Babylon Governorate محافظة بابل Babil Province | |
|---|---|
     Historical and ancient monuments | |
 Flag  Seal | |
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| Coordinates:32°37′N44°33′E / 32.617°N 44.550°E /32.617; 44.550 | |
| Country |  Iraq |
| Capital | Hillah |
| Government | |
| • Governor | Adnan Fayhan |
| Area | |
• Total | 5,119 km2 (1,976 sq mi) |
| Population (2018 Estimate) | |
• Total | 2,065,042 |
| ISO 3166 code | IQ-BB |
| HDI (2021) | 0.682[1] medium |
Babylon Governorate orBabil Province[2][3] (Arabic:محافظة بابلMuḥāfaẓa Bābil) is agovernorate in centralIraq. It has an area of 5,119 square kilometres (1,976 sq mi), The population in Babil for 2023 is 1,820,700. The provincial capital is the city ofHillah, which lies opposite the ancient city ofBabylon (بابل), on theEuphrates river.
The ancient city ofBabylon, in present-day Babylon Province was the capital of ancientBabylonia, situated on theEuphrates river south ofBaghdad, Iraq.[4]
The city was occupied from the 3rd millennium BC but became important early in the 2nd millennium under the kings of the First Dynasty of Babylon. The sixth king of this dynasty wasHammurabi (1792–1750 BC) who made Babylon the capital of a vast empire and is best remembered for hiscode of laws.
The city peaked in pre-eminence whenNabopolassar (626–605 BC) and his successor and sonNebuchadnezzar II (605–562 BC) extended theNeo-Babylonian Empire over most ofWestern Asia.
In the year 1991, Babil Governorate was the center of aShia uprising.[4]
Babylon province is located between 32° to 33.25° north latitude and 44° to 45° east longitude.
The Babil Governorate is divided into four districts:[4]
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | 592,000 | — |
| 1987 | 1,109,574 | +6.48% |
| 1997 | 1,181,751 | +0.63% |
| 2009 | 1,729,666 | +3.23% |
| 2018 | 2,065,042 | +1.99% |
| Source: Citypopulation[5] | ||
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| Geographic | |
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| Other | |
