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| Iraqi Arabs | |
|---|---|
| Group | Iraqi Arabs |
| Population | est. 25–30 million |
| Regions | Iraq; diaspora: Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Gulf Cooperation Council, United Kingdom, Germany, United States |
| Languages | Iraqi Arabic, Classical Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic |
| Religions | Islam (Sunni Islam, Shia Islam), Christianity, Yazidism, Mandaeism |
Iraqi Arabs are the largest ethnolinguistic group in Iraq, constituting the majority of the country's population and a major component of the broader Arab world. They trace origins to Arab migrations, local Mesopotamian populations, and successive cultural and political formations across the Tigris–Euphrates basin. Iraqi Arab identity intersects with regional, sectarian, tribal, and urban affiliations centered on cities such as Baghdad, Basra, and Mosul.
Iraqi Arab ethnogenesis involves interactions among Arabs, Assyrians, Aramaeans, Babylonians, Akkadians, and Persians during periods including the Achaemenid Empire, Hellenistic period, Parthian Empire, and the Sasanian Empire, followed by the 7th-century Arab conquests. Population distributions concentrate in the alluvial plain—Baghdad Governorate, Anbar Governorate, Basra Governorate, Dhi Qar Governorate—with minority concentrations in the Kurdish north and mixed zones in Nineveh Governorate. Census and demographic research by institutions such as the United Nations and World Bank document urbanization patterns, fertility differentials, and displacement episodes tied to events like the Gulf War (1990–1991), the Iraq War, and ISIS conflict.
The primary vernacular is Iraqi Arabic, a branch of Mesopotamian Arabic with major local varieties: Baghdadi Arabic, Basrawi Arabic, and North Mesopotamian Arabic. Literary and formal registers use Modern Standard Arabic and Classical Arabic for religious, legal, and academic texts. Iraqi Arabic exhibits influences from Akkadian, Aramaic, Persian, Turkish/Ottoman Turkish, and Kurdish, producing loanwords and phonological features studied by linguists at universities such as the University of Baghdad, University of Basrah, and research centers like the Oriental Institute (Chicago). Media outlets including Al-Iraqiya and satellite broadcasters have shaped dialect leveling and register shifts.
Religious affiliation among Iraqi Arabs includes Shia Islam majorities in southern provinces and Sunni Islam majorities in central and western provinces, alongside Assyrian, Chaldean, Syriac, Yazidism, and Mandaeism minorities. Ritual calendars center on observances such as Ashura, Ramadan, Eid al-Fitr, and local saints' commemorations in cities like Karbala and Najaf. Cultural practices blend Mesopotamian, Arab, and Ottoman legacies seen in music genres like Iraqi maqam, crafts from Basra and Kufa, cuisine featuring masgouf and tashreeb, and literary traditions represented by poets and writers linked to institutions such as the Iraqi Academy of Sciences and journals like Al-Mada.
Pre-Islamic Mesopotamia was home to civilizations including the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, and Assyrians, later incorporated into empires such as the Achaemenid Empire, Hellenistic realms, and the Sasanian Empire. The 7th-century Arab expansion introduced Islam and the Arabic language, leading to the Abbasid Caliphate with its capital at Baghdad and institutions like the House of Wisdom. Successive rule by the Seljuk Empire, Mongols, Ottoman Empire, and the British Mandate of Mesopotamia shaped modern territorial arrangements culminating in the Kingdom of Iraq, the Republic of Iraq, the Ba'ath Party, and the 2003 invasion of Iraq which led to Coalition Provisional Authority administration, insurgency, sectarian conflict, and later stabilization efforts mediated by actors such as the UNAMI.
Iraqi Arab political life features actors like the Ba'ath Party, Iraqi National Congress, United Iraqi Alliance, and parties representing Sunni, Shia, and tribal interests, competing within institutions such as the Council of Representatives of Iraq. National identity debates engage symbols like the Flag of Iraq, historical narratives of Mesopotamia, and competing local loyalties in cities including Basra, Baghdad, Mosul, and Karbala. Political transitions involved figures such as Saddam Hussein, Nouri al-Maliki, Haider al-Abadi, and Barham Salih in periods of authoritarianism, conflict, and coalition governance, with constitutional processes informed by the Iraqi Constitution (2005) and negotiations over federalism with the Kurdistan Regional Government.
Economic life among Iraqi Arabs has been shaped by oil revenues managed by entities like the Iraq National Oil Company and multinational firms including BP and ExxonMobil, agriculture concentrated in the alluvial plain, and trade via ports such as Umm Qasr. Social structures include tribal confederations such as the Dulaim and Shammar, urban merchant families, religious endowments like the waqf system linked to shrines in Najaf and Karbala, and class stratification altered by nationalization under the 1958 revolution and redistribution policies. Post-2003 reconstruction, sanctions during the 1990s oil-for-food programme, and volatility from conflict affected infrastructure, employment, and public services.
Large diaspora communities formed after waves of conflict and economic migration, with concentrations in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, the Gulf states—including Kuwait and Saudi Arabia—and Western countries like the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, and the United States. Refugee movements followed events such as the Iran–Iraq War, the Gulf War (1990–1991), the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and the ISIS insurgency, with international organizations like the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and International Organization for Migration tracking displacement, resettlement, and remittance flows that link diasporas to families in Baghdad and Basra.
Category:Ethnic groups in Iraq