Zabol

Zabol
زابل
city

Zabol
Coordinates: 31°01′43″N 61°30′04″E / 31.02861°N 61.50111°ECoordinates: 31°01′43″N 61°30′04″E / 31.02861°N 61.50111°E
Country  Iran
Province Sistan and Baluchestan
County Zabol
Bakhsh Central
Population (2006)
 • Total 130,642
Time zone IRST (UTC+3:30)
 • Summer (DST) IRDT (UTC+4:30)

Zabol  pronunciation  (Persian: زابل‎, also Romanized as Zābol)[1] is a city in and the capital of Zabol County, Sistan and Baluchestan Province, Iran.The word Zabol is of Sanskrit origin and is derived from Jabala and the name pertains to the period when Hinduism was the professed faith of the area and the area was politically and culturally part of al-Hind or India. Zabol lies on the border with Afghanistan, but also close to the border with Pakistan. Referred to as Sistan until the late 1920s, the city was renamed Zabol by Reza Shah Pahlavi.[2] At the 2006 census, its population was 130,642, in 27,867 families.[3]

Zabol is located near Lake Hamun and the region is irrigated by the Hirmand River. Lake Hamun is a seasonal lake that is often dry. The people of Zabol are predominantly Persians who speak a variant of the Persian language and known as Sistani or Seistani which is very similar to Dari, also known as Afghan Persian, and a minority of Baluchs who speak Baluchi, a north western Iranian language. The tribes of the area include the Sarabandi, Shahraki, Arbabi, Narui, Barahui, Gorgij, Herati, Ghanbari, Afshar, Barani, Sarani, Fakhireh, Mir, Dahmardeh, Rashki, Sanchooli, Pahlevan, Faghiri, Divaneh, Gorg, Nohtani, and Sayyadi. In recent years these tribal names appear in the surnames of the inhabitants of the area. There are also hundreds of Brahuis families who speak Baluchi and some Pashtuns in the city.

Zabol area is well known for its "120 day wind" (bād-e sad-o-bist-roz), a highly persistent dust storm in the summer which blows from north to south.

The city is home to Zabol University, the largest university in the city, as well as the Zabol Medical Science University. Zabol has a regional airport.

Zabol is connected by road to Zaranj across the border in Afghanistan. The Delaram-Zaranj Highway provides road connectivity to the rest of Afghanistan. Zabol thus provides Afghanistan access to the Arabian Sea and Persian Gulf via the Port of Chabahar.

References

  1. ↑ Zabol can be found at GEOnet Names Server, at this link, by opening the Advanced Search box, entering "-3781433" in the "Unique Feature Id" form, and clicking on "Search Database".
  2. ↑ Skrine, Clarmont (1962). World War In Iran. Constable & Company, Ltd, Pg 68
  3. ↑ "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1385 (2006)". Islamic Republic of Iran. Archived from the original (EXCEL) on 2011-11-11.