Darrehshahr County
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, settlement_type = County , image_skyline = Darreh Shahr Fire Temple 01.jpg , imagesize = , image_caption = Darreh Shahr Fire Temple , image_map = Ilam.svg , image_map1 = IranIlam-SVG.svg , map_caption = Location of Darreh Shahr County in Ilam province (right, pink) , map_caption1 = Location of Ilam province in Iran , pushpin_map = , pushpin_label_position = , pushpin_map_caption = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Iran , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Ilam , seat_type = Capital , seat = Darreh Shahr , parts_type = Districts , parts_style = para , parts = , p1 =
Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
, p2 = Mazhin , p3 = , p4 = , p5 = , p6 = , leader_title = Governor , leader_name = Hossein Ali Mousavi , established_title = , established_date = , area_total_km2 = 1480 , population_as_of = 2016 , population_footnotes = , population_total = 43708 , population_density_km2 = auto , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , timezone = IRST , utc_offset = +3:30 , elevation_footnotes = , elevation_m = , elevation_ft = , area_code = , website = , footnotes = Darreh Shahr County ( fa, شهرستان دره‌شهر) is in Ilam province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Darreh Shahr. At the 2006 census, the county's population was 56,346 in 11,487 households. The following census in 2011 counted 59,551 people in 14,867 households. At the 2016 census, the county's population was 43,708 in 12,012 households, by which time Badreh District had been separated from the county to form
Badreh County Badreh County ( fa, شهرستان بدره) is in Ilam province, Ilam province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Badreh. At the 2006 census, the county's population (as Badreh District of Darreh Shahr County) was 16,478 in 3,382 households. The ...
.


Administrative divisions

The population history and structural changes of Darreh Shahr County's administrative divisions over three consecutive censuses are shown in the following table. The latest census shows two districts, four rural districts, and two cities. Abdanan County and
Badreh County Badreh County ( fa, شهرستان بدره) is in Ilam province, Ilam province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Badreh. At the 2006 census, the county's population (as Badreh District of Darreh Shahr County) was 16,478 in 3,382 households. The ...
used to be districts of Darreh Shahr County before 1995 and 2013, respectively, after which they were upgraded to county status themselves. Neighboring counties * Abdanan – south *
Badreh Badreh ( fa, بدره; also Romanized as Bedre and Badra) is a city in the Central District (Badreh County), Central District of Badreh County, Ilam province, Ilam province, Iran, and serves as both capital of the county and of the district. The c ...
– northwest *
Rumeshkhan County Rumeshkhan County or Rūmeshgān County ( fa, شهرستان رومشکان) is located in Lorestan province, Iran. The capital of the county is Chaqabol. At the 2006 census, the county's population as a part of Kuhdasht County was 35,595, in ...
, Lorestan – north *
Pol-e Dokhtar County Pol-e Dokhtar County ( fa, شهرستان پلدختر) is located in Lorestan province, Iran. The capital of the county is Pol-e Dokhtar Pol-e Dokhtar ( fa, پلدختر, meaning ''Bridge of the Daughter'', also Romanized as ''Pol Dokhtar' ...
, Lorestan – east


Geography

Darreh Shahr county has an area of . Darreh Shahr is bounded by Kabir Kuh range to the south and Seymareh and Karkheh rivers to the north. The plains between the mountains and the rivers are fertile farmlands being cultivated for millennia. There are about of woodlands in the county, most of which are on the higher altitudes of the Kabir Kouh range to the south. The
Kabir Kouh Protected Area Kabir Kouh Protected Area is a nature conservatory in Darreh Shahr and Badreh counties, Ilam Province, Iran. Established in October 2001, it covers an area of on the northern side of Kabir Kouh range between the elevations of 950 and 2790m. Th ...
is the most important conservation area in the county. It was established in 2001 and has an area of between the elevations of 950-2790m on the northern, greener, side of Kabir Kouh. Rivers *
Seymareh River Seymareh is a river in southwestern Iran formed by the confluence of the Gharehsoo and Ghamasiab rivers in an area around southwest Kermanshah. Seymareh converges with Kashkan just before the historical Gavmishan Bridge near Darreh Shahr to cre ...
* Karkheh River * Darreh Shahr River * Sikan River Lakes * Seymareh Dam Lake


