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About Tehran

Coordinates: 35°41′N 51°25′E / 35.683°N 51.417°E / 35.683; 51.417Nickname(s): TEHCoordinates: 35°41′46″N 51°25′23″E / 35.69611°N 51.42306°E / 35.69611; 51.42306www.tehran.irTehran ( pronunciation (help·info)) (Persian: تهران Tehrān Tehrani Persianpronounced ), sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With a population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.

In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to mass-migration of people from all around Iran. However it is suggested that 5 million should migrate out of the city. The city is home to many historic mosques, churches, synagogues and Zoroastrian fire temples. Contemporary Tehran is a modern city featuring many tall structures, of which the Azadi (Freedom) Tower and the Milad Tower have come to be symbols of Tehran itself. Internationally Tehran was in 2008, the least expensive capital in the world and only the second least expensive city globally based on Cost-of-living index, in addition to presenting the best value for money in the world. Furthermore globally it stands 19th by city population, 56th by the size of its GDP and 29th by the population of its metropolitan area. Due to long history of Iran, there have been many instances of capital city relocations over the ages and Tehran, currently is the 32nd national capital of Iran. The native language of the city is the Tehrani dialect of Persian, with 98% nativespeakers and the majority of people in Tehran identify as Persians. In pre-Islamic and early Islamic times, Tehran was called Ray which in the Avesta occurs in the form of Ragha.

Tehran historically was known as Ray which is etymologically connected to the Old Persian and Avesta Rhaga. This city was a major area of the Iranian speaking Medes and Achaemenids. In the Zoroastrian Avesta, Widewdat, i, 15, Ragha is mentioned as the twelfth sacred place created by Ahura-Mazda. In the Old Persian inscriptions (Behistun 2, 10–18), Ragha appears as a province. From Ragha, Darius the Great sent reinforcements to his father Wishtaspa when the latter was putting down the rebellion in Parthia (Behistun 3, 1–10). Damavand mountain located near the city also appears in the Shahnama as the place where Freydun bounds the dragon-fiend Zahak. Damavand is important in the Persian mythological and legendary events. Kayūmarṯ, the Zoroastrian prototype of human beings and the first king in the Shahnama, was said to have resided in Damāvand. In these legends, the foundation of the city of Damavand was attributed to him. Arash, the archer who sacrificed his body by giving all his strength to the arrow that demarcated Iran and Turan; shot his shot his arrow from Mount Damāvand. This Persian legend was celebrated every year in the Tiregan festival. A popular feast is reported to have been held in the city of Damavand on 7 Šawwāl 1230/31 August 1815, during which the people celebrated the anniversary of Zahhaks death. In the Zoroastrian legends, the tyrant Zahak is to finally be killed by the Iranian hero Garšāsp before the final days. In some Middle Persian texts, Ray (Ragha) is given as the birthplace of Zoroaster although modern historians generally place the birth of Zoraster in Greater Khorasan. In one Persian tradition, the legendary king Manūčehr was born in Damavand.

During the Sassanid era, Yazdagird III in 641 issued from Rayy his last appeal to the nation before fleeing to Khurasan. The sanctuary of Bibi Shahr-Banu situated in modern Tehran spur and accessible only to women is associated with the memory of the daughter of Yazdagird who, according to tradition, became the wife of al-Husayn b. Ali, the third Shi'ite Imam. Rayy was the fief of the Persian Mihran family and Siyawakhsh the son of Mihran the son of Bahram Chubin resisted the Arab invasion. Due to this resistance, when the Arabs captured Rayy, they ordered the town to be destroyed and ordered Farrukhan b. Zaynabi b. Kula to rebuilt the town. In the 10th century, Rayy is described in detail in the work of Islamic geographers. Despite the interest of Baghdad displayed in Rayy, the number of Arabs there was insignificant, and the population consisted of Persians of all classes. The Ghuzz Turks laid Rayy to waste in 1035 and in 1042, but the city recovered during the Saljuqid and Khwarizmid era. The Mongols laid Rayy to complete waste and according to Islamc historians of the era, virtually all of its inhabitants were massacared. The city is mentioned in later Safavid chronicles as an unimportant city.

