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West Azerbaijan province

Coordinates: 37°52′N 44°53′E / 37.867°N 44.883°E / 37.867; 44.883
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Not to be confused with East Azerbaijan province.
This article is about the Iranian province. For other uses, see Azerbaijan (disambiguation).

West Azerbaijan Province
Persian: استان آذربایجان غربی
Province
Location of West Azerbaijan province within Iran
Location of West Azerbaijan province within Iran
Coordinates: 37°52′N 44°53′E / 37.867°N 44.883°E / 37.867; 44.883[1]
Country Iran
RegionRegion 3
CapitalUrmia
Counties20
Government
 • Governor-generalMohammad-Sadegh Motamedian
 • MPs of Assembly of ExpertsDirbaz, Ali Akbar Ghoreyshi & Mojtahed Shabestari
 • Representative of the Supreme LeaderSeyed Mehdi Ghoreishi
Area
 • Total37,437 km2 (14,455 sq mi)
Population
 (2016)[2]
 • Total3,265,219
 • Density87/km2 (230/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+03:30 (IRST)
Main language(s)Persian (official)
local languages:
Armenian[3]
Assyrian Neo-Aramaic[4]
Azerbaijani[5]
Kurdish[5]
Lishán Didán[6]
HDI (2017)0.758[7]
high · 26th

West Azerbaijan province (Persian: استان آذربایجان غربی)[a] is one of the 31 provinces of Iran, whose capital and largest city is Urmia.[10]

It is in the northwest of the country, bordered by Turkey (Ağrı, Hakkâri, Iğdır and Van Provinces), Iraq (Erbil and Sulaymaniyah Governorates) and Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, as well as the Iranian provinces of East Azerbaijan, Zanjan, and Kurdistan. West Azerbaijan province is part of Region 3.[11] It is separated from Armenia by Turkey's short border with the Azerbaijan Republic. The province covers an area of 39,487 km2, or 43,660 km2 including Lake Urmia.

History

See also: Matiene, Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity), Persarmenia, Azerbaijan (Iran) § History, and History of the name Azerbaijan
The region of the modern province as Matiene, as opposed to Atropatene to the east

The major known ancient civilization in the region was that of Mannaeans, a buffer state between Urartian and Assyrian sphere of influence. Mannaeans in turn spoke a language related to Urartian. After the fall of Assyria, the region was known as Mantiene (or Matiene) in Greek sources. Matiene bordered on Atropatene situated east of Lake Urmia.

The region is known as Vaspurakan and Nor Shirakan in Armenian history and made up an important part of historical Armenia, functioning as one of the cradles of Armenian civilisation.[12] On 26 May 451 AD, a very important battle was fought that would prove pivotal in Armenian history. On the Avarayr Plain, at what is modern-day Churs in West Azerbaijan province, the Armenian army under Vardan Mamikonian clashed with the Sasanian one. Although the Persians were victorious on the battlefield itself, the battle proved to be a major strategic victory for Armenians, as Avarayr paved the way to the Nvarsak Treaty (484 AD), which affirmed Armenia's right to practice Christianity freely.[13][14]

In the late 4th century AD the Sasanians incorporated the area into the neighbouring Adhurpadagan satrapy to the east.[15] The name Adhurpadagan, later Arabicized to Azerbaijan, derives from Atropates,[16][17] an Iranian satrap of Media under the Achaemenid empire, who later was reinstated as the satrap of Media under Alexander of Macedonia.[18]

