Salima Pasha

Salima Murad, universally revered as Salima Pasha, was born into a Jewish family in Baghdad and emerged in the 1920s as the supreme female voice of modern Iraqi song. Prime Minister Nuri al-Said conferred the honorary title of 'Pasha' upon her in recognition of her peerless cultural status, making her the first woman in Iraqi history to hold that honor.

Her home salon in Baghdad was the gathering place for prime ministers, poets, and musicians. She popularized classical Iraqi songs such as 'Ayyuha al-Saqi' and 'Hadha Mu Insaf Minnuk', married the legendary singer Nazem al-Ghazali in 1953, and steadfastly refused to leave Baghdad when other Jewish citizens emigrated, remaining an icon of Iraqi cultural harmony until her death in 1974.