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Ilam Province استان ایلام
Province
Etymology: The ancient pre-Iranic civilization of Elam
Nickname(s):  عروس زاگرس (The Bride of Zagros)
Counties of Ilam Province
Location of Ilam Province in Iran
Coordinates: 33°38′18″N 46°25′21″E / 33.6384°N 46.4226°E / 33.6384; 46.4226Coordinates: 33°38′18″N 46°25′21″E / 33.6384°N 46.4226°E / 33.6384; 46.4226
Country	Iran
Region	Region 4
Founded	1973[1]
Capital	Ilam
Counties	List Ilam Eyvan Sirvan Chardavol Malekshahi Badreh Darreh Shahr Mehran Dehloran Abdanan
Government
• Body	Provincial Government
• Governor	Qasem Soleimani Dashtaki
Area
• Total	19,086 km2 (7,369 sq mi)
	[2]
Highest elevation [3] (Kan Seifi Peak)	3,050 m (10,010 ft)
Lowest elevation [4]	36 m (118 ft)
Population (2011)[5]
• Total	557,599
• Density	29/km2 (76/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+03:30 (IRST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+04:30 (IRST)
Postal code	69311–69991[6]
Area code(s)	+98 84
Vehicle registration	Iran 98[7]
HDI (2017)	0.815[8] very high · 8th
Website	Ilam Portal

Ilam Province (Persian: استان ایلام‎) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is located in the western part of the country, sharing 425 kilometers of border with Iraq, and also bordering on the provinces of Kermanshah, Lurestan, and Khuzestan. The provincial capital is the city of Ilam. The population of the province is approximately 600,000 people (2015 estimate).

Covering an area of 19,086 square kilometers, Ilam Province includes the cities of Ilam, Mehran, Dehloran, Darreh Shahr, Sarable, Eyvan, Abdanan and Arkwaz. When the regions of Iran were created in 2014, the province was placed in Region 4.^[9]

Geography and climate

Ilam province covers an area of 19,086 km² (7,369 sq mi), about 4.1 percent of the country.^[10]

The northwest-southeast alignment of Zagros Mountains forms the terrain of the area. The two important mountain ridges are Kabir Kuh and Dinar Kuh. Being located in the western-most part of Zagross Mountains gives the province its special landscape including deserts in the western counties of Mehran and Dehloran bordering Iraq which feature very hot summers and mild winters and very low precipitations and the mountainous regions of east like Abdanan and Darreh Shahr which are milder and receive higher precipitations, mostly in form of rain, although snow is not rare. The northern region of Ilam, due to its altitude, experiences cold winters and mild summers and receives the highest amount of precipitation in the province. The variety of land is one of the main reasons nomads are prevalent in the area.^[10]

Ilam Province is divided into 10 counties:

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  The counties of Ilam province.
  

  
  

  
  


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  The northern parts of the Ilam Province receive higher precipitation.
  

  
  

  
  


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  The Kabir Kuh mountains in Ilam province.
  

  
  

  
  

People and culture

Ilam is inhabited by various people, with Kurds in the majority with 79.6%, followed by Lurs with 10.7%, Laks (6.1%), Persians (1.8%) and Arabs (1.8%)^[11][12] . In Abdanan, Dehloran, and Mehran the majority of residents speak in Kurdish and Luri respectively. In Darreh Shahr, the majority of residents speak in Laki and Lurish, and there are also some tribes of Lurs such as Shuhans, Seleyverzis and Kaydkhordeh living in the southern and eastern parts of the province. The north is mostly inhabited by Kurdish tribes who speak two dialects: Kalhuri and Feyli.^[12] The majority are Feyli, such as those of Khezel, Arkawâzi, Beyrey (Ali Sherwan) and Malek Shahi .^[12][13] Almost all residents in Ilam province are Shi'a Muslims.^[13]

History

Limited archaeological studies and discoveries indicate 6,000 years of tribal residence in Ilam. Historical evidence indicates that Ilam province was part of the ancient Elamite Empire. In some of the epigraphs left from Sumerian history, this territory was called Alam, Alamo, or Alamto meaning the high lands where the sun rises. In October 2018, officials announced that dozens of historical objects dating back to 1,200 years ago have been discovered during archaeological excavations in the village of Sarab-e Kalan.^[14]

The name "Pahla" was also used for the area include Ilam province by the early Muslim geographer until the 13th century, after which when Lurs from Luristan captured the Kurdish populated regions of Ilam (old names: masbazan and Pahlah)^[15] and part of Kermanshah provinces the name "Luristan or Pushtkooh" gradually came to replace it. Due to the name of Luristan or Pushtkooh, the Kurdish population in Pushtkooh are called Lur wrongly (Luri speakers can be easily distinguished from feyli Kurdish speakers due to the obvious differences between feyli Kurdish dialect and Luri). Arabic texts recorded the name as "Fahla" or "Bahla", (note: the Arabic language lacks the phoneme /p/). Subsequently, "Fahla" evolved to 'Faila' and 'Faili' -- the modern name of the Pahli Kurds. It is worthy to note that still a small town called 'Pahla' exist in the south of the major city of Ilam, Iran and occupied by Pahli Kurds.^[16]'.It was also part of the Achaemenid Empire. Existence of numerous historical vestiges in Ilam province belonging to the Sassanid period indicates the specific importance of the region in that time. In this period Ilam province was divided into two regions, Mehrjankadak in the eastern part and Mâsabazân at the western part.Kurdish tribes governed the region from the late 11th century till the early 13th century.^{[citation needed]}. When Iran was divided into provinces in 1930, Ilam became a part of Lorestan, Kermanshah and Khuzestan provinces, only later becoming a province by itself.^{[citation needed]}

