![Selin village](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Selin_village.JPG)
Guran (or Goran; ku, گوران) is a
Kurdish
Kurdish may refer to:
*Kurds or Kurdish people
*Kurdish languages
*Kurdish alphabets
*Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:
**Southern Kurdistan
**Eastern Kurdistan
**Northern Kurdistan
**Western Kurdistan
See also
* Kurd (dis ...
tribe. One of their main historical centers is
Dartang, a region whose capital is at
Rijab, at the western end of the gorge where the
Alwand River
The Alwand or Halwan River ( ar, نهر حلوان, ku, Çemê Elwen ,چەم ئەڵوەن, fa, رود الوند) is a river in eastern Iraq and western Iran. It rises in the Zagros Mountains in Iran.
The river flows west from the mountains t ...
enters into the Zohab plain.
The other one is
Darneh, located east of
Dalahu
Dalahu County ( fa, شهرستان دالاهو, ''Ŝāhrestāne Dālāhu'') is located in Kermanshah province, Kermanshah province, Iran. The capital of the county is Kerend-e Gharb. It was separated from Eslamabad-e Gharb County in 2004. At th ...
in the
Zimkan valley.
Name
In both
Gurani and
Kurdish
Kurdish may refer to:
*Kurds or Kurdish people
*Kurdish languages
*Kurdish alphabets
*Kurdistan, the land of the Kurdish people which includes:
**Southern Kurdistan
**Eastern Kurdistan
**Northern Kurdistan
**Western Kurdistan
See also
* Kurd (dis ...
, the usual pronunciation is ''Gūrān''.
An earlier form, ''Gōrān'', is preserved in the
Turkish
Turkish may refer to:
*a Turkic language spoken by the Turks
* of or about Turkey
** Turkish language
*** Turkish alphabet
** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation
*** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey
*** Turkish communities and mi ...
version of the name, ''Göran''.
Ultimately,
Vladimir Minorsky
Vladimir Fyodorovich Minorsky (russian: Владимир Фёдорович Минорский; – March 25, 1966) was a Russian Orientalist best known for his contributions to the study of Persian, Lurish and Kurdish history, geography, ...
reconstructed the original tribal name as ''*Gāubārakān'', related to the word ''gāubāra'' meaning "ox rider" or "bull rider".
This name then through a series of regular sound changes: ''*Gāubārakān'' > ''Gāurakān'' > ''*Gōrakān'' > ''Gōrān'' > ''Gūrān''.
A separate word pronounced ''Gūrān'' also exists; it refer to the social class of peasants.
This word has a completely different origin and is derived from the word ''
gabrān'', referring to
Zoroastrians.
After the Islamic conquest, the term ''gabrān'' also came to mean "subjects" because Zoroastrians formed a subject population.
The word then went through another series of regular sound changes to become ''*gaurān'' and then ''gōrān'', at which point it became a
homophone
A homophone () is a word that is pronounced the same (to varying extent) as another word but differs in meaning. A ''homophone'' may also differ in spelling. The two words may be spelled the same, for example ''rose'' (flower) and ''rose'' (p ...
of the tribal name (then ''Gōrān'').
As a result, there are many Kurds with the surname "Guran" or "Goran" that are have no connection to the Guran tribe.
History
Minorsky identified a possible ancient reference to the Guran in a passage written by
Strabo
Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...
that refers to a people called the "Guranii" (Greek: Γουράνιοι ''Gouránioi'') who lived "beyond
Armenia
Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
", near the
Medes
The Medes (Old Persian: ; Akkadian: , ; Ancient Greek: ; Latin: ) were an ancient Iranian people who spoke the Median language and who inhabited an area known as Media between western and northern Iran. Around the 11th century BC, the ...
.
This ethnic group may also be behind the name of the
Sasanian
The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries AD. Named ...
prince ''Kūrān-Shāh'' (a son of
Khosrow II
Khosrow II (spelled Chosroes II in classical sources; pal, 𐭧𐭥𐭮𐭫𐭥𐭣𐭩, Husrō), also known as Khosrow Parviz (New Persian: , "Khosrow the Victorious"), is considered to be the last great Sasanian king (shah) of Iran, ruling fr ...
) as well as the medieval
Georgian
Georgian may refer to:
Common meanings
* Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country)
** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group
** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians
**Georgian scripts, three scrip ...
female given name
Gurandukht Gurandukht ( ka, გურანდუხტი), also Guarandukht (გუარანდუხტი), is a feminine given name in Georgia, ultimately derived from the Iranian ''Bahramdukht''. It was particularly popular among the medieval Georgia ...
