Bandar Abbas

For the administrative subdivision, see Bandar Abbas County.
Bandar Abbas
بندر عباس
گامبرون
City

A view of the Taleghani Boulevard area

Seal
Nickname(s): The Crab Port
Bandar Abbas
Coordinates: 27°11′N 56°16′E / 27.183°N 56.267°ECoordinates: 27°11′N 56°16′E / 27.183°N 56.267°E
Country  Iran
Province Hormozgan
County Bandar Abbas
Bakhsh Central
Settled prior to 600 BCE
Government
 • Type Municipality
 • Mayor Abbas Aminizadeh
Elevation 9 m (30 ft)
Population (2011)
 • Total 435,751[1]
Time zone IRST (UTC+3:30)
 • Summer (DST) IRDT (UTC+4:30)
Postal code 79177
Area code(s) (+98) 0761
Website bacity.ir

Bandar Abbas  pronunciation  (Persian: بندرعباس‎) or Bandar-e ‘Abbās (Persian: بندر عباس), also romanized as Bandar ‘Abbās, Bandar ‘Abbāsī, and Bandar-e ‘Abbās; formerly known as Cambarão and Porto Comorão to Portuguese traders, as Gombroon to English traders and as Gamrun or Gumrun to Dutch merchants,[2] is a port city and capital of Hormozgān Province on the southern coast of Iran, on the Persian Gulf. The city occupies a strategic position on the narrow Strait of Hormuz, and it is the location of the main base of the Iranian Navy. Bandar Abbas is also the capital and largest city of Bandar Abbas County. At the 2006 census, its population was 367,508, with 89,404 families.[3]

History and etymology

The harbour of Bandar Abbas in 1704

Bandar Abbas has always been a port, and as such its various names have all addressed this function. The most common name over time (Gameroon) has traditionally been said to derive from Persian gümrük, customhouse (from Late Greek kommerkion, from Latin commercium, "commerce"), but is now speculated to be from Persian kamrūn, shrimp (which in Portuguese is camarão, similar to the former Portuguese name).[4]

Ancient history

The earliest record of Bandar Abbas is during the reign of Darius the Great (between 586 and 522 BCE). Darius's commander, Silacus, embarked from Bandar Abbas to India and the Red Sea.

During Alexander's conquest of the Persian Empire, Bandar Abbas was known under the name of Hormirzad.

Descendants of Gameronians

In the year 630 CE, Maharaja Derbar Raja of Gemeron was defeated in battle and escaped to Ceylon, and he was later blown off course by a storm to the remote shores of Kuala Sungai Qilah, Kedah (now Malaysia). The inhabitants of Kedah found him to be a valiant and intelligent person, and they made him the king of Kedah. In the year 634 CE, a new kingdom was formed in Kedah consisting of Persian royalty and native Malay of Hindu faith, the capital was Langkasuka (see Kedah Sultanate and Early history of Kedah).

Early modern period

Close-up of a Dutch trading post in Bandar Abbas in 1704
Henna tattoo, signs of love and joy, worked on the hand and arm of a Bandari girl.

By the 16th century, Bandar Abbas was known as Gamrūn to the Persians. In 1565, a European navigator called it Bamdel Gombruc (that is, Bandar Gümrük, or "Customhouse Port"), citing this as the Persian and Turkish name. Bandar Abbas was conquered by the Portuguese in 1514, and was an important location to protect their commerce in the Persian Gulf and India.[5][6] They named the city Comorão, due to the presence of lobsters and crabs on its shores.

In 1614, Comorão was taken by ‘Abbās the Great from the Portuguese and renamed Bandar-e ‘Abbās ("Port of ‘Abbās"). Backed by the English navy, ‘Abbās developed the city (known to the English-speaking world as Gombraun) into a major port.

By 1622, the Portuguese and English names had been officially combined to form Combrù or Combu, although the inhabitants still called it Bandar-e ‘Abbās. Sir Thomas Herbert said the official English name was Gumbrown, but pronounced [gŏmrōōn]. He wrote in 1630 that "some (but I commend them not) write it Gamrou, others Gomrow, and othersome Cummeroon." By the 1670s, the city was known as Gameroon.

From 1740 onward, control of the town was sold to various Arab rulers, and from c. 1780 it was controlled by Muscat (now a governorate of Oman). In 1868, during Oman's decline, the town reverted to Persian rule.

Modern history

In 1622 CE Shah Abbas defeated Portuguese troops with the help of British troops and Iranian commander Imam Quli Khan. In honor of this victory Gumbroon was renamed Bandar Abbas Port. In the current division of Bandar Abbas in Hormozgan province and one of the most important strategic and commercial center is in the vicinity of the Persian Gulf and Oman Sea.

Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi paid particular attention to Bandar Abbas as a strategic port and during his time the government invested huge amounts of capital in the infrastructure.

Bandar Abbas serves as a major shipping point, mostly for imports, and has a long history of trade with India, particularly the port of Surat. Thousands of tourists visit the city and nearby islands including Qeshm and Hormuz every year.

Bandar Abbas was a small fishing port of about 17,000 people in 1955, prior to initial plans to develop it as a major harbor. By 2001, it had grown into a major city. It has a population of 450,000 (2011 estimate).

