Caspian Sea covered with plants near Bandar-e Anzali - Barry Kent

Bandar-e Anzali () is a city 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, ...

in the Central District of

Bandar-e Anzali County Bandar-e Anzali County () is in Gilan province, in northwestern Iran. Its capital is the city of Bandar-e Anzali. Bandar Anzali County is bordered by the Caspian Sea on the north, Sowme'eh Sara County on the south, Khomam County on the ...

Gilan Gilan Province () is one of the 31 provinces of Iran, in the northwest of the country and southwest of the Caspian Sea. Its capital is the city of Rasht. The province lies along the Caspian Sea, in Iran's Region 3, west of the province of ...

province,

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 ...

, serving as the capital of both the county and the district.

History

Anzali is an old city in ancient Iran, first settled by the

Cadusii The Cadusii (also called Cadusians; , ''Kadoúsioi''; Latin: ''Cadusii,'' Arabic:''Qādūsīān'') were an ancient Iranian tribe that lived in the mountains between Media and the shore of the Caspian Sea, an area bordering that of the Anariacae ...

. Owing to their pleasant relationship with

Cyrus the Great Cyrus II of Persia ( ; 530 BC), commonly known as Cyrus the Great, was the founder of the Achaemenid Empire. Achaemenid dynasty (i. The clan and dynasty) Hailing from Persis, he brought the Achaemenid dynasty to power by defeating the Media ...

, King of

Anshan (Persia) Anshan (Elamite language, Elamite Elamite cuneiform, cuneiform: ; , ) modern Tall-e Malyan (), also Tall-i Malyan, was an Elamite and ancient Persian city. It was located in the Zagros Mountains in southwestern Iran, approximately north of ...

, and their military cooperation in Cyrus's founding of the

Achaemenian Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian peoples, Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, i ...

, the Cadusii adopted the name ''Anshan-e Pars'' (''Ανσνάν'' in Greek), meaning "the Anshans of Persia". This word 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 ...

is ''Anzalag''; a variant Persian form is ''Anzalazh''. Anzali Gulf was a safe harbour for trade ships and fishing boats. It was renamed to ''Pahlavi'' in 1935. In 1919, with the collapse of General

Anton Denikin Anton Ivanovich Denikin (, ; – 7 August 1947) was a Russian military leader who served as the Supreme Ruler of Russia, acting supreme ruler of the Russian State and the commander-in-chief of the White movement–aligned armed forces of Sout ...

White Russian army White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wavelen ...

, eighteen of his ships sought refuge in Anzali. On 18 May 1920, a Soviet flotilla of thirteen ships launched a surprise attack on Anzali, capturing the British garrison and the eighteen White Russian ships. This allowed for the establishment of the short-lived

Persian Socialist Republic The Iranian Soviet Socialist Republic (), also known as the Socialist Soviet Republic of Gilan, ( Gilaki: ) was a short-lived unrecognized state, a Soviet republic in north-west Persia, south of the Caspian sea. It lasted from June 1920 until Se ...

and the Persian Communist Party. Soviet authorities denied responsibility for the attack, blaming the local Russian naval commander for attacking under his own authority.

Demographics

Language

The people of Anzali speak Gilaki and Azerbaijani languages. The people of Anzali speak

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

as the national language. Specific Anzali Accent of

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

Gilaki language Gilaki ( ) is an Iranian language belonging to the Caspian subgroup of the Northwestern branch, spoken in south of Caspian Sea by Gilak people. Gilaki is closely related to Mazandarani. The two languages of Gilaki and Mazandarani have s ...

is the main language of Anzali. Linguistic composition of the city.

Religion

The majority of Anzalis are adherents of

Shia Islam 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 ...

, although there is a sizeable

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

Christian minority.

Population

At the time of the 2006 National Census, the city's population was 109,687 in 32,424 households. The following census in 2011 counted 116,664 people in 38,128 households. The 2016 census measured the population of the city as 118,564 people in 41,053 households.

Overview

Anzali is one of the most important cities in Iran in terms of tourism, economics, and athletics. Bandar-e Anzali is the biggest Gilaki speaking city in the world after

Rasht Rasht (; ) is a city in the Central District (Rasht County), Central District of Rasht County, Gilan province, Gilan province, Iran, serving as the capital of the province, the county, and the district. The city is also known as the "City of ...

, the capital of

Gilan province Gilan Province () is one of the 31 provinces of Iran, in the northwest of the country and southwest of the Caspian Sea. Its capital is the city of Rasht. The province lies along the Caspian Sea, in Iran's Regions of Iran, Region 3, west of ...

. The city was home to the first and biggest port on the southern shores of the

. Bandar-e Anzali consists of an island called ''Mianposhteh'' and the surrounding lands. Tourist attractions include a clock tower called ''Manareh'', the long harbour promenade, and the water-logged delta and beach along the

Sefid Rud The Sepid-Rud (, ) (also known as Sefid-Rud) is a river, approximately long, rising in the Alborz, Alborz mountain range of northwestern Iran and flowing generally northeast to empty into the Caspian Sea at Rasht. Names Other names and transc ...

. Its wonderful lagoon, Customs and City Hall edifice (Shahrdari), Mian Poshte Palace, and Motamedi Edifice are its tourist attractions. Anzali was the site of the Caspian University of Naval Science until 1980, when it was moved to

Nowshahr Nowshahr () is a city in the Central District of Nowshahr County, Mazandaran province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. It is a port city on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea. History Ruyan is a region in t ...

. Naser-al-din Shah's Shams-ol-Emareh tower (not to be confused with the Tehran building of the same name) was built by Moayer al Mamalek. The famous Sangi Bath was destroyed by people and natural factors. The Sangi Bath was noted for its marvelous durable system of basins with heated water. Some groups think that Motamedi Edifice had been changed; it is now its police office. This Ghajar Structure built in two floors with the help of Mirza Abd-ol-Vahab.

Geography

The

Anzali Lagoon Anzali Lagoon ( Gilaki: اٚنزٚلي سٚل ) (also Anzali Mordab, Anzali Bay, Pahlavi Mordab, Pahlavi Bay or Anzali Liman)

divides the Anzali Port in two parts. The city is connected by two bridges to the ''Beheshti Island''. There is a caviar processing factory in Bandar-e Anzali, some old ruins from 19th century and the popular ''Shanbeh Bazaar''. ''Tourbebar'' is a village about 40 kilometers from Bandar-e Anzali, near the Anzali Lagoon.

Climate

Bandar-e Anzali has a

humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...

, with (''Cfa'') designation under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

and (''Cf'') designation under the

Trewartha climate classification The Trewartha climate classification (TCC), or the Köppen–Trewartha climate classification (KTC), is a climate classification system first published by American geographer Glenn Thomas Trewartha in 1966. It is a modified version of the Köp ...

. The weather is hot and humid in summers and cool, damp and rainy in winters. It has the most humid climate of any city in Iran, similar in its heavy autumn and early winter rainfall, persistent high humidity and low sunshine to the Sea of Japan coast of Japan, though it receives much less summer rainfall than that region. The warm and humid weather has allowed this region to grow crops such as

rice Rice is a cereal grain and in its Domestication, domesticated form is the staple food of over half of the world's population, particularly in Asia and Africa. Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice)—or, much l ...

and

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...

that require very large amounts of moisture, especially with the extra water draining from the Elburz Mountains.

Economy

Historically Anzalis were mostly involved in the fish trade. Rice farming and agriculture are the other traditional jobs in Anzali, and are practiced in the villages surrounding the city.

Caviar

Bandar-e Anzali is a center of

caviar Caviar or caviare is a food consisting of salt-cured roe of the family Acipenseridae. Caviar is considered a delicacy and is eaten as a garnish or spread. Traditionally, the term caviar refers only to roe from wild sturgeon in the Caspi ...

production. The preparation and marketing of which is a state monopoly, handled through the Iranian Fishing Company under the control of the Finance Ministry. The public is not admitted to the immense refrigerated hangars where tons of sturgeons, some as large as 3 meters long and weighing 100 kilograms, are stored after the removal of the caviar, usually equivalent to about one tenth of their weight.

Sports

The most popular sport in Anzali is football, and the city is known as a football hub in Iran.

Malavan Malavan Bandar Anzali Football Club (, ''Bāšgāh-e Futbāl-e Malavān-e Bandar-e Anzali'') is an Iranian football club based in Bandar-e Anzali, Iran. It currently won Iran's second league, the Azadegan League and came back to Persian Gulf P ...

, one of the most famous teams in Iran, is the main team of the city, and they currently play in the first division of Iranian Football Persian Gulf League. Current and former national team players such as

Sirous Ghayeghran Sirous Ghayeghran () (22 January 1962 – 7 April 1998) was an Iranian footballer and former captain of Iran national football team. Playing career Club career He played most of his club career for Malavan FC. In 1990, he signed for Ai-Itti ...

Ghafour Jahani Ghafour Jahani (born 19 June 1951 in Bandar Anzali, Iran) is an Iranian football coach and former player. Club career Jahani mostly played for Malavan. At the age of 17, he was selected for the Gilan High school team, and joined Malavan upon ...

Pejman Nouri Pejman Nouri (; born 13 July 1980) is an Iranian Association football, football official, coach and a former player who played in the midfield position. He is the president of Malavan F.C., Malavan. Club career Born in Rezvanshahr County, Rezvan ...

Maziar Zare Maziar Zare Eshghdoost (, born 22 December 1984 in Bandar Anzali, Iran) is an Iranian former football player and current coach. He was a defensive midfielder. He is dubbed as ''The New Ghayeghran'' after the late Sirous Ghayeghran, Malavan's le ...

, Jalal Rafkhaei,

Saeid Ezatolahi Saeid Ezatolahi Afagh (; born 1 October 1996) is an Iranian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for club Shabab Al Ahli in UAE Pro League and the Iran national team. Ezatolahi came up through Malavan's youth academy an ...

Mohammad Mayeli Kohan Mohammad Mayeli Kohan (, born 5 June 1954) is an Iranian football coach and former player. He recently managed Malavan in Azadegan League. Early life He was born on 5 June 1954 in Bandar-e Anzali in Iran. His father was a farmer. He has two ...

Jalal Hosseini Seyyed Jalal Hosseini (; born 3 February 1982), commonly known as Seyyed Jalal or Jalal Hosseini, is a former Iranian professional association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football)#Centre-back, centre-back and was ...

are from Anzali.

Gallery

File:Bandar-e-Anzali.jpg File:Bolvare Bandar-e Anzali.jpg, Bandar-e Anzali Blvd. File:Bandar e Anzali سی‌ متری- بلوار بندر انزلی.jpg, A walkway in Anzali File:Banaye-shahrdari-bandar-e-anzali.jpg, City Hall Of Bandar-e Anzali File:Antoin Sevruguin caspiansea.jpg, Destructed pavilion of Anzali File:Russian ships in Bandar-e Anzali.jpg, Russian ships docking in Bandar-e Anzali harbour File:Bandar-Anzali, Iran, taken by Arashk Rajabpour.JPG, The harbour of Bandar-e Anzali File:Bandar-e Anzali coast.jpg, Coast of Bandar-e Anzali File:Bandar-e Anzali.jpg File:خانه های رنگی.jpg, Colorful houses in Anzali File:اولین نمایندگی روزنامه در انزلی.jpg, The first newspaper agency in Anzali File:پل قلم گوده انزلی.jpg, GhalamGoodeh Bridge in Anzali File:باراندازهای بندرانزلی.jpg, Anzali port docks

Notes

References

External links

Official website

www.anzaliport.ir

Anzali News
{{Bandar-e Anzali County, state=collapsed Populated places in Bandar-e Anzali County Cities in Gilan province Port cities and towns in Iran Populated places on the Caspian Sea Azerbaijani settlements in Gilan province Gilak settlements in Gilan province