Ilam today

Bowli area of Ilam Province, 2014

During the Iran–Iraq War, Ilam province suffered heavily and Iraq's intense bombings left no economic infrastructure for the province. Ilam thus remains one of Iran's more undeveloped provinces. Ilam's unemployment rate was 19.9% in 2003.

Only in recent years has the central government began investing in advanced industries like Petrochemical facilities, with Japanese help, in Ilam. Ilam also has a bright future in the tourist sector, with 174 historical sites listed under Iran's Cultural Heritage Organization, though it also remains undeveloped.

Colleges and universities

Ilam province contains the following universities:

• Ilam University of Medical Sciences


• University of Ilam


• Islamic Azad University of Ilam


• Payame noor University of Ilam

Attractions

Wāli castle

• 
  Imamzadehs: These are shrines mostly from the Middle Ages: Imamzadeh Ali Saleh, Imamzadeh Seyd mammad Abed, Imamzadeh Seyd Akbar, Imamzadeh Seyd Fakhreddin, Imamzadeh Seyd Nasereddin, Imamzadeh Ibrahim, Imamzadeh Abbas, Imamzadeh Abdullah, Imamzadeh Pir Muhammad, Imamzadeh Baba Seifuddin, Imamzadeh Mehdi Saleh, Imamzadeh Ibrahim Qetal, Imamzadeh Seyd Hasan, Imamzadeh Seyd Salaheddin Muhammad, Imamzadeh Haji Bakhtiar, Imamzadeh Haji Hazer, Imamzadeh Jabir.


• Fire Temples (10 in total): These are Zoroastrian shrines from the Sassanid era, now in ruins: Siyahgol Iwan, Chahar Taghi in Darreh Shahr.


• Mansions, forts, and castles (90 in total): Ghal'eh Vali (Qajar era), Posht Ghal'eh Chowar, Ghal'eh Paghela Chekarbuli, Ghal'eh Falahati (Qajar era),Ghal'eh Ghiran (Achaemenid era), Shiagh castle in Dehloran (Sassanid era), Ismail Khan fort, Sam castle (late Parthian era), Pur Ashraf castle, Mir Gholam Hashemi ghal'eh, Posht Ghal'eh Abdanan (Sassanid), Konjancham fort, Shirin and Farhad Iwan in Mehran (Parthian era), Hezar Dar Castle (Sassanid), Sheikh Makan Fort (Sassanid), Zeinal Fort.


• Bridges from Sassanid era (5 in total).


• Numerous archeological sites (Teppes) and ruins from Sassanid era and earlier (224 in total).


• Ancient reliefs scattered across the province (8 in total).


• Ancient urban settlement ruins (22 in total).


• Springs, caves (like the cave of Zinegan), siahgave Abdanan twin lakes, Ilam dam lake , 3 protected natural habitats, and provincial parks.


• Tar Spring, in Dehloran.

Tar Spring, Dragon Blood

One of the most interesting things to be found near the city Dehloran is a natural liquid tar spring.^[17] Iranians used to use this tar to render ships and roofs waterproof about 3000 years ago. This black spring is located in a natural protected area named Abgarm. Interesting things around this area include mineral water springs, native trees, and bat caves with rare species of bats.

The road to the Black Spring is near city Dehloran and leads to the Abgarm natural protected area. A sign guides visitors to the spring via a narrow road. The last few hundred meters of the road is not suitable for vehicles and requires a short walk to reach to the spring. Visitors will notice the smell of tar as they approach. The spring’s diameter is about 9 meters and hot water full of liquid tar particles flows out of it. There is a fence to protect animals from going nearby and get trapped in the tar.

According to myths told by the native people, this tar spring was the blood of a dragon that was killed by the Iranian hero, Esfandiar.^[17]

Notable people

• 
  Darioush Rezaeinejad, nuclear energy scientist, born in Abdanan (Ilam)

See also

• Elam


• Ethnic minorities in Iran


• Feyli Kurds


• Southern Kurdish


• Malekshahi Kurdish tribe


• Faramarz Asadi


• Ayatollah Abdul Rahman Heidari Ilami

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ilam Province.

• 
  (in Persian) Ilam Province Department of Education
  


• 
  (in Persian) Ilam Picture Gallery
  


• Hamid-Reza Hosseini, Shush at the foot of Louvre (Shush dar dāman-e Louvre), in Persian, jadidonline.com, 10 March 2009.
  Audio slideshow (6 min 31 sec).


• 
  "Images and photos Dehloran - Ilam Ostan". viewphotos.org.