Wikipedia is an online collection of knowledge written by volunteer editors from every corner of the globe. Available in nearly 300 languages, Wikipedia is a place to learn about virtually any topic -- from ancient history to science to the arts -- in your local language, for free, and without advertising. Wikipedia editors use reliable sources to support information that is included in Wikipedia articles, so readers can explore the sources that verify the facts. Wikipedia is completely non-profit, independent, and maintained by everyday people around the world.
Wikipedia in Iraq is supported by a local community of volunteer editors in almost every major city of the country. In 2015, Sarmad and Ravan organized the first series of workshops in Erbil to teach Iraqi people how to edit Wikipedia. The workshops led to 600 new articles and more than 12,000 edits primarily to Arabic and Kurdish Wikipedia.
In October 2015, this community launched the first formalized Wikimedia group from Iraq, the Iraqi Wikimedians user group (a formalized Wikimedia affiliate group that has been recognized by the global Wikimedia community of editors). Today, the majority of unique device visits to Wikipedia in Iraq come from mobile devices.
Worldwide, Wikipedia is recognized as an important learning resource, but it also offers a platform to share knowledge with the world. Edits from any country contribute to the world’s common knowledge repository, seen by hundreds of millions of people every month.
This allows many to learn from what just a few people might otherwise know. As more voices contribute to Wikipedia, it becomes a better representation of the diverse cultures, history, people, viewpoints, and perspectives of our world.
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