Culture of Iraq

7th-century BC relief depicting Ashurbanipal (r. 669–631 BC) and three royal attendants in a chariot

Iraq's art has a deep heritage that extends back in time to ancient times and refers to all works of visual art originating from the geographical region since ancient Mesopotamian periods. Mesopotamian art include favourite subjects such as deities, either alone or with worshippers, and animals in several types of scenes: repeated in rows, single, fighting each other or a human, confronted animals by themselves or flanking a human or god in the Master of Animals motif, or a Tree of Life.[3]

During the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled from the heartland of Mesopotamia, pottery achieved a high level of sophistication, calligraphy began to be used to decorate the surface of decorative objects and illuminated manuscripts, particularly Q'ranic texts became more complex and stylised.[4] Iraq's first art school was established during this period, allowing artisans and crafts to flourish.[5] Famous Abbasid artist include Yahya Al-Wasiti whi lived in Baghdad in the late Abbasid era (12th to 13th-centuries) and was the pre-eminent artist of the Baghdad school. His most well-known works include the illustrations for the book of the Maqamat (Assemblies) in 1237, a series of anecdotes of social satire written by al-Hariri.[6] Al-Waiti's illustrations served as an inspiration for the 20th-century modern Baghdad art movement.[7]

The main languages spoken in Iraq are Mesopotamian Arabic and Kurdish, followed by the Iraqi Turkmen/Turkoman dialect of Turkish, and the Neo-Aramaic languages (specifically Chaldean and Assyrian).[8] Arabic and Kurdish are written with versions of the Arabic script. Since 2005, the Turkmen/Turkoman have switched from the Arabic script to the Turkish alphabet.[9]

In addition, the Neo-Aramaic languages use the Syriac script. Other smaller minority languages include Mandaic, English, Shabaki and Armenian.

According to the Constitution of Iraq (Article 4):

The Arabic language and the Kurdish language are the two official languages of Iraq. The right of Iraqis to educate their children in their mother tongue, such as Turkmen, Syriac, and Armenian shall be guaranteed in government educational institutions in accordance with educational guidelines, or in any other language in private educational institutions.[10]

Zaha Hadid was an Iraqi architect, artist and designer, recognised as a major figure in architecture of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. She is known for being influenced by Sumerian ancient cities.

The ancient architecture of Mesopotamia, encompassing several distinct cultures and spanning a period from the 10th millennium BC, when the first permanent structures were built in the 6th century BC. Among the Mesopotamian architectural accomplishments are the development of urban planning, the courtyard house, and ziggurats. No architectural profession existed in Mesopotamia; however, scribes drafted and managed construction for the government, nobility, or royalty. The local architecture of Iraq was often based on vernacular architecture inherited from one generation to the next. Since the Iraqi society is composed of multicultural social groups with different architectural heritage, therefore, old Iraqi cities have several types architecture and urban forms.[17]

Iraq is known for having world-class architects, such as Zaha Hadid, Rifat Chadirji and Hisham N. Ashkouri among others.

While Iraq's first film projection took place in 1909, cinema was not truly regarded as a cultural activity or pastime until the 1920s. The first cinemas, like the famous al-Zawra cinema on Baghdad's bustling thoroughfare al-Rashid, played mostly American silent films for British citizens. In the 1940s under the rule of King Faisal II of Iraq, a real Iraqi cinema began. Supported by British and French financiers, movie production companies established themselves in Baghdad. The Baghdad Studio was established in 1948, but soon came apart when tensions between the Arab and Jewish founders flared up. For the most part, the product was purely commercial, fluffy romances with plenty of singing and dancing often set in small villages. The World of Arts (Dunyat Alfann) studio, which was founded by actors, reached for more serious fare. In 1955, they produced Haidar Al-Omar's Fitna wa Hassan, an Iraqi retelling of Romeo and Juliet, that received international attention. But for the most part, the strong-fist rule of the state discouraged any socially relevant films. In 1959 when King Faisel II's government was overthrown, the Cinema and Theater General organization came into existence with the purpose of promoting the political goals of the new regime both in documentaries and features. Typical were documentaries like the 1969 Al Maghishi Project, which showcased the government's irrigation campaigns and the 1967 A Wedding in Heaven, which celebrates the air force and their weapons system. The 1968 revolution that put the Ba'ath party in power further solidified the government's control of film material, and the state's need to make all films validate its power.

Saddam Hussein's ascension to power in 1979 pushed the Iraqi cinema in a slightly different direction. The drain on national resources from the 1980 Iraq-Iran war brought film production to a near halt. The few films put into production were mainly intent on glorifying a mythic Iraqi history or celebrating Hussein's rule. In 1981, the government commissioned Egyptian filmmaker Salah Abouseif to make Al-Qadisiya, a period epic recounting the triumph of the Arabs over the Persians in 636 AD. Likewise Mohamed Shukri Jameel's melodramatic The Great Question (al-Mas' Ala Al-Kubra) cast British actor Oliver Reed as the vicious Lt-Col Gerard Leachman who is righteously killed in the 1920 Iraqi revolution. In 1980 Hussein promoted his own mythology with the autobiographical 6-hour epic The Long Days (al-Ayyam al-tawila), the saga of Hussein's participation in the 1958 failed assassination attempt on Prime Minister Abd al-Karim Qasim, and his subsequent heroic escape back to Tikrit. The film was edited and partially directed by Terence Young, the British director who made his name helming the early James Bond films Dr. No and Thunderball (film). Hussein is played by Saddam Kamel, a cousin and son-in-law of Hussein's, who eventually ran afoul of the dictator and was murdered in 1996. After Iraq invaded Kuwait, sanctions against Iraq made filmmaking an impossibility in the country, although a new generation of filmmakers is coming alive in Baghdad.

