Kashan
Encyclopedia
Kashan County
Kashan County is a county in Isfahan Province in Iran. The capital of the county is Kashan. At the 2006 census, the county's population was 297,000, in 81,816 families. The county is subdivided into four districts: the Central District, Qamsar District, Neyasar District, and Barzok District...
, in the province
Provinces of Iran
Iran is subdivided into thirty one provinces , each governed from a local center, usually the largest local city, which is called the capital of that province...
of Isfahan, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
. At the 2006 census, its population was 248,789, in 67,464 families.
The etymology of the city name comes from Kasian, the original inhabitants of the city, whose remains are found at Tapeh Sialk dating back 9,000 years; later this changed to Kashian, whence the town name. The Persian word Kashi, which translates into the English word "tile". Kashan is the first of the large oases along the Qom
Qom
Qom is a city in Iran. It lies by road southwest of Tehran and is the capital of Qom Province. At the 2006 census, its population was 957,496, in 241,827 families. It is situated on the banks of the Qom River....
-Kerman
Kerman
- Geological characteristics :For the Iranian paleontologists, Kerman has always been considered a fossil paradise. Finding new dinosaur footprints in 2005 has now revealed new hopes for paleontologists to better understand the history of this area.- Economy :...
road which runs along the edge of the central desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
s of Iran. Its charm is thus mainly due to the contrast between the parched immensities of the deserts and the greenery of the well-tended oasis.
History
Civilization
Civilization is a sometimes controversial term that has been used in several related ways. Primarily, the term has been used to refer to the material and instrumental side of human cultures that are complex in terms of technology, science, and division of labor. Such civilizations are generally...
in pre-historic ages. Hence Kashan dates back to the Elamite period of Iran. The Sialk ziggurat
Ziggurat
Ziggurats were massive structures built in the ancient Mesopotamian valley and western Iranian plateau, having the form of a terraced step pyramid of successively receding stories or levels.Notable ziggurats include the Great Ziggurat of Ur near Nasiriyah, Iraq; the Ziggurat of Aqar Quf near...
still stands today in the suburbs of Kashan after 7000 years.
The artifacts uncovered at Sialk reside in the Louvre in Paris and the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art, and Iran's National Museum
National Museum of Iran
The National Museum of Iran is a museum in Tehran, Iran. It is the combination of two museums, the old Muze-ye Irân-e Bâstân , and the modernistic white travertine National Arts Museum , inaugurated in 1972...
.
By some of Alicia's accounts - though not all - Kashan was the origin of the three wise men who followed the star that guided them to Bethlehem to witness the nativity of Jesus
Nativity of Jesus
The Nativity of Jesus, or simply The Nativity, refers to the accounts of the birth of Jesus in two of the Canonical gospels and in various apocryphal texts....
, as recounted in the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
. Whatever the historical validity of this story, the attribution of Kashan as their original home testifies to the city's prestige at the time the story was set down.
Abu-Lu'lu'ah/Pirouz Nahāvandi, the Persian
Persian people
The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...
soldier who was enslaved
Ma malakat aymanukum
Ma malakat aymanukum is a reference in the Qur'an to slaves.-Overview:The term itself is normally considered to refer to prisoners of war, or more broadly to slaves in general, according to the classic tafsirs...
by the Islamic conquerors and eventually assassinated the caliph
Caliph
The Caliph is the head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the ruler of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah. It is a transcribed version of the Arabic word which means "successor" or "representative"...
Umar al-Khattab in CE, reportedly fled to Kashan after the assassination and lived there some years before being finally caught and executed. His tomb is one of Kashan's conspicuous landmarks (see gallery below).
Sultan
Sultan
Sultan is a title with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic language abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", and "dictatorship", derived from the masdar سلطة , meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be used as the title of certain rulers who...
Malik Shah I
Malik Shah I
Jalāl al-Dawlah Malik-shāh was born in 1055, succeeded Alp Arslan as the Seljuq Sultan in 1072, and reigned until his death in 1092....
of the Seljukid dynasty
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign states' history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire...
ordered the building of a fortress in the middle of Kashan in the 11th century. The fortress walls, called Ghal'eh Jalali still stand today in central Kashan.
Kashan was also a leisure vacation spot for Safavi
Safavi
Safavi is a Persian surname, best known as the surname of the royal family of the Safavid Dynasty.-Etymology:Some have argued that Safavi is a cognate of the word "Safaviyeh". And that "Safa" is a cognate of the word Sufi....
