Culture

Ethnic groups

The ancient peoples of Iraq, such as the Babylonians, Assyrians, and Sumerians, were long ago assimilated into the population and dispersed through waves of immigrants. A dominant influence were the Arab conquests in the 7th century, which brought Arab culture to central and southern Iraq.

The most significant ethnic group aside from the Arab population, which comprises about 2/3 of the population, is Iraq’s Kurdish population, comprising 1/4 of the population. Kurds live in the mountains of Iraqi Kurdistan and have a distinctive culture. They are mostly Sunni Muslims and speak the Kurdish language, which is related to modern Persian; they also have a tribal structure and unique costumes, music, and dance. Over 3/4 of the population speaks Arabic, which is the official language, although dialects exist and English is widely spoken.

Religion

Iraq is predominantly a Muslim country, in which the two major sects of Islam are represented more equally than in any other state. Slightly more than half (and according to some sources as many as three-fifths) of the population are Shīʿite, and about two-fifths are Sunni. Religious minorities, such as Christians and Jews, have existed in Iraq since around 586 B.C.

Facts and Statistics

  • Iraq has the 4th largest population in the Middle East, after Iran, Egypt, and Turkey
  • 2/5 of the population are under 15 years of age
  • The number of qualified scientists, administrators, technicians, and skilled workers is among the highest in the Middle East
  • Population (July 2009 est.): 28,945,657.
  • Population growth rate (2009 est.): 2.507%.
  • Ethnic groups: Arab 75%-80%, Kurd 15%-20%, Turcoman, Chaldean, Assyrian, or others approximately 5%.
  • Religions: Muslim 97%, Christian and others approximately 3%.
  • Languages: Arabic (official), Kurdish (official), Turcoman (a Turkish dialect), Assyrian, Armenian.
  • Education: Years compulsory–primary school (age 6 through grade 6). Literacy(2006 UNESCO est.)–74.1%.
  • Life expectancy–69.94 yrs. (2009 est.).

Arts & Culture

Iraq has long reflected cultural diversity. Although Iraqis generally are a religious and conservative people, there are strong secular tendencies in the country. Iraqi cuisine mirrors that of Syria and Lebanon, with strong influences from the culinary traditions of Turkey and Iran.

Art and literature has always thrived in Iraq, fostered by the Ministry of Culture. Poetry thrives in Iraq, and famous 20th-century Iraqi poets include Muḥammad Mahdī al-Jawāhirī, Nāzik al-Malāʾika, Badr Shākir al-Sayyāb, and ʿAbd al-Wahhāb al-Bayatī. World renowned Iraqi painters and sculptors include Ismāʿīl Fattāḥ Turk, Khālid al-Raḥḥāl, and Muḥammad Ghanī. Baghdad houses the Iraq Museum and the National Library, as well as buildings from the golden age of ʿAbbāsid architecture in the 8th and 9th centuries and from the various Ottoman periods. Mosul holds the Mosul Museum.

To see Iraqi art in Washington, D.C., consider visiting the Samarra Gallery at the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art. Their Ancient Near Eastern Art exhibit  features more than 1,100 pieces of artwork dating from 5000 B.C.E. – 651 C.E. and houses many artifacts and drawings from ancient Iraq.

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