The city of Shirvan or Sirvan was one of the important cities of Pahle or Jibal during and pre-Sasanian era, which was considered the center of Masbadhan province. Masbadhan is the same Masabatike of Achaemenid, Seleucid and Parthian times, whose people played a significant role in regional and extra-regional equations and had an independent government. It is assumed that it covered a vast territory which increased or decreased over time. At present, we don’t know much about the state of this province. Nevertheless, with the availed background, along with its strategic location, it is attributed to the Sasanian period, and its cities were Shirvan and Ariyohan. Shirvan continued to serve as the center of this province along with other cities. Shirvan in the Sasanian era and during the first three centuries after the fall of the empire, still maintained it’s political, economic, and social importance and played key role in the developments of this era. As such, most geographers, Muslim historians and travellers, archaeologists visited this city and wrote enormously about the city, its inhabitants and architecture. In this article, an attempt is made to examine the historical geography, urban planning and architecture of this city and its role in sociopolitical and economic developments based on existing sources.

The basic assumption of this paper is that the development of Iran's cities goes back to the early centuries of Islam. One of the consequences of this assumption is the issue of boundaries of the mountainous district and the position of Hamadan in it. It is known that Hamadan as well as Isfahan and Ray are mountainous areas but Hamadan has always been called the center of Jibal. This, along with the confusion about determining the boundaries of Jibal, increases the importance of the study of these boundaries to understand the position of Hamadan. The development of new cities and accelerated urban development are among the factors which contributed to the change of the boundaries and development and formation of social and economic fabric of the ancient cities including Hamadan. The findings of the research can be summarized as follows: Hamadan was the center of a district which was called Jibal in the strict sense of the word. Towards the end of Sasanid period this city declined and had an inferior position to that of Isfahan and Rey, despite its relative growth in the early Islamic centuries. Besides, it was a vast and decentralized city whose urban and social fabric was influenced by the rapid development in the early Islamic period.

The importance of the Jibal province in the historical destiny of Iran has been highlighted as a result of many important historical events in the early Islamic centuries. Due to its situation on the connecting ways between the East and the West and as a one of the regions of the Jibal province, Malayer had played a significant role in the historical developments. This paper seeks to explain why historical references have been silent on Malayer, as well as to introduce the geographical places of the city in the early Islamic centuries. This paper shows that Malayer was named as Jwanaq (=Khwabaq) and was affiliated with Nihavand in those centuries, due to little historical data about Malayer, and as a result of change of the names during that time. However, some of its places have been known such as Ramen, Rakah, Goorab, Kesb, Karkan and Qarategin Meadows.

Khorasan and Baghdad mystical schools are linked together by Jibāl (or the non-Arab Iraq) school. Many researchers have studied thoughts and works of the masters of Khorasan and Baghdad schools; nevertheless, several of the underlying intellectual and mystical structures of these schools still remain unknown. Consequently, these figures are usually considered as obscure masters, having eccentric ideas, even blamed or rejected by other masters.This article introduces one of the most prominent mystics of the late fourth and early fifth century AH, namely, Ja’far ibn Mohammad ibn Hossein Abhari, known as Baba Ja’far, the writer of Adab al-Foqara’ (The Manners of the Seekers of Truth).There is no trace of him and no mention of his book in Persian mystical texts. However, in some Arabic biographies or treatises written about Jibal school, Baba Ja’far has been regarded as a great mystic, poet, and scholar of Hadith, holding an important position in the mystical thought of that region. Basing the focus of this study on classical texts and sources, a new portrait of this mystic is being depicted.

Saveh is one of the famous cities of Jibal regioin in Islamic age and it continuously, has played a particular role in history due to its location in the communication path of north-east to capital city Baghdad. The special position of this city, and its favourable natural condition (a great plain with the area of 238000 HA, two permanent rivers and the widespread irrigation network), have made Saveh to triumphantly pass the historical developments and be in the spotlight of geographers and historians. Since the remain of the ancient Saveh and its historical context have been changed due to development of the new city, the study of the developments of this city would be inevitable. This paper has attempted to study historical development of Saveh based on written sources and also the reports provided by visitors who have visited this city. Indeed the findings of the current research could be useful and applicable retrieval of the spatial organization of this city and its date range protection.