Muhammad al-Qubbanchi performing Maqam

Iraq is known primarily for its rich maqam heritage which has been passed down orally by the masters of the maqam in an unbroken chain of transmission,

leading up to the present. The maqam al-Iraqi is considered to be the most noble and perfect form of maqam. Al-maqam al-Iraqi is the collection of sung,

poems written either in one of the sixteen meters of classical Arabic or in Iraqi dialect (Zuhayri).

This Form of art is recognised by UNESCO as "an intangible heritage of humanity".[18]

Football is the most well known sport in Iraq. The Iraq national football team were the 2007 AFC Asian Cup Champions after defeating Saudi Arabia in the final, held in Jakarta, Indonesia. In 2006, Iraq reached the football final of the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar, after defeating former FIFA World Cup semi-finalists South Korea and eventually finished as runners-up, winning silver. The football tournament at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, saw Iraq finish in fourth place, with the Italy national football team claiming bronze from a single goal.

The Iraqi Football Association (Arabic: الاتحاد العراقي لكرة القدم) is the governing body of football in Iraq, controlling the Iraq national football team and the Iraq Super League (also known as Dawri Al-Nokba). It was founded in 1948, and has been a member of FIFA since 1950, and the Asian Football Confederation since 1971.

It was founded in 1948, and has been a member of FIFA since 1950, and the Asian Football Confederation since 1971. Big clubs in Iraq include Al-Shorta, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya, Al-Zawraa, Erbil SC, Duhok SC, Al Talaba and Najaf FC. Basketball, swimming, weightlifting, bodybuilding, boxing, kickboxing, and tennis are also popular sports.

Masghouf fish, one of Iraq's national dishes, a Mesopotamian cuisine dating back to ancient times, typically fish caught from the rivers of Euphrates and Tigris, and grilled near the river bed

The Lion of Babylon of The Ishtar Gate has remained a prominent symbol of Iraqi culture throughout history.

Iraqi cuisine or Mesopotamian cuisine has a long history going back some 10,000 years – to the Sumerians, Babylonians, Assyrians,

and Ancient Persians.[19] Tablets found in ancient ruins in Iraq show recipes prepared in the temples during religious festivals - the first cookbooks in the world.[19] Ancient Iraq, or Mesopotamia was home to a sophisticated and highly advanced civilization, in all fields of knowledge - including the culinary arts.[19]

However, it was in the Islamic Golden Age when Baghdad was the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate that the Iraqi kitchen reached its zenith.[19] Today, the cuisine of Iraq reflects this rich inheritance, as well as strong influences from the culinary traditions of neighbouring Persia, Turkey, and the Syria region.[19] Some popular dishes include Kebab (often marinated with garlic, lemon, and spices, then grilled), Gauss (grilled meat sandwich wrap, similar to Döner kebab), Bamieh (lamb, okra, and tomato stew), Quzi (lamb with rice, almonds, raisins, and spices), and salad in pita, Kubbah (minced meat ground with bulghur wheat, or rice and spices), Masgûf (grilled fish with pepper and tamarind), and Maqluba (a rice, lamb, tomato, and aubergine dish). Stuffed vegetable dishes such as Dolma and Mahshi are also popular.[20] Machbous is also a popular dish in the south and south east of Iraq.

Contemporary Iraq reflects the same natural division as ancient Mesopotamia,[21] which consisted of Assyria in the arid northern uplands and Babylonia in the southern alluvial plain.[21] Al-Jazira (the ancient Assyria) grows wheat and crops requiring winter chill such as apples and stone fruits.[21] Al-Irāq (Iraq proper, the ancient Babylonia) grows rice and barley, citrus fruits, and is responsible for Iraq's position as the world's largest producer of dates.[21]

Kitab al-tabikh is the oldest surviving Arabic cookbook, written by al-Warraq in the 10th century. It is compiled from the recipes of the 8th and 9th century courts of the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad. Some scholars speculate that al-Warraq may have prepared the manuscript on behalf of a patron, the Hamdanid prince Sayf al-Dawla, who sought to improve the cultural prestige of his own court in Aleppo as the court in Baghdad had started to decline.

• Iraqi art
• Arabic miniature
• List of World Heritage Sites in Iraq
• Mesopotamia
• List of museums in Iraq
• History of Iraq
• History of Baghdad
• Akkadian Empire
• Assyria
• Babylonia
• Sumer
• Abbasid Caliphate
• Mesopotamian Cuisine

Folktale collections from modern Iraq

• McCarthy, R. J.; Raffouli, Faraj. Spoken Arabic of Baghdad: Part Two (A) - Anthology of Texts. Publications of the Oriental Institute of Al-Hikma University: Linguistic Series nr. 2. Beirut, Place de L'Étoile: Libraire Orientale, 1965.
• Яременко, В. А. (1990). Сказки и предания Ирака [Fairy Tales and Legends from Iraq] (in Russian). Мoskva: Наука.
• Buckley, Jorunn (2007). Drower's Folk-Tales of Iraq. Piscataway, NJ, USA: Gorgias Press. doi:10.31826/9781463211011. ISBN 9781463211011.
• Annus, Amar (2009). "Review Article. The Folk-Tales of Iraq and the Literary Traditions of Ancient Mesopotamia". Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions. 9: 87–99. doi:10.1163/156921209X449170.

• Iraq: Cultural-Historical Zones