The
modern city of Sulaymaniyah was founded on 14 November 1784 by the Kurdish
prince Ibrahim Pasha Baban who named it after his father Sulaiman Pasha.
Because it was founded as the capital of a powerful Kurdish principality,
Sulaymaniyah has developed into a large city with a population of more than
1,500,000 people. It is an important economic center for northern Iraq and has
been named the cultural center for Sorani-speaking Kurds continuously since
1992