Bursuqids, as a local governor family during the Seljuq period, were descendants of the Great Bursuq, who was one of the slaves of commanders of Hasanuyeh governors. When Seljuq armies conquered the Jibal, the heirs of Hasanuyeh joined the Seljuqs, then one of them, who called Bursuq, promoted his rank to the extent that was appointed as the first shihna (military commander) in Baghdad. In addition, he was appointed as a ruler of the former Hasanuyeh’s possession in Lorestan. He has ruled near 40 years in Seljuq court and his offspring played a key role in the political and military developments during the Seljuq period. Finally, the Bursuqids family was collapsed with the weakness of the Seljuqs and the arrival of new Turkmen powers. Using analytical- historical methods, this study seeks to introduce Bursuqids family, and to show their role in the political and military developments in the Seljuq period. Also, the overall effort is to analyze the political, economic, and social events of the Bursuqids era, rather than merely presenting a historical description.

During the Ilkhanid Period, the western part of the province of Jibal was named Kurdistan in administrative documents. Nuzhat al-Qulū b is the first text to provide detailed and valuable data about Kurdistan's historical geography. Some of the mentioned cities were ruined in the next centuries, and the names of some places are erroneously recorded in various manuscripts of Nuzhat al-Qulū b. Based on Mostowfī 's Nuzhat al-Qulū b, by the historical analytic method, this study seeks to determine the location of some of the Kurdistan cities. This study shows that of the seventeen place-names mentioned in Nuzhat al-Qulū b, four places located in the present-day province of Soleimā nieh in Iraq, as follows: Khuftiyā n Castle near the Qal'eh Chū lan River, Nī mrā h near Halabja, Darband-e Zangī at the mouth of Sirwā n River and Darband-e Tā dj Khā tū n at Little Zab River Valley and within Shā rbazhir. Also, six other places that have disappeared today had located within current Kermanshahā n: respectively, the city of Alā nī near Javanrū d, Dezbil (or Drbī l) or possibly Dartang near Sar pol-e Zahab, Khū shā n near Kerend-e Gharb, Solṭ ā nā bā d-e Chamchamā l at the foot of Bistū n Mountain and near the present city of Bistū n, Dī navar near the present city of Sonqor-e Kolyai and Bastam (=Visṭ ā m, probably current Tā q-e Bostā n) on the outskirts of Kermā nshā h. Six other places are still present: Kerend, Mā hī dasht, Harsī n, Kangā var, Kermā nshā h, and Alī shtar (in Lorestan).

