Amedi (also spelled "Amediyah" or "Amadia" or "al-Amadiyah" or other variations), is a small Kurdish city in the Iraqi Dahuk Governorate of Iraqi Kurdistan. The town is perched on a mountain, formerly only accessible by a narrow stairway cut into the rock. For several centuries, after the expulsion of the caliphs from Baghdad, it was ruled by a pasha, a prince who was from the royal Abbas family, reputed to be one of the richest rulers in the region. The history of this city goes back to 3000 years B.C., since it has always been a strategic place as it is built on the flat top of a mountain.