Ahvaz

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Map of Iran and surrounding lands, showing location of Ahvaz

The township of Ahvaz (Persian: اهواز Ahvâz, Arabic الأهواز Al-Ahwâz) is built on the banks of the Karun River in the middle of the Iranian province of Khuzestan. The newer part of Ahvaz, the administrative and industrial center, has been built on the right bank of the Karun; residential areas are found in the old section of the city, on the left bank. Ahvaz is the largest city of the province. There are some 890,000 inhabitants (2005 estimate).

Aerial photo of the city of Ahvaz, Bustan park, and Karun river.

Contents

1 History

1.1 Ancient history
1.2 Medieval history
1.3 Modern history of Ahvaz

2 Contemporary Ahvaz

3 Some famous Ahvazis

4 See also

5 External links

History

For a more comprehensive historical treatment of the area, see the history section of Khuzestan.

Ancient history

Ahvaz - then named Ōhrmazd-Ardašēr - was built near the beginning of the Sassanid dynasty on what historians believe to have been the site of the old city of Taryana, a notable city under the Persian Achaemenid dynasty. It was founded either by Ardashir I in 230 (cf. Encyclopedia Iranica, al-Muqaddasi, et al.) or (according to the Middle Persian Šahrestānīhā ī Ērānšahr) by his grandson Hormizd I of Persia; the town's name either combined Ardashir's name with the Zoroastrian name for God, Ōhrmazd, or Hormizd's name with that of his grandfather. It became the seat of the province, and was also referred to as Hūmšēr. During the Sassanid era, an irrigation system and several dams were constructed, and the city prospered. Examples of Sassanid era dams are Band e Bala-rud, Band e Mizan, Band e Borj Ayar, and Band e Khak. The city replaced Susa, the ancient capital of Susiana, as the capital of what was then called Xuzestan.

The city had two sections; the nobles of the city lived in one part while the other was inhabited by merchants (cf. Encyclopedia Iranica.) When the Arabs invaded the area in 640, the part of the city home to the nobility was demolished but the Hūj-ī-stānwāčār "Market of Khūz State", the merchant area, remained intact. The city was therefore renamed Sūq al-Ahwâz, "Market of the Khuzis", a semi-literal translation of the Persian name of this quarter - Ahwâz being the Arabic broken plural of Hûz, taken from the ancient Persian term for the native Elamite peoples, Hūja (remaining in medieval Xūzig "of the Khuz" and modern Xuzestan "Khuz State"), as noted by Yaqut al-Hamawi (1179-1229) and Abu-Mansoor Javalighi.

Medieval history

During the Umayyad and Abbasid eras, Ahvaz flourished as a center for the cultivation of sugar-cane and as the home of many well-known scholars. It is discussed by such respected medieval historians and geographers as ibn Hawqal, Tabari, Istakhri, Muqaddasi, Yaqubi, Masudi, and Mostowfi Qazvini. Nearby stood the Academy of Gundishapur (also Jondishapour, Jondishapur), where the modern-day teaching hospital is said to have been first established.

Ahvaz was devastated in the bloody Mongol invasions of the 13th and 14th centuries. Ahvaz subsequently declined into a mere village. The dam and irrigation channels, no longer maintained, eroded and finally collapsed early in the 19th century. During this time Ahvaz was primarily inhabited by Arabs and a small number of Sabians. Some minor cultivation continued, while all evidence of sugarcane plantations had vanished, although ruins of sugarcane mills from the medieval era remained in existence. (X. de Planhol, Encyclopedia Iranica).

Modern history of Ahvaz

In the 1880s, under Qajar rule, the Karun River was dredged and re-opened to commerce. A newly-built railway crossed the Karun at Ahvaz. The city again became a commercial crossroads, linking river and rail traffic. The construction of the Suez Canal further stimulated trade. A port city was built near the old village of Ahvaz, and named Bandar-e-Naseri in honor of Nassereddin Shah Qajar.

Oil was found near Ahvaz in the early 20th century, and the city once again grew and prospered as a result of this newfound wealth. It resumed its old name, Ahvaz. From 1897-1925, Sheikh Khaz'al controlled this area and the name was changed to Naseriyeh. Afterwards, during the Pahlavi period, it resumed its old name, Ahvaz.

Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein attempted to annex Khuzestan and Ahvaz in 1980, resulting in the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988). Ahvaz was close to the front lines and suffered badly during the war.

Iraq had pressed its claims to Khuzestan in part because many of the inhabitants of the area spoke Arabic rather than Persian, the dominant language in Iran. Iraq had hoped to exacerbate ethnic tensions and win over popular support for the invaders. Most accounts say that the Iranian Arab inhabitants resisted the Iraqis rather than welcome them as liberators. However, some Iranian Arabs claim that as a minority they face discrimination from the central government; they agitate for the right to preserve their cultural and linguistic heritage and more provincial autonomy. See Ethnic politics of Khuzestan.

On June 12, 2005, four seperate bombs have exploded in the south-western Iranian city of Ahwaz, killing more than five people and wounding up to 87 others. The presidential election is due in five days time.

One bomb exploded outside the governor general's office. Three more bombs exploded near government buldings in a period of two hours. Some reports put the official death toll at eight, and official reports confirm that up to 30 were injured; but final numbers are not yet known.

"We cannot say for now who committed these attacks, but the intelligence ministry is investigating," The deputy governor of Khuzestan said in a statement to state television. He went on to say that "The attacks are a failure, because in the past the regime has been confronted by far worse."

Contemporary Ahvaz

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Fulad-ahvaz steelworks

In 1989, the Fulad-e-Ahvaz steel facility was built close to the town. This company is best known for its company-sponsored soccer club, which was the chart-topper for Iran's Premier Football League in 2005. Ahvaz also supports another team, the Esteqlal-e-Ahvaz.

Ahvaz is also known for its universities as well as its role in commerce and industry. Ahvaz institutes of higher learning include: