Dinavar (also spelled Dinawar and Daynavar; fa, دینور) was a major town between the 7th and 10th centuries, located to the northeast of
Kermanshah in western
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 Turkm ...
. The ruins of the town is now located in
Dinavar District, in
Sahneh County,
Kermanshah Province.
History
Located in the centre of the ancient region of
Media
Media may refer to:
Communication
* Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data
** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising
** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass el ...
, Dinavar is first attested in history as a town founded by the Greek
Seleucid Empire (312 BC–363 BC), but it may have been older. Like the neighbouring town of
Kangavar, Dinavar also hosted a Greek population. Under the
Sasanian Empire (AD 224–651), Dinavar served as an important fortified place, and was reportedly attacked by the
Khazars in the early 6th-century. In 642, following the defeat of the Sasanians against the Arabs at the
Battle of Nahavand
The Battle of Nahavand ( ar, معركة نهاوند ', fa, نبرد نهاوند '), also spelled Nihavand or Nahawand, was fought in 642 between the Rashidun Muslim forces under caliph Umar and Sasanian Persian armies under King Yazdege ...
, Dinavar was conquered. During the reign of the
Umayyad
The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by the ...
caliph
A caliphate or khilāfah ( ar, خِلَافَة, ) is an institution or public office under the leadership of an Islamic steward with the title of caliph (; ar, خَلِيفَة , ), a person considered a political-religious successor to th ...
Mu'awiya I (), the town was renamed Mah al-Kufa and made one of the two districts of
Jibal (Media). Dinavar consisted of the northern areas, whilst Karmisin (
Ke