Dhi Qar Governorate (, ) is a

governorate A governorate or governate is an administrative division headed by a governor. As English-speaking nations tend to call regions administered by governors either states or provinces, the term ''governorate'' is typically used to calque divisions ...

in southern

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

, in the Arabian Peninsula. The provincial capital is

Nasiriyah Nasiriyah ( , ; , BGN: , ), also spelled Nassiriya or Nasiriya, is a city in Iraq, the capital of the Dhi Qar Governorate. It lies on the lower Euphrates, about south-southeast of Baghdad, near the ruins of the ancient city of Ur. Its po ...

. Prior to 1976 the governorate was known as Muntafiq Governorate. Thi Qar was the heartland of the ancient Iraqi civilization of

Sumer Sumer () is the earliest known civilization, located in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (now south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. ...

, and includes the ruins of Ur,

Eridu Eridu (; Sumerian: eridugki; Akkadian: ''irîtu'') was a Sumerian city located at Tell Abu Shahrain (), also Abu Shahrein or Tell Abu Shahrayn, an archaeological site in Lower Mesopotamia. It is located in Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq, near the ...

Lagash Lagash (; cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian language, Sumerian: ''Lagaš'') was an ancient city-state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Al-Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash ( ...

Larsa Larsa (, read ''Larsamki''), also referred to as Larancha/Laranchon (Gk. Λαραγχων) by Berossus, Berossos and connected with the biblical Arioch, Ellasar, was an important city-state of ancient Sumer, the center of the Cult (religious pra ...

, Girsu,

Umma Umma () in modern Dhi Qar Province in Iraq, was an ancient city in Sumer. There is some scholarly debate about the Sumerian and Akkadian names for this site. Traditionally, Umma was identified with Tell Jokha. More recently it has been sugges ...

, and

Bad-tibira Bad-tibira (also Patibira) ( Sumerian: , bad3-tibiraki) was an ancient Sumerian city on the Iturungal canal dating back to the Early Dynastic period, which appears among antediluvian cities in the Sumerian King List. In the earliest days of Akkadi ...

. The southern area of the governorate is covered by

Mesopotamian Marshes The Mesopotamian Marshes, also known as the Iraqi Marshes, are a wetland area located in southern Iraq and southwestern Iran as well as partially in northern Kuwait. The marshes are primarily located on the floodplains of the Euphrates and Tigris ...

History

Ancient history

Battle of Dhi Qar

Government

*Governor: Yahia Nasseri *Deputy Governor: Ahmed al-Sheik Taha *Governorate Council Chairman (GCC): Ihsan Al-Taei

Modern Dhi Qar

The governorate includes the towns of al-Rifai,

Qalat Sukkar Qalat Sukkar () is a town in the Dhi Qar Governorate, Iraq, located on the Gharraf Canal. Demographics Qalat Sukkar has a population of 110,000. World Gazetteer, accessed 19 February 2009 Location Qalat Sukar is located on a ridge west of the ...

, Al Shatrah, al-Gharraf, Suq el-Shuyukh, Khamisiyah, al-Chibayish and al-Dawaya. In the mid-1990s the governor was

Tahir Jalil Habbush al-Tikriti Tahir Jalil Habbush al-Tikriti (; born 1950) is a former Iraqi intelligence official who served under the regime of Saddam Hussein. In 2001, he was Iraq's head of intelligence and as such, informed MI6 The Secret Intelligence Service (SIS ...

, who later became police chief of the country, and in 1999, director of the Iraqi Intelligence Service.

Demographics

The population is approximately 2,000,000, predominantly

Shia Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political successor (caliph) and as the spiritual leader of the Muslim community (imam). However, his right is understood ...

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

. The southern marshes have traditionally been home to many

Marsh Arabs The Marsh Arabs (Arabic: عرب الأهوار ʻArab al-Ahwār "Arabs of the Marshlands"), also referred to as Ahwaris, the Maʻdān (Arabic: معدان "dweller in the plains") or Shroog ( "those from the east")—the latter two often conside ...

. As of 2007, the area is very poor, with an unemployment rate of 17% and a poverty rate of 37%.

Districts

* Al-Chibayish * Al-Rifa'i * Shatrah *

* Suq Al-Shuykh * Al-Dawaya

References

External links

Iraq Inter-Agency Information & Analysis Unit
Reports, Maps and Assessments of Iraq's Governorates from the UN Inter-Agency Information & Analysis Unit Governorates of Iraq 1976 establishments in Iraq States and territories established in 1976 {{Iraq-geo-stub