Climate

Darreh Shahr County has a warm climate with hot dry summers and mild wet winters. July–August maximum daily temperature can as high as during heat waves, which are frequent in summer due to proximity to the Iraqi desert. Winters are generally mild but occasionally goes below freezing. The long-term average annual precipitation is at Darreh Shahr Weather Station. The lowest annual precipitation happened during the farming season of 2007–2008 with a figure as low as . The highest annual precipitation used to be in 1990–1991, after which, a deadly flood ensued. This record was broken in 2018–2019 with , which again resulted in a heavy flooding in southwestern Iran. There is almost no precipitation through the months of June to September. Darreh Shahr used to receive snow once or twice a year in the past, but nowadays it has become less and less likely thanks to global warming. Hail and lightning storms are not uncommon in Fall and Spring and have devastating effects on crops and the farming-dependent economy of the county. Western air masses from the Mediterranean and Black Sea are cause autumn and winter rains in the province, and Sudanese and Red Sea and Saudi Arabia currents are also effective in winter and spring rains and cause warm weather in summer. The vast plains of Iraq create a low-pressure high-temperature low-humidity weather cell over the area.


Seymareh Landslide

In prehistoric times, a huge landslide occurred in the south eastern parts of Kabir Kuh range. The incident is described in an article on
Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
, published in 1937 by Harrison and Falcon. Based on their observations, the landslide is in area and in thickness; amounting to a body of material of about , some of which is found around from their original location. The reason for this colossal event is very likely to have been a catastrophic earthquake. Due to its enormity, the Seymareh Landslide is believed to be the largest one recorded in the eastern hemisphere.


Economy

The economy of Darreh Shahr is mostly based on agriculture and
animal husbandry Animal husbandry is the branch of agriculture concerned with animals that are raised for meat, fibre, milk, or other products. It includes day-to-day care, selective breeding, and the raising of livestock. Husbandry has a long history, starti ...
. As of February 2018, Darreh Shahr farmers produce more than 190,000 tons of agricultural and 23,000 tons of livestock products annually. Darreh Shahr has about of farming irrigated and dry lands. The agriculture market in Darreh Shahr is worth around US$17.7m. Darreh Shahr is a large producer of daffodils with about of cultivated farms and an average annual production of 7 million flowers, most of which is marketed in cities of Tehran,
Isfahan Isfahan ( fa, اصفهان, Esfahân ), from its Achaemenid empire, ancient designation ''Aspadana'' and, later, ''Spahan'' in Sassanian Empire, middle Persian, rendered in English as ''Ispahan'', is a major city in the Greater Isfahan Regio ...
, Ahvaz and Arak. The majority of the people living in urban areas, especially Darreh Shahr, work in construction and services trades sector. As the county seat, Darreh Shahr hosts almost all of the government offices of the county, therefore many people work for the government. Despite the rather solid agriculture sector, the industry sector is emerging and small. Darreh Shahr Industrial City hosts a number of SMEs, the most prominent of which are Seif Ghostar Food Products Company and Madakto Steel Cord Company, the first and only steel cord producer in Iran. Darreh Shahr Flour Factory, established in 1993, is a wheat flour milling plant with an installed capacity of 120 metric tons per day. The factory mainly serves the domestic and local markets with limited exports to Iraq in recent years.


