Lorestan province

Map showing Lorestan in Iran

File:Falakolaflaak.jpg

Falak-ol-aflak, built by the Sassanids, is almost 1800 years old. During the Pahlavi era, it was used as a prison.

Lorestan or Luristan comprises a province and an historic territory of western Iran amidst the Zagros Mountains. The center of the Lorestan Province is the city of Khorramabad. The famous Falak-ol-Aflak Castle is situated inside this city.

Lurestan covers an area of 28,392 km². The major cities in this province are: Khorramabad, Borujerd, Aligoodarz, Dorood, Koohdasht, Azna, Delfan, Selseleh, and Pol-e-Dokhtar.

In 1996, the province had a population of approximately 1.6 million people.

Geography and climate

The city of Borujerd.

In the wider sense (as its name implies), Luristan refers to the land of the Lurs, namely that part of western Persia bounded by Iraq on the west and extending for about 400 miles on a northwest to southeast axis from Kermanshah to Fars, with a breadth of 100 to 140 miles. The terrain consists chiefly of mountains, with numerous ranges, part of the Zagros chain, running northwest to southeast. The central range has many summits which almost reach the line of perpetual snow, rising to 13,000 feet and more, and it feds the headwaters of Iran's most important rivers, as the Zayendeh-rud, Jarahi, Karun, Dix, Abi, Karkheh. Between the higher ranges lie many fertile plains and low hilly, well-watered districts.

The highest point of the province is Oshtoran Kooh peak at 4,050 m. The low-lying areas being in the southern most sector of the province, are approximately 500 m above sea level.

The climate is generally sub-humid continental with winter precipitation, a lot of which falls as snow (Köppen Csa). Because it lies on the westernmost slopes of the Zagros Mountains, annual precipitation in Lorestan is among the highest anywhere in Iran south of the Elburz Mountains. At Khorramabad, the average annual precipitation totals 530 millimetres (21 inches) of rainfall equivalent, whilst up to 1270 millimetres (50 inches) may fall on the highest mountains. The months June to September are usually absolutely dry, but Khorramabad can expect 4 inches of rainfall equivalent in December and January.

Temperatures vary widely with the seasons and between day and noght. At Khorramabad, summer temperatures typically range from a minumum of 12°C (54°F) to a hot maximum of 32°C (90°F). In winter, they range from a minimum of -2°C (28°F) to a chilly maximum of 8°C (46°F).

History

EmamZadeh Jafar, built during the Ilkhanid period, in Borujerd, has a peculiar style of architecture rarely seen in other provinces in Iran.

Lurestan province is one of the oldest regions of Iran. In the third and fourth millennium BCE, migrant tribes settled down in the mountainous area of the Zagros mountains.

Some researchers claim that the Lurs are a branch of the Iranian people who migrated to this region from east of Caspian Sea in the beginning of the first millennium BCE. The current inhabitants of Lurestan have intermingled with the Bakhtiaris and the Kurds. The languages of the inhabitants of the province are called Luri and Laki. The Lakas have mainly settled in Koohdasht and Alishtar and the Lurs around Khorramabad. Their dialect possesses much distinct grammar and vocabulary.

People and culture

Ethnologists classify the Lurs as indigenous Iranians, closely related to the Kurds. As stated above, their language, called Luri, is closely related to Persian, and there are two distinct dialects of this language. Lur-e-Bozourg (Greater Lur), which is spoken by the Bakhtiaris, and Lur-e-Kuchik (Lesser Lur), spoken by the Lurs themselves. Prior to the 20th century the majority of Lurs were nomadic herders, with an urban minority residing in the city of Khorramabad. There were several attempts by the Pahlavi governments to forcibly settle the nomadic segment of the Lur population. Under Reza Shah, these campaigns tended to be unsuccessful. The last Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, used less forceful methods along with economic incentives, which met with greater, though not complete, success. By the mid-1980s the vast majority of Lurs had been settled in towns and villages throughout the province, or had migrated to the major urban centres. In Khuzestan, Lur tribes are primarily concentrated in the northern part of the province.

