# Al Anbar Governorate > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Al_Anbar_Governorate > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Al_Anbar_Governorate.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Anbar_Governorate > Source revision: 1351848622 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) Governorate of Iraq "al-Anbār" redirects here. For the ancient town, see [Anbar (town)](/source/Anbar_(town)). Governorate in Iraq Al Anbar Province محافظة الأنبار Anbar Province Governorate Anbar Governorate Seal Coordinates: 32°54′N 41°36′E / 32.900°N 41.600°E / 32.900; 41.600 Country Iraq Seat Ramadi Government • Type Provincial Government • Body Council of Anbar Province • Governor Mohammed Nouri al-Karbouli Area • Total 138,501 km2 (53,476 sq mi) • Water 2,350 km2 (910 sq mi) • Rank 1st Elevation 45 m (148 ft) Highest elevation 450 m (1,480 ft) Lowest elevation 35 m (115 ft) Population (2024 census) • Total 2,004,418 • Rank 8th • Density 14.4722/km2 (37.4829/sq mi) Time zone UTC+3 ISO 3166 code IQ-AN HDI (2024) 0.723[1] high · 6th of 18 Website anbar.iq **Al Anbar Governorate** ([Arabic](/source/Arabic_language): محافظة الأنبار; *muḥāfaẓat al-’Anbār*), or **Anbar Province**, is the largest [governorate](/source/Governorates_of_Iraq) in [Iraq](/source/Iraq) by area. Encompassing much of the country's western territory, it shares borders with [Syria](/source/Syria), [Jordan](/source/Jordan), and [Saudi Arabia](/source/Saudi_Arabia). The population is mostly [Sunni](/source/Sunni) [Arabs](/source/Arabs).[2] The provincial capital is [Ramadi](/source/Ramadi); other important cities include [Fallujah](/source/Fallujah), [Al-Qa'im](/source/Al-Qa'im_(town)), [Rawah](/source/Rawah) and [Haditha](/source/Haditha). The governorate was known as Ramadi up to 1976 when it was renamed as Al Anbar governorate, and it was known as *Dulaim* before 1962. A large majority of the inhabitants of the province are [Arab Sunni Muslims](/source/Iraqi_Sunni_Arabs) and most belong to the [Dulaim](/source/Dulaim) tribe. Al-Anbar Governorate, holding many Sunni previous supporters of [Saddam Hussein](/source/Saddam_Hussein), was a [major center](/source/Anbar_campaign_(2003%E2%80%932011)) of the primarily [Sunni](/source/Sunni_Islam), [Islamist](/source/Islamism) and [Ba'athist-affiliated](/source/Ba'athist_insurgency_in_Iraq) [Iraqi insurgency](/source/Iraqi_insurgency_(2003%E2%80%932011)), being the place of the battles in [Fallujah](/source/Fallujah_during_the_Iraq_War) and [Ramadi](/source/Battle_of_Ramadi_(disambiguation)). In early 2014, the [Islamic State](/source/Islamic_State), with the assistance of some local Sunni militias, launched [a successful campaign](/source/Anbar_campaign_(2013-14)) to seize control of the province from the Iraqi government. Numerous offensive actions were undertaken by the Iraqi government, with the assistance of local Sunni tribes to remove IS's occupation of the province, especially in the [Anbar campaign (2015–16)](/source/Anbar_campaign_(2015%E2%80%9316)), the [Western Anbar offensive (September 2017)](/source/Western_Anbar_offensive_(September_2017)) and the [2017 Western Iraq campaign](/source/2017_Western_Iraq_campaign). The area was effectively recaptured by the end of 2017 and has been at peace since then. ## Etymology This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (January 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this message) Aerial view of the Euphrates River in [Ramadi](/source/Ramadi), the capital of Anbar governorate. The name of the governorate in [Persian language](/source/Persian_language) means "warehouse" or "silo". This was the last stop/warehouses on the old [Silk Road](/source/Silk_Road) toward Syria. The name is pre-Islamic. The name of the governorate is taken over from a historic city that was originally located on its territory and whose ruins can still be seen 5 km northwest of Fallujah near the city of [Saqlawiyah](/source/Saqlawiyah) today. This city of Anbār or [Peroz-Shapur](/source/Peroz-Shapur) was founded in the 3rd century by the [Muntherids](/source/Muntherids) and was, before the Arab conquest in 634, the second-largest city of Iraq. It was abandoned after the [Mongol invasion](/source/Mongol_invasion_of_Iraq) in the 14th century. A pseudo-authentication is offered by proposing that the name is Arabic and stands for "[granaries](/source/Granary)" in [Arabic](/source/Arabic), further proposing the word Anbar (أنبار) to be the plural of Nbr (نبر) which meaning "[grains](/source/Grain)". The name was already in use in