Tourism

Darreh Shahr County received more than 400,000 visitors in 2018, 120,000 of which visited the county in Spring alone. Darreh Shahr is the most visited county in Ilam Province. Darreh Shahr is home to 145 nationally registered monuments, buildings and historical sites. Darreh Shahr is built next to the ancient city of Madaktu, an important city in
Elam Elam (; Linear Elamite: ''hatamti''; Cuneiform Elamite: ; Sumerian: ; Akkadian: ; he, עֵילָם ''ʿēlām''; peo, 𐎢𐎺𐎩 ''hūja'') was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretc ...
civilization. The city has been destructed and reconstructed several times in history, each time changing name. Darreh Shahr county has been a popular settlement area throughout history because of the abundance of nearby natural resources, specifically the proximity of Kabir Kouh range as a source of water, fertile soil, woodlands and wildlife.
Darreh Shahr Fire Temple Darreh or Dorreh or Dareh or Derreh ( fa, دره) may refer to: * Dareh, Fars * Darreh, Isfahan * Darreh, Kerman * Darreh, Kurdistan * Darreh, Markazi * ''Darreh'', alternate name of Darreh Garm, Markazi * Darreh, South Khorasan * Darreh, Yazd ...
is a four-arched building which is locally called Taaq. Originally the building was constructed by
rubble stone Rubble stone is rough, uneven building stone not laid in regular courses. It may fill the core of a wall which is faced with unit masonry such as brick or ashlar. Analogously, some medieval cathedral walls are outer shells of ashlar with an inn ...
and gypsum, and has recently been repaired.
Gavmishan Bridge Gavmishan Bridge is a historic bridge in Darreh Shahr County, Ilam Province, Iran. The bridge was built in the late Sasanian era on Karkheh River, parts of which constitute the modern-day border of Ilam and Lorestan provinces. It is in length ...
is located in the south of Darreh Shahr, in the beginning of a gorge with the same name on the outskirts of Kabir Kuh, is an ancient bridge with three arches that has been recently repaired (as of 2008). Each of its arches is placed at intervals from each other. This
Sassanide 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 ...
bridge has been constructed in the confluence of the Seymareh and Kashkan rivers. Although it has been repaired several times during the past, it is almost in a ruined state now. Sheikh Makan Fort is located 6 kilometers southeast of Darreh Shahr, the ruins of this fort can be seen in the entrance of the village with the same name with 150 years of antiquity. Construction materials indicate that it belongs to the Qajar period. The walls of the fort are delicately made of stone and gypsum. There is also the remains of a watermill. There are many crevices and caves. One of them is known as the Kulkani Cave. The entrance of the cave is 30 meters long and there is a small pond built of stone and Sarouj ( plaster of lime and
ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...
or sand). In addition, there are 12 other caves similar to the
dwelling In law, a dwelling (also known as a residence or an abode) is a self-contained unit of accommodation used by one or more households as a home - such as a house, apartment, mobile home, houseboat, vehicle, or other "substantial" structure. The ...
s of pre-historic men. Some vestiges like
earthenware Earthenware is glazed or unglazed nonvitreous pottery that has normally been fired below . Basic earthenware, often called terracotta, absorbs liquids such as water. However, earthenware can be made impervious to liquids by coating it with a ce ...
pieces and other objects belonging to the mid 1st millennium BC have been discovered in this cave. Jaber Mausoleum which resembles the Tomb of Daniel in
Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo-Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...
with a northern entrance is 15 m long and 9 m wide with 8 pillars. There is an
adytum The adyton ( , 'innermost sanctuary, shrine', ) or (Latin) was a restricted area within the cella of a Greek or Roman temple. The ''adyton'' was frequently a small area at the farthest end of the cella from the entrance: at Delphi it measured j ...
in its southern wall which is 180 cm high. At the lower part there is an inscription with plaster work and adorned with floral design and sacred verses. This mausoleum is one of the important places of pilgrimage in Darreh Shahr. Baba Seifedin Mausoleum in located in the north east of Darreh Shahr in the outskirts of a hill known as Chahar Taq. There are two tombs in the mausoleum without any description on the tombstones. There is a small inscription on the top of the entrance door which indicates the date of its repair. The materials of the building are stone, gypsum and brick. There are several trees around the mausoleum which are hundreds of years old. Tikhan (Tiqan) is located among the agricultural lands in Jamshid Abad village north east of Darreh Shahr. In excavations carried out in its location, 4 levels have been appeared. The
earthenware Earthenware is glazed or unglazed nonvitreous pottery that has normally been fired below . Basic earthenware, often called terracotta, absorbs liquids such as water. However, earthenware can be made impervious to liquids by coating it with a ce ...
objects obtained in the first floor are simple. Moreover, some flint blades and carved stones have been discovered there as well. Koozeh Garan Hill is about 5.5 kilometers from Tikhan Hill, and is larger and older than it. Its antiquity dates back to the late 3rd millennium BC., but its first floor relates to the
Sassanide 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 ...
period. Some colored and engraved earthenware objects have been discovered in the basement of the building. Certain parts of lower floors had been allocated as a graveyard. The upper graves belong to the Zoroastrian period. It is said that this place was a pottery making vicinity so to speak. Cham Namesht Bridge is an 18-arch bridge constructed on the Seymareh river 4 kilometers north of Darreh Shahr facing the Chamkalan village. The antiquity of this bridge dates back to the
Sassanide 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 ...
period, but it was used till later centuries. The bridge is directly connected to the remains of the Sassanide monuments in Darreh Shahr.
Bahram-e Choobin Gorge Bahram-e Choobin Gorge is a historical and tourist site in the mountains of Kabir Kuh near Sheykh Makan village in Darreh Shahr County in Ilam Province. The gorge is named after Bahram Chobin, a political leader of late Sasanian Empire and as ...
, a narrow and high valley, is one of the most important and strategic points of the region, located in the western side of the Darreh Shahr - Pol Dokhtar road. This gorge, which is also called the Bahram Hunting Ground, contains several historical monuments in its entrance and on the hard rocks like the ruins of a
Sassanide 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 ...
castle which is built of stone and gypsum with stone stairs and four connected water reservoirs ( Ab Anbar) which are worth seeing. Imamzadeh Saleh is located in Majeen Graveyard near Darreh Shahr. This
quadrangular Quadrangle or The Quadrangle may refer to: Architecture * Quadrangle (architecture), a courtyard surrounded by a building or several buildings, often at a college Various specific quadrangles, often called "the quad" or "the quadrangle": North ...
and two-story building has a pyramid shaped
dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...
. The main tomb is located in the first floor which is totally made up of brick with a herringbone arch. In the second floor, there is a tomb covered with stone, gypsum and earthenware. Its antiquity dates back to the 8th century AH. and needs some repair. Interior plaster works of the Imamzadeh are unique and counted as worthy vestiges of this period.


