Tabas ( fa, طبس, also

Romanize Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...

d as Ṭabas), formerly known as Golshan, is the capital city of Tabas County in

South Khorasan Province South Khorasan Province ( fa, استان خراسان جنوبی ''Ostān-e Khorāsān-e Jonūbī'') is a province located in eastern Iran. Birjand is the centre of the province. The other major cities are Ferdows, Tabas and Qaen. In 2014, it ...

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 ...

. At the 2011 census, its population was 35,150, in 9,903 families. Tabas is located in central Iran, 950 kilometers southeast of

Tehran Tehran (; fa, تهران ) is the largest city in Tehran Province and the Capital city, capital of Iran. With a population of around 9 million in the city and around 16 million in the larger metropolitan area of Greater Tehran, Tehran is th ...

, in

. At first, it was part of the Khorasan province, but in 2001, it was joined to the Yazd Province. However, in 2013, it was returned to Khorasan, and it became part of South Khorasan province. The name Khorasan means the land of the rising sun. There are two other places in Khorasan called Tabas, but the name Tabas usually refers to the city under discussion. It is a

desert city Desert City is a plant nursery and botanical garden in San Sebastián de los Reyes, near Madrid, Spain, that cultivates and sells xerophytic plants, including cacti, succulents and native plants from the Mediterranean region.accent Accent may refer to: Speech and language * Accent (sociolinguistics), way of pronunciation particular to a speaker or group of speakers * Accent (phonetics), prominence given to a particular syllable in a word, or a word in a phrase ** Pitch ac ...

of Persian that sounds somewhat different from the standard Iranian version (" Tehrani accent").

History

The history of Tabas dates back to pre-Islamic times. It was an important outpost of the

Sassanid empire The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries AD. Name ...

, and during the Arab invasion, it was considered the gateway to Khorasan. It was spared when the Mongols attacked Iran. It had a local government incorporating not only Tabas but also Ferdows and Gonabad. After the death of

Nader Shah Nader Shah Afshar ( fa, نادر شاه افشار; also known as ''Nader Qoli Beyg'' or ''Tahmāsp Qoli Khan'' ) (August 1688 – 19 June 1747) was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty of Iran and one of the most powerful rulers in Iranian ...

in 1747, it as under the control of the Zangu'i Arabs as an independent state which included nearby Tun. For a time they even kidnapped Nader Mirza Afshar and placed the

Kurds ug:كۇردلار Kurds ( ku, کورد ,Kurd, italic=yes, rtl=yes) or Kurdish people are an Iranian peoples, Iranian ethnic group native to the mountainous region of Kurdistan in Western Asia, which spans southeastern Turkey, northwestern Ir ...

of Khabushan in control of

Mashhad Mashhad ( fa, مشهد, Mašhad ), also spelled Mashad, is the second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about from Tehran. It serves as the capital of Razavi Khorasan Province and has a po ...

. In 1978, the 7.4 Tabas earthquake affected the city with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). At least 15,000 people were killed. Since then, the city has been rebuilt with many new streets, parks and public buildings.

Climate

Tabas has a

hot desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk''), is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in deser ...

( Köppen ''BWh'').

Operation Eagle Claw

The failed rescue American operation

Operation Eagle Claw Operation Eagle Claw, known as Operation Tabas ( fa, عملیات طبس) in Iran, was a failed operation by the United States Armed Forces ordered by U.S. President Jimmy Carter to attempt the rescue of 52 embassy staff held captive at the ...

on 24–25 April 1980 to free American hostages in Tehran occurred near Tabas. In Iran, the operation is called ''amaliat tabas'' (Tabas operation), and the significance and aftermath of the failed operation made the city Tabas known in almost every corner of Iran. The Tabas air defense system is accordingly named so.

Transport

Multiple bus lines, a railroad station and an airport connect Tabas to Mashhad, Yazd, Tehran, Kerman and Birjand (the capital city of South Khorasan province).

Agricultural products

ُThe agricultural products of this desert city are very significant. Products such as: oranges, pistachios, dates, persimmons, summer fruits and

daffodils ''Narcissus'' is a genus of predominantly spring flowering perennial plants of the amaryllis family, Amaryllidaceae. Various common names including daffodil,The word "daffodil" is also applied to related genera such as '' Sternbergia'', ''Is ...

; Also, tea bread, chickpea bread, and jams that are prepared from agricultural products, such as: spring orange jam, balang jam, orange peel jam, and Tabas mountain and local

liqueurs Liqueurs are alcoholic beverages that are bottled with added sugar and have added flavours that are usually derived from fruits, herbs, or nuts. Liqueurs are distinct from eaux-de-vie, fruit brandy, and flavored liquors, which contain no ad ...

Mines

Tabas has some of the richest coal mines of Iran.

Notable people

Abbas Vaez-Tabasi Abbas Vaez Tabasi ( fa, عباس واعظ طبسی; 25 June 1935 – 4 March 2016) was an influential Iranian cleric who held memberships at different institutions. He was Grand Imam and Chairman of the Astan Quds Razavi board from 1979 until his ...

, born 25 June 1935 in Tabas; Grand Imam and Chairman of the

Astan Quds Razavi Astan Quds Razavi ( fa, آستان قدس رضوی, Āstān-e Qods-e Razavi) is a bonyad based at Mashhad, Iran. It is the administrative organization which manages the Imam Reza shrine and various institutions which belong to the organization. ...

board *

Massoud Rajavi Massoud Rajavi ( fa, مسعود رجوی, born 18 August 1948 – disappeared 13 March 2003) became the leader of the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK) in 1979. In 1985, he married Maryam Rajavi, who became the co-leader of the MEK. After leaving ...

, born 18 August 1948 in Tabas; one of the two leaders of the

People's Mujahedin of Iran The People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI), also known as Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK) or Mojahedin-e-Khalq Organization (MKO) ( fa, سازمان مجاهدين خلق ايران, sâzmân-e mojâhedīn-e khalq-e īrân), is an Iranian pol ...

Gallery

File:Pelikan234.jpg File:گلدسته امامزاده کاظم در طبس.jpg File:داخل باغ گلشن3.JPG, Bagh-e-Golshan

References

{{Portal, Iran Populated places in Tabas County Cities in South Khorasan Province Oases of Iran Cities destroyed by earthquakes pnb:شہرستان طبس