Geography

Bandar Abbas skyline in 2007

Bandar Abbas is situated on flat ground with an average altitude of 9 metres (30 ft) above sea level. The nearest elevated areas are Mt. Geno, 17 kilometres (11 mi) to the north, and Mt. Pooladi, 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) to the northwest of the city. The closest river to Bandar Abbas is the River Shoor, which rises on Mt. Geno and flows into the Persian Gulf, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) east of the city. South of the city is the island of Qeshm.

Climate

Bandar Abbas has a hot and dry hot desert climate (Köppen climate classification BWh). Maximum temperature in summers can reach 49 °C (120 °F) while in winters the minimum temperature may drop to 5 °C (41 °F). The annual rainfall is around 170 millimetres (6.7 in) and the relative humidity is 65%.

Climate data for Bandar Abbas
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 32.0
(89.6)		 33.0
(91.4)		 39.0
(102.2)		 42.0
(107.6)		 47.0
(116.6)		 51.0
(123.8)		 48.0
(118.4)		 46.0
(114.8)		 45.0
(113)		 42.0
(107.6)		 38.0
(100.4)		 32.0
(89.6)		 51
(123.8)
Average high °C (°F) 23.5
(74.3)		 24.4
(75.9)		 27.7
(81.9)		 31.6
(88.9)		 36.3
(97.3)		 38.4
(101.1)		 38.2
(100.8)		 37.7
(99.9)		 36.8
(98.2)		 35
(95)		 30.4
(86.7)		 25.5
(77.9)		 32.13
(89.83)
Daily mean °C (°F) 18.1
(64.6)		 19.4
(66.9)		 23.1
(73.6)		 26.8
(80.2)		 31.2
(88.2)		 33.7
(92.7)		 34.4
(93.9)		 34.0
(93.2)		 32.5
(90.5)		 29.6
(85.3)		 24.3
(75.7)		 19.7
(67.5)		 27.23
(81.03)
Average low °C (°F) 12.1
(53.8)		 14
(57)		 17.5
(63.5)		 20.9
(69.6)		 24.7
(76.5)		 28
(82)		 30.3
(86.5)		 30.1
(86.2)		 27.7
(81.9)		 23.5
(74.3)		 18
(64)		 13.5
(56.3)		 21.69
(71.04)
Record low °C (°F) 3.0
(37.4)		 5.4
(41.7)		 7.6
(45.7)		 11.5
(52.7)		 17.0
(62.6)		 20.0
(68)		 25.2
(77.4)		 25.0
(77)		 21.0
(69.8)		 12.0
(53.6)		 6.0
(42.8)		 2.0
(35.6)		 2
(35.6)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 39.7
(1.563)		 47.5
(1.87)		 34.8
(1.37)		 10.7
(0.421)		 4.8
(0.189)		 0.0
(0)		 0.6
(0.024)		 2.2
(0.087)		 0.8
(0.031)		 1.3
(0.051)		 5.0
(0.197)		 24.0
(0.945)		 171.4
(6.748)
Avg. precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm) 3.3 3.1 2.6 1.3 0.2 0 0.1 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.4 2.3 13.7
Average relative humidity (%) 64 68 67 64 61 64 68 69 67 64 61 63 65
Mean monthly sunshine hours 220.1 211.9 224.9 242.4 312.7 302.2 264.6 270.1 270.1 283.4 251.2 228.8 3,082.4
Source: NOAA (1961-1990) [7]

Transportation

Air

Bandar Abbas International Airport has capacity and facilities for landing large transport airplanes.

Roads

Bandar Abbas is accessible via the following highways:

Rail

Since 1993, Bandar Abbas has been the southern terminus of Islamic Republic of Iran Railways' main North–South corridor that links it to Yazd, Qom, Tehran and Qazvin to the north.

Language

Original Bandaris (residents of Bandar Abbas) speak Bandari (بندری), a dialect of Persian. Bandari has loanwords from various European languages (e.g. tawāl, "towel") and Arabic (e.g. atā [اتى], "to come"), Persian and Balochi.

Products

Night market in Bandar Abbas

Exports

Sports

Aluminium Hormozgan is Bander Abbas's main football (soccer) team. The team was founded in 2006. In 2012 they were promoted to the Iran Pro League but after their first season there they were relegated back to the Azadegan League where they currently play.

Bander Abbas also has a second less supported team, Shahrdari Bandar Abbas, which was founded in 2005 and is the municipality's team. They currently also compete in the Azadegan League.

Education

University

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ http://www.citypopulation.de/Iran-MajorCities.html
  2. ↑ Bandar Abbas can be found at GEOnet Names Server, at this link, by opening the Advanced Search box, entering "-3055107" in the "Unique Feature Id" form, and clicking on "Search Database".
  3. ↑ "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1385 (2006)". Islamic Republic of Iran. Archived from the original (EXCEL) on 2011-11-11.
  4. ↑ Hobson Jobson Dictionary
  5. ↑ Iran tourism and touring official website,Bandar Abbas
  6. ↑ SalamIranProvince of Bandar Abbas
  7. ↑ "Bandar Abbas 1961-1990". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved December 29, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Bandar Abbas N27°11' E56°16'". Federation of American Scientists. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  9. ↑ Mrs G MacKenzie (21 February 1947). "Pottery Production Can Be Mastered with Simple Tools". Halfmoon Bay, British Columbia: The Coast News. Retrieved 5 October 2014.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bandar Abbas.
Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Bander Abbāsi.