बगदाद ही इराक देशाची राजधानी व स्वतः एक प्रांतही आहे. २०११ मध्ये बगदादची लोकसंख्या लघबग ७२,१६,०४० होती ज्यामुळे ते इराकमधले सर्वात मोठे शहर, तसेच अरबी देशांत कैरो, इजिप्त पाठोपाठ दुसऱ्या क्रमांकाचे व पश्चिम आशियात तेहरान, इराण नंतर दुसऱ्या क्रमांकाचे शहर ठरते.

Baghdad is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris river. In 762 AD, Baghdad was chosen as the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate, and became its most notable major development project. Within a short time, the city evolved into a significant cultural, commercial, and intellectual center of the Muslim world. This, in addition to housing several key academic institutions, including the House of Wisdom, as well as a multi-ethnic and multi-religious environment, garnered it a worldwide reputation as the "Center of Learning".