Pre-Islamic times during the [Sasanian](/source/Sasanian) rule over Iraq, long before Arabic replaced [Aramaic](/source/Aramaic) as the main language of Iraq. Dulaim is the old name of the governorate due to the [Dulaim](/source/Dulaim) tribe inhabiting the region. It was also called Liwa Al-Dulaim (لواء الدليم) in the Ottoman period and Sanjak Al-Dulaim in the seventeenth century. ## History ### Caliphate period Further information: [Rashidun Caliphate](/source/Rashidun_Caliphate), [Umayyad Caliphate](/source/Umayyad_Caliphate), [Abbasid Caliphate](/source/Abbasid_Caliphate), [Abbasid dynasty](/source/Abbasid_dynasty), and [Siege of Baghdad (1258)](/source/Siege_of_Baghdad_(1258)) During the reign of [Rashidun](/source/Rashidun) Caliph [Abu bakr](/source/Abu_bakr) the conquest of Anbar was launched his successors conquered whole [Middle East](/source/Middle_East).[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*] ## Geography Anbar is one of the driest governorates in Iraq's western desert climate. Some of Al Anbar is part of the [Syrian Desert](/source/Syrian_Desert), characterized by steppe and desert terrain. Most of Al Anbar is considered as a topographical continuation of the [Arabian Peninsula](/source/Arabian_Peninsula) plateau region. It has some small hills and a number of [wadis](/source/Wadi), including [Wadi Hauran](/source/Wadi_Hauran). Given a decline in land preservation and a lack of natural vegetation, the land is often exposed to the elements and prone to severe erosion. Among the most important agricultural crops are [potatoes](/source/Potatoes), which are harvested in spring and fall. [Wheat](/source/Wheat), [barley](/source/Barley) and maize (corn) are also commonly grown in the governorate. Al Anbar is also known for the production of [phosphates](/source/Phosphate) and [fertilizer](/source/Fertilizer). It is also rich in mineral such as [sulphur](/source/Sulphur), [gold](/source/Gold) and [oil](/source/Oil_reserves). However, Anbar has not been extensively explored for oil. Al Anbar Governorate within Iraq ### Climate The average rainfall in Al Anbar is 115 millimeters (4.53 in) per year. Summer temperatures may reach as high as 52°C (125°F) and may fall as low as 0°C (32°F) in the winter. The [Euphrates](/source/Euphrates) River is the main water source for residents of the governorate. The river flows southeasterly through seven of Al Anbar's districts: - [Al-Qa'im District](/source/Al-Qa'im_District) - [Anah District](/source/Anah_District) - [Haditha District](/source/Haditha_District) - [Hit District](/source/Hit_District) - [Rawah District](/source/Rawah_District) - [Ramadi District](/source/Ramadi_District) - [Fallujah District](/source/Fallujah_District) - [Ar-Rutba District](/source/Ar-Rutba_District) ## Government - Governor: [Sheikh Mohammed Ali Wilber Al-Dulaimi](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sheikh_Mohammed_Ali_Wilber&action=edit&redlink=1) - Deputy Governor: [Ibrahim Al Asal](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ibrahim_Al_Asal&action=edit&redlink=1) - Technical Governor's Councilor: [Engineer Adil Bardan](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Engineer_Adil_Bardan&action=edit&redlink=1) - Provincial Council Chairman (PCC): Ahmed Hamid al-Alwani[3] ## Demographics The main cities of Al Anbar ‹ The [template](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Template) *[Historical populations](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Historical_populations)* is being [considered for merging](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Templates_for_discussion/Log/2026_June_24#Template:Infobox_demographics). › Historical population Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1977 466,100 — 1987 820,690 +5.82% 1997 1,023,736 +2.24% 2009 1,483,359 +3.14% 2024 2,004,418 +2.03% Source: Citypopulation[4] In the 1920s, the governorate had a population of 250,000, as did [Baghdad](/source/Baghdad), out of a total population of 2 million in Iraq. Today there are 9 million people living in Baghdad, among them a million Anbari people in the city and suburbs; their origins are the people of the Al-Anbar tribes that have moved to Baghdad during the past 500 years and their recent migrations there during the 1920s and 1930s. Half of the residents in Anbar are living on the banks of the [Euphrates River](/source/Euphrates_River) outside cities and the towns, there were between 1.9 million and 2 million inhabitants in the districts of Al Anbar.