In the 7th century this area was under Islamic rule. After Babak Khorramdin revolted, the grip of the Abbasid caliphate weakened, allowing some native dynasties to rise. By the first half of the 11th century, the Byzantine emperors were actively trying to round off their eastern territories, in an attempt to absorb the unstable Armenian dynasties. In 1021-1022 emperor Basil II led his army as far as Khoy within 175 km of Dvin, and obtained the surrender of royalty from the Artsruni dynasty of Van.[19] The Seljuk Turkic tribes, who the local Hadhabani Kurds initially resisted, eventually conquered the region in the 11th and early 12th centuries. During Timurid rule in the 14th century, Khoy gained an important role in all over the region. After Hadhabanis, three other Kurdish principalities, Mukriyans in the southern part, Bradosti in the middle, and Donboli in the northern part ruled the region for centuries, who temporarily sided with either the Ottomans or Safavids. The battle of DimDim between the Safavids and local Bradosti Kurds took place in this region. After a long and bloody siege led by the Safavid grand vizier Hatem Beg, which lasted from November 1609 to the summer of 1610, the Castle of Dimdim was captured. All the defenders were killed and Shah Abbas I ordered a general massacre in Bradost and Mukriyan (reported by Eskandar Beg, Safavid historian in the book Alam Aray-e Abbasi) and resettled the Afshar tribe in the region while deporting many Kurdish tribes to Khorasan region, where many of their descendants still reside of as of today.

The Safavid control was firmly restored by Shah Abbas but during the Afghan invasion (1722–1728) more than a century later, the Ottomans captured the northwestern regions of Iran, until Nadir Shah expelled them and reasserted Iranian suzerainty over the region and far beyond. The Russian (Tsarist) army occupied the region in 1909, and again in 1912–1914 and 1915–1918 period. The Ottomans occupied the region in 1914–1915 and 1918–1919 periods. The Soviet forces occupied the region in 1941, resulting in the establishment of a short-lived, Soviet-supported puppet state called the Republic of Mahabad, from November 1945 to November 1946.

The districts of Maku, Khoy, Salmas, and Arasbaran, and the region of Urmia, according to 19th-century administrative division became a part of the northwestern Iranian province of Azerbaijan.[20] In 1937 the province was renamed to Shomal-e gharb (Northwestern Province). Shortly after it the province of Azerbaijan was divided into a western and eastern part which were renamed to Chaharom (Fourth Province) and sevom (Third Province), respectively. In 1961 Fourth province was renamed West Azerbaijan by the Iranian authorities.

Some events in the 19th and 20th centuries are:

  • Shaikh Ubeidullah Attacks, west and south of Lake Urmia in 1880;[21]
  • Simko Insurrections, west of Lake Urmia from 1918 to 1922;[22]
  • The Soviet occupation in 1944;
  • The foundation and destruction of the Azerbaijan People's Government in 1945-1946;
  • The foundation and destruction of the Republic of Mahabad in 1946 in County of Mahabad;
  • Periodic severe fighting from 1979 until the 1990s near to boundaries of Iraq-Iran between Kurdish militia belonging to Kurdish political parties and the Iranian government.[23] During the early 1980s parts of the province were outside central government's control.

Zoroaster claim

Some Muslim researchers[24] have proclaimed that the birth of the prophet Zoroaster was in this area, in the vicinity of Lake Orumieh, Chichest or Ganzak; recent scholarship, however, indicates that sites in Central Asia are more likely.[25]

Demographics

Language and ethnicity

There are no official statistics on the ethnic or linguistic makeup of Western Azerbaijan. Most of the population of the province consists of Azerbaijanis and Kurds, with smaller populations of Armenians, Assyrians, and Jews. On the question of linguistic majority of the province, linguist Anonby argued in 2019 that:[5]

As is the case for most other parts of Iran, there are no reliable or detailed data on language distribution in West Azerbaijan Province. A number of districts in the province are majority Azerbaijani-speaking, including the capital city of Orumieh (Urmia). Because of this – and perhaps also because of the province's name – it is often assumed that Azerbaijani is the main language of the province as a whole. However, our own preliminary investigations of this topic, which are based on district-by-district calculations... suggest that Kurdish may in fact be the mother tongue of a slight majority of the province's population.

