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Gorgan گرگان
City
Gorgān Tower
Gorgan
Coordinates: 36°50′19″N 54°26′05″E / 36.83861°N 54.43472°E / 36.83861; 54.43472Coordinates: 36°50′19″N 54°26′05″E / 36.83861°N 54.43472°E / 36.83861; 54.43472
Country	Iran
Province	Golestan
County	Gorgan
Bakhsh	Central
Government
• Mayor	Abdolreza Dadboud[1]
• City Council Chairman	Faezeh Abdollahi
Area [citation needed]
• City	1,700 km2 (656 sq mi)
Elevation	1,350 m (4,430 ft)
Population (2016 Census)
• Urban	350,676 [2]
Time zone	UTC+03:30 (IRST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+04:30 (IDST)
Climate	Csa
Gorgan at GEOnet Names Server

Gorgan (pronunciation (help·info)) (Persian: گرگان‎;^[3] formerly Astrabad or Astarabad (استرآباد)^[4][5]) is the capital city of Golestan Province, Iran. It lies approximately 400 km (250 mi) to the north east of Tehran, some 30 km (19 mi) away from the Caspian Sea. In the 2006 census; its population was 269,226, in 73,702 families.^[6]

History

There are several archaeological sites near Gorgan, including Tureng Tepe and Shah Tepe, in which there are remains dating to the Neolithic and Chalcolithic eras. Some other important Neolithic sites in the area are Yarim Tepe, Iran, and Sange Chaxmaq. Also, the nearby Shahroud Plain has many such sites. The total number of confirmed Neolithic sites on the Gorgan Plain is now over 50.^[7]

Historic wall of Gorgan signs

According to the Greek historian Arrian, Zadracarta was the largest city of Hyrcania and site of the "royal palace".^[8] The term means "the yellow city", and it was given to it from the great number of oranges, lemons, and other fruit trees which grew in the outskirts of that city.^[9]

Hyrcania became part of the Achaemenid Empire during the reign of Cyrus the Great (559-530 BC), its founder, or his successor Cambyses (530-522 BC).

The Great Wall of Gorgan, the second biggest defensive wall in the world, was built in the Parthian and Sassanian periods.

At the time of the Sassanids, "Gurgan" appeared as the name of a city, province capital, and province.^[10]

Gurgan maintained its independence as a Zoroastrian state even after Persia was conquered by the invading Arab Muslims in 8th century.

In 1210, the city was invaded and sacked by the army of Kingdom of Georgia under command of the brothers Mkhargrdzeli.^[11][12]

The "Old Gorgan" was destroyed during the Mongol invasion in the 13th century, and the center of the region was moved to what was called "Astarabad", which is currently called "Gorgan".

Gurgan with its surrounding regions was sometimes considered as part of the Parthia (the Greater Khorasan) or the Tabaristan regions.

Astarabad was an important political and religious city during the Qajar dynasty.

Geography and climate

The wide Dasht-e Gorgan (Plains of Gorgan) are located north of the city and geographically bounded by 37°00' - 37°30' north latitude and 54°00' - 54°30' east longitude, covering an area of about 170 square kilometres (66 sq mi).

Some 150 km (93 mi) east of Gorgan is the Golestan National Park, home to a big portion of the fauna of Iran.

Gorgan has a mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa). In general, Golestan has a moderate and humid climate known as "the moderate Caspian climate." The effective factors behind such a climate are: Alborz mountain range, direction of the mountains, height of the area, neighborhood to the sea, vegetation surface, local winds, altitude and weather fronts. As a result of the above factors, three different climates exist in the region: plain moderate, mountainous, and semi-arid. Gorgan valley has a semi-arid climate. The average annual temperature is 17.7 °C (63.9 °F) and the annual rainfall is 601 millimetres (23.7 in).

Notable people

Historical figures

Bust of Fakhruddin As'ad Gurgani

Picture showing Mirza Mehdi Khan Astarabadi in pink clothes and Nader Shah Afshar on horseback.

