Official name of Iraq is the Republic of Iraq. Iraq is a country in the Southwest Asia encompassing most of the areas in Mesopotamia. Sumerian civilization (the earliest, 4500 B.C. ~ 4000 B.C.), Akkadian, Babylon, and Assyrian civilizations are all arose from this region. With its time-honored history, Iraq keeps diverse historic remains and archeological relics. Most relics include Ure and Ureq (the city-state of Sumer), Babylon (the capital of Babylonian Empire), Ashur (the capital of the Assyrian Empire) and Hatra. Ashur and Hatra are UNESCO designated World Heritage sites. The oldest written law, the Code of Hammurabi, was also excavated from the Babylon area. Iraq holds massive amount of oil and natural gas.