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Explore the richness of Iraqi dance, music and culture across time and communities.

E X P L O R E B Y T O P I C

A man in a black suit standing behind a music stand with a microphone, smiling, with a colorful decorative backdrop featuring painted horses on a blue brick wall.

Voices of Iraq

An interior room decorated with traditional Middle Eastern or Moroccan style. Features low seating with patterned cushions, ornate rugs, hanging lanterns, potted plants, and decorative wall hangings.

Lyrics Translations

Article

Close-up of ancient mosaic artwork featuring human figures and musical instruments, with detailed small stone pieces in various colors.

Mesopotamian dance

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Dance has been part of Mesopotamian civilisation for more than five thousand years. Although no written techniques or choreography survive, archaeologists have uncovered reliefs, cylinder seals, statues and texts that show music, ritual and communal dancing played an important role in religious and social life. This article brings together some of the most accessible evidence currently available.

Featured: Bashar Hanna OAM, President of the Australian Mesopotamian Cultural Association.

A man with a beard and mustache smiling, wearing a cream blazer and a maroon shirt, indoors with a blue and gold decorated wall featuring ancient animal reliefs in the background.

Voices of Iraq

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The song tells the story of unrequited love. The protagonist reproaches his beloved for rejecting him or calling him “old,” when in reality his love for her has turned his hair grey and made him age prematurely.

Ghalat Omri
غلط عمري

Translation in English & Spanish.

C O M I N G S O O N...

History

Group of women and children in a rural setting with goats, some women are dancing, and some are sitting on the ground.

The story behind

Iraq's Domari Communities

Voices of Iraq

A colorful painting of seven women in traditional attire, sitting and lying on a sofa, with various objects around them, in a vibrant interior setting.
Ruins of an ancient structure with crumbling brick walls and steps, surrounded by sparse desert vegetation.

Mesopotamia

Culture

Iraqi artist Shakir Al Alousi (born in Iraq in 1962). Traditional scenes of Iraqi women gathering, featuring folkloric clothing and musical instruments like tambourines.

Colorful painting of seven women in traditional clothing, sitting and standing in a decorated room, some playing musical instruments and others holding accessories, with patterned fabrics and detailed background elements.


Shakir Alousi

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Discover the next collaborator

Cozy room with Middle Eastern decor, including a lute, open book, teapot, glass of tea, stacks of books, tapestry, and shelves with plants and decorative items, illuminated by warm sunlight.