Mosul

Mosul
الموصل
Top to bottom, left to right:
View over Tigris river, an old house in Mosul, Mor Mattai Monastery, Umayyad Mosque (Al-Musaffi), temple of Maran, Hatra, Nineveh Walls and Mosul Corniche
Nicknames: 
Nīnwē ܢܝ݂ܢܘܹܐ
The Pearl of the North
Mosul is located in Iraq
Mosul
Mosul
Location in Iraq
Mosul is located in West and Central Asia
Mosul
Mosul
Mosul (West and Central Asia)
Coordinates: 36°20′30″N 43°7′45″E / 36.34167°N 43.12917°E / 36.34167; 43.12917
Country Iraq
GovernorateNineveh
DistrictMosul
Government
 • TypeMayor–council government
 • BodyNineveh Governorate
 • MayorZuhair Al-Araji
Area
 • Total
180 km2 (69 sq mi)
Elevation
223 m (732 ft)
Population
 (2023)
 • Total
1,792,000
 • Rank2nd in Iraq
 • Density10,000/km2 (26,000/sq mi)
Demonym(s)Mosuli
Maslawi
Time zoneUTC+3 (AST)
Area code60
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Mosul is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad and situated on the banks of Tigris. The ruins of the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh, once the largest city in the world, are on the east side of the city.

Due to its strategic and central location, the city has traditionally served as a hub of international commerce and travel in the region. It is considered as one of the historically and culturally significant cities of the Arab world. The North Mesopotamian Arabic spoken in Mosul is known as Maslawi and is widely spoken in the region. Together with the Nineveh Plains, Mosul is a historical center of the Assyrians. The surrounding region is ethnically and religiously diverse; a large majority of the city is Arabs, with Kurds, Assyrians, Turkmens, Shabaks, and other minorities comprising the population. Sunni Islam is the largest religion but there are a sizeable number of Christians and Yazidis as well as adherents of other Muslim sects such as Twelver Shi'ism and Shabakism, and in the past, Iraqi Jews.

The metropolitan area has grown from the old city on the western side to encompass substantial areas on both the "Left Bank" (east side) and the "Right Bank" (west side), as locals call the two respective sides of the Tigris. Historically, essential products of the area included marble and oil. The region around Mosul is rich in oil reserves. Mosul is home to the University of Mosul and its renowned Medical College, one of the Middle East's largest educational and research centers. The city is also home to historic mosques, Christian sites, synagogues and Yazidi temples.