Erbil

Autonomous Kurdistan Region

Republic of Iraq

March 27, 2022

Erbil

Erbil, also called Hawler (Kurdish: ھەولێر ,Hewlêr Arabic: أربيل, romanized: Arbīl, Syriac:  and known in ancient history as Arbela, is the capital and most populated city in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. There is no current census of the city and official population statistics are not available, its population is estimated to be around 1,200,000.

Human settlement at Erbil may be dated back to the fifth millennium BC.  At the heart of the city is the ancient Citadel of Erbil and Mudhafaria Minaret. The earliest historical reference to the region dates to the Third Dynasty of Ur of Sumer, when King Shulgi mentioned the city of Urbilum. The city was later conquered by the Assyrians.

Erbil Citadel

The site of the citadel may have been occupied as early as the Neolithic period, as pottery fragments possibly dating to that period have been found on the slopes of the mound. Clear evidence for occupation comes from the Chalcolithic period, with shards resembling pottery of the Ubaid and Uruk periods in the Jazira and southeastern Turkey, respectively.  Given this evidence for early occupation, the citadel has been called the oldest continuously occupied site in the world.

Erbil Parks

     Minare Park:  The Mudhafaria Minaret is a minaret located in the new Minare Park on the west region of Erbil, Kurdistan Region, Iraq.

The minaret is 36 m (118 ft) high, was built in 1190–1232 AD by the Turcoman prince of Erbil, in the reign of Saladin, Muzaffar Al-Din Abu Sa’eed Al-Kawkaboori (Gökböri) who had entered in the obedience of Saladin without war and married his sister.

     Shanadar Park is south of the Erbil Citadel, behind al-Sawwaf Mosque. It was constructed according to a modern design and contains several play areas for children. a hall for local art exhibitions built in the form of the renowned Shanadar Cave lies at the center of the park.

Zagros Mountains.  Kurdistan

The Zagros mountains has been inhabited by the Kurds for thousands of years and saw the development of Kurdish culture and history. The high altitude of the Zagros mountains produces a series of choke points and valleys perfect agriculture and human development. It has also long defended the Kurds in times of war by acting as a natural barrier via which Kurds could defend.