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Baghdad (Arabic بغداد Baghdad, DMG Baġdād, Kurdish
بەغدا Bexda, of Persian "gift of the Lord" or "God's gift",
according baġ, "God" or "Lord", and dād, "Gabe") is the capital of
Iraq and of the same governorate. It has a population of 5.4 million
inhabitants (2010). It is one of the largest cities in the Middle
East. In the metropolitan area, which extends far beyond the borders
of the governorate, 11.8 million people live (2010), which
corresponds to about 40 percent of the total population of Iraq.
The city is the political, economic and cultural center of the
country and the seat of the Iraqi government, the parliament, all
state and religious central authorities and numerous diplomatic
representations. Baghdad is the most important transportation hub in
Iraq and has numerous universities, colleges, theaters, museums and
monuments.
The Iraqi capital is located approximately in the middle of the country on average 40 meters above sea level. It stretches along the middle reaches of the Tigris, which is navigable to Baghdad. The river divides the city in half, the eastern part of Risafa and the western part of Karch. The land is very shallow and due to periodic flooding of alluvial origin. The Tigris River, on whose banks Baghdad lies, is an important trade route for the city. In Baghdad, some run through the fertile Crescent, a precipitous winter rainfall, north of the Syrian Desert and north of the Arabian Peninsula, leading trade routes. Together with the Euphrates, the Tigris, whose catchment area covers 375,000 square kilometers, forms the Mesopotamia, where some of the first advanced civilizations developed.