Al-Qandarjiya (the shoemaker/shoemaking profession)
The hand-crafting of durable, elegant leather footwear in Old Mosul, a profession known as Al-Qandarjiya that has been part of Iraq's identity for centuries, echoing through the city's narrow alleyways in the rhythmic beat of hammers on leather. The craft arrived with the great Islamic expansions of the seventh and eighth centuries and flourished during the Abbasid Caliphate, when Baghdad stood as the center of the known world; families devoted their lives to mastering the transformation of rawhide into durable, elegant footwear, with knowledge handed down through master-apprentice traditions across generations. Before the recent conflict, Baghdad had more than 250 shoemaking factories, while Mosul, historically the proud heart of Iraq's shoemaking industry, boasted more than 50; by the end of the war, Mosul's factories had dwindled to fewer than 10, leaving thousands of shoemakers unemployed and their specialized skills at genuine risk of vanishing entirely. Saad Abdul Aal, a 58-year-old artisan whose hands remain quick and sure despite the passing years, has directly described his half-century in the trade: 'Our work started over 40 years ago. I learned the profession, worked hard at it, fell in love with it, and I've stayed with it ever since.' His own Saad Leather Shoe Factory today stands among the main suppliers of Iraqi-made shoes to Mosul and the wider northern province. The turning point for his and other displaced artisans' businesses came through the International Organization for Migration's Enterprise Development Fund-Tameer program, which provided financial grants and training specifically to displaced entrepreneurs and returnees seeking to revive small and medium-sized enterprises lost during the conflict, including homes, savings, businesses, staff, and equipment. This support allowed Abdul Aal to purchase sewing and pressing machines, reopen his workshop, and hire staff once again; he now produces approximately four pairs of shoes a day, fewer than before the war but enough to sustain his business. Facing fierce competition from cheap imports, Abdul Aal insists Iraqi craftsmanship still holds a genuine edge: 'Our shoes are genuine leather; they last.'
Risk level: Critically Endangered · Not independently inscribed
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