Governorate (Arabic: محافظة بغداد Muḥāfaẓät Baġdād), also known as the Baghdad Province, is the capital governorate of Iraq. It includes the capital...
The Baghdad Battery is the name given to a set of three artifacts which were found together: a ceramic pot, a tube of copper, and a rod of iron. It was...
the southwest, and Syria to the west. The capital and largest city is Baghdad. Iraqi people are diverse; mostly Arabs, as well as Kurds, Turkmen, Assyrians...
Fly Baghdad is a private Iraqi airline, headquartered in Baghdad, with flights based at Baghdad International Airport. The airline restarted its operations...
family. He joined the Ba'ath Party in 1957, and later in 1966 the Iraqi and Baghdad-based Ba'ath parties. He played a key role in the 17 July Revolution and...
The Vilayet of Baghdad (Arabic: ولاية بغداد; Ottoman Turkish: ولايت بغداد, romanized: 'Vilâyet-i Bagdad; Modern Turkish: Bağdat Vilâyeti) was a first-level...
Live from Baghdad is a non-fiction book published in 1992 by CNN producer Robert Wiener about his experiences before the Persian Gulf War, which lasted...
known as the Middle East Treaty Organization (METO) and also known as the Baghdad Pact, was a military alliance of the Cold War. It was formed on 24 February...
The Baghdad Metro (Arabic: مترو بغداد), also known as Baghdad Elevated Train (BET), is a proposed rapid transit in the form of an elevated railway, for...
in Baghdad Canal Hotel bombing 27 October 2003 Baghdad bombings 2004 2004 Ashura bombings in Iraq June 2004 Baghdad bombing 14 September 2004 Baghdad bombing...
The city of Baghdad (Arabic: بغداد Baġdād) was established by the Abbasid dynasty as its capital in the 8th century, marking a new era in Islamic history...
The University of Baghdad (UOB) (Arabic: جامعة بغداد, also known as Baghdad University) is a public research university in Baghdad, Iraq. It is the largest...
Pride of Baghdad is a graphic novel written by Brian K. Vaughan and illustrated by Niko Henrichon released by DC Comics' Vertigo imprint on September...
prison complex in Abu Ghraib, Iraq, located 32 kilometers (20 mi) west of Baghdad. Abu Ghraib prison was opened in the 1950s and served as a maximum-security...
Baghdad of Peace (Arabic: بغداد السلام, Baghdad as-salam) was an electoral alliance in Baghdad, Iraq, formed on the initiative of the Islamic Dawa Party...
in Baghdad 2004 Ashura bombings in Iraq, including Baghdad June 2004 Baghdad bombing 14 September 2004 Baghdad bombing 30 September 2004 Baghdad bombing...
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Baghdad, Iraq. 2000 BCE – Babylonian city of Baghdadu in existence (approximate date). 762 CE...
Baghdad Eyalet (Arabic: إِيَالَةُ بَغْدَاد, Ottoman Turkish: ایالت بغداد, romanized: Eyālet-i Baġdād) was an Iraqi eyalet of the Ottoman Empire centered...
Baghdad Khatun (Persian: بغداد خاتون; died 16 December 1335) (lit. Queen Baghdad), was a Chobanid princess, the daughter of Chupan. She was the empress...
Baghdad Tower (Al-Ma'mun) (Arabic: برج بغداد), previously called International Saddam Tower (Arabic: برج صدام الدولي), is a 204 m (669 ft) TV tower in...
Global Information
