Iraq

thumb|300px|right|The flag and national anthem of Iraq.
Iraq (obsolete spelling: Irak; pronounced /ɪˈræk/ or /ɪˈrɑːk/; also US: /aɪˈræk/ (informal); Arabic: العراق Al-ʿIrāq), officially the Republic of Iraq (Arabic: Ar-al Gumhuriyah al Iraqiya جمهورية العراق , 'Jumhūrīyat Al-ʿIrāq, Kurdish: كۆماری عێراق, Komara Iraqê), is a country in thye Middle East, spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert. Iraq shares borders with Jordan to the west, Syria to the northwest, Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, and Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to the south. Iraq has a narrow section of coastline measuring 58 km (35 miles) between Umm Qasr and Al Faw on the Persian Gulf. The capital city, Baghdad (Arabic: بغداد‎ Baġdād), is in the center-east of the country. Two major flowing rivers: the Tigris and Euphrates run through the centre of Iraq from north to south. These provide Iraq with agriculturally capable land and contrast with the steppe and desert landscape that covers most of Western Asia.
==Religion in Iraq==
Iraq is a Muslim majority country, Sunni Islam is practiced by approximately 35% of the population and Shia Islam by 65% of Iraq's people. The Shia sacred cities of Najaf and Karbala are in Iraq.
Christians currently account for about 3% of Iraq's population. Most Iraqi Christians are ethnic Assyrians and the most popular denominations are the Chaldean Catholic Church, the Syriac Orthodox Church and the Assyrian Church of the East. In recent years, many Iraqi Christians have fled to Jordan, Syria and Kurdish controlled areas of the country.
There were 150,000 Iraqi Jews in 1941 but Iraq's Jewish population has now almost entirely disappeared, most having relocated to Israel.
About 0.1% of the people of Iraq are Buddhists.
==References==
*http://www.thedhamma.com/buddhists_in_the_world.htm
*The Complete Book of Buddha's Lists -- Explained. David N. Snyder, Ph.D., 2006.
*http://www.thedhamma.com/
==External links==
* Wikipedia article about Iraq.
* Wikivoyage article about Iraq.
Category:Buddhism by location
Category:Muslim-Majority Countries
Category:Middle Eastern Countries