Chahar Bagh Boulevard (,

translation Translation is the communication of the semantics, meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The English la ...

: ''Four Gardens'') is a historical avenue in

Isfahan Isfahan or Esfahan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Isfahan County), Central District of Isfahan County, Isfahan province, Iran. It is the capital of the province, the county, and the district. It is located south of Tehran. The city ...

constructed during the Safavid era. This historic street is very similar to the

Champs-Élysées The Avenue des Champs-Élysées (, ; ) is an Avenue (landscape), avenue in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France, long and wide, running between the Place de la Concorde in the east and the Place Charles de Gaulle in the west, where the Arc ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. Therefore, some visitors have called it the Champs-Élysées of Isfahan. The avenue, historically, is the most famous in all of

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 connects Isfahan's northern parts to the southern sections and is about 6 kilometers long. On the east side of this street, there are the Hasht Behesht and

Chehel Sotoun Chehel Sotoun (, ) is a Persian pavilion in the middle of a park at the far end of a long pool, in Isfahan, Iran, built by Shah Abbas II to be used for his entertainment and receptions. In this palace, Shah Abbas II and his successors would re ...

gardens.

Origin of name

The avenue was named "Chahar Bagh" because Shah

Abbas the Great Abbas I (; 27 January 1571 – 19 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the fifth Safavid Iran, Safavid shah of Iran from 1588 to 1629. The third son of Mohammad Khodabanda, Shah Mohammad Khodabanda, he is generally considered ...

had bought four vineyards in the city to secure the right-of-way.

History

Shah Abbas I Abbas I (; 27 January 1571 – 19 January 1629), commonly known as Abbas the Great (), was the fifth Safavid shah of Iran from 1588 to 1629. The third son of Shah Mohammad Khodabanda, he is generally considered one of the most important rulers ...

was the shah who changed his capital from

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 decided to concentrate the country's artistic wealth into that central spot which has been dubbed for centuries "Nesf-e Jahan" or "Half the World". The chief architect of this task of urban planning was Shaykh Bahai (Baha' ad-Din al-'Amili), who focused the programme on two key features of Shah Abbas's master plan: the Chahar Bagh avenue, flanked at either side by all the prominent institutions of the city, such as the residences of all foreign dignitaries, and the

Naqsh-e Jahan Square The Naqsh-e Jahan Square (), also known as the Shah Square () prior to 1979, and sometimes known as the Imam Square, is a maidan, square situated at the center of Isfahan (city), Isfahan, Iran. Constructed between 1598 and 1629, it is now an impo ...

("''Exemplar of the World''").Sir Roger Stevens; ''The Land of the Great Sophy'', p. 172. After the opening of the enghelab metro station, chaharbagh abbasi, the middle section of avenue, was pedestrianisedbr>

Sections

Chaharbagh Pa'in

Chaharbagh Pa'in, or lower Chaharbagh, () is the northern section of the avenue. This part of Chaharbagh is from Shohada Square (Isfahan), Shohada Square to Darvazeh Dowlat.

Chaharbagh Abbasi

Chaharbagh Abbasi, () is the middle section of the avenue. This part of Chaharbagh is from Darvazeh Dowlat to Northern 33 pol at Enqelab Square.

Chaharbagh Bala

Chaharbagh Bala, or upper Chaharbagh, () is the southern section of the avenue. This part of Chaharbagh is from southern 33 pol to Azadi Square.

References

{{coord, 32, 39, 11, N, 51, 40, 07, E, region:IR_source:kolossus-fawiki, display=title Buildings and structures in Isfahan Streets in Isfahan Boulevards 17th century in Iran Persian gardens in Iran Urban public parks Tourist attractions in Isfahan Buildings and structures on the Iran National Heritage List