Everything about Mahabad totally explained
Mahabad (in
Persian: مهاباد, in
Kurdish: Mehabad or Mihabad, alternative name: سابلاخ, Sablax) is a city in northwestern
Iran with a population of 133,324 in 2006 census.
(External Link
) The city lies south of
Lake Urmia in a narrow valley 1,300 metres above sea level, in
West Azarbaijan Province.The name of 'Mahabad' (mah+abad) is the Persian translation of the ancient Mannaean name meaning
place of moon, which is also a cognate with the Kurdish word
mang.
Mannaeans were a branch of
Hurrians (Khurrites), a northern
Mesopotamian people. It was referred to in the
Turkic languages as 'Savoj-bolaq', or 'Sablakh', which means "Cold-spring water".
Mahabad is the centre of a rich agricultural region, but the city itself is little developed by Iranian standards. Mahabad is connected by road with
Tabriz 300 km north,
Urmia 150 km north and
Irbil in
Iraq. The population of Mahabad is predominantly
Kurdish. The city has also a
university, the
Islamic Azad University of Mahabad.
(External Link)
History
The region of Mahabad was the centre of the
Mannaeans, who flourished in the early 1st millennium BC.
(External Link)
The city of Mahabad has often been the centre of Kurdish nationalist movements in Iran.
(External Link)
During the
Safavid dynasty, the region of
Mukriyan saw skirmishes between Kurdish tribes and the Persian government. In 1609-1610, during the
battle of "DimDim", the Mukriyan tribes of the region supported "
Emîr Xan Lepzêrîn" (Golden Hand Khan), the Kurdish ruler of Beradost. For further detail see "Iranian Kurdistan" section in
Kurdistan article. (Also see
(External Link),
(External Link)) .
Local traditions hold that there was an older Mahabad in what is today known as plain of
Sharwêran (ruined city), in neibourhood of modern Mahabad but was destroyed by the invading armies in medieval era.
Mahabad was a small village in
Deryaz, until the leader of
Kurdish
Mukri Tribe
Budaq Sultan made it capital of its regional government with permission of
Safavid kings. Budaq Sultan constructed many noteworthy buildings were there.
(External Link)They ruled this city until
Qajar kings ended their emirate in the middle of 19th century. Mahabad in
World War I was a center of combat between the
Ottoman Empire and
Russia. It was sacked by
Russia, and then by
Semko. In 1935 a great flood ruined much of the city. Much of the modern city was built is the result of the reconstruction. Mahabad was briefly the capital of the Kurdish
Republic of Mehabad, which declared its independence on
January 1,
1946 under the leadership of
Qazi Muhammad. The republic fell when the Iranian army invaded the region in 1947.
During the 1979
Islamic Revolution Mahabad was bombed by government forces on the 3rd of September. Other cities in the region were also attacked, and the
Iranian Army ultimately recaptured the city from the Kurdish forces. The city was time and time again the center of Kurdish political movements. The latest movement for peace in 2005 was led by Kurdish youth organizations. The peaceful demonstrations were met with violence when Iranian forces arrested several in Mahabad and all throughout the
Eastern Kurdistan region.
Culture
The prolific translator into
Persian,
Mohammad Qazi came from Mahabad. He translated more than 70 important literary works into Persian.
Some poets and writers have hailed from this city in the 19th and 20th century.
Wafaei(1844-1902),
Hejar (
Abdurrahman Sharfkandi)(1920-1990),
Hêmin(Sayyed Moháammad Amini Shaykho-al-Eslam Mokri)(1920-1986),
Abdorrahamn Zabihi (1920-1980) and
Giw Mukriyani, all from Mahabad, are considered as the main writers and poets. The first Kurdish-Kurdish-Persian Dictionary in
Iran was written by
Hejar.
Kurdistan's national poet was the title given to
Hejar(along with
Hêmin) during the short lived reign of the
Republic of Mahabad in recognition of his poetry's service to the cause
(External Link).
After the fall of the
Pahlavi monarchy in
Iran in 1979, "Hêmin" set up the Salaha-al-Din Ayyubi
Kurdish publishing house in
Urmia, which publishes
Sirwe (from spring 1985), a quarterly cultural magazine that Hêmin ran until his death in 1986
(External Link).
The dialect of Mahabad, is adopted as the literary standard of
Kurdish language in western
Iran.(which is very close to the standard "sorani" used in
Iraqi Kurdistan)
Human-rights situation
The most recent unrest in the town of Mahabad began in early July 2005, following the shooting of
Shivan Qaderi. Kurdish sources mention him as "a Kurdish opposition activist". Shivan Qaderi also known as Sayed Kamal Astam, or Astom, and two other Kurdish men, are told to be arrested by governmental forces in the town of Mahabad on 9 July. The government claimed he was a smuggler and criminal.
Kurdish and opposition version of events:
"The security forces then reportedly tied Shivan Qaderi’s body to a Toyata jeep and dragged him in the streets. The local Iranian authorities are reported to have confirmed that a person of this name, “who was on the run and wanted by the judiciary”, was indeed shot and killed by security forces at this time, allegedly while trying to evade arrest. During the days following Shivan Qaderi’s death, several thousand Mahabad residents, mainly youths, took to the streets to protest the killings. The demonstrations spread to other mainly Kurdish neighbouring towns of
Sanandaj (
Sinne),
Sardasht,
Piranshahr,
Oshnavieh, Baneh, Bokan and Saqiz. (see
(External Link) and
(External Link))
According to the
Human Rights Watch, 17 Kurdish people were killed by the Iranian security forces in July and August 2005, during the demonstartions in different cities in Iranian
Kurdistan.
(External Link)".
This interpretation of events isn't accepted by the official Iranian sources.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Mahabad'.
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