Basra, Iraq
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Basra البصرة Al-Baṣra |
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|---|---|
Basrah city
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| Nickname(s): Venice of the East | |
 Basra
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| Coordinates: 30°30′N 47°49′E / 30.500°N 47.817°E | |
| Country |
 Iraq
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| Governorate | Basrah Governorate |
| Founded | 636 AD |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor-council |
| • Mayor | Dr. Khelaf Abdul Samad |
| Area | |
| • Total | 181 km2 (70 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 5 m (16 ft) |
| Population (2012) | |
| • Total | 2,750,000 |
| Time zone | +3 GMT |
| Area code(s) | (+964) 40 |
| Website | http://www.basra.gov.iq/ |
Basra, also al-Baṣrah (Arabic: البصرة), is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab between Kuwait and Iran. It had an estimated population of 1.5 million in 2012. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is handled at the port of Umm Qasr.
The city is part of the historic location of Sumer, one of the ports from which Sinbad the Sailor journeyed, and a proposed location of the Garden of Eden. It played an important role in early Islamic history and was built in 636 (14 AH). Basra is consistently one of the hottest cities in Iraq, with summer temperatures regularly exceeding 50 °C (122 °F).
The city was called by many names throughout its history, Basrah being the most common. In Arabic the word baṣrah means "the overwatcher", which might have been an allusion to the city's origin as an Arab military base against the Sassanids. Some sources claim that the name is derived from the Persian word Bas-rah, which means "where many paths meet". Others have argued that the name is derived from the Aramaic word basratha, meaning "place of huts, settlement".
During the pre-Islamic era, the area was known to the Arabs as al-Khariba due to the existence of an ancient city called al-Kharba. After the present city was built, it was called by many names, including "the mother of Iraq", "the reservoir of Arabs", "the prosperous city", and "al-Faiha".
The present city was founded in 636 as an encampment and garrison for Arab tribesmen constituting the armies of the Rashid Caliph Umar a few kilometres south of the present city, where a tell still marks its site. While defeating the forces of the Sassanid Empire there, the Muslim commander Utbah ibn Ghazwan erected his camp on the site of an old Persian settlement called Vaheštābād Ardašīr, which was destroyed by the Arabs. The name Al-Basrah, which in Arabic means "the over watching" or "the seeing everything", was given to it because of its role as a military base against the Sassanid Empire. However, other sources claim the name originates from the Persian word Bas-rāh or Bassorāh meaning "where many ways come together".
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Wikipedia