The origin of the name Tehran is unknown. Tehran was well known as a village in the 9th century, but was less well-known than the city of Rhages (Ray) which was flourishing nearby in the early era. Najm al-Din Razi known as Dayya gives the population of Rayy as 500,000 before the Mongol invasion. In the 13th century, following the destruction of Ray by Mongols, many of its inhabitants escaped to Tehran. In some sources of the early era, the city is mentioned as "Rhages's Tehran" . The city is later mentioned in Hamdollah Mostowfi's Nuz'hat al-Qulub (written in 1340) as a famous village.

There is also a shrine there, dedicated to commemorate Princess Shahr Banu, eldest daughter of the last ruler of the Sassanid Empire. She gave birth to Ali Zayn al Abidin, the fourth holy Imam of the Shia faith. This was through her marriage to Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam. A nearby mountain is also named after her. However, some sources attribute the shrine to the goddess of water and fertility, Anahita, claiming it was renamed in Islamic times to protect it from any possible harm after the conversion of Iranians to Islam.

Don Ruy Gonzáles de Clavijo, a Castilian ambassador, was probably the first European to visit Tehran, stopping in July 1404, while on a journey to Samarkand (now in Uzbekistan) the capital of Timur, who ruled Iran at the time. At this time, the city of Tehran was unwalled.

In the early of 18th century, Karim Khan Zand ordered a palace, and a government office to be built in Tehran, possibly to declare the city his capital, but later moved his government to Shiraz. Tehran finally became the capital of Iran in 1795, when the Qajar king Agha Mohammad Khan was crowned in the city. It remains the capital to this day.

In the 1920s and 30s, the city essentially was started from scratch under the rule of the Shah of Iran, Reza Shah Pahlavi. Reza Shah believed that ancient buildings such as large parts of the Golestan Palace, Takieh-ye Dowlat, the Toopkhaneh Square, the city fortifications and the old citadel among others should not be part of a modern city. They were systematically destroyed and modern buildings with pre-islamic Iranian style, such as the National Bank, Police Headquarter, Telegraph Office and Military Academy were built in their place. The Tehran Bazaar was divided in half and many historic buildings were destroyed in order to build wide straight avenues in the capital. Many examples of Persian Gardens also became targets to new construction projects.

During World War II, British and Soviet troops entered the city. Tehran was the site of the Tehran Conference in 1943, attended by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin.

In the 1960s and 70s Tehran was rapidly developing under the reign of Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi. Modern Buildings altered the face of Tehran and ambitious projects were envisioned for the following decades. The majority of these projects were stopped by the Islamic Revolution 1979, with few elements of them, such as the Milad Tower, being built under the new regime decades later.

During the 1980–88 Iran–Iraq War, Tehran was the scene of repeated Scud missile attacks and air strikes

The city of Tehran had a population of approximately 7,8 million in 2006. With its cosmopolitan air, Tehran houses diverse ethnic and linguistics groups from all over the country and represents the ethnic/linguistic composition of Iran (though with a different percentage). The native language of the city is the Tehrani dialect of Persian and the majority of people in Tehran identify are Persians. Minority groups include Azeri, Kurds, Arab, Baluch, Armenian, Bakhtiari, Assyrian, Talysh, etc. According to a 2010 census conducted by the Sociology department of Tehran university in many districts of Tehran across various soci-economical classes in proprotion to population sizes of each district and soci-economic class, 63% of people in Tehran were born in Tehran, 98% know Persian, 67% identify themselves as ethnic Persian, 13% understand to some level some European languages.

Tehran saw a drastic change in its ethno-social composition in early 1980s. Following the political, social and economic consequences of the Islamic Revolution of Iran in 1979 and onwards, many Iranian citizens, mostly Tehranis left Iran due to mounting political, social and most importantly religious pressure. Many Iranians fled to countries such as Canada, the United States, France, Sweden and other European countries. The highest Iranian emigration has been to the United States, France and Canada.

