Hawraman

Hawrāmān (also Húrāmān) (Kurdish: هه‌ورامان or Hewraman) or Ōrāmān (Persian: اورامان‎) or Avroman[1] is a mountainous region located within the provinces of Kurdistan and Kermanshah in western Iran and in north-eastern Iraq within Iraq's Kurdistan Region. In Iran, the region includes the cities of Paveh and Marivan and in Iraq, Halabja. The inhabitants of Hawraman are Kurdish people that speak Hewrami, part of the Gorani branch of the Kurdish language group. Hawraman is best known for its unique arrangement of cities and villages built along the mountain slopes of the region. Ancient religions are also practiced throughout Hawraman and the region is home to the ancient holy places of the Yarsan faith.

The Inscription of Sargon II at Tang-i Var pass near the village of Tang-i Var, Hawraman

Hawraman has many springs and rivers that most their water mainly pores into Sirwan River. Bil spring (or Kani Bil) is one of these springs which has a discharge about 3000-4000 liters per second. The river which is made of Bil spring is the shortest river all over the world with a total length of 15 meters.[2][3]

The Parchments of Awraman, a set of three documents from the Seleucid and Parthian eras, were found in the region in 1909. They were discovered in a cave on Kuh-e Salan Mountain, near the village of Shar Hawraman, and subsequently sent to London.

Some scholars believe that the name Hawraman or Huraman has strong connections to the ancient Zoroastrian faith and claim that the name may have originated from Ahuraman or Ahura Mazda.[4] Ahura Mazda is the name of God in the ancient Indo-Iranian Avestan language and comes from the ancient Zoroastrian faith, which is still being practiced by very small numbers of people in the region. Many areas in the Hawraman region are believed to have been pilgrimage sites for Zoroastrians prior to the advent of Islam.[5]

A poem about Hawraman by the famous Kurdish poet Goran:

A Tour in Hawraman

"A mountain mass, wild and defiant, Has gathered blue heaven in its embrace; The mantle of its peak is brilliant white snow, Dark with forest are its silent dales. Waters imprisoned in their tunnels Flow on, nor cease their windings round the hills; The roar and hiss of foam, the shrill song of the brook: Lullabies for grief in the solitude of night. The narrow footpath, feeling its way from tunnel to tunnel, Throws the wayfarer into anxiety without end; On the track rocky stairways, on the side great boulders, That heaven has not yet sent rolling down. Now up hill, now down hill, The bitter and sweet of the wayfarer’s world."

References

  1. ↑ D. N. MacKenzie, Avroman, Encyclopedia Iranica
  2. ↑ "Kani Bil:Iranian TV; Kurdistan province".
  3. ↑ "Rudaw:Kani Bil is in crisis".
  4. ↑ Nyberg, H.S. (1923), The Pahlavi documents of Avroman, Le Monde Oriental, XVII, p.189. This is very interesting for those interested in investigating the survival of Parthian usage of Zoroastrian terminology among the local Kurds of modern day Hawraman (Avroman).
  5. ↑ CHN | Tourism and Travel
  1. A Tour in Hawraman,A poem by Goran

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