Iraq

Where the name comes from

Iraq’s origin is uncertain; suggested roots include Middle Persian Ērāg, “lowlands”, and Uruk, an ancient Sumerian city near the Euphrates.

First people

Around 3200 BCE, people in the Sumerian cities of southern Mesopotamia began recording information on clay tablets, and Akkadian, Babylonian and Assyrian societies followed.^1,2

Known for

Iraq’s land between the Tigris and Euphrates is known as a cradle of civilization, home to Babylon and its Hanging Gardens of legend.³

Outside contact

The Ottomans conquered Baghdad in 1534; Britain captured it in 1917 and received a mandate in 1920.²

The modern country

Iraq became independent in 1932.²