Maysan Governorate

Maysan Governorate (Arabic: ميسان Maysān‎) is a governorate in southeastern Iraq, bordering Iran. Its administrative centre is the city of Amarah. Prior to 1976 it was known as Amara Province.

Etymology

This region was called Messène (Μεσσήνη) by Ancient Greeks (Strabo), Mays̲h̲an in Syriac. Mēs̲h̲ān in Middle Persian and Parthian (𐭌𐭉𐭔𐭍 myšn), Mēs̲h̲un in Armenian, Maysān (ميسان) in Arabic, and T’iao-tche (Chaldaea) in the Han sources. The earliest references are from the first century AD.

History

Alexander the Great founded the town of Charax Spasinu in 324 B.C. in the governorate. The town later became the capital of the Characene kingdom. It now exists as the ruins of Naysan.

The area suffered greatly during the Iran–Iraq War, during which it was a major battlefield, and again after the 1991 Iraqi uprising.

Provincial Government

In 2007, the governor was Adil Muhawdar Radi . He was preceded by Muhammad Shiya al-Sudani.

The current governor is Ali Dawai Lazem, a supporter of Muqtada al-Sadr. He is the only provincial governor in Iraq belonging to the Sadrist Movement. Though he is a Shi'a, he is a non-sectarian and has said "It doesn't make a difference if you are Sunni or Shi'ite or Christian. I don't differentiate between anyone." He has been called Iraq's most popular politician.