Distribution

The counties of Bukan,[26] Mahabad,[27] Oshnavieh,[28] Piranshahr[29] and Sardasht[30] are populated by Kurds, while Chaldoran,[31] Maku,[32] Miandoab,[33] Naqadeh,[34] Salmas[35][36] and Takab[37] have a mixed population of both Azerbaijanis and Kurds. Salmas moreover has a Christian minority.[35]

Population

West Azerbaijan Province Historical Population
YearPop.±%
1956721,136—    
19661,087,182+50.8%
19861,971,677+81.4%
20062,831,779+43.6%
20113,080,576+8.8%
20163,265,219+6.0%

At the time of the 2006 National Census, the province's population was 2,831,779 people in 655,260 households.[38] The following census in 2011 counted 3,080,576 inhabitants in 822,152 households.[39] The 2016 census measured the population of the province as 3,265,219 in 935,956 households.[2]

Administrative divisions

The population history and structural changes of West Azerbaijan province's administrative divisions over three consecutive censuses are shown in the following table.

West Azerbaijan Province
Counties 2006[38] 2011[39] 2016[2]
Baruq[b] — — —
Bukan 202,637 224,628 251,409
Chaharborj[b] — — —
Chaldoran 44,572 46,398 45,060
Chaypareh[c] — 43,206 47,292
Khoy 365,573 354,309 348,664
Mahabad 197,441 215,529 236,849
Maku 174,578 88,863 94,751
Miandoab 245,153 260,628 273,949
Mirabad[d] — — —
Naqadeh 117,831 121,602 127,671
Oshnavieh 63,798 70,030 73,886
Piranshahr 107,677 123,639 138,864
Poldasht[c] — 42,071 42,170
Salmas 180,708 192,591 196,546
Sardasht 104,146 111,590 118,849
Shahin Dezh 89,356 91,113 92,456
Showt[c] — 52,519 55,682
Takab 81,395 78,122 80,556
Urmia 856,914 963,738 1,040,565
Total 2,831,779 3,080,576 3,265,219

Cities

See also: List of cities in West Azerbaijan province by population

According to the 2016 census, 2,136,203 people (over 65% of the population of West Azerbaijan province) live in the following cities:[2]

City Population
Avajiq 1,663
Baruq 4,225
Bazargan 9,979
Bukan 193,501
Chahar Borj 9,406
Dizaj Diz 8,282
Firuraq 9,190
Gerd Kashaneh 4,201
Ivughli 3,320
Keshavarz 4,138
Khalifan 749
Khoy 198,845
Mahabad 168,393
Mahmudabad 6,866
Maku 46,581
Marganlar 2,294
Miandoab 134,425
Mirabad 6,000
Mohammadyar 9,313
Nalus 2,973
Naqadeh 81,598
Nazok-e Olya 2,667
Nushin 8,380
Oshnavieh 39,801
Piranshahr 91,515
Poldasht 11,472
Qarah Zia od Din 26,767
Qatur 5,147
Qushchi 2,787
Rabat 15,750
Salmas 92,811
Sardasht 46,412
Serow 1,800
Shahin Dezh 43,131
Showt 25,381
Siah Cheshmeh 17,804
Silvaneh 1,614
Simmineh 1,345
Takab 49,677
Tazeh Shahr 8,629
Urmia 736,224
Zurabad 1,147

Cities and larger towns

Rank City Population
(2016)[2]
1 Urmia 736,224
2 Khoy 198,845
3 Bukan 193,501
4 Mahabad 168,393
5 Miandoab 134,425
6 Salmas 92,811
7 Piranshahr 91,515
8 Naqadeh 81,598
9 Takab 49,677
10 Maku 46,581
11 Sardasht 46,412
12 Shahin Dezh 43,131
13 Oshnavieh 39,801
14 Qarah Zia od Din 26,767
15 Showt 25,381

Geography

Location

With an area of 43,660 square kilometers, including Lake Urmia, the province of West Azerbaijan is located on the northwest of Iran.

