Sulaymaniyah

Sulaymaniyah ( as-sulaymānīyä; Kurdish: Silêmanî, historic: Sharezûr) is a city in the east of Iraqi Kurdistan. It is situated in the northeast of Iraq, and is the capital of Sulaymaniyah Governorate, part of the Kurdish Autonomous Region (Kurdistan Region in the new Iraqi Constitution ^*).

It was founded in 1784 by a Kurdish prince known as Ibrahim Pasha Baban who named it for his father Sulaiman Pasha (Sulaiman is the Islamic version of the name Solomon). Since being founded as the capital of a powerful Kurdish principality it has grown to about 800,000 people. It is the cultural centre of the Sorani-speaking Kurds and an important economic centre for Iraqi Kurdistan; it is also known for its strong economic ties with Iran.

Since liberation in 1991, it has been administered by Kurdish authorities and serves as one of the regional capitals of the Kurdistan Regional government (KRG). the city is quickly becoming a tourist attraction for Iraqis and other middle Easterners due to its relative prosperity, security and undeniable natural beauty. Qadir Hamajan Aziz (known as Hakim Qadir) is the current mayor of Sulaimani and the president of Sulaimani Municipality Council after winning the 2001 election as the candidate of Patriotic Union of Kurdistan of which he is a senior member. Hakim Qadir is working hard with his council to promote the public services and better education opportunities for Sulaimani citizens. Therefore, he thinks establishing relationships with other councils will be of great benefit. Sulaimani has, so far, a Sister City Programme with several cities around world such as Tucson, Arizona in the USA, Amman in Jordan, and soon Munakata, Fukuoka in Japan.

Religious significance

Sulaymaniyah was the city Bahá'u'lláh, prophet of the Bahá'í Faith, came to live in during his sojourn to the mountain of Sar-Galú in Kurdistan.

Still pursuing a solitary existence in the mountains near the city, a certain Shaykh Isma'il, leader of the Khalidiyyih Order, visited Bahá'u'lláh and succeeded in obtaining his consent to transfer his residence to the city of Sulaymaniyah (Shoghi Effendi, God Passes By, p. 121). It was here that word spread to Baghdad, that a stranger, a Persian, renowned for his wisdom and learning appeared in that city. His family and friends recognized that this could be none other than Bahá'u'lláh, and the petition of all secured his return to Baghdad.

Kurdish culture in Sulaimaniya

Sulaimaniya is considered as the center of the Sorani Kurdish culture in Kurdistan. Development of Sorani as a modern literary language started in this city around early 19th century.

Kurdish writers of 19th century

Nali, (1798-1855)
Mahwi, (1830-1906)

Kurdish writers of 20th century

Sister Cities

Tucson, Arizona in the USA

How This Partnership Began

Twelve years ago, Dr. Amed N. Mamood walked into the office of International Programs, on the University of Arizona Campus to search for a venue to establish relations with Kurdish Universities. That request was forwarded to the state Dept., where it was denied. I was advised that the focus at that time was on the former Soviet Union. It was suggested that I submit my request at a later time. In January of 2004, the Tucson Mayor's office was contacted with a request for a letter on behalf of the citizens of Tucson to acknowledge the surviving citizen of Halabja, in Kurdistan Region, in recognition of the 16th anniversary of the brutal chemical attacks by Saddam Hussein. Mayor Robert Walkup graciously obliged, and his letter was warmly received and published in the local newspaper to all the citizen of Sulaimani. The seed of this partnership has taken 12 years to germinate, but we are close to harvesting fruit, well worth the wait.

Goal and Vision

Practicing people to people diplomacy through education, health, culture and economic development is the goal of Tucson-Sulaimani Partnership. Our main goal is to establish a strong Tucson-Sulaimani Sister Cities relationship, that will ultimately, build solid economic development ties between the State of Arizona and the entire Kurdistan region. Therefore, the purpose of our program is to fulfil the needs of Sulaimani community as they think essential to their community.

Activities

In October 2004, the Mayor of Sulaimani Mayor Qadir Aziz visited Tucson for just under a week, and met with his counterparts. In April 2005 we had the privilege to host in Tucson, the son of the newly elected Iraqi president Mr. Qubad Talabany, who is the Kurdistan Regional Government US representative in Washington DC. Mr. Talabany expressed his full support to our cause of a Tucson-Sulaimani Partnership. In June 2005, 2 faculty members from the University of Sulaimani visited Tucson for 2 weeks and met with their counterparts at the University of Arizona, College of Agriculture and the US DA, Agriculture Research Center. This Summer in July 2006 a team of physicians from Sulaimani Teaching Hospital will be coming to Tucson for training. In Fall of 2006 a delegation from the Chamber of Sulaimani will be visiting Tucson.

Image:tucson_slemani_01.jpg|from L to R(...,...,Qadir Hamajan) Image:Tucson_slemani.jpg|from L to R(...,...,Qubad Talabani, Dr. Amed)

Amman in Jordan,
Munakata, Fukuoka in Japan.

Statistics

Coordinates: 35.55°N, 45.45°E
Location above sea level: 2895 feet (Britannica 1911).
Historical population: about 12,000 (1906 estimate, Britannica 1911)

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