| Governorates of Iraq المحافظات العراقية (Arabic) پارێزگاکانی عێراق (Kurdish) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Category | Federated state |
| Location | Republic of Iraq |
| Number | 19 governorates |
| Areas | 529 km2 (204.2 sq mi) (Baghdad) – 138,500 km2 (53,476 sq mi) (Al Anbar) |
| Government | |
| Subdivisions | |
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| Constitution |
 Iraq portal |
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Iraq consists of 19 governorates (Arabic: محافظة, romanized: muḥāfażah; Sorani Kurdish: پارێزگا, romanized: parêzgeh), also known as "provinces". Per the Iraqi constitution, governorates can form an autonomous region.[1] Four governorates, Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Halabja and Duhok, constitute the autonomous Kurdistan Region. Baghdad (which is the most populous) and Basra are the oldest standing provinces of Iraq. The second most-populous province, Ninawa (also called Nineveh) is in the upland and quite cool climate of the north-west.
Through early 2014, the Council of Ministers of the government of Iraq approved proposals to add the three newest governorates:[2]
- Tal Afar, from part of Ninawa Governorate
- Tuz Khurmatu, from part of Saladin Governorate[3]
- Nineveh Plains from the Ninawa Governorate.[4]
Shortly after the approval of the proposals, ISIS attacked the cities, towns and villages of the Nineveh Plains. Upon the eventual withdrawal of ISIS, the initial decision by the Council of Ministers was dishonored by Kurdistan, Baghdad and Iranian-connected political entities, as they began pushing security forces into different parts of the Nineveh Plains to try and lay claim to different parts of the territory, asserting that the demographics had changed due to ISIS and that the original inhabitants no longer could be representatives of their indigenous land.[5] Part of the reason for the demographic shift was that squatters were encouraged to occupy Christian homes. Without enough paperwork to prove ownership, some of those homes became extremely challenging to reclaim. Initiatives are underway to help reclaim families' homes. [6]
Another proposal exists to add a 20th: Fallujah, from the relevant part of the Al Anbar.[2] This largely did not occur due to the ISIS insurgency. Following the defeat of ISIS in the Battle of Fallujah (2016), the proposal may resurface or Al-Anbar may remain undivided.
Governorates
| Governorate | Postal code | ISO code |
Total area in miles2 |
Total area in km2 |
Population 1 July 2018[7] |
Population Density in miles |
Population Density in km |
Capital |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Anbar | 31 | AN | 53,476 | 138,501 | 1,771,656 | 29.1 | 11.2 | Ramadi |
| Babil | 51 | BB | 1,976 | 5,603 | 2,065,042 | 921.4 | 324.9 | Hillah |
| Baghdad | 10 | BG | 204.2 | 529 | 8,126,755 | 4,620.09 | 1,548.8 | Baghdad |
| Basra | 61 | BA | 7,360 | 19,070 | 2,908,491 | 344.0 | 132.7 | Basra |
| Dhi Qar | 64 | DQ | 5,000 | 12,900 | 2,095,172 | 367.2 | 142.3 | Nasiriyah |
| Al-Qādisiyyah | 58 | QA | 3,148 | 8,153 | 1,291,048 | 360.3 | 139.1 | Al Diwaniyah |
| Diyala | 32 | DI | 6,828 | 17,685 | 1,637,226 | 211.3 | 81.6 | Baqubah |
| Duhok (Dahūk) (IKR) a.k.a. Dihok | 42 | DA | 2,530 | 6,553 | 1,292,535 | 445.5 | 172.2 | Dihok |
| Erbil (IKR) a.k.a. Hewlêr | 44 | AR | 5,820 | 15,074 | 1,854,778 | 277.0 | 106.9 | Hewlêr |
| Karbala | 56 | KA | 1,944 | 5,034 | 1,218,732 | 548.6 | 211.8 | Karbala |
| Kirkuk | 36 | KI | 3,737 | 9,679 | 1,597,876 | 373.4 | 144.1 | Kerkûk |
| Maysan | 62 | MA | 6,205 | 16,072 | 1,112,673 | 156.5 | 60.4 | Amarah |
| Muthanna | 66 | MU | 19,980 | 51,740 | 814,371 | 35.9 | 13.8 | Samawah |
| Najaf | 54 | NA | 11,129 | 28,824 | 1,471,592 | 115.5 | 44.5 | Najaf |
| Ninawa | 41 | NI | 14,410 | 37,323 | 3,729,998 | 226.9 | 87.6 | Mosul |
| Salah Al-Din | 34 | SD | 9,556 | 24,751 | 1,595,235 | 147.3 | 56.8 | Tikrit |
| Sulaymaniyah (IKR) a.k.a. Silêmanî | 46 | SU | 6,573 | 17,023 | 2,053,305 | 285.8 | 110.3 | Silêmanî |
| Wasit | 52 | WA | 6,623 | 17,153 | 1,378,723 | 182.7 | 70.5 | Kut |
| Halabja (IKR) | 46 | HA | 343 | 889 | 140,000+ | 408.1 | 1574.8 | Halabja |
Former governorates
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| Governorate | Today part of |
|---|---|
| Mosul | Ninawa Governorate Duhok Governorate |
| Diwaniya | Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate Muthanna Governorate Najaf Governorate |
| Dulaim (–1962) Ramadi (1962–1976) |
Al Anbar Governorate |
| Muntafiq (–1976) | Dhi Qar Governorate |
| Amara (–1976) | Maysan Governorate |
| Kut (–1976) | Wasit Governorate |