AbstractShahrizor is a vast plain in the eastern part of Iraqi Kurdistan, located near the western borders of Iran, which had a good deal of importance during the Sassanian period because of its location in the middle of the road from the Sassanian capital of Ctesiphon to the famous fire temple of Azar Goshnasb in Shiz) present-day Takht-e Soleiman). The name of this place has been mentioned in the Sassanid contemporary sources, including the important inscription of Narseh in Paikuli, as well as the book of Karnameh-ye Ardeshir-e Babakan and Syriac texts. According to the bilingual inscription (Pahlavi and Parthian) of the Paikuli Tower, this place was called “Syārazūr” during the Sassanid period and was one of the areas whose inhabitants were present at the celebration of the Narseh victory in Paikuli. Despite the importance of this region in the studies of the Sassanid period, so far little attention has been paid to it, especially by Iranian researchers. This research, based on library studies, has studied Shahrizor in the Sassanid period based on historical sources and the results of the archaeological excavations. For this purpose, assuming that the Shahrizor plain was important during the Sassanian period due to various political, economic and religious aspects, we answer the questions about the reasons for the importance of this place, its appearance in the Sassanian period, and the location of its main settlement based on the historical texts and archaeological results of surveys and excavations. Some of the natural and geographical features of the Shahrizor plain are its average height (about 500-600 m above sea level), fertile soil and access to important water-rich rivers such as Tanjero, Little Zab and Sirwan, as well as numerous permanent springs. Based on the results of the archeological surveys and excavations, Bestansur, Gerd-i Kazhaw and Gird-I Qalrakh are the important sites of the Shahrizor plain which have an archaeological layer of Sasanian settlement. In addition, the site of Yasin tepe has been introduced as the main candidate for the Sassanid and early Islamic city of Shahrizor due to its large size. However, the site of Gird-I Qalrakh, which, according to the results of the excavations, has significant data from this period, can also be one of the proposed options for the main settlement of Shahrizor. Keywords: Iraqi Kurdistan, Shahrizor, Sasanian Period, Syārazūr. IntroductionIn some contemporary Sasanian sources, there are mentions of Shahrizor. For example, in the book of Karnameh-ye Ardeshir-e Babakan, which has been written in the HYPERLINK “https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Persian “Middle Persian language, it is mentioned the allegiance of “Yazdankert Shahrizori”, the ruler of Shahrizor with HYPERLINK “https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ardashir_I”Ardashir I (180–242 AD), the founder of the HYPERLINK “https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sasanian_Empire” Sasanian Empire (Farawashi, 1354: 55). Also, in the Syriac texts of the fifth century AD, contemporaneous with the Sassanid period, have been mentioned the efforts of a Christian monk named Sāḇā Gūšnazdād to change the religion of a group of Kurds in Shahrizor and build churches in this area (Potts, et al. 2018: 124). The most important Sasanian inscription in which Shahrizor is mentioned as Syārazūr is the monumental inscription of Narseh in Paikuli. However, most of the historical information about the Shahrizor comes from the historical and geographical books of the early Islamic period, such as those by Ibn Khordadbeh, Ibn Rustah, Balazeri, Ibn Faqih etc. For example, most Islamic sources attribute the construction of Shahrizor to the Sassanian king Peroz I (459-484) (Ibn Faqih, 1379: 12; Mostofi, 1362: 108; Badlisi, 1377: 477). In addition, the mentioned sources also refer to the massacre of the Zoroastrian Hirbods of Shahrizor after the conquest of the city by the Muslim Arabs (Hamawi, 1380: 49). This indicates that the city was a center for Zoroastrian priests and their religious activities in the late Sassanid period. According to Muslim geographers, this place was also called Nimrah, because it was located halfway from HYPERLINK “https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Mada%27in”al-Mada’in (Ctesiphon) to the fire temple of Azar Goshnasb (Shiz, present-day Takht-e Soleiman) (Ibn Rustah, 1892: 164; Ibn Khordadbeh, 1889: 24; Mostofi, 1362: 107) and on the east-west route, it was located on the way from Hamedan to Mosul and Erbil. It was customary for every Sassanid king who came to the throne to cross this way on foot to reach the great fire temple of Shiz for Pilgrimage.Some other information about Shahrizor comes from the Islamic texts, including its distance from other cities in the region of Jibal (mountains), climatic and anthropological features, etc. Archaeological evidence The remains of the Sassanid settlements have been discovered at eight sites of the Shahrizor plain, including Gerd-i Kazhaw (Tamm et al. 2018), Bestansur (Cooper and Welton, 2019: 11; Mudd, 2016: 44), SSP 4 (Altaweel et al., 2012: 27), SSP 5 (Altaweel et al., 2012: 27), Tell Begum (Nieuwenhuyse, 2016: 120), Gird-I Qalrakh (Wicke, 2020: 463-78), Sutik Tape (Altaweel et al., 2012: 27), and Bakr Awa (Miglus et al., 2013: 67&73; Miglus, 2016: 237; APKRI, 2015: 7). Gerd-i Kazhaw is a relatively small site, from which have been discovered the remains of defensive architecture, a columned building and artifacts and objects of the Sassanid period, including stamped pottery and a coin of the Sasanian king Kavad I (488 to 531) (Tamm et al., 2018). Although the importance of Bestansur is mainly due to its Neolithic settlement, a small stone structure from the Sassanid period has been discovered at this site (Cooper and Welton, 2019: 11; Mudd, 2016: 44). According to the Geomagnetic Survey, Gird-I Qalrakh is an ancient-walled city with an area of about 15 hectares. An interesting structure from the Sassanid period has been excavated at this site, where 13 loom weights were discovered made of secondarily baked clay. Also, one worn stamp-seal and sixteen rather fragmentary stamp seal impressions have been discovered in this room, some of them bear impressions of textile on one surface, which probably indicates that these might have originally been attached to bundles of cloth. The excavator believes that the remains of a textile workshop along with the effect of stamp seals for goods in Gird-I Qalrakh suggests textile production on a larger, non-domestic scale, which was not expected at such a small site like Gird-I Qalrakh (Wicke, 2020: 463-78). Evidence of the Sassanid period from the site of Bakr Awa is limited to a few pottery fragments discovered form trenches that do not have any associated settlement layers (Miglus et al., 2013: 67&73; Miglus, 2016: 237; APKRI, 2015: 7). Only Sassanid pottery has been identified from the sites of SSP4, SSP5, Tell Begum and Sutik Tape. ConclusionThe political, religious and economic importance of Shahrizor in the Sasanian era can be traced both through inscriptions and historical texts and through the quantity and quality of its archaeological evidence, including ancient sites, which generally indicate the importance of Shahrizor during this period. Some important excavated sites in the Shahrizor plain, such as Gerd-i Kazhaw and Gird-I Qalrakh, have layers older than the Sassanian period, especially from the Neo-Assyrian period, which indicates that these sites were not newly founded Sassanian cities. This is contrary to the statement in those Islamic texts that attributed the building of Shahrizor to the Sassanian king Kavad. In the case of the large mound of Yasin Tepe, which is thought to be the Sassanid city of Shahrizor, we should wait for the results of future excavations. In general, Shahrizor, as an important regional center, still has many unspoken stories from the Sasanian period that need more attention.