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Journal of Social Archaeology
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From Pan-Arabism to Saddam Hussein's cult of personality

Ancient Mesopotamia and Iraqi national ideology

Kamyar Abdi

Department of Anthropology, Dartmouth College, USA, kamyar.abdi{at}dartmouth.edu

This article explores the nationalist ideologies in Iraq from the end of the Ottoman era to the fall of the Ba'ath regime in 2003, with emphasis on how Iraq's past, especially ancient Mesopotamia, was used by various Iraqi regimes to promote their political agendas. The article particularly focuses on the developments of Pan-Arabism in Iraq and the formation of an Iraqi nationalist ideology under the Republic and the Ba'ath regime. It also considers the cult of personality that developed around Saddam Hussein by selecting elements from the ancient past and projecting a whimsical image of Saddam Hussein as the latest manifestation of a great line of Mesopotamian leader-heroes. The article explores how archaeology and archaeological discoveries fit into these broader social, cultural, political, and ideological developments.

Key Words: cult of personality • Iraq • Mesopotamia • nationalism • Pan-Arabism • Saddam Hussein

Journal of Social Archaeology, Vol. 8, No. 1, 3-36 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/1469605307086076
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