Asia · True size
🇮🇶 Iraq
1.7×
Iraq is drawn 1.7× smaller on the old map than it really is.
True area
437,468 km²
On the old map
1.7×
drawn smaller than true
Distortion rank
#68
of 176 · 1 = most inflated
Share of world land
0.33%
On the old map
Iraq looks about the same size as Gabon on the old map — it isn't.
Shapes above: Iraq at the size the old map gives it, next to Gabon's true size. Iraq's real area is 437,468 km² — Gabon is 260,719 km².
By area
Iraq is big enough to fit Norway inside it, by area — 384,269 km² combined.
How many fit?
The United Kingdom fits inside Iraq 1.8 times. United Arab Emirates fits inside Iraq 6.1 times.
Why the old map gets it wrong
The old map stretches land more the further it is from the equator — twice the area at 45°, four times at 60°. Iraq's middle sits at 33°N, where the stretch is about 1.4×.
Area stretch on the old map at each latitude, equator to 80°. The number at the top of this page compares Iraq's whole share of the old map with its real share of the world's land.