Culture
Popular Culture
Iraq is an interesting country in regaurds to popular culture. They have a very religious based society and so popular culture is not widely accepted. It is really only the younger generation that is accepting popular culture, as seen in the picture to the right. Younger generations are wearing more western based clothing, like Nike, jeans, shorts, skirts, and scarves. Women in Iraq have always worn the traditional Hijab in public, but now they are adopting different forms of clothing. This does not sit well with the elderly society, or Islamic radicals. Some towns have even enforced "fassion police" to keep the old religous standards. The younger generation is embracing this because of globalization. As they see the popular trends, they adjust it their own standards. This is stimulous diffusion. This will most likely continue and Iraq will lose its folk culture, in favor of the popular and fast changing western culture. This will happen as the country gets more modernized and more technologically advanced. More technology means more globalization and more connection to the world. The picture to the right is a Iraq vs. Jordan soccer game. Soccer is a huge sport in most of the world, and is popular culture because it is televised world wide. Soccer is Iraq's main sport, and is most likely so because of the popularity of it around the world. It is an old sport, and very profitable for Iraq as a country. Soccer can bring in revinue and attention if they have a good team. Soccer also has a tough history in Iraq. Saddam Hussin's rein was tough on all sports, including the World Cup soccer team. Players had high expectations, and were physically harmed if they couldn't reach them. Since his downfall, however, soccer has thrived in Iraq. Sadly, there still is violence caused by Islamic radicals over soccer games, since they are viewed as western culture.
Folk Culture
Iraq is the cradel of civiliation. Its culture dates back before recorded history. Some of the strongest surviving folk culture can be seen in the dances and music. The picture to the right is a picture of an Iraqi folk dancing group. This group is dancing to preserve the culture, and tell the story of Iraq. Many dances have lost meaning beyond being important pieces of Iraq's culture. I belive this is because of Iraq's history dating back so long. Geography has changed and kingdoms have rose an fell since some of the dances were made. They are not merely parts of the culture. Much of this cultlure was close to being lost during the late 20th and early 21st century. During Saddam Hussein's rule much of the culture was suppresed for the safety of the dancers. It has lived because of the immense emotional connections that come with music and dances. People get very attached, and will do anything to keep it around. That is why the dances have survived this long. The picture to the right is of a Iraqi band. Traditional Iraqi music is the maqam. The songs are based off Arab poetry and are emotional and slow. The music is influenced by tons of different cultures that surround Iraq, such as Turkish, Persian, Kurdish, and Indian. The songs are extremely interactive with the audience and are very powerful. The songs are believed to have been created in the halls of ancient Arabic kings. This is why they are so powerful. The religion of the region is much more influencial and common in every day life than in our Western world. These songs show the same passion and deep connection that the people have with their religion. The songs are meant to cause blissfullness and harmony. The songs are made with distinctive instruments that are common in Iraq. Many are stringed instruments. This is most likely because the need for many sounds and a wide range of pitch needed for heartwrenching songs. All in all, the songs are deep because of the deep spiritual connection between the people and their religion. They reflect the culture.
Architecture
The architectural styles of Iraq are heavily influenced by the enviornment. Iraq is in a very sandy, arid, and dry enviornment. It has two rivers that run through the western side of the country, and thus has some marshy and wet areas, but is for the most part dry. The building styles reflect older building styles from the 20th century, and lots of connecteed buildings. The pictures above resemble marketplace scenes with close buildings and alley-way roads. This is especially seen on the picture to the right. The close buildings and alleysways are most likely to provide shade and effected use of space. Only so much land is habitable in Iraq, due to mountains and deserts, and so they use their space wisely. Looking at both pictures, there is an obvious color pattern. Much of the housing is tan or white. These colors are common in the building material of the region, and therefore they are common in the buildings. Also, the mud and sand used to make the buildings will create shade and cool homes. Iraq isn't a super rich country, so most homes will not have air conditioning. This shade and cool homes will create a comfortable enviornment to counter the extreme heat that Iraq faces. The picture to the left is along a river, and shows the very box-like and pillar based structures. Many of the structures have pillars and other designs, that have little purpose beyond support and aesthetics. The architecture is also very reliant on mud bricks, like in the picture on the right, or cement, like seen on the left. Also, their architecture has thick walls, and small windows, to promote privacy. The thick walls allow for privacy from the street. Overall, their architecture is very reflective of their surrouding enviornment, whether it is climate or people.
Clothing
The western mind pictures Iraqi clothing as head scarves and long robes and dresses. This is somewhat true, and more conservative citizens of Iraq will wear traditional clothing, but there is a large shift toward more western clothing. Even the most conservative people will wear western clothing under their robes. Iraqi traditional clothing is designed for respect and also convience. It is a lighweight fabric that covers you from the dangerous sun, but isn't so heavy that the wearer gets too hot. You can see from both pictures that the men and women both wear scarves to cover their head and neck. This protects them from the sun. In the womans case, it is religious and respectful to cover your head. Traditionally, the woman wear an abayah to cover their body, a foota to cover their neck and chin, and an asha to cover their hair. This can be seen in the picture to the right. Men and women have different rights in Iraq, and so mens' clothing has less restrictions and less need for covering. Many young boys run around in non-traditional and western clothing. Girls and women, however, take a risk by donning clothing other than their traditional garbs. Many conseratives and radicals disapprove of women not following religous standards for clothing. Men don't always have to wear their traditional clothing. This is most likely because men are dominant in these countries. They will tend to do as they please. The colors for clothing tend to be bland, either black or white. I think this is in relation to the tempurature of where they live. If it is hot and arid, they will don light weight and light colored clothing to stay cool. In colder seasons they will don black clothing to stay warmer. Iraqi clothing is reflective of the climate of the country, and the spiritual views of the people.