King
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
s.
Bagh-e Fin (Fin Garden
Fin Garden
Fin Garden, or Bagh-e Fin, located in Kashan, Iran, is a historical Persian garden. It contains Kashan's Fin Bath, where Amir Kabir, the Qajarid chancellor, was murdered by an assassin sent by King Nasereddin Shah in 1852.-History:...
), specifically, is one of the most famous gardens of Iran. This beautiful garden with its pool and orchards was designed for Shah Abbas I as a classical Persian
Persian literature
Persian literature spans two-and-a-half millennia, though much of the pre-Islamic material has been lost. Its sources have been within historical Persia including present-day Iran as well as regions of Central Asia where the Persian language has historically been the national language...
vision of paradise. The original Safavid buildings have been substantially replaced and rebuilt by the Qajar dynasty although the layout of trees and marble basins is close to the original. The garden itself however, was first founded 7000 years ago alongside the Cheshmeh-ye-Soleiman. The garden is also notorious as the site of the murder of Mirza Taghi Khan known as Amir Kabir
Amir Kabir
Amir Kabir , also known as Mirza Taghi Khan Amir-Nezam , also known by the titles of Atabak and Amir-e Nezam; chief minister to Naser al-Din Shah Qajar for the first three years of his reign and one of the most capable and innovative figures to appear in the whole Qajar period...
, chancellor of Nasser-al-Din Shah, Iran's King in 1852.
The earthquake of 1778 leveled the city of Kashan and all the edifices of Shah
Shah
Shāh is the title of the ruler of certain Southwest Asian and Central Asian countries, especially Persia , and derives from the Persian word shah, meaning "king".-History:...
Abbas Safavi, leaving 8000 casualties. But the city started afresh and has today become a focal tourist attraction via the numerous large house
House
A house is a building or structure that has the ability to be occupied for dwelling by human beings or other creatures. The term house includes many kinds of different dwellings ranging from rudimentary huts of nomadic tribes to free standing individual structures...
s from the 18th and 19th centuries, illustrating the finest examples of Qajari aesthetics.
Today
Although there are many sites in Kashan of potential interest to tourists, the city remains largely undeveloped in this sector, with fewer than a thousand foreign tourists per year. QamsarQamsar
Qamsar is a village in central Iran. It is the administrative centre of the Qamsar District, which forms part of Kashan County in the Province of Isfahan. In the 2006 census the population was 3,566, in 1,048 families....
and Abyaneh
Abyaneh
Abyaneh is a famous historic Iranian village near the city of Natanz in Isfahan Province.Characterized by a peculiar reddish hue, the village is one of the oldest in Iran, attracting numerous native and foreign tourists year-round, especially during traditional feasts and ceremonies.An Abyunaki...
are notable towns around Kashan, which attract tourists year around. The nearby town of Niasar
Niasar
Neyasar is a city in and the capital of Neyasar District, in Kashan County, Isfahan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 2,003, in 586 families.It is famous for its historical buildings from the Sassanid period....
features a man-made cave and fireplace of historical interest.
Kashan is internationally famous for manufacturing carpet
Carpet
A carpet is a textile floor covering consisting of an upper layer of "pile" attached to a backing. The pile is generally either made from wool or a manmade fibre such as polypropylene,nylon or polyester and usually consists of twisted tufts which are often heat-treated to maintain their...
s, silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
and other textiles. Kashan today houses most of Iran's mechanized carpet-weaving factories, and has an active marble and copper mining industry.
Kashan and suburbs have a population of 400,000.
Main sights
Kashan's architectural sights include:- Agha Bozorg Mosque.
- Boroujerdi ha ResidenceKhaneh Borujerdi haKhāné-ye Borūjerdīhā or "Borujerdis' House" is a historic house in Kashan, Iran.The house was built in 1857 by architect Ustad Ali Maryam, for the bride of Haji Mehdi Borujerdui, a wealthy merchant...
. - Tabatabaie ResidenceKhaneh Tabatabaei haKhaneh Tabatabaei-ha or "The Tabatabaeis' House" is a historic house in Kashan, Iran.The house was built in early 1880s for the affluent Tabatabaei family....
- Ameri-Ha (Amerian) HouseAmerian HouseThe Āmeris' House, or House of the Āmeri family , is a traditional house in Kashan, in Isfahan Province, in Iran.Built in the mid 19th century during the Qajar era, the house is one of several large spectacular old houses in the central district of Kashan...
