Chalus ( fa, چالوس;

romanize Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, an ...

d: Chālūs, Chaloos, Chalousse, Chalous, and Čâlus) is a city in Mazandaran Province in north of

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 ...

About

It serves as the county seat for

Chalus County Chalus County ( fa, شهرستان چالوس) is in Mazandaran province, Iran. The capital of the county is the city of Chalus. At the 2006 census, the county's population was 119,559 in 33,193 households. The following census in 2011 count ...

. According to the 2006

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

, it has a population of 44,618, in 12,791 families. The people residing in Chalus speak

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), etym ...

. In the west of Chalus, the dialect of Kalarestaqi is spoken and in the east of Chalus, the dialect of Kojuri. Mazandarani people have a background in Tabari ethnicity and speak Mazandarni. Their origin goes back to Tapuri people. So their land was called Tapuria, the land of Tapuris. Tapuris were made to migrate to the south coast of the Caspian Sea during the Achaemenid dynasty. The native people of

Sari A sari (sometimes also saree or shari)The name of the garment in various regional languages include: * as, শাৰী, xārī, translit-std=ISO * bn, শাড়ি, śāṛi, translit-std=ISO * gu, સાડી, sāḍī, translit-std ...

, shahi,

babol Babol ( fa, بابل, , known as "Orange Blossom City" , also Romanized as Bābol; formerly known as Barfrouch) is the capital of Babol County, Mazandaran Province, Iran. Babol is divided into two metropolitan areas (under Iranian law). At the ...

, Amol, Nowshahr, Chalus, and

Tonekabon Tonekabon ( fa, تنكابن, also Romanized as Tonekābon; formerly known as Shahsavar (Persian: شَهسَوار), also Romanized as Shahsavār and Shahsawār) is a city and capital of Tonekabon County, Mazandaran Province, northern Iran. At ...

are Mazandarani people and speak the Mazandarani language. The eastern Gilaki is spoken in the entire valley of the Čālūs river, though some Kurdish tribes were established in the yeylāq of Kojūr and Kalārdašt in the Qajar period. Chalus is a major vacation destination for Iranians during holidays for its nice weather and natural attractions. One of the great attractions of Chalus is the mountainous road leading to Chalus, widely known as Chalus Road. This city has a reputation for a number of villages, one of which is called Shahrak-e Namak Abrud. This village offers a variety of different entertaining activities, such as a cable car, offering a view of the surrounding mountains.

Location

The city is in the Mazandaran Province in northern

. The bordering counties are

Noshahr Nowshahr ( fa, نوشهر; also Romanized as Now Shahr, Noshahr, and Nau Shahr; also known as Bandar-e Noshahr and the former name was Dehno) is a city and capital of Nowshahr County, Mazandaran Province, Iran. The largest ethnic group in Nowshah ...

to the east,

to the west in Mazandaran province and Tehran province to the south. It sits on the Chalus River by 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 ...

Climate

Chalus has a humid subtropical climate (

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

: ''Cfa'', Trewartha: ''Cf''), with warm, humid summers and cool, damp winters.

History

Chalus used to be called "Salus" or "Shalus". It has a long history of rebels and fights with regional rulers or occupying foreign forces. Chalus used to have a large silk factory that was active from 1936 to 1958, and exported fabrics and other silk products to different countries. Chalus is part of the Kelarestaq area of Ruyan (Tabaristan). Ruyan was an ancient land in the west of Mazandaran Province during the

Baduspanids The Baduspanids or Badusbanids ( fa, پادوسبانیان, Pâdusbâniân), were a local Iranian dynasty of Tabaristan which ruled over Ruyan/Rustamdar. The dynasty was established in 665, and with 933 years of rule as the longest dynasty in I ...

era. This land includes

Kojur Kojur ( fa, كوجور, also Romanized as Kujur; also known as Baladeh-ye Kujūr, Kujūr, Dehe Kujūr) is a city in Tavabe-e Kojur Rural District, Kojur District, Nowshahr County, Mazandaran Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was ...

, Kelarestaq and

. The city of Kojur was the centre of the land of the Ruyans. Ruyan has always been part of the

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. ...

, nowadays called Mazandaran province. The Ruyan was also called the Rostamdār, Ostandār and Rostamdele.

Notable sites

Gole Sorkhi, Kaakh (The Palace), Chalus Mahalleh, Radyo Darya, Dahgiri, Sheykh Ghotb are among the most notable neighborhoods of Chalus. The

Taliesin Associated Architects Taliesin Associated Architects was an architectural firm founded by apprentices of Frank Lloyd Wright to carry on his architectural vision after his death in 1959. The firm disbanded in 2003. It was headquartered at Taliesin West in Scottsdale, A ...

(Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation) had three buildings built in Iran, one of which was the summer residence of

Shams Pahlavi Shams Pahlavi ( fa, شمس پهلوی; – ) was an Iranian royal of the Pahlavi dynasty, who was the elder sister of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the last Shah of Iran. During her brother's reign she was the president of the Red Lion and Sun Soc ...

known as Mehrafarin Palace in Chalus (presently occupied by the local police).

References

Populated places in Chalus County Cities in Mazandaran Province Populated places on the Caspian Sea {{Chalus-geo-stub