Iraq is dominated by two famous rivers: the Tigris and the Euphrates.
They flow southeast from the highlands in the north across the plains
toward the Persian Gulf. The fertile region between these rivers has had
many names throughout history, including Al-Jazirah, or "the island," in
Arabic and Mesopotamia in Greek.
Many parts of Iraq are harsh places to live. Rocky deserts cover about
40 percent of the land. Another 30 percent is mountainous with bitterly
cold winters. Much of the south is marshy and damp. Most Iraqis live
along the fertile plains of the Tigris and Euphrates.
Map created by National Geographic Maps
A man descends a structure called a ziggurat in Ur, Iraq.
PHOTOGRAPH BY STEVE MCCURRY, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION
PEOPLE AND CULTURE
Iraq is one of the most culturally diverse nations in the Middle East.
Arabs, Kurds, Turkmen, Assyrians, Mandaeans, and Armenians, among
others, speak their own languages and retain their cultural and religious
identities.
Iraqis once had some of the best schools and colleges in the Arab world.
That changed after the Gulf War in 1991 and the United Nations
sanctions that followed. Today only about 40 percent of Iraqis can read
or write.
NATURE
Safeguarding Iraq's wildlife is a big job. There are essentially no
protected natural areas in the country. And with an ongoing war, the
government is, understandably, more concerned with protecting people
and property than plants and animals.
Before the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003, several species were considered
at risk, including cheetahs, wild goats, and dugongs. Scientists have not
been able to assess the condition of these animals since the war started.
Iraq's rivers and marshes are home to many fish, including carp that can
grow up to 300 pounds (135 kilograms) and sharks that swim up from
the Persian Gulf.
Iraq is nicknamed the "cradle of civilization." Thousands of years ago, on
the plains that make up about a third of Iraq, powerful empires rose and
fell while people in Europe and the Americas were still hunting and
gathering and living more primitive lives.
The Sumerians had the first civilization in Iraq around 3000 B.C. The first
type of writing, called cuneiform, came out of Uruk, a Sumerian city-
state. Around 2000 B.C., the Babylonians came into power in southern
Mesopotamia. Their king, Hammurabi, established the first known
system of laws.
Babylonian rule ended in 539 B.C. when the Persians took over. In A.D.
646, Arabs overthrew the Persians and introduced Islam to Iraq.
Baghdad was soon established as the leading city of the Islamic world. In
1534, the Ottomans from Turkey conquered Iraq and ruled until the
British took over almost 400 years later.
Iraq became an independent country in 1932, although the British still
had a big influence. In 1979, Saddam Hussein and his Baath Party took
control of Iraq and promoted the idea that it should be ruled by Arabs.
Hussein ruled as a ruthless dictator. In 1980, he started a long war
with Iran, and in 1991, he invaded Kuwait, triggering the first Gulf War.
In 2003, after years of sanctions against Iraq, the United States invaded
again out of concern that Saddam Hussein was making dangerous
weapons. U.S. military forces quickly reached Baghdad and threw the
Baathists from power. Saddam Hussein was captured, tried for crimes
against humanity, and executed.