Climate

Cold northern winds affect the province during winter and cause heavy snow.[43] According to existing meteorological data, local temperatures vary within the province. Average temperature differs from 9.4 °C in Piranshahr to 11.6 °C in Mahabad, while it is 9.8 °C in Urmia, 10.8 °C in Khoy, 9.4 °C in Piranshahr, and in Mahabad 11.6 °C. According to the same data, the highest temperature in the province reaches 34 °C in July, and the lowest temperature is –16 °C in January. The maximum change of temperature in summer is 4 °C and in winter 15 °C.[44]

Archaeology

Permanent settlements were established in the province as early as the 6th millennium BC as excavation at sites such as Teppe Hasanlu establish. In Hasanlu, a famous Golden Vase was found in 1958. The province is the location of Tepe Hajji Firuz, site of some of the world's earliest evidence of wine production.[45][46][47] Gooy Teppe is another significant site, where a metal plaque dating from 800 BC was found that depicts a scene from the Epic of Gilgamesh.

Ruins such as these and the UNESCO world heritage site at the Sasanian compound of Takht-i-Suleiman illustrate the strategic importance and tumultuous history of the province through the millennia. Overall, the province enjoys a wealth of historical attractions, with 169 sites registered by the Cultural Heritage Organization of Iran.

Higher education

Urmia University was first built by an American Presbyterian missionary in 1878. A medical faculty was also established there, headed by Joseph Cochran and a team of American medical associates. Cochran and his colleagues were buried in an old cemetery in the vicinity of Urmia. Urmia University website says this about them:

"There they lie in peace away from their homeland, and the testimonial epitaphs on their tombs signify their endeavor and devotion to humanity."

The province today has the following major institutions of higher education:

  1. Urmia University دانشگاه ارومیه | Urmia University
  2. Urmia University of Medical Sciences
  3. Urmia University of Technology
  4. Islamic Azad University of Urmia
  5. Islamic Azad University of Salmas
  6. Islamic Azad University of Khoi[permanent dead link]
  7. Islamic Azad University of Piranshahr
  8. Islamic Azad University of Mahabad

See also

Media related to West Azerbaijan Province at Wikimedia Commons

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Notes

  1. ^ Also romanized as Āzarbāyjān-e Gharbī; Kurdish: پارێزگای ئورمیە, romanized as Parêzgeha Urmiyê;[8][9] Azerbaijani: غربی آذربایجان اوستانی
  2. ^ a b Separated from Miandoab County after the 2016 census[40]
  3. ^ a b c Separated from Khoy County after the 2006 census[41]
  4. ^ Separated from Sardasht County after the 2016 census[42]

References

  1. ^ OpenStreetMap contributors (24 May 2024). "West Azerbaijan Province" (Map). OpenStreetMap (in Persian). Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1395 (2016)". AMAR (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 04. Archived from the original (Excel) on 30 August 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  3. ^ Amurian, A.; Kasheff, M. "ARMENIANS OF MODERN IRAN". Encyclopedia Iranica. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  4. ^ Macuch, R. "ASSYRIANS IN IRAN i. The Assyrian community (Āšūrīān) in Iran". Encyclopedia Iranica. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  5. ^ a b c Anonby, Erik; Mohammadirad, Masoud; Jaffer, Sheyholislami (2019). "Current issues in Kurdish linguistics: Kordestan Province in the Atlas of the Languages of Iran: Research process, language distribution, and language classification". HAL. p. 10. Archived from the original on 15 July 2021. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  6. ^ Windfuhr, Gernot (2006). "IRAN vii. NON-IRANIAN LANGUAGES (10). Aramaic". Encyclopedia Iranica. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  7. ^ "Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
  8. ^ "کوردستان میدیا: دۆخی ئاسەوارە مێژووییەکانی پارێزگای ئورمیە بە هۆی دابین نەکردنی بوودجە و کەمتەرخەمی بەرپرسانی رێژیم زۆر نالەبارە و ئەگەری لە ناو چوونیان و فەوتانیان هەیە". Kurdistan Media (in Kurdish). Retrieved 21 March 2020.
  9. ^ "Erdhejê parêzgeha Urmiyê hejand". KurdistanMedia (in Kurdish). Retrieved 21 March 2020.
  10. ^ Habibi, Hassan (7 July 1369). "Approval of the organization and chain of citizenship of the elements and units of the country divisions of West Azerbaijan province, centered in the city of Urmia". Lamtakam (in Persian). Ministry of Interior, Council of Ministers. Archived from the original on 20 December 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  11. ^ "همشهری آنلاین-استان‌های کشور به ۵ منطقه تقسیم شدند (Provinces were divided into 5 regions)". Hamshahri Online (in Persian). 22 June 2014. Archived from the original on 23 June 2014.
  12. ^ Hovannisian, Richard G. (1999). Armenian Van/Vaspurakan. Costa Mesa, California: Mazda Publishers. ISBN 1-56859-130-6. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
  13. ^ Hewsen, Robert H. (17 August 2011). "AVARAYR". Encyclopædia Iranica. So spirited was the Armenian defense, however, that the Persians suffered enormous losses as well. Their victory was pyrrhic and the king, faced with troubles elsewhere, was forced, at least for the time being, to allow the Armenians to worship as they chose.
  14. ^ Susan Paul Pattie (1997). Faith in History: Armenians Rebuilding Community. Smithsonian Institution Press. p. 40. ISBN 1560986298. The Armenian defeat in the Battle of Avarayr in 451 proved a pyrrhic victory for the Persians. Though the Armenians lost their commander, Vartan Mamikonian, and most of their soldiers, Persian losses were proportionately heavy, and Armenia was allowed to remain Christian.
  15. ^ Richard G. Hovannisian, 2004, The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiquity to the Fourteenth Century, Palgrave Macmillan, ISBN 1-4039-6421-1, ISBN 978-1-4039-6421-2, p. 92
  16. ^ Minorsky, V. (2007). "Ādharbaydjān (Azerbāydjān)". In P. Bearman; Th. Bianquis; C. E. Bosworth; E. van Donzel; W. P. Heinrichs (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam. Brill.
  17. ^ Encyclopædia Iranica, "Azerbaijan: Pre-Islamic History", K. Shippmann
  18. ^ Historical Dictionary of Azerbaijan by Tadeusz Swietochowski and Brian C. Collins. The Scarecrow Press, Inc., Lanham, Maryland (1999), ISBN 0-8108-3550-9 (retrieved 7 June 2006)
  19. ^ Minorsky, Vladimir (1953) Studies in Caucasian History I. New Light on the Shaddadids of Ganja II. The Shaddadids of Ani III. Prehistory of Saladin page 52, CUP Archive, 1 jan. 1953 ISBN 978-0521057356
  20. ^ Ehsan Yar-Shater, 1982, Encyclopaedia Iranica: publisher: Routledge & Kegan Paul, University of California, Volume 2, Issues 5-8, p. 476
  21. ^ The Kurdish Question, by W. G. Elphinston, Journal of International Affairs, Royal Institute of International Affairs, 1946, p.94
  22. ^ The Kurdish Question, by W. G. Elphinston, Journal of International Affairs, Royal Institute of International Affairs, 1946, p.97
  23. ^ "Iran - Kurds". countrystudies.us. Retrieved 27 December 2023.
  24. ^ Balādâorī and Ebn Kordādâbeh