Gallery

File:Darreh Shahr-Abdanan road.JPG, Kabir Kouh in winter. File:Foothills of Kabir Kuh.JPG, Darreh Shahr in spring. File:Wheat fields near Sheikh Makan Village.jpg, Wheat farms near
Sheykh Makan Sheykh Makan ( fa, شيخ مكان, also Romanized as Sheykh Makān; also known as Qal‘eh-ye Sheykh Mākhūn, Shaikh Mākūn, and Sheykh Mākhūn) is a village in Aramu Rural District, in the Central District of Darreh Shahr County, Ilam Prov ...
File:Mir-Gholam Fortress.jpg, Mir-Gholam Castle File:Gavmishan bridge.jpg,
Gavmishan Bridge Gavmishan Bridge is a historic bridge in Darreh Shahr County, Ilam Province, Iran. The bridge was built in the late Sasanian era on Karkheh River, parts of which constitute the modern-day border of Ilam and Lorestan provinces. It is in length ...
over the River Karkheh


References


External links

*Iran Tourism and Touring Online ('
Darreh Shahr Ancient City
') * اطلس گیتاشناسی استان‌های ایران
tlas Gitashenasi Ostanhai Iran A three-letter acronym (TLA), or three-letter abbreviation, is an abbreviation consisting of three letters. These are usually the initial letters of the words of the phrase abbreviated, and are written in capital letters (upper case); three-lett ...
(
Gitashenasi Province Atlas of Iran
') {{Darreh Shahr County, state=collapsed Counties of Ilam Province