Islam in Iraq has a rich complicated history that has come to be over almost 1,400 years, since the

Prophet Muhammad In Islam, Muhammad () is venerated as the Seal of the Prophets who transmitted the Quran, eternal word of God () from the Angels in Islam, angel Gabriel () to humans and jinn. Muslims believe that the Quran, the central religious text of Isl ...

lived and died in 632 CE. As one of the first places in the world to accept Islam, Iraq is mostly Muslim nation, with about 98% of the people identifying as Muslim. There are the two main branches of Islam in Iraq:

Shia Islam Shia Islam is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political Succession to Muhammad, successor (caliph) and as the spiritual le ...

, which is practiced by about 61% of Muslims and

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam is the largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any Succession to Muhammad, successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr ...

, which is practiced by about 35%. Baghdad, which was once the capital of the

Abbasid Caliphate The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes ...

and a center of Islamic scholarship, is one of the most important religious cities in Iraq. It is very important to both Shia and Sunni communities. The

Kadhimiya Kadhimiya (, ) or Kadhimayn () is a northern neighbourhood of the city of Baghdad, Iraq. It is about from the city's center, on the west bank of the Tigris. 'Kadhimiya' is also the name of one of nine administrative districts in Baghdad. As th ...

neighborhood in Baghdad is famous for having the shrines of two important Shia Imams.

Karbala Karbala is a major city in central Iraq. It is the capital of Karbala Governorate. With an estimated population of 691,100 people in 2024, Karbala is the second largest city in central Iraq, after Baghdad. The city is located about southwest ...

, on the other hand, is respected for being the site of the

Battle of Karbala The Battle of Karbala () was fought on 10 October 680 (10 Muharram in the year 61 Hijri year, AH of the Islamic calendar) between the army of the second Umayyad Caliphate, Umayyad caliph Yazid I () and a small army led by Husayn ibn Ali, th ...

in 680 AD, which had a significant impact on Shia beliefs and practices. The tomb of

Ali ibn Abi Talib Ali ibn Abi Talib (; ) was the fourth Rashidun caliph who ruled from until Assassination of Ali, his assassination in 661, as well as the first imamate in Shia doctrine, Shia Imam. He was the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muha ...

, the first Shia Imam and the fourth

caliph A caliphate ( ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with Khalifa, the title of caliph (; , ), a person considered a political–religious successor to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and a leader of ...

, is in

Najaf Najaf is the capital city of the Najaf Governorate in central Iraq, about 160 km (99 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2024 is about 1.41 million people. It is widely considered amongst the holiest cities of Shia Islam an ...

, which is another important city. This makes it a major

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a travel, journey to a holy place, which can lead to a personal transformation, after which the pilgrim returns to their daily life. A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) w ...

spot. The famous Sunni thinker

Abu Hanifa Abu Hanifa (; September 699 CE – 767 CE) was a Muslim scholar, jurist, theologian, ascetic,Pakatchi, Ahmad and Umar, Suheyl, "Abū Ḥanīfa", in: ''Encyclopaedia Islamica'', Editors-in-Chief: Wilferd Madelung and, Farhad Daftary. and epony ...

taught in

Kufa Kufa ( ), also spelled Kufah, is a city in Iraq, about south of Baghdad, and northeast of Najaf. It is located on the banks of the Euphrates, Euphrates River. The estimated population in 2003 was 110,000. Along with Samarra, Karbala, Kadhimiya ...

and Ibn Hanbal taught in Baghdad. This is historical evidence of how important Iraq is as a hub for Islamic thought and government. Another important place of worship is the

al-Askari Mosque Al-Askari Shrine, the Askariyya Shrine, or Al-Askari Mosque is a Shia Muslim mosque and mausoleum in the Iraqi city of Samarra from Baghdad. It is one of the most important Shia shrines in the world. It was built in 944. The dome was destroy ...

Samarra Samarra (, ') is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Saladin Governorate, north of Baghdad. The modern city of Samarra was founded in 836 by the Abbasid caliph al-Mu'tasim as a new administrative capital and mi ...

, which is home to the tombs of the tenth and eleventh Shia Imams. Throughout history, Iraq has also been the site of many fitnas, or religious splits, that have changed the way sects interact with each other. This makes it an important place to study Islamic history and the relationships between different sects.

History

Religious cities

Iraq is home to many religious cities important for both Shia and Sunni Muslims.

Baghdad Baghdad ( or ; , ) is the capital and List of largest cities of Iraq, largest city of Iraq, located along the Tigris in the central part of the country. With a population exceeding 7 million, it ranks among the List of largest cities in the A ...

was a hub of

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic learning and scholarship for centuries and served as the capital of the

Abbasids The Abbasid Caliphate or Abbasid Empire (; ) was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abd al-Muttalib (566–653 CE), from whom the dynasty takes i ...