| Baghdad | Baghdad Governorate Saladin Governorate |
| Kirkuk (–1976) At-Ta'mim (1976–2006) |
Kirkuk Governorate |
| Kuwait Governorate
(Military occupation between 1990-1991) (Military occupation between 1990-1991) |
State of Kuwait |
Flags
| Flag | Use | Description |
|---|---|---|
 | Flag of Al Anbar Governorate[8] | Ratio: 2:3 |
 | Flag of Babil Governorate | Ratio: 2:3 |
| Flag of Baghdad Governorate[9][10] | Ratio: 2:3 | |
 | Flag of Basra Governorate[11] | Ratio: 2:3 |
 | Flag of Diyala Governorate[12] | Ratio: 2:3 |
| Flag of Dhi Qar Governorate | Ratio: 2:3 | |
| Flag of Duhok Governorate | Ratio: 2:3 | |
| Seal of Erbil Governorate[13] | Ratio: 2:3 | |
 | Flag of Halabja Governorate[14][15] | Ratio: 2:3 |
| Emblem of Karbala Governorate | Ratio: 2:3 | |
| Seal of Maysan Governorate[16] | Ratio: 2:3 | |
| Flag of Muthanna Governorate | Ratio: 2:3 | |
| Seal of Najaf Governorate[17] | Ratio: 2:3 | |
 | Flag of Nineveh Governorate[18] | White flag charged with the emblem of the governorate. The emblem depicts the leaning minaret of the Great Mosque of al-Nuri, Mosul surrounded by olive branches. Ratio: 2:3 |
 | Flag of Saladin Governorate[19][20] | Ratio: 2:3 |
 | Flag of Kirkuk Governorate[21] | Ratio: 2:3 |
| Flag of Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate[22] | Ratio: 2:3 | |
| Flag of Sulaymaniyah Governorate[23] | Ratio: 1:2 | |
 | Flag of Wasit Governorate | Ratio: 2:3 |
See also
References
- ↑ "Iraq's Constitution of 2005" (PDF). Constitute Project.
- 1 2 "Resolutions of Council of Ministers For Session No. 3 on 21/1/2014". 21 January 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
- ↑ "Iraqi Council of Ministers approved new provinces of Tuz Xurmatu and Tal Afar". Kurd Net. 21 January 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
- ↑ BetBasoo 1 and Kino 2, Peter 1 and Nuri 2 (January 22, 2014). "Assyria: Nineveh Plain To Become Iraqi Province". UNPO - Underrepresented Nations & Peoples Organization. Archived from the original on January 26, 2014.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ Lucente, Adam (April 26, 2020). "In post-Islamic State northern Iraq, demographic changes raise concerns". Middle East Eye.
- ↑ "Iraq: Government cracks down on squatters". Refworld. 8 September 2008. Archived from the original on Jan 27, 2021.
- ↑ "Original PDF". doi:10.15438/rr.5.1.7. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ↑ "Anbar governor Ali Farhan al-Dulaimi speaks to AFP at his office in".
- ↑ "Baghdad Governorate (Iraq)".
- ↑ "محافظ بغداد يؤكد اتخاذ اجراءات مشددة على المولدات الاهلية لمنع رفع الاسعار". 15 June 2021.
- ↑ "Gulf 25 inspection team concludes its tour of Basra, holds a press conference – اتحاد كأس الخليج العربي لكرة القدم".
- ↑ "Deputy governor of Diyala contracts COVID-19".
- ↑ "IRAQ: Ramy Noori appointed mayor of Ankawa District by Erbil Provincial Council". 13 May 2022.
- ↑ "مشروع قانون موازنة العراق لعام 2018 يشير إلى حلبجة كمحافظة (Iraq's 2018 budget bill refers to Halabja as a governorate)".
- ↑ "زيارة رئيس المحكمة الى محافظة حلبجة".
- ↑ Arango, Tim (4 May 2013). "A Sadrist Governor is a Folk Hero to Iraqis". The New York Times.
- ↑ محافظ النجف الاشرف الدكتور المهندس ماجد الوائلي يستعرض اهم المشاريع في قضاء الكوفة. najaf media. 29 June 2022. Archived from the original on 26 August 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022 – via YouTube.
- ↑ "Mosul, Iraq. 2nd July, 2019. New governor of Nineveh Mansour al-Mar'eed speaks to Xinhua in an interview at his office in Nineveh province, Iraq, July 2, 2019. The governor of Iraq's northern province of Nineveh called on the Chinese companies to take part in the reconstruction of its capital Mosul. TO GO WITH: Iraqi governor calls on Chinese companies to take part in reconstruction of Mosul. Credit: Khalil Dawood/Xinhua/Alamy Live News Stock Photo - Alamy".
- ↑ "Saladin (Salah ed-Din) Governorate (Iraq)".
- ↑ "Chaos prevails in Saladin as two governors lock horns over who runs the governorate".
- ↑ "Iraq fires Kirkuk governor in Kurdish referendum stand-off". Financial Times. 14 September 2017. Archived from the original on 2022-12-10.
- ↑ "الموقع الرسمي لمحافظة الديوانية - النائب الثاني لمحافظ الديوانية يتراس اجتماع غرفة عمليات الطاقة في المحافظة".
- ↑ slemani.gov [@SlemaniGov] (June 14, 2022). "رەوشی مافەكانی مرۆڤ تاووتوێ دەكرێت https://t.co/iT3fPt3Tui https://t.co/P9ZVqR5vDv https://t.co/xutgAlQztV https://t.co/7M8B9ip87O https://t.co/3JrqGjKZZU https://t.co/xL8fxXDw6I" [The human rights situation will be discussed.] (Tweet) (in Central Kurdish). Archived from the original on 26 August 2022. Retrieved 21 December 2022 – via Twitter.
