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Iraq Iraq Also known as: ʿIraq, Al-ʿIrāq, Al-Jumhūrīyyah al-ʿIrāqīyyah, Republic of Iraq(Show More) Written by Gerald Henry Blake Reader in Geography, University of Durham, England; Director, International Boundaries Research Unit. Coauthor of The Cambridge Atlas of the Middle East and North Africa; The Middle East: A Geographical... Gerald Henry BlakeAll Fact-checked by Britannica Editors Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they he extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree.... Britannica Editors Last updated Nov. 5, 2025 •History Top Questions What is Iraq and where is it located? What is the capital city of Iraq? What are the official languages spoken in Iraq? What type of government does Iraq he? What is the significance of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Iraq? How has Iraq's history been shaped by ancient civilizations? What was the impact of the Iraq War that began in 2003? What are some key cultural and religious influences in Iraq? News • As vice president during 9/11, Cheney was at the center of an enduring debate over US spy powers • Nov. 5, 2025, 6:29 PM ET (AP) Dick Cheney, one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in US history, dies at 84 • Nov. 4, 2025, 2:23 PM ET (AP) The Latest: White House walks back Trump’s threat to SNAP • Nov. 4, 2025, 2:11 PM ET (AP) Iraq's foreign minister calls for disarmament of 'PKK elements' in the north • Nov. 2, 2025, 7:47 AM ET (AP) Greek airline will run direct flights to Baghdad starting in December • Oct. 30, 2025, 11:10 AM ET (AP)

Iraq, country of southwestern Asia.

Iraq

During ancient times, lands that now constitute Iraq were known as Mesopotamia (“Land Between the Rivers”), a region whose extensive alluvial plains ge rise to some of the world’s earliest civilizations, including those of Sumer, Akkad, Babylon, and Assyria. This wealthy region, comprising 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 it became a central and integral part of the Islamic world. Iraq’s capital, Baghdad, became the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate in the 8th century. The modern nation-state of Iraq was created following World War I (1914–18) from the Ottoman provinces of Baghdad, Basra, and Mosul and derives its name from the Arabic term used in the premodern period to describe a region that roughly corresponded to Mesopotamia (ʿIrāq ʿArabī, “Arabian Iraq”) and modern northwestern Iran (ʿIrāq ʿAjamī, “foreign [i.e., Persian] Iraq”).

Quick Facts See article: flag of Iraq Audio File: National anthem of Iraq Head Of Government: Prime Minister: Mohammed Shia al-Sudani Capital: Baghdad Population: (2025 est.) 45,694,0002 Head Of State: President: Abdul Latif Rashid Form Of Government: multiparty republic with one legislative house (Council of Representatives of Iraq [3291]) Official Languages: Arabic; Kurdish Official Religion: Islam Official Name: Al-Jumhūriyyah al-ʿIrāqiyyah (Republic of Iraq) Total Area (Sq Km): 435,052 Total Area (Sq Mi): 167,974 Monetary Unit: Iraqi dinar (ID) Population Rank: (2025) 35 Population Projection 2030: 53,036,000 Density: Persons Per Sq Mi: (2025) 272 Density: Persons Per Sq Km: (2025) 105 Urban-Rural Population: Urban: (2022) 69.9% Rural: (2022) 30.1% Life Expectancy At Birth: Male: (2022) 71.3 years Female: (2022) 75.2 years Literacy: Percentage Of Population Age 15 And Over Literate: Male: (2017) 91% Female: (2018) 76% Gni (U.S.$ ’000,000): (2023) 254,318 Gni Per Capita (U.S.$): (2023) 5,640 Includes nine seats reserved for minorities. Includes more than a million internally displaced persons and nearly 317,000 refugees and asylum-seekers (mostly from Syria). See all related content

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 regime—the Baʿath Party—in 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 party’s leadership, however, was quickly assumed by Saddam Hussein, a flamboyant and ruthless autocrat who led the country into disastrous military adventures—the Iran-Iraq War (1980–88) and the Persian Gulf War (1990–91). 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 population, particularly the country’s disfranchised Kurdish minority and the Shiʿi majority—Saddam 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.

Land

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 36 miles (58 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.

Relief physical features of Iraq

Iraq’s topography can be divided into four physiographic regions: the alluvial plains of the central and southeastern parts of the country; Al-Jazīrah (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.

Britannica Quiz The Country Quiz Alluvial plains dhows in the Shatt al-Arab, IraqDhows anchored in the Shatt al-Arab, Iraq.

The plains of lower Mesopotamia extend southward some 375 miles (600 km) from Balad on the Tigris and Al-Ramādī on the Euphrates to the Persian Gulf. They cover more than 51,000 square miles (132,000 square km), almost one-third of the country’s 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 Shaṭṭ al-ʿArab, there are still some inhabited marshes. The alluvial plains contain extensive lakes. The swampy Lake Al-Ḥammār (Hawr al-Ḥammār) extends 70 miles (110 km) from Basra (Al-Baṣrah) to Sūq al-Shuyūkh; its width varies from 8 to 15 miles (13 to 25 km).

Al-Jazīrah Euphrates River at Khān al-Baghdādī, Iraq The Euphrates River at Khān al-Baghdādī, on the edge of Al-Jazīrah plateau in north-central Iraq.

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

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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-Ḥajarah in the western part and as Al-Dibdibah in the east. Al-Ḥajarah 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 erages between 300 and 1,200 feet (100 to 400 metres). A height of 3,119 feet (951 metres) is reached at Mount ʿUnayzah (ʿUnāzah) at the intersection of the borders of Jordan, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. The deep Wadi Al-Bāṭin 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.