Iranians in Iraq

Iraqi Persians
پارس‌های عراق/ايرانيان عراق (Persian)
فرس العراق / إيرانيو العراق (Arabic)

Lion and Sun still used by Iraqi Persians[citation needed]
Regions with significant populations
Karbalā', Najaf, Baghdad, Suleymaniyah, Maysan, Basra
Iraq	486,000
Iran	400,000[1]
Languages
Persian, Mesopotamian Arabic, Kurdish
Religion
Shiʿa Islam[2] (minority Sunni Islam)
Related ethnic groups
Iranian diaspora (Iranians of UAE • Ajam of Bahrain • Ajam of Qatar • Ajam of Iraq • 'Ajam of Kuwait • Iranians of Canada • Iranians of America • Iranians of UK • Iranians of Germany • Iranians of Israel • Iranians in Turkey) Iranian Peoples (Lurs, Achomis, Baluchs, Kurds, Iranian Azeris), Turkic peoples (Qashqai, Azerbaijanis), Huwala

Iranians in Iraq (Persian: ایرانیان در عراق, Arabic: الإيرانيون في العراق), are Iraqi citizens of Iranian background. Iranians have had a long presence in Iraq, since the Fall of Babylon.

Iranic peoples:

• There is a noticeable “Feylie tribe” (Lurs or Kurds) in Iraq, situated between the Iran, Iraq border.^[3]

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Saddam Hussein exiled between 350,000^[4][5][3] to 650,000 Iraqi citizens of Iranian ancestry.^[1] Most of them went to Iran. Most could prove an Iranian ancestry in Iran's court received Iranian citizenship (400,000) and some of them returned to Iraq immediately after his fall.^[1] The population of Iraqis of Iranian descent is currently 486,000^{[citation needed]} (not including Iranian residents in Iraq).

Most Feiyli Iraqis belong to Twelver Shīʿa Islam, the same religious sect that most Iraqis and Iranis belong to.^[3]

While the Iraq side of Kurds on the other hand follow mostly Sunni Islam.

In the past, Iranians have been in contact with and have traveled to present-day Iraq at various times. Therefore, many of the people of present-day Iraq have migrated to this country from the surrounding areas. Shiite merchants during the Safavid era took over a significant part of Baghdad's trade between the 16th and 17th centuries. Iranians were also present in Najaf, Karbala, and Kazemien in addition to Baghdad. However, many of them were forced to leave this region when Baghdad was captured by Ottoman forces in the 17th century, which also led to the massacre of Iranians.

According to historical research, in the 17th century, the number of Iranian merchants exceeded the number of Iranian scholars and religious students in the cities of present-day Iraq. In fact, during this period, the major Shiite religious centers were inside Iran. The prevailing view is that Shiite scholars and students increasingly entered Iraq from the 18th century. The capture of Isfahan by Mahmud of Afghanistan in this century caused a large number of families of scholars to flee to Iraq (between 1722 and 1763) and the center of religious research moved out of Iran and was concentrated in cities such as Karbala and Najaf. As a result, the Persian language spread significantly in the cities of Karbala, Najaf, Baghdad and Basra. The influence of religious families of scholars in Karbala and Najaf became so strong that they overshadowed Arab scholars. As a result, Shiite religious centers expanded and gained considerable influence. In the 20th century, the presence of Iranians in various cities of Iraq, especially in Baghdad and Basra, was also increasingly noticeable. The Rome Treaty of 1823 between Iran and the Ottomans provided facilities for Iranian pilgrimages and the transfer of bodies of the dead for burial in holy places. In the 1875 treaty, Iran's consular rights in relation to Iranian nationals in Iraq were recognized, and as a result, Iranians living in cities under Ottoman rule gained considerable privileges.

• Iranian diaspora
• Moaved
• Medes
• Achaemenid Assyria
• Asuristan
• Parthian Empire
• Baghdad province (Safavid Empire)
• Feyli (tribe)

• "History – Faili Kurds Association". failykurds.org. Retrieved 2024-12-04.