Alamut ( fa, الموت) is a region in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

including

western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

and

eastern Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air Li ...

parts in the western edge of the

Alborz The Alborz ( fa, البرز) range, also spelled as Alburz, Elburz or Elborz, is a mountain range in northern Iran that stretches from the border of Azerbaijan along the western and entire southern coast of the Caspian Sea and finally runs nort ...

(Elburz) range, between the dry and barren plain of

Qazvin Qazvin (; fa, قزوین, , also Romanization, Romanized as ''Qazvīn'', ''Qazwin'', ''Kazvin'', ''Kasvin'', ''Caspin'', ''Casbin'', ''Casbeen'', or ''Ghazvin'') is the largest city and capital of the Qazvin Province, Province of Qazvin in Iran. ...

in the south and the densely forested slopes of the Mazandaran province in the north. Starting from

toward Alamut, passing through the first range of hills, curvatures, forms, are significant themes in nature's composition of this area. The famous Ismaili castle of Alamut and numerous others are in this area, which served as the heartland of the state founded by Hassan-i Sabbah. According to some sources, the majority of people in northern Qazvin (Alamut) are Tats who speak a dialect of the Tati language.گونه‌های زبانی تاتی، دونالد استیلو، ۱۹۸۱ However, other sources claim that the majority of people in Alamut are Mazanderani or Gilaks who speak a dialect of the

Mazanderani language Mazandarani (), or Tabari (), is an Iranian language of the Northwestern branch spoken by the Mazandarani people. , there were over 5,320,000 native speakers. As a member of the Northwestern branch (the northern branch of Western Iranian), etymo ...

Gilaki language The Gilaki language ( ) is an Iranian language of the Northwestern branch, spoken in Iran's Gilan Province. Gilaki is closely related to Mazandarani and the two languages have similar vocabularies. Though the Persian language has influence ...

. According to some linguists, the term ‘Tati’ was used by Turkic speakers to refer to non-turkic speakers. This could explain why some sources claim the people of Alamut are Tats, while others claim they are Mazanderanies or Gilaks. Likely, the ‘Tats’ of Alamut are Mazanderani or Gilak speakers who have been labeled as Tats as historically they were considered Mazanderani or Gilaks.

Name

Alamut ( fa, الموت), historically known as Rudbar () or Rudbar of Alamut ( ''Rūdbār-i Alamūt''), named after the

Shahrud The Shahrud (Turkish ''Şehrud'' from Persian شاهرود, DMG ''šāh-i rūd'' or ''šāh-rūd'') was a short-necked lute, illustrated in the '' Surname-i Hümayun'', resembling an oud or barbat, but being much larger. The larger size gave t ...

river. More precisely, Alamut is a small region in the historical Rudbar in which the namesake castle is located.

History

In 1090 CE, Hassan-i Sabbah, the leader of the

Assassins An assassin is a person who commits targeted murder. Assassin may also refer to: Origin of term * Someone belonging to the medieval Persian Ismaili order of Assassins Animals and insects * Assassin bugs, a genus in the family ''Reduviida ...

, a sect of

Nizari Ismailis The Nizaris ( ar, النزاريون, al-Nizāriyyūn, fa, نزاریان, Nezāriyān) are the largest segment of the Isma'ilism, Ismaili Muslims, who are the second-largest branch of Shia Islam after the Twelvers. Nizari teachings emphasize ...

in Iran, chose the Alamut region as his headquarters to campaign, preach and convert new followers. This proved to be a turning point for the destiny of Alamut Valley. The result of over two centuries of Ismailite stronghold, the region witnessed numerous castles throughout, of which at least 20 "castles" dating back to this era have been identified. The most magnificent castle in the Alamut Valley is the

Alamut Castle Alamut ( fa, wikt:الموت, الموت, meaning "eagle's nest") is a ruined mountain fortress located in the Alamut region in the South Caspian Sea, Caspian province of Qazvin near the Masudabad, Qazvin, Masoudabad region in Iran, approximately ...

, which is built on top of a high rock reaching 2163 m above sea level near the Gazor Khan Village. The rock is 200 m high and covers an area of ; with its steep slope and deep and dangerous ravine, the rock is practically inaccessible and forms a part of the fort’s structure. Currently, only ruins of the fort and some towers are apparent, and it is only through archaeological excavation that the main portions can be discovered.Alamut Castle (Eagle’s Nest): Hassan Sabbah Stronghold
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Lords of Alamut Castle who ruled the Nizārī Ismā'īlī state from Alamūt

Today, the leader of the contemporary Ismaili community is the Aga Khan. File:Fall in Hir.jpg, Hir,

West Alamut Alamut-e Gharbi District ( fa, بخش الموت غربی, meaning "Western Alamut District"), formerly Rudbar-e Shahrestan District, is a district (bakhsh) in Qazvin County, Qazvin Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 16,255, in ...

File:OvanLakeAlamut.png, Ovan Lake,

East Alamut Alamut-e Sharqi District ( fa, بخش الموت شرقی), meaning "East Alamut District", formerly Rudbar-e Alamut District, is a district (bakhsh) in Qazvin County, Qazvin Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 12,519, in 4,128 ...

File:Alamut2.jpg, Alamut fortification in Iran and

Ismailites Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-S ...

stronghold

Alamut rulers

Alâ al Dîn Muhammad droguant ses disciples

* Hassan-i Sabbah * Kia Bozorg Omid * Muḥammad ibn Kiyā Buzurg-Ummīd * Ali al-Hadi ibn Nizar * Al-Muhtadi (Nizari imam) * Al-Qahir (Imam) * Hasan Alâ Zikrihi’s Selâm * Nūr al-Dīn Muḥammad II *

Jalaluddin Hasan Jalāl al-Dīn Ḥassan III () (1187–1221), son of Nūr al-Dīn Muḥammad II, was the 25th Nizāri Ismā‘ilī Imām. He ruled from 1210 to 1221. His life He was born to the 24th Imam and a Sunni mother. Jalal al-Din Hassan claimed ...

‘Alā’ ad-Dīn Muḥammad III ʿAlāʾ ad-Dīn Muḥammad III (; 1211–1255), more commonly known simply as Ala ad-Din (), son of Jalāl al-Dīn Ḥassan III, was the 26th Nizāri Ismāʿilī Imām. He ruled the Nizari Ismaili state from 1221 to 1255. He was a respec ...

* Ruknu-d-Dīn Khurshāh (The last ruler of the

)

Name

History

Lords of Alamut Castle who ruled the Nizārī Ismā'īlī state from Alamūt

Alamut rulers

See also

References

Further reading