[5] The largest cities are [Ramadi](/source/Ramadi) (pop. 900,000) and Fallujah (700,000). Districts Population Ramadi 620,480 Fallujah 590,354 Khalidiya 44,274 Heet 120,414 Al-Qa'im 180,646 Rutba 49,118 Haditha 107,384 Anah 38,154 Rawa 29,643 According to [UN](/source/UN) estimate in 2003 the population of Al Anbar is 1,230,169.[6] There are no precise estimates of the population which include all of the cities and towns and villages in Anbar. According to a 2003 estimate by the NGO Coordination Committee in Iraq, the population was 1,230,140. It is estimated that around 90 percent of Anbar's inhabitants are adherents of the Sunni branch of Islam. The remaining ten percent are either [Shias](/source/Shia) or other minorities.[7] ## Important mosques in Al Anbar Governorate This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this message) The governorate contains a lot of [mosques](/source/Mosque), [monuments](/source/Monument), and [shrines](/source/Shrine). Mosque City Great state Masjid Ramadi Great Masjid of Ramadi Ramadi Masjid of Sadiq al-Amin Ramadi ## Governors Al Anbar Governorate (since 2003) Main article: [List of Governors of Al Anbar Governorate](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_Governors_of_Al_Anbar_Governorate&action=edit&redlink=1) This section does not cite any sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (June 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this message) List of governors in post-Ba'athist Iraq: - Abdul Karim Bujras al-Rawi - Faisal Al Gaood (acting) - Raja Nawaf Farhan al-Mahalawi - Mamoon Sami Rashid al-Alawani - Qasim Al-Fahadawi - Ahmad Khalaf Muhammed al-Dulaimi - Suhaib al-Rawi - Mohammed Rikan Al Halbousi - Ali Farhan Hameed ## Anbar during U.S. occupation Main article: [Iraq War in Al Anbar Governorate](/source/Iraq_War_in_Al_Anbar_Governorate) Abandoned Iraqi Air Force [J-7](/source/Chengdu_J-7) aircraft in front of the [Al Asad Airbase](/source/Al_Asad_Airbase) ATC Tower The geographic challenge of the Anbar Governorate is demonstrated by two contrasting facts: while it is Iraq's largest governorate, it also is the most sparsely populated. For a governorate that is approximately the size of [Bangladesh](/source/Bangladesh), it is home to fewer than 1.8 million Iraqis. Most of the population lives in the major cities, like Ramadi and Fallujah, and almost everyone else lives within a short distance of the Euphrates River that snakes from Baghdad to the Syrian border near Al-Qa'im.[8] Its strategic challenge was demonstrated, in part, by casualty statistics. During the first four years of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), the Anbar Province was the deadliest province for American service members, claiming approximately one-third of American fatalities.[8] The Anbar Province was the Sunni stronghold that had long provided Saddam Hussein with the support he needed to remain in power.[8] During the early years of Operation Iraqi Freedom, it provided an important base for Al Qaeda and insurgent operations.[8] Part of its significance came from the fact that the Western Euphrates River Valley served as an important infiltration route for foreign fighters headed to Iraq's heartland.[8] *The New York Times* compared this region to the [Vietnam War](/source/Vietnam_War)'s [Ho Chi Minh trail](/source/Ho_Chi_Minh_trail), as foreign fighters and insurgents used the river valley to move in relative safety from the Syrian border to cities like Baghdad, Ramadi and Fallujah.[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*] [US Marines](/source/United_States_Marine_Corps) patrol along the [Euphrates River](/source/Euphrates) in Anbar Province The contrast between the fertile Euphrates River Valley and the rest of the province is striking. Along the Euphrates, groves of fruits and vegetables and acre after acre of date palms are surrounded by a lushness that paints the area a vivid green. Just a few miles from the Euphrates, however, the barren landscape turns brown. With the exception of an occasional Bedouin, the desert is essentially empty. Whether traveling by aircraft, vehicle, or on foot, the Anbar Governorate is vast. During a time when [mining](/source/Land_mine) roads became a strategy of choice for insurgents, the need to patrol and travel throughout the province became one of the Marine Corps' greatest challenges. The threat of insurgent activity, when combined with the challenges that long-distance travel, choking dust, and stifling heat created, made the Anbar Province a difficult area of operation.