Food
Iraq food is has a good mix of vegitables, meats, and grains. Bread, especially flat breads, are popular. Vegitables are comon and get stuffed into pies and breads (left). Meats like lamb and beef are popular. The most common fruit is probably dates. There are some religous taboos on food in Iraq. Their most dominat religion is Islam. In Islam, pork is forbidden, and chicken and cow slaughtered in the incorrect way are forbidden. Birds of pray and meat eating animals are also forbidden. Lastly, foods containing blood are forbidden. This is why lamb is a popular food. It is not a taboo and easy to produce and slaughter. Dates are popular fruits because they are sweet and common. The foods above are Kibbeh with burghul (left) and lamb with rice and pistachios (right). The Kibbeh resembles foods common in Turkey and other surrounding countries. It is noticable that both foods contain grains. Breads are popular because they last long without going bad in the arid and dry enviornment. Sand, heat, and lack of moisture can spoil food and make growing fruits and vegitables hard. The use of bread provides a convenient source of food. lso, both foods contain lamb. This strengthens my point on how lamb is a popular food. Although not used in either of the recipies above, dates are extremely common. They are easy to grow in the area, and convient for a natural sweetener. If sugar is not common, or easy to grow in the area, then dates can act as the natural sweetness. The foods all reflect easy and sustainable use of resources in the region.
Entertainment
The images above are a new amusement park (right) and a bowling alley (right). Both pictures are of new entertainment options that are just now entering Iraq. The western influence is becoming stronger, and western entertainment in becoming much more popular. This is most likely from a push by the younger generation to be with the popular trends from around the world. Also, Iraq is now much safer, with the push against ISIS and the fall of Saddam Hussein. Participating in western activities such as amusement parks or bowling could be dangerous as recent as a few years ago. Bowling is not the only sport for entertainment. Soccer, or football, is also extremely common (see Popular Culture). This western theme of entertainment is rapidly growing, and most likely will continue to grow in Iraq. As religous tolerance of western culture grows, the younger generation will push for more western influence. In this way, more and more bowling alleys, amusement parks, sport arenas, and technological devices will become common. Television is a form of entertainment in Iraq, however it is only fairly recently. Under the rule of Saddam Hussein, Iraq had very limited media. In contrast, today there are many free satelite channels. The most common shows are Egyption and Turkish, however some American/Western shows are also common. Overall, the younger generation is accepting and embracing different, and more modern, forms of entertainment, and in this way it is spreading across Iraq.
Religion
Iraq is 97% muslim. Of this, the Shitte branch makes up a little more than half the muslim population. This means that most, if not all, religious structures are Islamic. The two mosques above are the Karbala (right) and Najaf (left). The Karbala is the resting place of Imam Hussein, a direct decendent of Mohammad. He was martyred in battle and is an important figure in the Islamic religion. The Najaf is the sacred burrial place of Ali ibn Ali Talib. He is the son-in-law of Mohammad and was one of the caliphs of Islam, before being assassinated. He is one of the reasons for the split of the branches in Islam. Upon examining both religious structures, you can imediately see three prominant features. Both have large pillars, a gold (or golden colored) dome, and are encased in a bluish-tan wall. Looking in the background of the Najaf (left) and the wall surrounding the Karbala (right) you can see that it is covered in blue paint. It is also arched and designed similarly. I believe this design is to add asthetic effect and to allow more view of the mosque. The dome is to make the building look bigger on both the outisde and inside. The gold is to show the wealth of the building and to reflect the passion for God. Lastly, the pillars may be bell toweres, or simply large icons to show where the mosque is. Both pictures also show the huge amount of foot traffic and tourism these places get. These are very important places and are the burial place of sacred individuals. For this reason, they are extremely popular, and this plays part in how extravagant both of the mosques appear.
War and Oppression
Iraq has been in struggle and turmoil for a long time. This started in the late 20th century with the rise of the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. The picture on the left is his statue being torn down. On top of oppressing the people and doing very bad and "dictatory" things, he oppressed the Shiite majority of the country. After his fall the Shitte rose to power and oppressed the Sunni minority. During his reign, the country was very oppressed, and he punished anyone who participated in western activites. Brutal punishments and executions awaited all who opposed him or did not follow his rules. The United States went to war with Iraq in 2003 and overturned Saddam. However, this barely fixed the problem because the USA gave power to a corrupt, Shiite, democratic government. In an attempt to fix this and create an Islamic State once more, ISI waged war on the country. Then, with the Syrian crisis, ISI became ISIS, which to this day terrorizes Iraq and the surroundings. This conflict is difficult to analyze without being of the Islamic faith. The radicals like ISIS want an Islamic State. This means they want to control the government and make it to adhere strictly to the principal beliefs of Islam. Iraq is becoming more westernized, and they are fighting against that. This conflict is a circle of bombings and attacks on a corrupt government by a radical and dangerous force. This is the western view of the conflict, however, and my analysis is shallow and inconsiderate as I can not come close to seeing the problem from a fair perspective. However, this conflict has damaged the culture. Buddhist statues from centuries ago were torn down during Saddam's reign. Basic rights and freedoms have been torn from the people. The culture has been silenced, for fear of being punished for your beliefs or ideals. This silence of culture could result in the loss of some cultural heritage, if it is not revived soon.