.
However, the Guranii may have been a different group than today's Guran, since the proposed original name ''*Gāubārakān'' seems unlikely to have already changed to the modern form ''Gūrān'' at that point.
According to Minorsky, the origins of the Guran were likely somewhere in the
Caspian Caspian can refer to:
*The Caspian Sea
*The Caspian Depression, surrounding the northern part of the Caspian Sea
*The Caspians, the ancient people living near the Caspian Sea
*Caspian languages, collection of languages and dialects of Caspian peopl ...
provinces.
For example, the 7th-century king of
Tabaristan
Tabaristan or Tabarestan ( fa, طبرستان, Ṭabarestān, or mzn, تبرستون, Tabarestun, ultimately from Middle Persian: , ''Tapur(i)stān''), was the name applied to a mountainous region located on the Caspian coast of northern Iran. ...
,
Gil Gavbara
Gil Gavbara ( fa, گیل گاوباره), also known as Gavbarih (the Cow Devotee), was king and founder of the Dabuyid dynasty in 642, ruling until his death in 660.
Origins
According to Ibn Isfandiyar, the Dabuyids were descended from Djamasp, a ...
, had a similarly derived name, and
Hamdallah Mustawfi
Hamdallah Mustawfi Qazvini ( fa, حمدالله مستوفى قزوینی, Ḥamdallāh Mustawfī Qazvīnī; 1281 – after 1339/40) was a Persian official, historian, geographer and poet. He lived during the last era of the Mongol Ilkhanate, and ...
also mentioned a plain called
Gavbari near the
Kur
The ancient Mesopotamian underworld, most often known in Sumerian as Kur, Irkalla, Kukku, Arali, or Kigal and in Akkadian as Erṣetu, although it had many names in both languages, was a dark, dreary cavern located deep below the ground, where ...
estuary, where the medieval town of
Mahmudabad was built.
The name "
Gilan" is also associated with a river in the modern Guran territory.
Minorsky hypothesized that the ancestors of the Guran may have migrated to the Zagros region under the Sasanians, who may have encouraged this as a way of securing the ties between Iran and Mesopotamia.
An early reference to the Guran may be in the works of the late 9th-century geographer
Ibn Khurradadhbih
Abu'l-Qasim Ubaydallah ibn Abdallah ibn Khordadbeh ( ar, ابوالقاسم عبیدالله ابن خرداذبه; 820/825–913), commonly known as Ibn Khordadbeh (also spelled Ibn Khurradadhbih; ), was a high-ranking Persian bureaucrat and ...
, who mentioned "the revenue of
Hulwan
Hulwan ( fa, حلوان) was an ancient town on the Zagros Mountains in western Iran, located on the entrance of the Paytak Pass, nowadays identified with the town of Sarpol-e Zahab.
History
Later Arab tradition, as recorded by al-Tabari, cons ...
together with the ''Jābār.qa'' and the Kurds".
Some manuscripts spell the name ''Kābār.ka'' instead.
Minorsky interpreted this variation as representing an underlying form ''*Gābār.ka'', which he said referred to "the ancestors of the Guran".
A century later,
al-Mas'udi
Al-Mas'udi ( ar, أَبُو ٱلْحَسَن عَلِيّ ٱبْن ٱلْحُسَيْن ٱبْن عَلِيّ ٱلْمَسْعُودِيّ, '; –956) was an Arab historian, geographer and traveler. He is sometimes referred to as the "Herodotus ...
also mentioned a tribe called ''Jābār.qī'' in his list of the Kurdish tribes of al-
Jibal
Jibāl ( ar, جبال), also al-Jabal ( ar, الجبل), was the name given by the Arabs to a region and province located in western Iran, under the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates.
Its name means "the Mountains", being the plural of ''jabal'' (" ...
.
The Guran appear frequently in the annals of the
Hasanwayhid dynasty under the spelling ''Jūraqān''.
In 1014, members of the Guran killed the powerful
Badr ibn Hasanwayh
Badr ibn Hasanwayh was the second ruler of the Hasanwayhids from 979 to 1014. He was the son and successor of Hasanwayh ().
Biography
During the civil war between the two Buyid brothers Adud al-Dawla () and Izz al-Dawla (), Hasanwayh had support ...
, who they had been allied with during a winter campaign but grew disgruntled with.