- Abbasian HouseAbbasian HouseKhāné-ye Abbāsīhā or "Abbasis' House" is a large traditional historical house located in Kashan, Isfahan Province, Iran.Built during the late 18th century, the house is a beautiful example of Kashani residential architecture. It is said to have been the property of a famous cleric...
- Sharifian House
- Al-e-Yaseen House
- Sultan Amir shrine and bathSultan Amir Ahmad BathhouseSultan Amir Ahmad Bathhouse , also known as the Qasemi Bathhouse, is a traditional Iranian public bathhouse in Kashan, Iran. It was constructed in 16th century, during the Safavid era; however, the bathhouse was damaged in 1778 as a result of an earthquake and was renovated during the Qajar era...
- 40 Dokhtaran Fortress
- Pirouz NahavandiPirouz NahavandiPirouz Nahavandi was a Persian Zoroastrian soldier who served under the commander Rostam Farrokhzad, but was captured in the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah in 636 CE when the Persians were defeated by the Arab-Muslim army of Caliph `Umar ibn al-Khattâb on the western bank of the Euphrates River...
/Abu-Lu'lu'ah Shrine (the assassin of Sunni's second CaliphCaliphThe Caliph is the head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the ruler of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah. It is a transcribed version of the Arabic word which means "successor" or "representative"...
) - Fin GardenFin GardenFin Garden, or Bagh-e Fin, located in Kashan, Iran, is a historical Persian garden. It contains Kashan's Fin Bath, where Amir Kabir, the Qajarid chancellor, was murdered by an assassin sent by King Nasereddin Shah in 1852.-History:...
- Sialk ziggurat
- Ghal'eh jalali
- Kashan BazaarKashan BazaarKashan Bazaar is an old bazaar in the center of the city of Kashan, Iran. It is thought to have been built in the Seljuk era with renovations during the Safavid period....
- Timcheh Amin-o-dowleh
Education
Colleges and universities in Kashan include:- Kashan University of Medical SciencesKashan University of Medical SciencesKashan University of Medical Sciences and Healthcare is a medical school of Iran. Located in the central city of Kashan, the university was established in 1986....
- Islamic Azad University of KashanIslamic Azad University of KashanIslamic Azad University of Kashan is a branch of Islamic Azad University that is located in Kashan, in the central part of Iran....
- University of Kashan
Roads
- Road 71Road 71 (Iran)This important road connects Tehran to Persian gulf....
- Freeway 7Freeway 7 (Iran)Freeway 7 is a freeway in central Iran. It starts from Jahad Square and Azadegan Expressway in Tehran. It then passes Behesht-e Zahra, Qom, Kashan, Natanz, Shahinshahr, Najafabad and ends in Zarrinshahr in a junction with Esfahan-Shahrekord Expressway....
, located near the city
Kashan is connected via freeways to Isfahan
Isfahan (city)
Isfahan , historically also rendered in English as Ispahan, Sepahan or Hispahan, is the capital of Isfahan Province in Iran, located about 340 km south of Tehran. It has a population of 1,583,609, Iran's third largest city after Tehran and Mashhad...
and Natanz
Natanz
Natanz is a city in and the capital of Natanz County, Isfahan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 12,060, in 3,411 families. It is located south-east of Kashan....
to the South, and Qom
Qom
Qom is a city in Iran. It lies by road southwest of Tehran and is the capital of Qom Province. At the 2006 census, its population was 957,496, in 241,827 families. It is situated on the banks of the Qom River....
, which is an hour drive away to the north.
Famous Kashanis
- Sohrab SepehriSohrab SepehriSohrab Sepehri was a notable modern Persian poet and a painter.He was born in Kashan in Isfahan province....
- Ghyath ad-Din Jamshid KashaniJamshid al-KashiGhiyāth al-Dīn Jamshīd Masʾūd al-Kāshī was a Persian astronomer and mathematician.-Biography:...
- Kamal-ol-MolkKamal-ol-molkMohammad Ghaffari , better known as Kamal-ol-Molk , was an Iranian painter and part of the Ghaffari Clan in Kashan.-Biography:...
- Mohammad-Nabi SarboloukiMohammad-Nabi Sarboloukithumb|right|Mohammad Nabi Sarbolouki, prominent scientist and educatorMohammad-Nabi Sarbolouki was a distinguished Iranian biophysicist and polymer chemist and one of the most influential individuals behind modern scientific movement in Iran. He was known as the inventor of a DNA vehicle called...
