The Vilayet of Baghdad (Arabic: ولاية بغداد; Ottoman Turkish: ولايت بغداد, romanized'Vilâyet-i Bagdad; Modern Turkish: Bağdat Vilâyeti) was a first-level administrative division (vilayet) of the Ottoman Empire in modern-day central Iraq. The capital was Baghdad.

Baghdad Vilayet
Arabic: ولاية بغداد
Ottoman Turkish: ولايت بغداد
Vilâyet-i Bagdad
Vilayet of Ottoman Empire
1864–1918
Flag of Baghdad Vilayet

The Baghdad Vilayet in 1900
CapitalBaghdad
DemonymBagdadi
Area 
• 1885[1]
141,160 km2 (54,500 sq mi)
Population 
• 1885[1]
850,000
History 
1864
1918
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Baghdad Eyalet
Mandatory Iraq
Today part ofIraq

At the beginning of the 20th century it reportedly had an area of 54,503 square miles (141,160 km2), while the preliminary results of the first Ottoman census of 1885 (published in 1908) gave the population as 850,000.[1] The accuracy of the population figures ranges from "approximate" to "merely conjectural" depending on the region from which they were gathered.[1]

Demographics

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1. Arab man from Shammar Tribe
2. Arab man from Zubaid tribe
3. Muslim lady from Baghdad
Census of the Ottoman Empire (1906-1907).[2]
Baghdad vilayet Male Female Total
Muslims 159,129 3,814 162,943
Armenians 373 373
Armenian Catholics 723 723
Protestants 40 40
Latins 55 2 57
Syriacs 327 327
Jews 13,621 94 13,715
Total 174,268 3,910 178,178

The last Ottoman Census of 1917 stated that in Baghdad Sanjak out of the 202,000 population, 88,000 were Jews, 40 000 Kurd, 8,000 Christians, 800 Persian and rest Arab and other Muslims.[3]

Population of Baghdad according to Ottoman Yearbook 1917 [3]
Sanjak/Kaza Jews Kurd Christians Arab,Turks and other Muslims Persian Total
Baghdad Sanjak 88,000 44,000 8,000 101,400 800 202,000

History

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In 1869, Midhat Pasha was inaugurated as governor of Baghdad. He extended Ottoman jurisdiction as far as the town of al-Bida, after he had established his authority in Nejd. In January 1872, Qatar was designated as a kaza under the Sanjak of Nejd. However, relations with the Ottoman authorities became hostile in both al-Bida and Nejd, leading eventually to the Battle of Al Wajbah, at which Ottomans were defeated.[4]

Administrative divisions

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A map showing the administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire in 1317 Hijri, 1899 Gregorian, Including the Vilayet of Baghdad and its sanjaks
 
Map of subdivisions of Baghdad Vilayet in 1907

Sanjaks or Districts of the vilayet:[5]

Sanjak of Bagdad, four zones
Sanjak Currently
Baghdad Sanjak Baghdad
Divaniye Sanjak Al Diwaniyah
Kerbela Sanjak Karbala
Najd Sanjak June 1871 - 1875, then part of the Basra Vilayet) [6]

Governors

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Governor Al-Shakir Effendi's family in Baghdad, 1901

Notable governors of the Vilayet:[7]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Asia by A. H. Keane, page 460
  2. ^ Karpat, Kemal (1985). Ottoman Population, 1830-1914: Demographic and Social Characteristics. pp. 164–165.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ a b Rejwan, Nissim (January 2010). "In old Baghdad". The Last Jews in Baghdad: Remembering a Lost Homeland. University of Texas Press. p. 1. ISBN 9780292774421.
  4. ^ H Rahman (2012-11-12). The Emergence Of Qatar. Routledge. pp. 93–96. ISBN 978-1-136-75369-5. Retrieved 2013-05-22.
  5. ^ Bagdad Vilayeti | Tarih ve Medeniyet
  6. ^ Worldstatesmen — Saudi Arabia
  7. ^ World Statesmen — Iraq
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