A later description of these events, by the anonymous author of the 12th-century ''
Mujmal al-tavārīkh'', consistently uses the modern name ''Gūrānān'' instead of ''Jūraqān'' and also adds that the Guran had been the closest to Badr of all his allied tribes before turning against him and killing him.
Minorsky noted the ''Mujmals detail that the Guran killed Badr with
javelin
A javelin is a light spear designed primarily to be thrown, historically as a ranged weapon, but today predominantly for sport. The javelin is almost always thrown by hand, unlike the sling, bow, and crossbow, which launch projectiles with th ...
s, a weapon historically associated with the
Daylamites
The Daylamites or Dailamites (Middle Persian: ''Daylamīgān''; fa, دیلمیان ''Deylamiyān'') were an Iranian people inhabiting the Daylam—the mountainous regions of northern Iran on the southwest coast of the Caspian Sea, now comprisin ...
of the Caspian region.
Several events in
Ibn Athir Ibn Athīr is the family name of three brothers, all famous in Arabic literature, born at Jazīrat ibn Umar (today's ''Cizre'' nowadays in south-eastern Turkey) in upper Mesopotamia. The ibn al-Athir brothers belonged to the Shayban lineage of the ...
's chronicles for the early 11th century indicate that at least some of the Guran were living in northern
Luristan.
For example, in 1026, the
Kakuyid
The Kakuyids (also called Kakwayhids, Kakuwayhids or Kakuyah) ( fa, آل کاکویه) were a Shia Muslim dynasty of Daylamite origin that held power in western Persia, Jibal and Kurdistan (c. 1008–c. 1051). They later became ''atabegs'' (g ...
emir
Ala al-Dawla Muhammad
Muhammad ibn Rustam Dushmanziyar (Persian language, Persian: ابوجعفر دشمنزیار), also known by his ''laqab'' of Ala al-Dawla Muhammad (علاء الدوله محمد), was a Daylamite military commander who founded in 1008 the short-l ...
grouped the Guran together with Saburkhwast (present-day
Khorramabad
Khorramabad ( fa, خرمآباد, Khorramâbâd ), alternatively romanized as Khorramābād, Khoramabad, Khurramabad, Khorram Abad, or Khur Ramābād, is a city and the capital of Lorestan Province, Iran. At the time of the 2016 census, its po ...
) under a single governor.
The governor's deputy who directly oversaw the Guran was Abu'l-Faraj Bābūnī, who was himself related to the Guran.
Later in 1046, when
Ibrahim Inal
Ibrahim Inal (also spelled İbrahim Yınal, died 1060) was a Seljuk warlord, the son of ''Yûsuf Yınal'' and a foster brother of the Sultan Tughril.
In 1047, Ibrahim wrested Hamadan and Kangavar from the Kakuyid ruler Garshasp I. Ibrahim late ...
captured
Hamadan
Hamadan () or Hamedan ( fa, همدان, ''Hamedān'') ( Old Persian: Haŋgmetana, Ecbatana) is the capital city of Hamadan Province of Iran. At the 2019 census, its population was 783,300 in 230,775 families. The majority of people living in Ha ...
from the
Kakuyid
The Kakuyids (also called Kakwayhids, Kakuwayhids or Kakuyah) ( fa, آل کاکویه) were a Shia Muslim dynasty of Daylamite origin that held power in western Persia, Jibal and Kurdistan (c. 1008–c. 1051). They later became ''atabegs'' (g ...
emir
Garshasp I
Garshasp I ibn Muhammad (Persian language, Persian: گرشاسپ بن محمد), mostly known as Garshasp I, was the Kakuyid emir of Hamadan, including Nihawand, Borujerd and western Jibal. He was the youngest son of Muhammad ibn Rustam Dushmanziya ...
, Garshasp initially took refuge with the Guran.
Inal is then described as attacking Gurani Kurds in the vicinity of
Saymarah, prompting Garshasp to flee to
Hoveyzeh
Hoveyzeh ( fa, هویزه; ar, الهويزة also romanized as Huwaiza, Havizeh, Hawiza, Hawīzeh, Hovayze, and Hovayzeh; also known as Hūzgān or Khūzgān) is a city and capital of Hoveyzeh County, Khuzestan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census ...
in
Khuzestan
Khuzestan Province (also spelled Xuzestan; fa, استان خوزستان ''Ostān-e Xūzestān'') is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahvaz and it covers ...
.
Around 1343, the Guran are mentioned in
Shihab ad-Din al-Umari's description of the Kurdish tribes.
