Al Jazira (Arabic, الجزيرة) is the traditional Arabic name for the region of northeastern modern-day Syria and northwestern modern-day Iraq. It covers northern Mesopotamia, extending from the Euphrates to the Tigris. Its major settlements are Mosul, Dayr az Zawr, Ar Raqqah, Al Hasakah and Qamishli. Al Jazira is characterised as a riparian plain, quite distinct from the Syrian Desert and lower-lying central Mesopotamia.
Al Jazira was a province of the Abbasid Caliphate (during the eighth and ninth centuries). This province excluded Mosul, which was the capital of its own province, and extended into the more rugged region south of Lake Van.
