Sulaymaniyah سلێمانی Silêmanî السليمانية |
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سلێمانی | |
Sulaymaniyah City Montage
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Coordinates: 35°33′26″N 45°26′08″E / 35.55722°N 45.43556°ECoordinates: 35°33′26″N 45°26′08″E / 35.55722°N 45.43556°E | |
Country | Iraq |
Autonomous region | Kurdistan |
Governorate | Sulaymaniyah Governorate |
Government | |
• Type | Council–manager |
• Governor | Haval Abobakir |
Elevation | 882 m (2,895 ft) |
Population (1987) | |
• Total | 364,096 |
Time zone | UTC+3 (UTC+3) |
• Summer (DST) | not observed (UTC) |
Website | http://www.sharawani.com |
Sulaymaniyah (Central Kurdish: سلێمانی, Silêmanî; Arabic: السليمانية, as-Sulaymāniyyah), also called Sulaimani or Slemani, is a city in Iraqi Kurdistan. Sulaymaniyah is surrounded by the Azmer Range, Goyija Range and the Qaiwan Range in the northeast, Baranan Mountain in the south and the Tasluja Hills in the west. The city has a semi-arid climate with very hot dry summers and cool wet winters. Sulaymaniyah served as the capital of the historic Kurdish principality of Baban from 1784 to 1850.
The modern city of Sulaymaniyah was founded on 14 November 1784 by the Kurdish prince Ibrahim Pasha Baban who named it after his father Sulaiman Pasha.
From its foundation Sulaymaniyah was always a center of great poets, writers, historians, politicians, scholars and singers, such as Nalî, Mahwi, Piramerd, Muhammed Emin Zeki Bey, Taufiq Wahby, Sherko Bekas, Nuri Sheikh Salih Sheikh Ghani Barzinji, Bachtyar Ali, Mahmud Barzanji, Mawlawi, Mawlânâ Khâlid and Mustafa Zihni Pasha.
The region of Sulaymaniyah was known as Zamwa prior to the foundation of the modern city in 1784. The capital of the Kurdish Baban principality (1649–1850), before Sulaymaniyah was a territory named "Qelaçiwalan". At the time of the Babani's rule there were major conflicts between the Safavid dynasty and the Ottoman Empire. Qelaçiwalan became a battleground for the two rivals.