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historical district in the central Alborz, northwestern Māzandarān KOJUR, historical district in the central Alborz, northwestern Māzandarān. i. Historical Geography Topography. The historical district of Kojur covers roughly a quadrangle (about 55 km by 40 km) bounded by the Caspian Sea on the north, the Čālus River on the west, Nur valley on the south, and Suledeh valley on the east. Its exact contours have always been a subject for debate owing to recurrent renaming, administrative changes, and inaccurate cartog…

ḴODĀYDĀDZĀDA, BĀBĀ-YUNOS (Tajik, Bobo­yunus Ḵudoydodzoda; b. Baljovan, ca. 1870-75; d. Baljovan, 27 May 1945; Figure 1), Tajik folk poet and Köroğlu singer.Bābā-Yunos Ḵodāydādzāda was born in the village of Kāsatarāš, in Baljovān district (subsequently renamed Sovet, then Timur Malek), a mainstay of Tajik folk literature in the mountainous northern Kulāb (q.v.) province. He received little formal education other than learning music and poetic meters from his maternal uncle and later from master Baljovāni folk singers ( ḥāfeẓ) such as Šokurmast, Mirzā-ye Ḵāl, and Nur-ʿAl…

KIĀ , ṢĀDEQ (b. Tehran, 15 May 1920; d. Missoula, Montana, 1 March 2002), educator, lexicologist, and the president of the second Persian Language Academy (Farhangestān-e zabān-e Irān; see FARHANGESTAN).Born Moḥammad-Ṣādeq to a family with Māzandarāni roots who were in the government service for generations, Kiā studied at Adab and Ṯarwat schools and then at the Dār-al-Fonun, which he finished in 1938 (ʿĀqeli, III, p. 1300). He intended to study medicine and chemistry but, eventually having decided to pursue his love for th…

NIMĀ YUŠIJ, pen name of Moḥammad-ʿAli Nuri Esfandiāri (b. Yuš, in the Nur district of Māzandarān, 21 Ābān 1276/11 November 1897; d. Tehran, 23 Dey 1336/13 February 1958), 20th-century poet, noted for his pivotal role in demarcating the boundaries between classical and modern in Persian poetry. This article is divided into five sections (with a combined bibliography after the last section):i. Life. ii. Persian poetry. iii. The Ṭabari poems. iv. Fiction. v. Literary criticism.i. Life Nimā Yušij was the eldest son of Ebrāhim Khan Nuri, a wealthy landowner of Yuš engaged …

the dialect spoken in the village of Keša, near Naṭanz, in Isfahan province. KEŠAʾI DIALECT, the dialect spoken in the village of Keša, near Naṭanz, in Isfahan province. Keša village. Keša (endonym Kiša) is located in the Ṭarqrud district, Naṭanz sub-province, Isfahan province. Its geographical coordinates are lat 51° 47ʹ N, long 33° 23ʹ E, elev 2,430 m above sea level. Together with Ṭarq and Ṭār, Keša is one of the three principal villages of the Ṭarqrud valley on the southern slopes of Mt. Karkas. Situated at the upper en…

the largest river and the only navigable waterway in Iran. It rises in the Baḵtiāri Zagros mountains west of Isfahan, flows out of the central Zagros range, traverses the Khuzestan plain, and joins the Shatt al-Arab.A version of this article is available in printVolume XV, Fascicle 6, pp. 629-633 KARUN RIVER (Rud-e Kārun), the largest river and the only navigable waterway in Iran. It flows out of the central Zagros range, traverses the Khuzestan plain, and joins the Shatt al-Arab before the latter discharges into the Persian Gulf. This entry wi…

a province in western Iran; also the name of its principal city and capital.A version of this article is available in printVolume XVI, Fascicle 3, pp. 315KERMANSHAH i. Geography Physical geography. Kermanshah Province, situated in western Iran, spreads over an area of 25,000 km2 (9,560 square miles, roughly the size of Vermont), or 1.5 percent of the total area of the country (Figure 1). It lies between lat 45.5° and 48° E, long 33.7° and 35.3° N (parallels that cut across the Mediterranean Sea and southern United States).Most of the surface of the province lies within the Zagros …

ancient province and old city in central Iran. Isfahan city has served as one of the most important urban centers on the Iranian Plateau since ancient times.A version of this article is available in printVolume XIII, Fascicle 6, pp. 613-675 and Volume XIV, Fascicle 1, 2, pp. 1-119 ISFAHAN, ancient province and old city in central Iran (Middle Pers. “Spahān,” New Pers. “Eṣfahān”). Isfahan city has served as one of the most important urban centers on the Iranian Plateau since ancient times and has gained, over centuries of urbanization, many si…

province of Iran located between Fars and Sistan va Balučestān; also the name of its principal city and capital.A version of this article is available in printVolume XVI, Fascicle 3, pp. 246-315 KERMAN (Kermān), a province in southeastern Iran; also the name of one of its sub-provinces as well as that of its principal city and capital.KERMAN i. Geography Physical geography. Kerman province is situated in southeast Iran, to the southwest of the Kavir-e Lut (see DESERT). Covering an area of 182,000 km2 (70,000 square miles), Kerman is the largest province in Persia, constitutin…

provincial capital and former province of Tajikistan. KURGAN TEPE (Qūrḡon teppa in Tajik orthography; Kurgan-Tyube in Russian), provincial capital and former province of Tajikistan. The province is bounded by the mountain ranges of Bābātāḡ in the east and Tēraklitāḡ and Qarātāḡ on the west, and the river Panj on the south. The inhabitable lands lie along the two fertile valleys of the rivers Vaḵš and Kāfarnehān (Kafirnigan), separated by the Āqtāḡ range. Both rivers flow southward to unite with the Panj…

large village in central Iran known for its picturesque architecture, the festivity of Friday of Nešalj in the early autumn, and its extinct Median dialect. NEŠALJ (also Nešalg, Nešlaj), large village in central Iran known for its picturesque architecture, the festivity of Friday of Nešalj in the early autumn, and its extinct Median dialect.NEŠALJ i. The VillageNešalj is located in Niāsar Rural District, Niāsar District, Kashan Sub-Province, Isfahan Province. The name has also been spelled Nešlaj (Moṣāheb, III, p. 3029; Bolukbāši, p. 36; SCI, 1969, p. 47). The unmarked form nšlj has …

Tajikistan’s population, which numbered slightly more than six million in the year 2000, consists overwhelmingly of ethnic groups which have historically been Muslim. TAJIKISTAN i. Status of Islam Since 1917Tajikistan, an independent Central Asian state since the end of 1991, was formerly part of the Soviet Union. Tajikistan’s population, which numbered slightly more than six million in the year 2000, consists overwhelmingly of ethnic groups which have historically been Muslim, primarily the Tajiks (roughly 80 percent of th…

historical city and a sub-province of the province of Isfahan on the north-south axial route of central Iran.A version of this article is available in printVolume XVI, pp. 1-73blod: KASHAN (Kāšān) a historic city and a sub-province ( šahrestān) of the province of Isfahan (q.v.) on the north-south axial route of central Iran. The city (lat 33° 59ʹ 30ʹʹ N, long 51° 27ʹ 00ʹʹ E; elev. 950 m) is located 260 km (189 km by air) south of Tehran and 220 km (146 km by air) north of Isfahan. KASHAN i. Geography Physical geography. Covering an area of approximately 9,647 km2, the sub-province …