• 
  House of Karen, an aristocratic feudal family first attested in the Arsacid era, belonged to the region of Hyrcania.


• 
  Fakhroddin Asaad Gorgani, Persian poet and the composer of Vis and Ramin.


• 
  Abu Sa'id al-Darir al-Jurjani, 9th century astronomer and mathematician


• 
  Al-Masihi, 10th century physician and teacher of Avicenna
  


• 
  Abd al-Qāhir al-Jurjānī, 11th century grammarian and literary theorist


• 
  Zayn al-Din al-Jurjani, 12th century royal physician


• 
  Fazlallah Astarabadi (Naimi), 14th century mystic and founder of Hurufism
  


• 
  Rustam Gorgani, 16th century physician


• 
  Mir Fendereski, philosopher, poet and mysti


• 
  Mir Damad, 17th century Islamic scholar and Neoplatonic philosopher


• 
  Mirza Mehdi Khan Astarabadi, 18th century chief minister to Nader Shah
  


• 
  Bibi Khatoon Astarabadi, a notable writer, satirist, and one of the pioneering figures of the women's movement of Iran


• 
  Firishta, historian


• 
  Sardar Rafie Yanehsari, Governor of Astarabad

Contemporary figures

Mohammad Reza Lotfi

• 
  Mohammad Reza Lotfi, Traditional Persian musician


• 
  Nader Ebrahimi, author, poet, director, and researcher


• 
  Maryam Zandi, photographer

Culture and art

Gorgan (as well as the whole Golestan province) has a world-famous carpet and rug industry, the Turkmen rug, made by Turkmen people. The patterns of these carpets are derived from the ancient Persian city of Bukhara, which is now in modern-day Uzbekistan.

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  Ceramic bowl from the Seljuk period
  

  
  

  
  


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  Ceramic compound vessel, 12-13th century, Gorgan,Abgineh Museum of Tehran
  

  
  

  
  


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  Farah Pahlavi visiting Turkmen rugs in Gorgan
  

  
  

  
  


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  Baqeri House (fa), a traditional house built in Pahlavi era
  

  
  

  
  

Entertainment locations

• 
  Nahar Khoran Forest (ناهارخوران)


• Alangdare Forest (النگدره)


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  Ziarat Village (روستای زیارت)


• Hezarpich Hill (هزارپیچ)


• Emadiyyeh School


• Sorkhankalateh Hill (سرخنکلاته)


• Ismail Shirine Sorkhankalateh


• Qajar era underground bathroom, Sorkhankalateh

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  Nahar Khoran Forest
  

  
  

  
  


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  Alangdarreh Forest
  

  
  

  
  


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  Ziarat Village
  

  
  

  
  


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  Ziarat Waterfall, Ziarat Village
  

  
  

  
  

Cinemas

Capri Cinema (کاپری), Bahman Cinema (سینما بهمن), and Asr-e Jadid Cinema (سینما عصر جدید), formerly called Moulin-Rouge Cinema (سینما مولن‌روژ), are among the oldest cinemas in Gorgan.

Education

Mirdamad Cultural Institute (MCI)

• Islamic Azad University of Gorgan


• Golestan University of Medical Sciences^[13]
  


• Gorgan University of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources


• Mirdamad Institute of Higher Education


• Lamei Gorgani Institute of Higher Education


• Hakeem Jorjani Institute of Higher Education

Transportation

Gorgan Railway Station

There is an international airport near the city.

Sports

The main sport in Gorgan is Basketball. Shahrdari Gorgan competes in the Iranian Basketball Super League.

Currently the main football team of Gorgan is Etka Gorgan F.C., which competes in the Azadegan League.

Sister cities

• 
  Aktau, Kazakhstan^[14]
  


• 
  Samsun, Turkey (2006)


• 
  Guangzhou, China (2018)

See also

• Gorgan International Airport


• al-Jurjani


• Gorgan-rud River


• Gurganj

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gorgan.