[8] ## Cities and towns Ramadi Fallujah Al-Qaim Hīt Haditha Anah Rawah Kabisa Al Baghdadi Falahat An Nukhayb Akashat Tarbil Husaibah Al Sharqiah Amiriyah Fallujah Saqlawiyah An Nahidayn Al Sharqiah Al Waleed (Al Walid) Sa'dah Al Saqrh Al Mamorha Al Enaimih Rumana Al Asarjirah Al Sujr Al Jabhah Al Rihaniah Al Furaat Al Mhamady Al Kasrah Al-Karābilah Al Ubaidi Barwanah Al Khaldiya Al Habbaniyah Al-Karmah Al Haqlaniyah Ar Rahaliyah Ar Rutbah ## See also - [Sunni Region](/source/Sunni_Region) - [Anbar campaign (2013–14)](/source/Anbar_campaign_(2013%E2%80%9314)) - [2005 Al-Anbar governorate council election](/source/2005_Al-Anbar_governorate_council_election) - [Abdul Sattar Abu Risha](/source/Abdul_Sattar_Abu_Risha) - [Anbar Awakening](/source/Anbar_Awakening) - [First Battle of Fallujah](/source/First_Battle_of_Fallujah) - [Operation Phantom Fury](/source/Operation_Phantom_Fury) - [Battle of Ramadi](/source/Battle_of_Ramadi_(disambiguation)) - [Battle of Haditha](/source/Battle_of_Haditha) ## References 1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Iraq National Human Development Report 2025"](http://web.archive.org/web/20251210012253/https://www.undp.org/iraq/publications/iraq-national-human-development-report-2025). *UNDP*. Archived from [the original](https://www.undp.org/iraq/publications/iraq-national-human-development-report-2025) on 2025-12-10. Retrieved 2026-01-05. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Anbar"](https://euaa.europa.eu/country-guidance-iraq-2021/anbar). *European Union Agency for Asylum*. Retrieved 2024-05-09. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-Political-crisis_3-0)** Omar Sattar (5 December 2016). ["Has political crisis in Iraq's Anbar reached a dead end?"](https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/12/anbar-fallujah-iraq.html). *Al-Monitor*. Retrieved 2017-01-03. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Population of Governorates"](http://www.citypopulation.de/en/iraq/cities/). *City Population*. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** Parfit, Joseph T. (1920). [*Marvellous Mesopotamia, The World's Wonderland*](https://archive.org/details/marvellousmesopo00parfrich). London: S. W. Partridge & co., ltd. p. [15](https://archive.org/details/marvellousmesopo00parfrich/page/15). 1. **[^](#cite_ref-un_6-0)** ["UN Data 2003"](https://web.archive.org/web/20061215001031/http://www.iraqcoalition.org/regions/south-central/provinces/english/anbar.html). *iraqcoalition.org*. Archived from the original on 2006-12-15. Retrieved 2018-01-01. 1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** ["Irakische Streitkräfte starten Rückeroberung Ramadis"](http://www.dw.de/irakische-streitkr%C3%A4fte-starten-r%C3%BCckeroberung-ramadis/a-18477575). *Deutsche Welle*. Retrieved 2015-05-26. 1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-marines2007_8-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-marines2007_8-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-marines2007_8-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-marines2007_8-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-marines2007_8-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-marines2007_8-5) ["Archived copy"](https://web.archive.org/web/20120915231030/http://www.marines.mil/unit/marforres/Documents/GWOT%202004-2007.pdf) (PDF). Archived from [the original](https://www.marines.mil/unit/marforres/Documents/GWOT%202004-2007.pdf) (PDF) on 2012-09-15. Retrieved 2012-07-25.{{[cite web](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:Cite_web)}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title ([link](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_archived_copy_as_title)) v t e Governorates of Iraq Anbar Babil Baghdad Basra Dhi Qar Diyala Dohuk Erbil Halabja Karbala Kirkuk Maysan Muthanna Najaf Nineveh Qadisiyyah Saladin Sulaymaniyah Wasit v t e Cities of Al Anbar in Iraq Ar Ramadi Al Fallujah Al-Khalidiya Hit Haditha Al Haqlaniyah Habbaniyah Ar Rutba Husaybah Anah Rawah Al Karmah Kabisa Al Amiriyah Al Waleed Akashat Tarbil Khan al Baghdadi Barwanah Saqlawiyah Husaibah Al Sharqiah Al-Karābilah Al Ubaidi Al Qaim Rumana v t e Districts of Anbar Governorate Al-Qa'im Ar Rutba Anah Fallujah Haditha Hīt Ramadi Authority control databases International VIAF GND Geographic MusicBrainz area Other İslâm Ansiklopedisi Yale LUX --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Al Anbar Governorate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Anbar_Governorate) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Anbar_Governorate?action=history)). 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