Najaf
Najaf
ٱلنَّجَف Najaf al-Ashraf, Baniqia | |
|---|---|
Metropolis | |
Top-bottom, L-R: Imam Ali Shrine • Khan al-Nakhilah • Najaf Souk • Khan al-Musalla • Wadi-us-Salaam • Rural Najaf • Al-Sahlah Mosque | |
Najaf Location of Najaf within Iraq | |
| Coordinates: 32°00′00″N 44°20′00″E / 32.00000°N 44.33333°E | |
| Country | Iraq |
| Governorate | Najaf |
| Founded by | Hārūn al-Rashīd |
| Government | |
| • Type | Mayor–council |
| • Mayor | Yusuf Kinawi |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,325 km2 (512 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 60 m (200 ft) |
| Population | |
• Estimate (2018)[2] | 747,261 |
| • Rank | 6th |
| • Density | 560/km2 (1,500/sq mi) |
| • Metro | 988,000 |
| Time zone | UTC+3 |
Najaf[a] is the capital city of the eponymous Najaf Governorate in central Iraq, about 160 km (99 mi) south of Baghdad. Its estimated population in 2024 was about 1.41 million people.[2] It is widely considered amongst the holiest cities of Shia Islam and one of its spiritual capitals, as well as the center of Shia political power in Iraq.[3][4][5][6][7]
It is the burial place of Muhammad's cousin and son in law, Ali, and thus a major pilgrimage destination for Shia Muslims. The largest cemetery in the world, Wadi-us-Salaam, and the oldest Shi'a Islamic seminary in the world, Hawza of Najaf, are located in Najaf.
- ^ An-Najaf (Central Subdistrict, Iraq)
- ^ a b "Iraq: Governorates & Cities".
- ^ Cordesman, Anthony H.; Khazai, Sam (4 Jun 2014). Iraq in Crisis. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 319. ISBN 9781442228566.
- ^ Cockburn, Patrick (8 Apr 2008). Muqtada: Muqtada al-Sadr, the Shia Revival, and the Struggle for Iraq (illustrated ed.). Simon and Schuster. p. 146. ISBN 9781416593744.
- ^ Pollack, Kenneth M.; Alkadiri, Raad; J. Scott Carpenter; Kagan, Frederick W.; Kane, Sean (2011). Unfinished Business: An American Strategy for Iraq Moving Forward. Brookings Institution Press. p. 103. ISBN 9780815721666.
- ^ Robinson, Linda (2005). Masters of Chaos: The Secret History of the Special Forces (illustrated, reprint ed.). PublicAffairs. p. 260. ISBN 9781586483524.
- ^ "Ali al-Sistani is Iraq's best hope of curbing Iranian influence. But he is 85 and has no obvious successor". The Economist. 5 December 2015. Retrieved 6 December 2015.
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