Aligudarz

For the administrative subdivision, see Aligudarz County.
Aligoudarz
اليگودرز
city

Central Square of Aligudarz
Aligoudarz
Coordinates: 33°24′02″N 49°41′42″E / 33.40056°N 49.69500°E / 33.40056; 49.69500Coordinates: 33°24′02″N 49°41′42″E / 33.40056°N 49.69500°E / 33.40056; 49.69500
Country  Iran
Province Lorestan
County Aligudarz
Bakhsh Central
Population (2006)
 • Total 78,690
Time zone IRST (UTC+3:30)
 • Summer (DST) IRDT (UTC+4:30)

Aligoudarz (Persian: اليگودرز‎‎, also Romanized as Alīgūdarz, Aligoodarz; also known as ‘Ali Gudār)[1] is a city in and capital of Aligudarz County, Lorestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 78,690, in 18,115 families.[2]

Road in vicinity of Aligoudarz at winter.

Aligudarz is located 503 km from Tehran and situated in a region which is a mixture of plain and foothill, thus enjoying a mountainous mild climate. Oshtorankuh Mountain range and Aligudarz River are situated here.

History

The origins of the city are unknown. The city of Aligudarz was once called Al-e Goodarz (meaning sons or tribe of Goodarz, a mythical Iranian hero from the Persian national epic Shahnameh).

In the past, the monastery of this city was a religious training center for the Kizilbash and darvishes.

Main sights

In the mountains and hills around Aligudarz, ancient objects have been discovered including rectangular brick earthenware from the 13th century AD.

Important natural and historical sites of Aligudarz include:

Ab Sefid Waterfall
Oshtoran Kooh Mountain

Ethnicities

The city's inhabitants belong to the Bakhtiari ethnic group, and are bilingual in Persian and Luri. The overwhelming majority of the population are of the Shia Muslim confession. Throughout the centuries very large numbers of people of Khunsar and Golpayegan have settled in the city. There was once a Jewish community that has either been assimilated into mainstream Islam or emigrated out of the city. The last known Jewish inhabitants fled the city during the Islamic Revolution.

Notables from Aligudarz

References

  1. ↑ Aligudarz can be found at GEOnet Names Server, at this link, by opening the Advanced Search box, entering "-3052669" in the "Unique Feature Id" form, and clicking on "Search Database".
  2. ↑ "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1385 (2006)". Islamic Republic of Iran. Archived from the original (Excel) on 2011-11-11.
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