- Ustad Ali MaryamUstad Ali MaryamUstad Ali Maryam was a famous architect of 19th century Persia.He is famous for designing three edifices in particular, all in Kashan:*The Borujerdi-ha House *The Tabatabaei House *Timcheh Amin-al Dowleh...
- Muhsen Feyz KashaniMuhsen Feyz KashaniMuhsen Feyz Kashani was an Iranian Muslim poet, philosopher and muhaddith .-Life:Mohsen Fayz Kashani was born in Kashan to a scholarly family renowned for its learning, Fayz started his education his father, Shah Morteza. His father owned a rich library which benefited Fayz. When he reached the...
- Hosein-Shirazi
- Seddighi
- Yedidia ShofetYedidia ShofetYedidia Shofet was the former Chief Rabbi of Iran and the worldwide spiritual leader of Persian Jewry.-Early Life and Biography:...
the former chief rabbi of Iran and the worldwide spiritual leader of Persian Jewry. - Leghāi-e Kāshāni, poet
- Amir Ghiāss od-Din, one of the Generals of the Safavid King Shah Abbas II who accompanied Shah Abbas in the wars leading to the conquest of KandaharKandaharKandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
in 1648. He is the patriarch of the Zarrābi family in Kashan and one of the ancestors of the renowned Iranian poet Mohammad-Taqí BahārMohammad Taghi BaharMohammad-Taqí Bahār , widely known as Malek o-Sho'arā and Malek o-Sho'arā Bahār , is a renowned Iranian poet and scholar, who was also a politician, journalist, historian and Professor of Literature...
. - Isaac Larian is the Chief Executive Officer of MGA Entertainment, the biggest privately owned toy company in the world.
- David Alliance, Baron Alliance Businessman and a Liberal Democrat politician in the United Kingdom.
Famous families
- Borujerdi
- TabatabaeiTabatabaeiTabatabaei is a surname of Arabic and Persian origin...
- Nezam Kashani
- Esfahanian
- GhaffāriGhaffariGhaffari is an Iranian family name denoting descent from Abu Dharr al-Ghifari. The Ghaffari clan of Kashan has been the most prominent branch and has spawned numerous politicians, artists, and intellectuals. The Ghaffari clan of Rezayeh has also been a very prominent branch and has spawned...
- Sharifian
- Zarrābi
- Mohagheghi Baadi
See also
- Kashan rugKashan rugA Kashan rug is a type of Persian rug from the area of Kashan. Kashan is a city in Isfahan Province in North Central Iran. There was production of Persian Carpet at Royal workshops in the 17th and early 18th century. Many authors attribute Persian Rugs and Carpet to Kashan in the 16th century...
- Iranian ArchitectureIranian architectureIranian architecture or Persian architecture is the architecture of Iran . It has a continuous history from at least 5000 BCE to the present, with characteristic examples distributed over a vast area from Turkey to North India and the borders of China and from the Caucasus to Zanzibar...
- Sialk - Kashan's ancient architecture.
- Traditional Persian residential architectureTraditional Persian residential architectureTraditional Persian residential architecture, is the architecture employed by builders and craftsmen in the cultural Greater Iran and the surrounding regions to construct vernacular houses...
External links
----
- About Kashan
- "Humble Earth": Kashani residential architecture (if link does not work, refresh)
- Photos from Kashan
- Shapour Bahrami, Kashan, Iran, Photo Set, flickr.
- The Ghaffari Clan of Kashan.
- Great information and pictures of Kashan.
- Kashan Carpets and Rugs
- Hamid-Reza Hosseini, Kashan's Houses (Kāshāneh-hā-ye Kāshān), in Persian, Jadid Online, 24 February 2009, http://www.jadidonline.com/story/24022009/frnk/kashan_heritage_houses1.
Audio slideshows, Jadid Online: (1) (5 min 43 sec), (2) (1 min 36 sec). - Hamid-Reza Hosseini, Earthbound Paradises (Behesht-hā-ye Zamini), in Persian, Jadid Online, 25 February 2009, http://www.jadidonline.com/story/25022009/frnk/kashan_heritage_houses3.
Audio slideshow, Jadid Online, http://www.jadidonline.com/images/stories/flash_multimedia/Kashan_heritage_houses3_test/kashan3_high.html (6 min).