Northern region

Lur man in traditional clothing, 1921

In the northern part of Luristan, formerly known as Lur-e-kuchik (Little Luristan), live the Feili Lurs, divided into the Pishkuh (cis-montane) Lurs in the east and Pushtkuh (ultra-montane) Lurs in the west adjoining Iraqi territory. Little Luristan maintained its independence under a succession of princes of the Khurshidi dynasty, known as atabegs, from 55 CE to the beginning of the 17th century. Shah Abbas I then removed the last atabeg, Shah Verdi Khan, and entrusted the government of the province to Hossein Khan, the chief of a rival tribe, with the title of vali in exchange for that of atabeg. The descendants of Hossein Khan retained the title as governors of the Pushtkuh Lurs, to whom only the denomination of Feili now applies.

Southern region

The southern part of Luristan, formerly known as Lur-e-Buzurg (Great Luristan) comprises the Bakhtiari Division of the province of Khuzestan and the districts of the Mamasennis and Kuhgilus which are located in Fars Province. At one time, Great Luristan formed an independent state under the Fazlevieh atabegs from 1160 until 1424 CE. Its capital, Idaj, survives as mounds and ruins at Malamir, 60 miles southeast of Shushtar.

Celebrities of Lorestan

• AliReza Shekarchi, Kamancheh player
• Shamirza Moradi, Oboe player
• Nasrollah Kasraian, Photographer
• AliReza Hosseinkhani, Kamancheh player
• Reza Saghaee, Singer
• Nasser Gholamrezai, Filmmaker
• Dr. Sekandar Amanollahi Baharvand, Social-Cultural author
• Ali Mohammad Saki, Social-Cultural author
• Esfandiar Ghazanfari Amraee, poet.
• Ayatollah Rouhollah Boroujerdi, Religious grand cleric, master of Imam Khomeini.
• Ayatollah Rouhollah Kamalvand, senior religious cleric.
• Hamid Izadpanah, poet.
• Dr Abdolhosein Zarrinkoub, the famous writer, historian, critic
• Dr Sayyed Ja’far Shahidi, writer, historian, critic
• Abdol Mohammad Ayati, poet
• Mehrdad Avesta, poet
• Mola Hagh-Ali Siah Poosh, poet (1323 AH)
• Mola Parishan, poet (7th century AH)

Lorestan today

Attractions

Lorestan has 263 sites of historical and cultural significance according to Iran's Cultural Heritage Organization.

Some of the more popular attractions are:

• 6th Century Inscription, Khoram Abad
• Falak-ol-Aflak Castle
• Sassanid Kashgan Bridge, Koohdasht
• Khoram Abad Tower
• Borujerd Jame' Mosque
• Imamzadeh Jafar, Borujerd
• Soltani Mosque, Borujerd
• Borujerd Jame' Mosque
• Gahar Lake, Aligoodarz
• Kiyou Lake, Khoram Abad
• Oshtoran Kooh Mountain, Aligoodarz

Colleges and Universities

• 1. Lorestan University of Medical Sciences
  2. University of Lorestan
  3. Islamic Azad University of Borujerd
  4. Islamic Azad University of Aligudarz
  5. Islamic Azad University of Khorram Abad
  6. Payam Nour University of Poldokhtar
  7. Payam Nour University of Alashtar
  8. Payam Nour University of boroujerd
  9. Al-ghadir Applicational Scientific Comprehensive University
  10. Shahid Madani school of Khoramabad
  11. Ma’soumeh School of Khoramabad

See also

• Demographics of Iran
• Ethnic minorities in Iran
• Falak-ol-Aflak Castle

External links

• luristan-tr.blogspot.com (a weblog dedicated to turkish people of loristan, ilam, chaharmahal, kohgiluye provinces.)
• Lorestan Province Cultural Heritage Organization
• Lorestan.Org Information portal
• Lorestan Governor's Office
• Agricultural Jihad Organization of Lorestan Province
• Zagros Online, a website from Borujerd
• Bakhtiari Tribe website
• Lorestan Music
• Lorestan Department of Education
• Lorestan Urban Utilities Company
• Lorestan Rural Utilities Company

References

• This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)