. Baghdad also is home to two prominent Shia Imams in what is known as

, Iraq. The city of

has substantial prominence in Shia Islam as a result of the

, fought on 10 October 680. Similarly,

is renowned as the site of the tomb of Alī ibn Abī Tālib (also known as "Imām Alī"), whom the Shia consider to be the righteous caliph and first imām. The city is now a great center of pilgrimage from throughout the Shi'a Islamic world and it is estimated that only

Mecca Mecca, officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, is the capital of Mecca Province in the Hejaz region of western Saudi Arabia; it is the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valley above ...

and

Medina Medina, officially al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (, ), also known as Taybah () and known in pre-Islamic times as Yathrib (), is the capital of Medina Province (Saudi Arabia), Medina Province in the Hejaz region of western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, ...

receive more Muslim pilgrims. The city of

was home to the famed scholar Abu Hanifah, whose school of thought is followed by many Sunni Muslims internationally. Kufa was also the capital of the

Rashidun Caliphate The Rashidun Caliphate () is a title given for the reigns of first caliphs (lit. "successors") — Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali collectively — believed to Political aspects of Islam, represent the perfect Islam and governance who led the ...

during the time of Ali. Likewise,

is also home to the

, containing the mausoleums of the

Ali al-Hadi Ali al-Hadi (; – ) was a descendant of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and the tenth Imamate in Shia doctrine, Imam in Twelver Shi'ism, Twelver Shia, succeeding his father, Muhammad al-Jawad (). Born in Medina in 828, Ali is known with the ti ...

and Hasan al-Askari, the tenth and eleventh Shia Imams respectively, as well as the

maqam Maqam, makam, maqaam or maqām (plural maqāmāt) may refer to: Musical structures * Arabic maqam, melodic modes in traditional Arabic music ** Iraqi maqam, a genre of Arabic maqam music found in Iraq * Persian maqam, a notion in Persian clas ...

(or "point") of

Muhammad al-Mahdi Muhammad al-Mahdi () is believed by the Twelver Shia to be the last of the Twelve Imams and the eschatological Mahdi, who will emerge in the end of time to establish peace and justice and redeem Islam. Hasan al-Askari, the eleventh Imam ...

, who is the twelfth and final Imam of the Shia Madhhab. This has made it an important pilgrimage centre for Ja'farī Shia Muslims. In addition, some female relatives of Muhammad are buried in Samarra, making the city one of the most significant sites of worship for Shia Muslims and a venerated location for Sunni Muslims. Iraq was also the place of many the fitnas (

schism A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

s) that occurred in the beginning.

Demographics

The data on the religious affiliation of Iraq's population are uncertain. 95–99% of the population are Muslims. In 2020, the Association of Religion Data Archives (ARDA) estimated that 97% Iraqis followed Islam, with 61% being Shia and 35% Sunni. An older estimate by the

CIA World Factbook ''The World Factbook'', also known as the ''CIA World Factbook'', is a reference resource produced by the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with almanac-style information about the countries of the world. The official print ve ...

reported a 36–39% were Sunni Muslims and 61-64% Shia Muslims. According to a 2011 survey by

Pew Research The Pew Research Center (also simply known as Pew) is a nonpartisan American think tank based in Washington, D.C. It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the world. It als ...

, 51% of the Muslims identified as Shia and 42% as Sunni. David Smock of the United States Institute of Peace stated in 2003 that Shiites constituted about 55-60 percent of the Muslim population and Sunnis represented 35-40 percent.

Islam in law

In 1968 the

Ministry of the Interior An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement. In some states, the ...

had a prohibition on miniskirts, stating that sharia was one reason why.
Clipping
at

Newspapers.com Ancestry.com LLC is an American genealogy company based in Lehi, Utah. The largest for-profit genealogy company in the world, it operates a network of genealogical, historical records, and related genetic genealogy websites. It is owned by The ...

Gallery

File:مسجد الخلفاء في بغداد.jpg, Al-Khulafa Mosque,

File:Imam Husayn Shrine by Tasnimnews 01.jpg, Imam Husayn Shrine,

File:Imam Ali Holy Shrine (Bab Alqibla) main gate 10 Muharram 1435 H.jpg, Shia commemorating Muharam in the holy city of Karbala File:Meshed ali usnavy (PD).jpg,

Imam Ali Shrine The Sanctuary of Imām 'Alī (), also known as the Mosque of 'Alī (), located in Najaf, Iraq, is a mausoleum which Shia and Sunni Muslims believe contains the tomb of 'Alī ibn Abī Tālib, a cousin, son-in-law and companion of the Islamic Pro ...

File:سامراء Samarra-Wielki Meczet ze spiralnym minaretem - panoramio.jpg, The spiral minaret of the Great Mosque of Samarra

References

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