Greater Tehran Metropolitan Area is the

urban agglomeration An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...

around

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

that covers the central part of the

Tehran Province Tehran province () is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Tehran. Tehran province covers an area of and is located to the north of the central plateau of Iran. It was made a part of the First Region with its secretar ...

and eastern part of the

Alborz Province Alborz province () is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Karaj, which lies 10 km west of Tehran, at the foothills of the Alborz mountains. Alborz is Iran's smallest province in area. History In 2010, Karaj ...

, that covers the contiguous cities of Tehran, Ray, Shemirānāt, and other areas. As of 2012, Greater Tehran had a population of close to 14 million residents. The 2016 census had the population at 13.3 million in Tehran Province (only 200 thousands of them outside Tehran and the suburban counties) and 2.2 million in

Karaj Karaj (; ) is a List of cities in Iran by province, city in the Central District (Karaj County), Central District of Karaj County, Alborz province, Alborz province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. Earl ...

and

Fardis Fardis () is a city in the Central District of Fardis County, Alborz province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. History In 2010, Karaj County was separated from Tehran province in the establishment of Alborz ...

combined. So it can be estimated that the population of the urban agglomeration was about 15 million people in 2016, and it is sinking 25 cm per year because of the accelerated influx and the overuse of natural resources. Since the 1960s, much of Greater Tehran's growth has been caused by an influx of urban poor into informal settlements on the fringe.Zebardast, E. (2006). Marginalization of the urban poor and the expansion of the spontaneous settlements on the Tehran metropolitan fringe. Cities, 23(6), 439-454. Greater Tehran should not be confused with the following: * Tehran Province (area 18,814 km², population 13.27 m – 2016). Part of the province is too far from Tehran and has too low a population density to be classified as the part of agglomeration *

Tehran County Tehran County () is in Tehran province of Iran. Its capital is the city of Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran Count ...

(area 1,300 km², population 8.85 million (2016) with 97.5% of the population living in Tehran City itself) * Tehran City includes 22 districts, two of them fully and one partially are located outside of Tehran County. The city's area is about 730 km². The extension of the city to other counties began in 1973 to include the villages surrounding the city of

Tajrish Tajrish (, ) is a neighbourhood of Tehran, capital of Iran. Administratively it is in Shemiranat County, Tehran province and serves as the capital of the county. At one time a village, it was later absorbed into the city of Tehran. The Tajri ...

(Evin, Darakeh, Niyavaran, Rostan Abad, Gholhak, Zargandeh, Elahiyeh, Davoudiyeh, and Zarrabkhaneh) and the cities of

Vanak Vanak () is a neighbourhood in the northern part of Tehran, capital of Iran and there is a square and a street named after it. The word Vanak means "Small (ash) Tree" in Persian. The name derives from the original older village of Vanak (''Deh-e ...

and Rey to which “Kooye Siman” had been annexed during the years 1956 to 1966.

Geography

There is no exact definition of Tehran agglomeration borders and composition. Beside

, also

Shemiranat County Shemiranat County () is in Tehran 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 northwes ...

, Ray County,

Eslamshahr County Eslamshahr County () is in Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Centra ...

Pakdasht County Pakdasht County () is in Tehran province, Tehran province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Pakdasht. Pakdasht is a center of flower production in Iran. About 800,000 hectares of greenhouses for producing flowers exist in this area. History ...

, Robat-Karim County,

Varamin County Varamin County () is in Tehran 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, th ...

Shahriar County Shahriar County () is in Tehran province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Shahriar. History In 2009, Malard and Qods Districts were separated from the county in the establishment of Malard and Qods Counties, respectively. In 2018, ...

Qods County Qods County () is in Tehran province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Qods. History In 2009, Qods District was separated from Shahriar County Shahriar County () is in Tehran province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Shahriar. ...

Malard County Malard County () is in Tehran 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, t ...

Pishva County Pishva County () is in Tehran province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Pishva. History After the 2006 National Census, Pishva District was separated from Varamin County Varamin County () is in Tehran province, Iran Iran ...

, and

Baharestan County Baharestan County () is in Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Centra ...

in Tehran Province and also

Karaj County Karaj County () is in Alborz province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Karaj. History In 2009, three villages merged in forming the city of Asara. In 2010, the county separated from Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital ...

and probably even

Nazarabad County Nazarabad County () is in Alborz province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Nazarabad. History In 2007, Jamal ol Din Rural District was created in the Central District, and Najmabad Rural District was separated from Tankaman District ...

and

Savojbolagh County Savojbolagh County () is in Alborz province, Alborz province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Hashtgerd. History The name Savojbolagh is derived from Turkish and means "cold springs." The 14th-century author Hamdallah Mustawfi described ...

can be regarded as parts of the agglomeration.

References

Geography of Tehran Tehran {{tehran-geo-stub

Geography

See also

References