Arbil: Encyclopedia II - Arbil - History

Arbil - History

Arbil - Ancient history

Urban life at Arbil can be dated back to at least twenty-third century BCE. The city's archaeological museum contains only pre-Islamic objects. The name Arbil/Hawler was mentioned in the Sumerian holy writings (about 2000 B.C.) as "Orbelum" or "Urbilum". Also some think it come from the Akkadian arba'ū ilū, meaning four gods. The city was a centre for the worship of the Assyrian goddess Ishtar. In classical times, the city was known by its Aramaic name, Arbela. The Battle of Gaugamela, in which Alexander the Great defeated Darius III of Persia in 331 BCE, took place about one hundred kilometres (eighty miles) west of Arbil. After the battle, Darius managed to flee to the city, and, somewhat inaccurately, the confrontation is sometimes known as the Battle of Arbela. However, Arbil remained an important provincial capital of Persia throughout the centuries and dynasties. Arbela served as the capital of the independent kingdom of Adiabene in the first century CE. Arbil is also the birth place of the famous Islamic historian and writer of 13th century, Ibn Khallikan.

The modern town of Arbil stands on a tell topped by an Ottoman fort. During the mediaeval period, Arbil became a major trading centre on the route between Baghdad and Mosul, a role which it still plays today with important road and rail links to the outside world.

Arbil - Modern history

The parliament of the Kurdish Autonomous Region was established in Hewlêr/Arbil in 1970 after negotiations between the Iraqi government and the Kurdish militants, but was effectively controlled by Saddam Hussein until the Kurdish uprising at the end of the 1991 Gulf War. The legislature ceased to function effectively in the mid-1990s when fighting broke out between the two main Kurdish factions, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK). The city was captured by the KDP in 1996 with the assistance of the Iraqi government of Saddam Hussein.

During the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, a United States special forces task force was headquatered just outside Arbil. The city was the scene of rapturous celebrations on April 10, 2003 after the fall of Baghdad.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "History", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki