Irahistan () or Irahestan is a historical region in

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 also known by some of the locals as Achomestan. The region of Irahistan consists of several counties in

Fars province Fars Province or Pars Province, also known as Persis or Farsistan (فارسستان), is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Shiraz. Pars province has an area of 122,400 km2 and is located in Iran's southwest, i ...

(

Larestan Larestan County () is in Fars province, Fars province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Lar, Iran, Lar. History Early history In the Middle Ages, medieval ages, Laristan was ruled by the local Miladian dynasty, until it was removed by a Safavi ...

, Khonj County, Gerash County, Lamerd County, and Mohr County) and Bastak County,

Bandar Lengeh County Bandar Lengeh County () is in Hormozgan province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Bandar Lengeh. History After the 2006 National Census, Dezhgan and Mehran Rural Districts were separated from the Central District in the formation of Mehr ...

and Parsian County in Hormozgan. The region's importance grew during the

Sassanid The Sasanian Empire (), officially Eranshahr ( , "Empire of the Iranian peoples, Iranians"), was an List of monarchs of Iran, Iranian empire that was founded and ruled by the House of Sasan from 224 to 651. Enduring for over four centuries, th ...

period with vast expansion of settlements in Irahistan. In the book " Kar-Namag i Ardashir i Pabagan," which is written 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 ...

, in the section describing the second war between Ardeshir and Haftvad, the name of Irahistan is mentioned: In medieval times, the region was ruled by local lords until they were removed by a

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 ...

invasion in 1610. In the thirteenth century, the city of Lar became a center of trade and commerce in Irahistan and the population of this city grew rapidly, outpacing the more historical towns and cities. The people in this region speak Persian and Achomi.

Achomi people Achomi/Achami people (, , Pahlavi scripts, Inscription Parsig: 𐭠𐭰𐭬𐭭𐭩𐭠), known by their self-designated pseudonym as ''Khodmooni'' (), commonly known as ''Laris'' (), ''Larestanis'' (), or ''Garmsiris'', are an Iranian peoples, Ir ...

speak the Achomi language. The language is in decline and has reported eight dialects and it is understood by mainstream Persian speakers mostly. The Achomi people are of Persian descent. The majority of Achomi people are

Sunni Muslims Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...

, with a Shia minority. In the thirteenth century, Lar briefly became a center of trade and commerce in southern Persia. Irahistan was nearly always an obscure region, never becoming involved in the politics and conflicts of mainstream Persia. This was due to independent rule during the Safavid times, but that has failed due to the British Empire "Anti Piracy Company" and continued to decline due to Reza Shah Pahlavi's centric policies and the Ayatollah policies. Iranian historian and geographer Ahmad Eghtedari noted in his book ''Ancient Larestan'' (1955): "To those people of the towns, villages, and ports of Larestan who have stayed in the land of their ancestors, with its glorious past and its desolate present. And to those who have endured the hardship of migration to earn a living on the islands of the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean and in the towns of India, Arabia and other places. They remember with joy their beloved birthplace and still grieve for its ruin." Achomi people refer to themselves as ''Khodmooni (''), a term literally meaning "part of ourselves" (').

Geographical scope

The historical region of Irahistan consists of several cities, including: * Hormozgan: Parsian, Bastak ( Central, Kuhij, Kukherdharang, Jenah, Kukherd), Bander Langeh, Khamir, Bandar Abbas, Hajjiabad, Rudan, Minab, Sirik, parts of Bashagard, and

Jask Jask ( and Balochi: جاشک) is a city in the Central District of Jask County, Hormozgan province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Demographics Population At the time of the 2006 National Census, the city' ...

. * Fars: Mohr, Khonj, Lamerd, Gerash,

Evaz Evaz () (Arabic: عوض) is a city in the Central District (Evaz County), Central District of Evaz County, Fars province, Fars province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. The people of Evaz are Khodmooni with mixed ...

, Juyom, Zarrin Dasht,

Darab Darab () is a city in the Central District (Darab County), Central District of Darab County, Fars province, Fars province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. History Darab is one of the oldest cities in Iran, and ...

. *

Bushehr Bushehr (; ) is a port city in the Central District (Bushehr County), Central District of Bushehr County, Bushehr province, Bushehr province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. Etymology The roots of the n ...

: Asaluyeh, Jam, Deir. * Part of

Kerman province Kerman province () is the largest of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Kerman. The province is in the southeast of Iran. In 2014 it was placed in Region 5. Mentioned in ancient times as the Achaemenid satrapy of Carma ...

Gallery

Provinces

File:Bushehr.svg, Bushehr province File:Fars.svg, Fars province File:Hormozgan.svg, Hormozgan province File:Kerman.svg, Kerman province

Historical locations

File:بازار قیصریه لار.jpg, Kayseri Lar market File:Berke Kaal,Gerash,Fars,Iran- Photo by Abolhassan Hosseini.jpg, Iran's largest pond in Gerash File:Dariush Grand Hotel - 2.jpg, Great Dariush Hotel in Kish File:Bidshahr @MAS@ 89-1-5 - panoramio.jpg, The nature of Bidshahr File:Monar sheykh danyal khonj.jpg, The minaret of Sheikh Daniel Khonji in Khonj, a survivor of the Seljuk period File:نمای درونی کاروانسرای خواجه ابوالحسن جویم.jpgThe interior view of the caravanserai in Juyom File:Bath of siba 2011.8.jpg, Siba bath 1 File:Bath of siba 2011.9.jpg, Siba bath 2 File:Bath of siba 2011.1.jpg, Siba bath 3 File:Bath of siba 2011.2.jpg, Siba bath 4 File:دوگنبدان کوخرد.jpg, Kokherd Dome File:آرامگاه سید مظفر کوخرد.JPG, Seyyed Muzafar Kokhard's tomb File:ورودی قلعه خان بستک.jpg, Entrance to Khan Bestak Castle File:آب انبار های جنوب-بستک (12).JPG, Bastak reservoirs File:Tomb of Sheikh Abdul Qader Bastaki.jpg, The grave of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Bastaki File:آرامگاه سید مظفر کوخرد 01.jpg, Seyyed Muzafar Kokherd's tomb File:Sheikh Abdul Qadir Bastaki 02.jpg, The inscription at the entrance to the tomb of Sheikh Abdul Qadir Bastaki File:Bangaleh-Bastaki-BandarLengeh.jpg, Bastaki bungalow ( Banderlangeh) File:A, ALI 1095.jpg, Trene Sasani - photo of Trene, Kokhard district, Kokhard district File:Larestan grave of Nader Shah's mother.jpg, The tomb of

Nader Shah Nader Shah Afshar (; 6 August 1698 or 22 October 1688 – 20 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian history, ruling as shah of Iran (Persia) from 1736 to 1747, when he was a ...

's mother in Lar, Fars province, Iran File:ShaikhAbdulsalamKhonji.png, The grave of Sheikh Abdulsalam Khonji File:بادگیر خانه لاری ها.jpg, The windshield of the Laris house File:PLYN3768.jpg, Yazd - the house of Laris File:تالار و بادگیر خانه لاری ها.JPG, The hall and windcatcher of Laris house File:Hayat-howz Khuneh Lari Yazd.jpg, Hayat Hoz Khuneh Lari Yazd File:BandarLengeh-Badgir.jpg, Windcatchers in Bandar Lange

References

External links