Talesh County ( fa, شهرستان تالش; also Tavalesh ( fa, طوالش) is in
Gilan province,
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 ...
. The capital of the county is the city of
Hashtpar
Hashtpar ( fa, هشتپر, also known as, Hashpar, Hashtpar-e Tavalesh, and Tālesh) is a city and capital of Talesh County, Gilan Province, Iran. At the 2016 census, its population was 54,178, in 15,688 families.
The Iranian dialect of Hashtpar ...
. At the 2006 census, the county's population was 179,499 in 42,949 households.
[ Retrieved 4 November 2022] The following census in 2011 counted 189,933 people in 52,989 households.
At the 2016 census, the county's population was 200,649 in 61,055 households.
Administrative divisions
The population history of Talesh County's administrative divisions over three consecutive censuses is shown in the following table. The latest census shows four districts, ten rural districts, and five cities.
History
The
Talysh people
The Talysh people ( tly, Tolışon, script=Latn تالشان; az, Talışlar; fa, تالشان) are an Iranian ethnic group indigenous to a region shared between Azerbaijan and Iran which spans the South Caucasus and the southwestern shore ...
s are, as archaeological studies show, one of the oldest inhabitants of the western littoral
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...
areas, which stretches from
Dagestan
Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North C ...
in the north, to Iran in the south. The Talysh have lived in what are known as "Talysh land" for millennia, and are amongst the native inhabitants of what is today Iran and neighboring
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
. There is a belief amongst scholars, as well as by the Talysh themselves who generally identify with the Cadusii, that the ancient
Cadusii
The Cadusii (also called Cadusians; grc, Καδούσιοι, ''Kadoúsioi''; Latin: ''Cadusii'') were an ancient Iranian tribe that lived in the mountains between Media and the shore of the Caspian Sea. The area that the Cadusii lived in bordered ...
are the ancestor of the today's Talysh.
The lands of the Talesh were much larger than the present day area. In olden times the geographical areas of the Talysh people was more than 10,000 km
2. At present the Taleshan live in Gilan Province, and some cities in
Ardabil Province (Iran) and southeastern
Azarbaijan
Azerbaijan or Azarbaijan ( fa, آذربایجان, ''Āzarbāijān'' ; az-Arab, آذربایجان, ''Āzerbāyjān'' ), also known as Iranian Azerbaijan, is a historical region in northwestern Iran that borders Iraq, Turkey, the Nakhchivan ...
.
Historical monuments and natural sites
*Salsal village which goes back to Ismaeilieh era near Ghalehbin village located 15 km. from Talesh..
*White Mosque which dates from Seljukian era that situated at Hashtpar (Talesh) city .
*Agh-ev-lar region at a distance of 32 km of this city which is considered among the first grade tourist sites of the Iran.
*Asalem - Khalkhal road, and Laezeh countryside on the way to Khalkhal .
*Coasts of Kissom
*Loomer Waterfall
*Nasrollah Khan Sardar Amjad (Amidossaltaneh) Winter Quarters Castle - dates back to Qajar Era. It has eight sides.
*Nasrolah Khan Sardar Amjad (Amidossaltaneh) Summer Quarters Castle - in Aq Evlar Village.
*Three - Floor Tombs Around the Lighthouse (Atashkadeh), and Remnants of Mard Ali Bil.
*Aq Evlar Old Bath - located in a garden of Merian Village, built in
Safavid
Safavid Iran or Safavid Persia (), also referred to as the Safavid Empire, '. was one of the greatest Iranian empires after the 7th-century Muslim conquest of Persia, which was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often conside ...
Era ( 500 years ago).
*Soobatan countryside.
*Talesh Natural Park - covering an area of .
Geography
Talesh is located on the southwestern coast of the
Caspian Sea
The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...
. Talesh County, covering an area of 2373 square kilometers, is ¼ of surface area of Gilan Province.
Talesh County has inland scenic areas in the
Alborz mountain range
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 ...
, with intact natural
habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
s that are places for appreciating nature.
Culture
Languages
Generally speaking, the land of Talesh has been divided in three regions: Gaskarat (Masalli, Taskoh, Shanderman, Rezvashar, Hashtpar, Asalem, Astara); Foumanat (Fouman, Masoleh, and Shaft); and
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
Taloshian (
Lankaran
Lankaran ( az, Lənkəran, ) is a city in Azerbaijan, on the coast of the Caspian Sea, near the southern border with Iran. As of 2021, the city had a population of 89,300. It is next to, but independent of, Lankaran District. The city forms a dis ...
amongst others).
In Gaskarat, the majority of people speak
Taleshi and Farsi. In Foumanat, most speak Taleshi. Lastly, Talysh from neighboring
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of th ...
are often bilingual and trilingual, consisting of Taleshi,
Azeri
Azerbaijanis (; az, Azərbaycanlılar, ), Azeris ( az, Azərilər, ), or Azerbaijani Turks ( az, Azərbaycan Türkləri, ) are a Turkic peoples, Turkic people living mainly in Azerbaijan (Iran), northwestern Iran and the Azerbaijan, Republi ...
and
Russian
Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including:
*Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
speakers.
[Asatrian, G. and H. Borjian, 2005. Talish: people and language: The state of research. ''Iran and the Caucasus'' 9/1, p 43-72]
Gilaki and Taleshi are rapidly losing ground in many cities of Tavalesh due to heavy immigration of people from Azerbaijan.
[Gilan](_blank)
X. Languages
(author Donald Stilo), pp. 660. // Encyclopaedia Iranica. Volume X: Fisheries — Gindaros. Fascicle 6. Edited by Ehsan Yarshater
Ehsan Yarshater ( fa, احسان يارشاطر, April 3, 1920 – September 1, 2018) was an Iranian historian and linguist who specialized in Iranology. He was the founder and director of The Center for Iranian Studies, and Hagop Kevorkian Profe ...
. New York: Bibliotheca Persica Press, 2001, 672 pages.
Ethnicities
Sir Arnold Wilson wrote:
:::"Iran's primary inhabitants generations still in Gilan in the forest areas near a sea (Caspian sea) could be found, these people by Aryan desert settled people expelled from their fatherland and this started 2000 years before Christ and lasted for centuries Sir Arnold Wilson was talking about Taleshian. Land of old Aran which from past till now was the house of Taleshan, was in fact the place that Aryans migration started from many researchers know Kadousian or the ancestors of Taleshian as the old natives of present Iran before the Aryan immigration. Present Taleshian beside other Iranians have a sense of proud of being Iranian and Aryan and are one of the little Iranian communities that kept their pure and Aryan culture."
Religion
Talesh people at present are
Sunni
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...
and
Shia
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...
Muslims. Most of the southern and central Taleshian are Shia, and northern Taleshian are composed of both Shia and Sunni.
Agriculture
Rice has been cultivated in this region for many years, where some indigenous cultivars (landrace) were conventionally bred by farmers.
References
External links
Gitashenasi.com: Provincal Atlas of Iran — اطلس گیتاشناسی استانهای ایران − ''by Jona Lendering''.
{{Talesh County, state=collapsed
Counties of Gilan Province