With the start of the Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988) following an Iraqi invasion, a second wave of inhabitants fled the city, especially during Iraqi air offensive on the capital. With most major powers backing Iraq at that time, economic isolation caused even more reasons for the inhabitants to leave the city (and the country). Having left all they had and having struggled to adapt to a new country and build a life, most of them never came back when the war was over. During the war, Tehran also received a great number of migrants from the west and the southwest of the country bordering Iraq.

The unstable situation and the war in neighboring Afghanistan and Iraq prompted a rush of refugees into the country who came in millions, with Tehran being a magnet for modest workers who helped the city to recover from war wounds, charging far less than local construction workers. Many of these refugees are being repatriated with the assistance of UNHCR but there are still sizable groups of Afghan and Iraqi refugees in Tehran who are reluctant to leave, being pessimistic about the situation in their respective country of origin. Afghan refugees are mostly Persian-speaking Hazara or Tajiks, speaking a dialect of Persian, and Iraqi refugees, who are mainly Shia Islam Mesopotamian Arabic-speakers of Iranian origin.

The majority of Tehranis are believed to be moderate followers of Twelver Shia Islam which is also the state religion but it cannot be confirmed independently for lack of independent statistics. Religious minorities include followers of various sects of Sunni Islam, Mystic Islam, Zoroastrianism, Judaism, Christianity (including the adherents of the Assyrian Church of the East, Armenian Apostolic Church, Roman Catholic Church, Chaldean Catholic Church, Iranian Protestant churches like Jama'at-e Rabbani (Assemblies of God), Armenian Evangelical Church, Armenian Brotherhood Church, Russian Orthodox Church, and the Presbyterian Church) and some from the Bahá'í Faith. Despite being the seat of a theological government and the fact that most important religious unions and academies of the country are based in Tehran, half of the city (northern area) remains the most liberal in the nation, a fact that attracts many young people from elsewhere to study in the capital.

Plan to move the capital has been discussed many times in prior years. In 2010, the government of Iran announced that "for security and administrative reasons" the plan to move capital from Tehran has been finalized. The Majlis named Shahroud, Esfahan and Semnan as three of main candidates to replace Tehran as the capital. There are plans to relocate 163 state firms to the provinces and several universities from Tehran to avoid damages from a potential earthquake. President Ahmadinejad suggested that 5 million residents should migrate out of Tehran. As a starting point, Iranian authorities are relocating all defense-related industries out of the capital.

The city of Tehran is divided into 22 municipal districts, each with its own administrative centers.

Abbas Abad, Afsariyeh, Amaniyeh, Amir Abad, Aryashahr, Bagh Feiz, Baharestan, Darakeh, Darband, Dardasht, Dar Abad, Darrous, Dehkadeh Olampik, Ekhtiyariyeh, Ekbatan, Elahiyeh, Evin, Farmanieh, Fereshteh, Gheitariye, Gholhak, Gisha, Gomrok, Hasan Abad, Jamaran, Jannat Abad, Javadiyeh, Jomhuri, Jordan, Lavizan, Mehran, Narmak, Navab, Nazi Abad, Niavaran, Park-e Shahr, Pasdaran, Piroozi, Punak, Ray, Sa'adat Abad, Sadeghiyeh, Seyed Khandan, Sohrevardi, Shahrara, Shahr-e ziba, Shahrak-e Gharb, Shemiran, Tajrish, Tehranpars, Tehransar, Vanak, Velenjak, Yaft Abad, Yusef Abad, Zafaraniyeh, etc.

For a map of the relative locations of the neighborhoods and the full list, see List of the localities around Tehran.

Tehran has many modern and chic restaurants, serving both traditional Iranian and cosmopolitan cuisine. The most popular dish of the city is the chelow kabab (kabob/kebab is originally a Persian word meaning grilled meat). However, Western-style fast food is becoming popular, especially with the younger generation. Pizza, sandwich and kebab shops make up the majority of other food outlets in the city.

Tehran is the economic centre of Iran. About 30% of Iran’s public-sector workforce and 45% of large industrial firms are located in Tehran and almost half of these workers work for the government. Most of the remainder of workers are factory workers, shopkeepers, laborers, and transport workers. Few foreign companies operate in Tehran because of the Islamic government's relations to the west. But before the Islamic revolution many foreign companies were active in this region. Today many modern industries of this city include the manufacturing of automobiles, electronics and electrical equipment, weaponry, textiles, sugar, cement, and chemical products. It is also a leading center for the sale of carpets and furniture. There is an oil refinery near Ray, south of the city. Tehran has four airports, including Mehrabad International Airport, Imam Khomeini International Airport, Ghal'eh Morghi airfield and Doshan Tapeh airbase.

