Ardabil (, ) is a city in northwestern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

. It is in the Central District of Ardabil County,

Ardabil Ardabil (, ) is a city in northwestern Iran. It is in the Central District (Ardabil County), Central District of Ardabil County, Ardabil province, Ardabil province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. The ...

province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. The city of Ardabil lies close to the borders of the

Republic of Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russi ...

, 40 kilometers from the village of Diqo. As of the 2022 census, Ardabil's population was 588,000. The population of Ardabil County is about 650,000 with the majority

Shia Muslim Shia Islam is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib () as both his political Succession to Muhammad, successor (caliph) and as the spiritual le ...

. For a brief period in the 10th century, Ardabil was the principal city of

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

, but it was eventually replaced by

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

. Iran under the Safavids, by

Roger Savory Roger Mervyn Savory (27 January 1925 – 16 February 2022) was a British-born Professor Emeritus at the University of TorontoRoger Savory, "Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations"- University of Toronto/ref> who was an Iranologist and specialist o ...

/Page 1/ (New York, 1980), in 286 bookmarked and searchable pdf pages, with map and illustrations. Scanned by Robert Bedrosian. Ardabil is known for its trade in

silk Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...

and

carpet A carpet is a textile floor covering typically consisting of an upper layer of Pile (textile), pile attached to a backing. The pile was traditionally made from wool, but since the 20th century synthetic fiber, synthetic fibres such as polyprop ...

s. Ardabil rugs are renowned and the ancient Ardabil carpets are considered among the best of classical

Persian carpet A Persian carpet ( ), Persian rug ( ),Savory, R., ''Carpets'',(Encyclopaedia Iranica); accessed 30 January 2007. or Iranian carpet is a heavy textile made for a wide variety of utilitarian and symbolic purposes and produced in Iran (histo ...

s. Ardabil is also home to a

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

, Sheikh Safi al-Din Khanegah and Shrine Ensemble, the sanctuary and tomb of Shaikh Safi ad-Din, and the tomb of

Ismail I Ismail I (; 17 July 1487 – 23 May 1524) was the founder and first shah of Safavid Iran, ruling from 1501 until his death in 1524. His reign is one of the most vital in the history of Iran, and the Safavid period is often considered the beginn ...

, founder of the

Safavid Empire The Guarded Domains of Iran, commonly called Safavid Iran, Safavid Persia or the Safavid Empire, was one of the largest and longest-lasting Iranian empires. It was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often considered the begi ...

Etymology

According to one source, the name Ardabil comes from the

Avestan Avestan ( ) is the liturgical language of Zoroastrianism. It belongs to the Iranian languages, Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family and was First language, originally spoken during the Avestan period, Old ...

''artavil'' or ''artawila'' which means "holy place". The form appears in the 8th-century Armenian history of Lewond, which

Vladimir Minorsky Vladimir Fyodorovich Minorsky (; – 25 March 1966) was a White Russian academic, historian, and scholar of Oriental studies, best known for his contributions to the study of history of Iran and the Iranian peoples such as Persians, Lurs, and ...

considers to be a reflection of an older form. Minorsky derives the name from the

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

roots '' arta'' 'sacred law/order' and 'willow, willow branch', proposing the meaning 'place of the willows of the sacred law (''arta/asha'')'.

History

Ardebil int coninckryck van Persien - Peeters Jacob - 1690

The pre-Islamic history of Ardabil is vague. Muslim historians attribute the foundation of Ardabil to the

Sasanian The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranians"), was an Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, the length of the Sasanian dynasty's reign ...

King of Kings King of Kings, ''Mepet mepe''; , group="n" was a ruling title employed primarily by monarchs based in the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent. Commonly associated with History of Iran, Iran (historically known as name of Iran, Persia ...

Peroz I Peroz I () was the Sasanian Empire, Sasanian King of Kings () of History of Iran, Iran from 459 to 484. A son of Yazdegerd II (), he disputed the rule of his elder brother and incumbent king Hormizd III (), eventually seizing the throne after a ...

(), who named it Shad Peroz or Shahram Peroz. The city may have corresponded to the Sasanian mint city known in

Middle Persian Middle Persian, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg ( Inscriptional Pahlavi script: , Manichaean script: , Avestan script: ) in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasania ...

as ATRA, albeit this remains uncertain. During the

Arab conquest of Iran As part of the early Muslim conquests, which were initiated by Muhammad in 622, the Rashidun Caliphate conquered the Sasanian Empire between 632 and 654. This event led to the decline of Zoroastrianism, which had been the official religion of ...

, Ardabil was the seat of a ''

marzban Marzbān, or Marzpān (Middle Persian: 𐭬𐭫𐭱𐭰𐭠𐭭𐭯 transliteration: mrzwpn, derived from Middle Persian: 𐭬𐭫𐭱 ''marz'' "border, boundary" and the Middle Persian suffix: 𐭡𐭭𐭯 ''-pān'' "guardian"; Modern Persian: ...

'' (

margrave Margrave was originally the Middle Ages, medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or a monarchy, kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain Feudal ...

), who agreed to surrender to the Arabs in return for permitting the people of Ardabil to continue their religious observances at the

fire temple A fire temple (; ) is a place of worship for Zoroastrians. In Zoroastrian doctrine, ''atar'' and '' aban'' (fire and water) are agents of ritual purity. Clean, white "ash for the purification ceremonies sregarded as the basis of ritual lif ...

of Shiz (present-day Takht-e Solayman). Because of its proximity to the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

, Ardabil was always susceptible to attacks by the Caucasian hill peoples, as well as by the inhabitants of the steppes of the Northern Caucasus. In 730–731, the

Khazars The Khazars ; 突厥可薩 ''Tūjué Kěsà'', () were a nomadic Turkic people who, in the late 6th century CE, established a major commercial empire covering the southeastern section of modern European Russia, southern Ukraine, Crimea, a ...

passed through the Alan Gates and defeated and killed the Arab governor of Armenia, al-Jarrah ibn Abdallah. The clash took place on the plain outside the town of Ardabil, which was subsequently captured by the Khazars, who made incursions as far as

Diyar Bakr Diyar Bakr () is the medieval Arabic name of the northernmost of the three provinces of the Jazira (Upper Mesopotamia), the other two being Diyar Mudar and Diyar Rabi'a. According to the medieval geographer al-Baladhuri, all three provinces were ...

and

al-Jazira Jazira, al-Jazira, Jazeera, al-Jazeera, etc. are all transcriptions of Arabic meaning "the island" or "the peninsula". The term may refer to: Business * Jazeera Airways, an airlines company based in Kuwait Locations * Al-Jazira, a traditional ...

before they were repelled by the Umayyad prince

Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik (, in Greek sources , ''Masalmas''; – 24 December 738) was an Umayyad prince and one of the most prominent Arab generals of the early decades of the 8th century, leading several campaigns against the Byzantine Empire ...

(d. 738). According to the Arab geographer

al-Maqdisi Shams al-Din Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Abi Bakr, commonly known by the ''Nisba (onomastics), nisba'' al-Maqdisi or al-Muqaddasī, was a medieval Arab geographer, author of ''The Best Divisions in the Knowledge of the Regions'' and '' ...

(died 991), "seventy languages" were spoken around Ardabil, which most likely refers to variations of the Adhari language. In 1209, a reinvigorated

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

had its forces plunder Ardabil, reportedly killing 12,000 residents. Ardabil later withstood two attacks by the

Mongols Mongols are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, China ( Inner Mongolia and other 11 autonomous territories), as well as the republics of Buryatia and Kalmykia in Russia. The Mongols are the principal member of the large family o ...

but was ultimately sacked by them in 1220. The city managed to recuperate and reached a more blossoming state than before, though by this time Tabriz was the leading city in the

region, and under the later

Ilkhanate The Ilkhanate or Il-khanate was a Mongol khanate founded in the southwestern territories of the Mongol Empire. It was ruled by the Il-Khans or Ilkhanids (), and known to the Mongols as ''Hülegü Ulus'' (). The Ilkhanid realm was officially known ...

, it had become

Soltaniyeh Soltaniyeh () is a city in the Central District (Soltaniyeh County), Central District of Soltaniyeh County, Zanjan province, Zanjan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. History Soltaniyeh, located some ...

. Safavid king

, born in Ardabil, started his campaign to nationalize Iran's government and land from there, but consequently announced Tabriz as his capital in 1501. Yet Ardabil remained an important city both politically and economically until modern times. During the frequent Ottoman-Persian Wars, being close to the borders, it was often sacked by the

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

between 1514 and 1722 as well as in 1915 during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

when the former invaded neighboring Iran. In the early

Qajar The Guarded Domains of Iran, alternatively the Sublime State of Iran and commonly called Qajar Iran, Qajar Persia or the Qajar Empire, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Qajar dynasty, which was of Turkic origin,Cyrus Ghani. ''Iran an ...

period, crown prince

Abbas Mirza Abbas Mirza (; 26 August 1789 – 25 October 1833) was the Qajar dynasty, Qajar crown prince of Qajar Iran, Iran during the reign of his father Fath-Ali Shah Qajar (). As governor of the vulnerable Azerbaijan (Iran), Azerbaijan province, he played ...

, son of then incumbent king (

shah Shāh (; ) is a royal title meaning "king" in the Persian language.Yarshater, Ehsa, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII, no. 1 (1989) Though chiefly associated with the monarchs of Iran, it was also used to refer to the leaders of numerous Per ...

) Fath Ali Shah Qajar (r. 1797–1834) was the governor of Ardabil. With Ardabil already once being sacked by the Russians during the Russo-Persian War of 1804–1813, and this being the era of the Russians steadily advancing into the Iranian possessions in the Caucasus, Abbas Mirza ordered the Napoleonic general Gardane, who served the Qajars at the time, to strengthen and fortify the town with

rampart Rampart may refer to: * Rampart (fortification), a defensive wall or bank around a castle, fort or settlement Rampart may also refer to: * LAPD Rampart Division, a division of the Los Angeles Police Department ** Rampart scandal, a blanket ter ...

s. During the next and final war, the Russo-Persian War of 1826–28, the ramparts were stormed by the Russian troops, who then temporarily occupied the town. The town's extensive and noted library, known as the library of

Safi-ad-din Ardabili Safi-ad-Din Ardabili ( ''Ṣāfī ad-Dīn Isḥāq Ardabīlī''; 1252/3 – 1334) was a poet, Mysticism, mystic, teacher and Sufism, Sufi master. He was the son-in-law and spiritual heir of the Sufi master Zahed Gilani, whose order—the Zahediye ...

, was taken to

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea. The city had a population of 5,601, ...

by General

Ivan Paskevich Count Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich-Erevansky, Serene Prince of Warsaw ( – ) was a Russian military leader who was the ''namiestnik'' of Poland. Paskevich is known for leading Russian forces in Poland during the November Uprising and for a s ...

with the promise that its holdings would be brought to the Russian capital for safekeeping until they could be returned, a promise never fulfilled. After the

Russo-Persian Wars The Russo-Persian Wars ( ), or the Russo-Iranian Wars ( ), began in 1651 and continued intermittently until 1828. They consisted of five conflicts in total, each rooted in both sides' disputed governance of territories and countries in the Cauca ...

, Iran ceded its territories in the Caucasus to Russia under the terms of the

Treaty of Turkmenchay The Treaty of Turkmenchay (; ) was an agreement between Qajar Iran and the Russian Empire, which concluded the Russo-Persian War (1826–1828). It was second of the series of treaties (the first was the 1813 Treaty of Gulistan and the last, the ...

(1828). As a result, Ardabil was situated only 40 kilometers from the newly drawn border, becoming even more important economically as a stop on a major caravan route along which European goods entered Iran from Russia. After he visited Ardabil in 1872, German diplomat Max von Thielmann noted, in his book published in 1875, the extensive activity in the town's bazaar, as well as the presence of many foreigners, and estimated its population at 20,000. During the early

Iranian Constitutional Revolution The Persian Constitutional Revolution (, or ''Enghelāb-e Mashrūteh''), also known as the Constitutional Revolution of Iran, took place between 1905 and 1911 during the Qajar era. The revolution led to the establishment of a parliament in I ...

, Russia occupied Ardabil together with other Iranian cities until the eventual collapse of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

in 1917.

Demographics

Language and ethnicity

The dominant majority in the city are ethnic

Iranian Azerbaijanis Iranian Azerbaijanis (; ) are the largest ethnic minority of Iran. They are primarily found in and are native to the Iranian Azerbaijan region including provinces of (East Azerbaijan, Ardabil Province, Ardabil, Zanjan Province, Zanjan, West ...

and the primary language is Azerbaijani.

Population

At the time of the National Census of 2006, the population of the city was 412,669 in 32,386 households. The following census in 2011 counted 482,632 people in 134,715 households. The 2016 census measured the population of the city as 529,374 inhabitants living in 158,627 households.

Geography

Location

Ardabil is located on the Baliqly Chay River, about from the Caspian Sea(Khazar), and from the city of

. It has an average altitude of and total area of . Neighboring on the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

. It has been of great political and economic significance throughout history, especially within the

region. It is located on an open plain above sea level, just east of Mount

Sabalan Sabalan ( Persian: سبلان) or Savalan ( native: ساوالان ) is an inactive stratovolcano in northwestern Iran located in Ardabil province. At above sea level, it is the third-highest mountain in Iran. A permanent crater lake has fo ...

(4,811 m), where cold spells occur until late spring.

Climate

Ardebil has a

cold semi-arid climate Cold is the presence of low temperature, especially in the atmosphere. In common usage, cold is often a subjective perception. A lower bound to temperature is absolute zero, defined as 0.00K on the Kelvin scale, an absolute thermodynamic ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

: ''BSk''), bordering a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(

: ''Dsb'', Trewartha: ''Dc''), with warm, very dry summers and cold, snowy winters. Many tourists come to the region for its cool climate during the hot summer months. The winters are long and bitterly cold, with record low temperature of −33.8 °C. The annual rainfall is around .

Geology

The hot springs and natural landscapes in the Ardabil area attract tourists. The mineral springs of Ardabil (Beele-Darreh, Sar'eyn, Sardabeh and Booshloo) are notable throughout Iran for their medicinal qualities. Of the many lakes in the area, the largest include Ne'or, Shorabil, ShoorGel, NouShahr and Aloocheh that are the habitats of some species of water birds. The Lake Ne'or is located in a mountainous area 48 km south-east of the city of Ardabil. It covers an area of 2.1 km² and has an average depth of 3 metres. It is fed by springs in the lake bed.

Earthquakes

Ardabil is associated with historical confusion between the 893 Dvin earthquake which was often wrongly documented as the 893 Ardabil earthquake due to the similarity of the Arabic name for city of Dvin in

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

, 'Dabil' to Ardabil. On 28 February 1997, a destructive earthquake hit the Ardabil area. At least 965 people were killed, 2,600 injured, 36,000 homeless, 12,000 houses damaged or destroyed and 160,000 livestock were killed. Severe damage was observed to roads, electrical power lines, communications and water distribution systems around Ardabil.

Economy

The economy of Ardabil is partially agricultural, partially tourist-based, with some industries in operation. The Iranian government in 2006 announced plans to build "the largest textile factory of its kind in the Middle East" in Ardabil.

Arta Industrial Group The Arta Industrial Group is a multinational conglomerate company headquartered in Tehran, Iran. History He established Arta Moquette in 1980 as a producer of needle nonwoven carpets in Iran. Arta Industrial Group has grown into a carpet and t ...

(AIG) has one of the largest textile conglomerates in Iran, which is located in the provinces called

Qazvin Qazvin (; ; ) is a city in the Central District (Qazvin County), Central District of Qazvin County, Qazvin province, Qazvin province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is the largest city in the provi ...

and Ardabil. The group has received numerous awards for being one of the top 20 exporters and industrial groups in Iran since 1998. It is the first company to produce high-density fiberboard (HDF),

medium-density fiberboard Medium-density fibreboard (MDF) is an engineered wood product made by breaking down hardwood or softwood residuals into wood fibre, often in a defibrator, combining it with wax and a resin binder, and forming it into panels by applying high tempe ...

(MDF),

laminate Simulated flight (using image stack created by μCT scanning) through the length of a knitting needle that consists of laminated wooden layers: the layers can be differentiated by the change of direction of the wood's vessels Shattered windshi ...

flooring Flooring is the general term for a permanent covering of a floor, or for the work of installing such a floor covering. Floor covering is a term to generically describe any finish material applied over a floor structure to provide a walking surface. ...

and multi-layer films in Iran. AIG has the first private industrial site in

in the city of Ardabil, which has fifteen main factories owned by (AIG). This Industrial zone covers an area of 100 hectares and Residential Area for engineers and managers of the company. The city is served by Refah Chain Stores Co., Iran Hyper Star, Isfahan City Center, Shahrvand Chain Stores Inc., Ofoq Kourosh chain store.

Bazaars

In the heart of the city, stands the ancient

bazaar A bazaar or souk is a marketplace consisting of multiple small Market stall, stalls or shops, especially in the Middle East, the Balkans, Central Asia, North Africa and South Asia. They are traditionally located in vaulted or covered streets th ...

, described by historians of the 4th century CE as cruciform, with simply designed domes extending in four directions. Most sections of the bazaar were constructed and renovated during the

Safavid The Guarded Domains of Iran, commonly called Safavid Iran, Safavid Persia or the Safavid Empire, was one of the largest and longest-lasting Iranian empires. It was ruled from 1501 to 1736 by the Safavid dynasty. It is often considered the begi ...

and Zand periods.

Shrine

One of the main sights in the city of Ardabil in north-west Iran is the shrine of Shaykh Safi al-Din Ardabili, who died in 1334. The Shaykh was a

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

leader, who trained his followers in Islamic mystic practices. After his death, his followers remained loyal to his family, who became increasingly powerful. In 1501, one of his descendants, Shah Isma'il, seized political power. He united Iran for the first time in several centuries and established the Shi'i form of Islam as the state religion. Isma'il was the founder of the

dynasty, named after Shaykh Safi al-Din. The Safavids, who ruled without a break until 1722, and then intermittently until 1757, promoted the shrine of the Shaykh as a place of pilgrimage.

Ardabil carpet

In the late 1530s, Isma'il's son, Shah Tahmasp, enlarged the shrine, and it was at this time, that the carpet was made as one of a matching pair. The completion of the carpets was marked by a four-line inscription placed at one end. The first two lines are a poetic quotation that refers to the shrine as a place of refuge: 'Except for thy threshold, there is no refuge for me in all the world. Except for this door there is no resting-place for my head.' The third line is a signature, 'The work of the slave of the portal, Maqsud Kashani.' Maqsud was probably the court official charged with producing the carpets. He was not necessarily a slave in the literal sense but called himself one to express humility, while the word for 'portal' can be used for a royal court or a shrine. Perhaps Maqsud meant both, as in this case the court was the patron of the shrine. The fourth line contains the date 946 in the Muslim calendar, which is equivalent to 1539–1540 CE.

The Ardabil Carpet and the V&A

The two Ardabil carpets were still in the shrine of Shaykh Safi al-Din in 1843, when one was seen by two British visitors. Thirty years or more later, the shrine suffered an earthquake, and the carpets were sold off, perhaps to raise funds for repairs. The damaged carpets were purchased in Iran by Ziegler & Co., a Manchester firm involved in the carpet trade. Parts of one carpet were used to patch the other. The result was one 'complete' carpet and one with no border. In 1892, the larger carpet was put on sale by Vincent Robinson & Co. of London. The designer

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was an English textile designer, poet, artist, writer, and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts movement. He was a major contributor to the revival of traditiona ...

went to inspect it on behalf of this museum. Reporting that the carpet was 'of singular perfection ... logically and consistently beautiful', he urged the museum to buy it. The money was raised, and in March 1893 the Museum acquired the carpet for £2000. The second, smaller carpet was sold secretly to an American collector, and in 1953 it was given to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. The Ardabil carpet hung on the wall in this gallery for many years. In 2006, the museum created the case in the centre of the gallery so that the carpet could be seen as intended, on the floor. To preserve its colours, it is lit for ten minutes on the hour and half-hour.

Transportation

Airport

The city has an

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

Attractions

In addition to these, in many villages of Ardabil, relics of ancient monuments, including tombs have been found. Being a city of great antiquity, the origins of Ardabil go back 4,000 to 6,000 years (according to historical research in this city). This city was the capital of Azerbaijan province in different times, but its golden age was in the

period.

Sports

Football

Ardabil is host to several football teams. The most popular team in Ardabil is Shahrdari Ardabil, promoted in 2014 to the

Azadegan League The Azadegan League (, ''Lig-e Âzâdegân''), also known as League 1 (, ''Lig-e Yek''), is the second highest division of professional football in Iran. It was the top-level football league in Iran from its foundation in 1991 until 2001, when t ...

, the second tier of Iranian football. The city is renowned for producing great forwards, namely former

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...

player and record international goal scorer

Ali Daei Ali Daei ( ; born 21 March 1969) is an Iranian Association football, football manager and former professional footballer. A Striker (association football), striker, he was the captain (association football), captain of the Iran national footbal ...

Volleyball

Some International Volleyball Competitions was held in Ardabil: 2017 Asian Men's U23 Volleyball Championship, 2018 FIVB Volleyball Men's World Championship AVC qualification and 2019 FIVB Volleyball Men's Nations League (preliminary round).

Colleges and universities

* Mohaghegh Ardabili University With Architecture and Mechanical Engineering as the most popular department * Ardabil University of Medical Sciences * Islamic Azad University of Ardabil * Payam Noor University of Ardabil * Soureh University of Ardabil * University of Applied Science of Ardabil * Islamic Azad University of Khalkhal

Notable people

''For a complete list see: :People from Ardabil'' File:Portrait of Shah Ismail I. Inscribed "Ismael Sophy Rex Pers". Painted by Cristofano dell'Altissimo, dated 1552-1568.jpg,

, the founder of the

. File:Zadeh, L.A. 2005.jpg,

Lotfi A. Zadeh Lotfi Aliasger Zadeh (; ; ; 4 February 1921 – 6 September 2017) was a mathematician, computer scientist, electrical engineer, artificial intelligence researcher, and professor of computer science at the University of California, Berkeley. Zad ...

, mathematician, computer scientist, electrical engineer, artificial intelligence researcher and professor emeritus of computer science at the University of California, Berkeley. File:Rahim aliabadi.jpg, Rahim Aliabadi, is former Iranian wrestler and winner of silver medal in

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

. File:Ali Salimi01.jpg, Ali Salimi (Right) & Farhad Ebrahimi (Left), were Iranian musician, composer and tar player. File:Ali Daei 2016.jpg,

, is a soccer coach, a former soccer player and soccer coach. File:Nasrolah Nasehpour.jpg, Nasrollah Nasehpour, is an Iranian master musician in the Radif instrument. File:Ghafour Jeddi in USA.jpg, Ghafour Jeddi, KIA, late IRIAF pilot and a war hero. File:Javad alizadeh.jpg, Javad Alizadeh, is an Iranian cartoonist. File:Hossein Rezazadeh by Mardetanha 4014.JPG, Hossein Rezazadeh, is a former Iranian Olympic weightlifter, winner of two gold medals in summer Olympics. File:Nasser CheshmAzar.jpg, Naser Cheshmazar, musician, composer, and arranger File:Iran and Spain match at the FIFA World Cup (13) (cropped).jpg, Karim Ansarifard, Iranian footballer who plays as a forward for the Iranian national team. File:Sheikh Safi.jpg,

, Muslim eponym of the Safavid dynasty. File:Abdul-Karim Mousavi Ardebili (5).jpg,

Abdul-Karim Mousavi Ardebili Sayyid Abdolkarim Mousavi Ardebili (, 28 January 1926 – 23 November 2016) was an Iranian reformist politician and Twelver shi'a marja. Political career Ardebili was a supporter of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and was a friend of his. He made sp ...

, Iranian reformist politician and Twelver shia marja. File:Papak Xorramdin.jpg, '' Bābak-e Khorramdin'' was one of the main

revolutionary leaders .

Twin towns and sister cities

* Tiszavasvári,

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

(since 2011) *

Volgograd Volgograd,. formerly Tsaritsyn. (1589–1925) and Stalingrad. (1925–1961), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. The city lies on the western bank of the Volga, covering an area of , with a population ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

(since 2015)

Photo gallery

File:Ardabil skyline1.jpg, skyline photo File:Sheikh-safi tomb.JPG,

Sheikh Safi Safi-ad-Din Ardabili ( ''Ṣāfī ad-Dīn Isḥāq Ardabīlī''; 1252/3 – 1334) was a poet, Mysticism, mystic, teacher and Sufism, Sufi master. He was the son-in-law and spiritual heir of the Sufi master Zahed Gilani, whose order—the Zahediye ...

's tomb File:Ardabil Anthropology Museum.jpg, Ardabil Anthropology Museum File:Sheikh jabraeil.jpg, Sheikh Jabraeil's tomb File:Shaheid gah.jpg, Shahedgah File:Janbazan sq.jpg, Janbazan square File:Sheykh safi01.jpg,

's tomb File:Ardabil-Meusume.jpg, Ardabil Museum File:7 goz.JPG, Yeddi goz bridge (Seven Eyes bridge) File:Heyran ardabil.jpg, Heyran road

Notes

References

Sources

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