  25. ^ "As a matter of fact, only untrustworthy and late traditions place Zoroaster's birthplace at Urmia." Tarbiyat, Muḥammad Ali (1935) Dānishmandān-i Āzarbayjān Tehran, p. 162, reissued in 1999, ISBN 964-422-138-9
  26. ^ Hassanpour, Amir (1989). "BŪKĀN". Encyclopedia Iranica. doi:10.1163/2330-4804_EIRO_COM_7182.
  27. ^ Eagleton, W.; Neumann, R. (2012). "Mahābād". Encyclopedia of Islam. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_4770.
  28. ^ Minorsky. "Us̲h̲nū". Encyclopedia of Islam, Second Edition. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7746.
  29. ^ "درباره شهرستان پیرانشهر". Payame Noor University (in Persian). Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  30. ^ Ateş, Sabri (2013). Ottoman-Iranian Borderlands: Making a Boundary, 1843–1914. Cambridge University Press. p. 176. doi:10.1017/CBO9781139522496.006.
  31. ^ "چالدران". CGIE (in Persian). بیشتر مردم این شهرستان را آذربایجانیها تشکیل می‌دهند، اما شماری از روستاهای آن کردنشین است.
  32. ^ Minorsky. "Mākū". Encyclopedia of Islam, Second Edition. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_COM_0640.
  33. ^ "تاریخچه شهرستان میاندوآب". www.miandoabma.ir (in Persian). 21 August 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  34. ^ Minorsky, "Suldūz", Encyclopedia of Islam, Second Edition, doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7169
  35. ^ a b Bosworth. "Salmās". Encyclopedia of Islam. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_6560.
  36. ^ R. I. Cole, Juan; Hassanpour, Amir (1990). "ČAHRĪQ". Encyclopedia Iranica.
  37. ^ "تخت سلیمان". CGIE (in Persian). مردم‌ این‌ بخش‌ به‌ زبانهای‌ تركی‌ و كردی‌ گفت‌وگو می‌كنند و از لحاظ مذهبی تركی‌ زبانان‌ پیرو مذهب‌ شیعۀ‌ دوازده‌ امامی،‌ و كردی‌ زبانها‌، سنی‌ شافعی‌ مذهب‌اند
  38. ^ a b "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1385 (2006)". AMAR (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 04. Archived from the original (Excel) on 20 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
  39. ^ a b "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1390 (2011)". Syracuse University (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 04. Archived from the original (Excel) on 20 January 2023. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  40. ^ Jahangiri, Ishaq (31 July 2021). "Approval letter regarding country divisions in Miandoab County of West Azarbaijan province". Laws and Regulations Portal of Iran (in Persian). Ministry of Interior, Council of Ministers. Archived from the original on 4 October 2021. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  41. ^ Davodi, Parviz (18 September 1386). "Approval letter regarding reforms of country divisions in West Azerbaijan province". Islamic Parliament Research Center (in Persian). Ministry of Interior, Political-Defense Commmission. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 21 November 2023.
  42. ^ Mokhbar, Mohammad (24 December 1401). "The city of Nelas was separated from Vazineh District and annexed to Sardasht County in West Azerbaijan province". Laws and Regulations Portal of the Islamic Republic of Iran (in Persian). Ministry of Interior, Council of Ministers. Archived from the original on 28 September 2023. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  43. ^ "Azerbaijan". Encyclopædia Britannica. 29 June 2023.
  44. ^ Introduction a-gharbi.rmto.ir [dead link]
  45. ^ "Penn Museum - University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology". Archived from the original on 16 December 2008.
  46. ^ Voigt, Mary M. and Meadow, Richard H. (1983) Hajji Firuz Tepe, Iran: the neolithic settlement University Museum, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, ISBN 0-934718-49-0
  47. ^ Bert G. Fragner, 'Soviet Nationalism': An Ideological Legacy to the Independent Republics of Central Asia ' in Van Schendel, Willem(Editor) . Identity Politics in Central Asia and the Muslim World: Nationalism, Ethnicity and Labour in the Twentieth Century. London , GBR: I. B. Tauris & Company, Limited, 2001. Excerpt from pg 24: "Under Soviet auspices and in accordance with Soviet nationalism, historical Azerbaijan proper was reinterpreted as 'Southern Azerbaijan', with demands for liberation and, eventually, for 're'-unification with Northern (Soviet) Azerbaijan a breathtaking manipulation. No need to point to concrete Soviet political activities in this direction, as in 1945–46 etc. The really interesting point is that in the independent former Soviet republics, this typically Soviet ideological pattern has long outlasted the Soviet Union."
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