Tehran relies heavily on private cars, buses, motorcycles, and taxis, and is one of the most car-dependent cities in the world. The Tehran Stock Exchange, which is a full member of the Federation Internationale des Bourses de Valeurs (FIBV) and a founding member of the Federation of Euro-Asian Stock Exchanges, has been one of the world's best performing stock exchanges in recent years.

Tehran is served by two airports. Mehrabad Airport, an old airport which doubles as a military base is used for domestic and pilgrimage flights. This airport is located in the Western part of the city. Imam Khomeini International Airport, located 50 kilometers south of the city, handles almost all international flights.

Tehran has one of the cleanest and most convenient metro systems, in terms of accessibility to different parts of the city, in the region. The feasibility study and conceptual planning of the construction were started in 1970s. In 2001, the first two of the eight projected metro lines were opened. Tehran Metro has four operative lines and is 120 km long with another two lines under construction. Tehran has the longest metro line in the Middle East and currently the fourth longest in Asia.

Tehran suffers from severe air pollution and the city is often covered by smog making breathing difficult and causing widespread pulmonary illnesses. It is estimated that about 27 people die each day from pollution-related diseases. According to local officials, 3,600 people died in a single month due to the hazardous air quality. 80% of the city's pollution is due to cars. The remaining 20% is due to industrial pollution. Other estimates suggest that motorcycles alone account for 30% of air and 50% of sound pollution in Tehran.

In 2007 Iran imposed fuel rations but the plan has met little success in reducing the pollution levels. In 2011, with the improvements in the public transport system and the rise in fuel prices due to the new subsidies reform plan, the Government is hoping to be able to improve the problems of pollution and traffic.

The government, however, is engaged in a battle to reduce the air pollution. It has for instance encouraged taxis and buses to convert from petrol engines to engines that run on compressed natural gas. Furthermore, since 1979 the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran has set up a "Traffic Zone" (طرح ترافیک) covering the city center during peak traffic hours. Entering and driving inside this zone is only allowed with a special permit. The government is also trying to raise people's awareness about the hazards of the pollution. One method that is currently being employed is the installation of Pollution Indicator Boards all around the city to monitor the current level of particulate matter (PM10), nitrogen dioxide (NO), ozone (O), sulfur dioxide (SO), and carbon monoxide (CO). The board also displays the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI), which is a general indication of air quality based on the measurements of the above-mentioned five pollutants. The Pollution Indicator Boards classify the level of each pollutants as either safe, hazardous or dangerous.

Tehran is the largest and most important educational center of Iran. Today there are nearly 50 major colleges and universities total in Greater Tehran.

Since the establishment of Darolfonoon in the mid-19th century, Tehran has amassed a large number of institutions of higher education. Some of these institutions have played crucial roles in the unfolding of Iranian political events. Samuel M. Jordan, whom Jordan Avenue in Tehran is named after, was also one of the founding pioneers of the American College of Tehran. Among major educational institutions located in Tehran, Sharif University of Technology, is the most prestigious technological university of Iran and University of Tehran is the largest and oldest state university in Iran and one of the oldest in Central Asia and Middle East.

Amirkabir University of Technology (Tehran Polytechnic), Shahid Beheshti University (Melli University), K.N.Toosi University of Technology, Iran University of Science and Technology, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Shahed University and Tarbiat Modarres University are other highly ranked universities of Iran located in Tehran.

Tehran is also home to Iran's largest military academy, and several religious schools and seminaries.

Tehran was the first city in the Middle East to host the Asian Games. The 7th Asian Summer Games in 1974, was held with the participation of 2,363 athletes and officials from 25 countries.

