Governorates of Iraq
| Governorates of Iraq المحافظات العراقية (Arabic) پارێزگاکانی عێراق (Kurdish) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Category | Federated state |
| Location | Republic of Iraq |
| Number | 19 governorates |
| Populations | 108,974 (Halabja) – 8,126,755 (Baghdad) |
| Areas | 529 km2 (204.2 sq mi) (Baghdad) – 138,500 km2 (53,476 sq mi) (Al Anbar) |
| Government | |
| Subdivisions | |
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| Constitution |
 Iraq portal |
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Iraq consists of 19 governorates (Template:Lang-ar; Template:Lang-ckb), also known as "provinces". Per the Iraqi constitution, governorates can form an autonomous region.[1] Four governorates, Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, and Halabja, constitute the autonomous Kurdistan Region. Baghdad (which is the most populous) and Basra are the oldest standing provinces of Iraq. The second most-populous province, Ninawa (also called Nineveh) is in the upland and quite cool climate of the north-west.
Through early 2014, the Council of Ministers of the government of Iraq approved proposals to add the three newest governorates:[2]
- Tal Afar, from part of Ninawa Governorate
- Tuz Khurmatu, from part of Saladin Governorate[3]
- Halabja from part of the Sulaymaniyah Governorate.[4][5]
Another proposal exists to add a 20th: Fallujah, from the relevant part of the Al Anbar.[2] This largely did not occur due to the ISIS insurgency. Following the defeat of ISIS in the Battle of Fallujah (2016), the proposal may resurface or Al-Anbar may remain undivided.
Governorates
 |
| Governorate and a.k.a. in Kurdish where thus ISO-listed | Postal code |
ISO code |
Total area in miles2 |
Total area in km2 |
Population 1 July 2018[6] |
Population Density in miles |
Population Density in km |
Capital |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Anbar | 31 | AN | 53,476 | 138,501 | 1,771,656 | 29.1 | 11.2 | Ramadi |
| Babil | 51 | BB | 1,976 | 5,603 | 2,065,042 | 921.4 | 324.9 | Hillah |
| Baghdad | 10 | BG | 1,759 | 4,555 | 8,126,755 | 4,620.09 | 1,548.8 | Baghdad |
| Basra | 61 | BA | 7,360 | 19,070 | 2,908,491 | 344.0 | 132.7 | Basra |
| Dhi Qar | 64 | DQ | 5,000 | 12,900 | 2,095,172 | 367.2 | 142.3 | Nasiriyah |
| Al-Qādisiyyah | 58 | QA | 3,148 | 8,153 | 1,291,048 | 360.3 | 139.1 | Al Diwaniyah |
| Diyala | 32 | DI | 6,828 | 17,685 | 1,637,226 | 211.3 | 81.6 | Baqubah |
| Duhok (Dahūk) a.k.a. Dihok | 42 | DA | 2,530 | 6,553 | 1,292,535 | 445.5 | 172.2 | Duhok |
| Erbil (Arbīl) a.k.a. Hewlêr | 44 | AR | 5,820 | 15,074 | 1,854,778 | 277.0 | 106.9 | Erbîl |
| Halabja | 46 | — | 1,180 | 3,060 | 108,974 | 285.5 | 110.1 | Helebce |
| Karbala | 56 | KA | 1,944 | 5,034 | 1,218,732 | 548.6 | 211.8 | Karbala |
| Kirkuk | 36 | KI | 3,737 | 9,679 | 1,597,876 | 373.4 | 144.1 | Kirkuk |
| Maysan | 62 | MA | 6,205 | 16,072 | 1,112,673 | 156.5 | 60.4 | Amarah |
| Muthanna | 66 | MU | 19,980 | 51,740 | 814,371 | 35.9 | 13.8 | Samawah |
| Najaf | 54 | NA | 11,129 | 28,824 | 1,471,592 | 115.5 | 44.5 | Najaf |
| Ninawa | 41 | NI | 14,410 | 37,323 | 3,729,998 | 226.9 | 87.6 | Mosul |
| Salah Al-Din | 34 | SD | 9,556 | 24,751 | 1,595,235 | 147.3 | 56.8 | Tikrit |
| Sulaymaniyah a.k.a. Slêmanî | 46 | SU | 6,573 | 17,023 | 2,053,305 | 285.8 | 110.3 | Slêmanî |
| Wasit | 52 | WA | 6,623 | 17,153 | 1,378,723 | 182.7 | 70.5 | Kut |
Former governorates
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| Governorate | Now part of |
|---|---|
| Mosul | Ninawa Governorate Duhok Governorate |
| Diwaniya | Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate Muthanna Governorate Najaf Governorate |
| Dulaim (–1962) Ramadi (1962–1976) |
Al Anbar Governorate |
| Muntafiq (–1976) | Dhi Qar Governorate |
| Amara (–1976) | Maysan Governorate |
| Kut (–1976) | Wasit Governorate |
| Baghdad | Baghdad Governorate Saladin Governorate |
| Kirkuk (–1976) At-Ta'mim (1976–2006) |
Kirkuk Governorate |
Kuwait was annexed by Iraq in 1990 and then became Kuwait Governorate (1990–1991)
See also
- Districts of Iraq
- ISO 3166-2:IQ
- List of Governorates of Iraq by Human Development Index
- List of places in Iraq
References
- ^ https://www.constituteproject.org/constitution/Iraq_2005.pdf?lang=en [bare URL PDF]
- ^ a b "Resolutions of Council of Ministers For Session No. 3 on 21/1/2014". 21 January 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
- ^ "Iraqi Council of Ministers approved new provinces of Tuz Xurmatu and Tal Afar". Kurd Net. 21 January 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2014.
- ^ "KRG order turning Halabja into province sets off street celebrations". Rudaw. 14 March 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
- ^ "Kurdistan Region President signs Halabja province directive". Kurdistan Region Presidency. 16 March 2014. Retrieved 13 August 2016.
- ^ "Original PDF". dx.doi.org. doi:10.15438/rr.5.1.7. Retrieved 2021-05-10.