He referred to them as "powerful and bellicose" and composed of "soldiers and peasants", and listed two places they lived: ''Rāwst'', led by an
amir
Emir (; ar, أمير ' ), sometimes transliterated amir, amier, or ameer, is a word of Arabic origin that can refer to a male monarch, aristocrat, holder of high-ranking military or political office, or other person possessing actual or cerem ...
named Muhammad, and
Dartang.
In later centuries, Dartang would become known as one of the main centers of the Guran; this mid-14th century account is the earliest definite mention of them in connection with their historical homeland.
Wherever ''Rāwst'' was is unknown, although Minorsky speculated that it could have referred to "the habitat of the more easterly branch of the Guran".
In the introduction to his 1596 ''
History of the Kurds
The Kurds , also the Kurdish people , are an Iranian ethnic group in the Middle East. They have historically inhabited the mountainous areas to the south of Lake Van and Lake Urmia, a geographical area collectively referred to as Kurdistan. ...
'', the famous Kurdish historian
Sharaf Khan Bidlisi
Sharaf al-Din Khan b. Shams al-Din b. Sharaf Beg Bedlisi (Kurdish: شەرەفخانی بەدلیسی, ''Şerefxanê Bedlîsî''; fa, شرفالدین خان بن شمسالدین بن شرف بیگ بدلیسی; 25 February 1543 – ) was ...
wrote that there were four branches of the Kurds:
Kurmanj ug:كۇردلار
Kurds ( ku, کورد ,Kurd, italic=yes, rtl=yes) or Kurdish people are an Iranian ethnic group native to the mountainous region of Kurdistan in Western Asia, which spans southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Ir ...
,
Lur
A lur, also lure or lurr, is a long natural blowing horn without finger holes that is played with a brass-type embouchure. Lurs can be straight or curved in various shapes. The purpose of the curves was to make long instruments easier to car ...
,
Kalhur, and Guran.
He wrote that at his time, most of the Guran lived under the Kalhur and
Ardalan
Ardalan ( ku, میرنشینی ئەردەڵان) was a hereditary Kurdish vassaldom in western Iran from around the 14th century until 1865 or 1868 with Sanandaj as capital. The territory corresponded roughly to present-day Kurdistan Province ...
.
However, despite the important status he ascribed to the Guran, Sharaf Khan's references to them are relatively infrequent and somewhat muddled.
According to
Henry Rawlinson, the Kalhur were deposed as rulers of the
Zohab region by the Ottoman sultan
Murad IV
Murad IV ( ota, مراد رابع, ''Murād-ı Rābiʿ''; tr, IV. Murad, was the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1623 to 1640, known both for restoring the authority of the state and for the brutality of his methods. Murad IV was born in Cons ...
.
Murad then gave the region to the
Bajilan, from near
Mosul
Mosul ( ar, الموصل, al-Mawṣil, ku, مووسڵ, translit=Mûsil, Turkish: ''Musul'', syr, ܡܘܨܠ, Māwṣil) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. The city is considered the second large ...
, who speak a dialect closely related to Gurani.
According to Minorsky, the Bajilan must have originally been a branch of the Guran who had settled in the Mosul region, and Murad was intending to "control the Guran through his own subjects" by putting the Bajilan in charge of them.
The Bajilan founded a new capital for themselves at Zohab on the outskirts of Guran territory.
Meanwhile, the Kalhur of Zohab "became absorbed in the Guran mass" - they became known as Guran themselves, and they split into three tribes: Qal'eh-Zanjir, Kerend, and Bevanij.
The Bajilan were later removed from power in the early 1800s by Muhammad Ali Mirza, governor of
Kermanshah
Kermanshah ( fa, کرمانشاه, Kermânšâh ), also known as Kermashan (; romanized: Kirmaşan), is the capital of Kermanshah Province, located from Tehran in the western part of Iran. According to the 2016 census, its population is 946,68 ...
.
At this point, the Guran of Qal'eh-Zanjir assumed leadership, with their main residence at
Gahvareh
Gahvareh ( fa, گهواره; also Romanized as Gahvāreh; also known as Gavāra and Gawareh) is a city and capital of Dalahu County, Kermanshah Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 4,708, in 1,147 families. The city is populate ...
.
Branches
The Guran tribe consist of the following clans:
# Bivaniji
# Shwankare
# Tofanghchi
# Kerendi
# Yasemi
# Ghalkhani
# Ghale Zanjiri
Sources
Kurdish tribes
{{Iraq-stub