Tehran is also the site of Iran's national football stadium on Azadi Sport Complex with 100,000 seating capacity. Azadi Football Stadium is biggest stadium in Iran and Middle East and one of the biggest in the World. Many of the top matches of Iran's Premier League are held here. In 2005, FIFA ordered Iran to limit spectators allowed into Azadi stadium because of a fatal crush and inadequate safety procedures. Other stadiums in Tehran are Shahid Dastgerdi Stadium, Takhti Stadium, and Shahid Shirudi Stadium, among others.

The ski resort of Dizin is situated to the north of Tehran in the Alborz Mountains. Tochal Ski Resort is the world's fifth highest ski resort, at over 3,730 metres (12,240 ft) at its highest 7th station. The resort was completed in 1976 shortly before the overthrowing of the Shah.

Here, one must first ride the eight kilometre (five mile) long gondola lift which covers a huge vertical and is probably the longest line in the world. The 7th station has three slopes. The resort's longest slope is the south side U shaped slope which goes from the 7th station to 5th station. The other two slopes are located on the north side of the 7th station. Here, there are two parallel chair ski lifts that go up to 3,900 metres (12,795 ft) near Tochal's peak (at 4,000 m/13,125 ft), rising higher than the gondola 7th station. This altitude is higher than any of the European resorts.

From the Tochal peak, one has a spectacular view of the Alborz range, including the 5,671 metre (18,606 ft) high Mount Damavand, a dormant volcano.

At the bottom of the lifts in a valley behind the Tochal peak is Tochal Hotel, located at 3,500 metres (11,483 ft) altitude. From there a T lift takes skiers up the 3,800 metres (12,500 ft) of Shahneshin peak, where the third slope of Tochal is.

Tochal 7th station has skiing eight months of the year. But there are also some glaciers and year-round snow fields near Tehran where skiing began in 1938, thanks to the efforts of two German railway engineers. Today, 12 ski resorts operate in Iran, but the most famous are Tochal, Dizin, and Shemshak, all within one to three hours of Tehran.

Tehran, as Iran's showcase and capital city, has a wealth of cultural attractions. The Peacock Throne of the Persian Kings (Shahs) can be found in Tehran's Golestan Palace. Some of the well-known museums are National Museum of Iran, Sa'dabad Palaces Complex, Glassware and Ceramics Museum of Iran, The Carpet Museum of Iran, Tehran's Underglass painting Museum, Niavaran Palace Complex, and Safir Office Machines Museum. The Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art features the works of great artists such as Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol. The collection of these paintings were selected by the former Empress Farah Diba.

Tehran is also home to the Iranian Imperial Crown Jewels, also called the Imperial Crown Jewels of Persia, it is claimed to be the largest, most dazzling and valuable jewel collection in the world. The collection comprises a set of crowns and thrones, some 30 tiaras, numerous aigrettes, jewel-studded swords and shields, a vast amount of precious loose gems, including the largest collections of emeralds, rubies and diamonds in the world. It also includes other items collected by the Shahs of Iran during the 2,500 year existence of the Iranian Kingdom. The Imperial Crown Jewels are still on display in the Iranian Central Bank in Tehran.

Tehran International Book Fair (TIBF) Is known to the International Publishing World as the most important publishing event in Asia and the Middle East.

The most popular social activity, especially among the younger generation is cinema. Most cinema theatres are located downtown. The Azadi Cinema was inaugurated in 2008. It is the largest cinema theatre in Tehran with ten salons. The Eram Zoo and Eram City Game are also popular meeting points, especially for families with children. A new larger zoo is planned for 2010.

Artists often mingle at the House Of Artists. Theatre Shahr was opened in 1962. It is the largest theatre in Tehran and the Middle East. Tehran TV 1, Tehran Cinema TV, Omid TV and Tehran Show TV are among the most popular TV stations in Tehran. Tehran TV2, Tehran TV3 and Tehran Sport are planned to be launched in 2010.

There are many religious centers scattered around in the city from old to newly built centers. There are mosques, churches, and synagogues where followers of these religions can practice their faith.

The Friday prayer in Tehran is usually hosted by University of Tehran which is led by a Friday prayer leader and on special occasions by the Supreme Leader of Iran. Hundreds of thousands of people participate in the prayers, during which the city of Tehran comes to a standstill.

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