ASFAND

 

ASFAND (or Ašfand, Ašbanḏ), a medieval district (kūra) of the quarter (robʿ) of Nīšāpūr of Khorasan province. Only a few medieval writers mention this district. It consisted of many villages (Yāqūt gives the number of 83) but had no city (madīna) proper according to Moqaddasī (p. 319), whose remarks on agriculture also show that Asfand was not one of the richest districts of the province.

The name of its administrative center (qaṣaba) was Farhāḏǰerd, located on the road leading eastward from Nīšāpūr to Marv and Herat. Farhāḏǰerd was the second large settlement travelers hit after having left Nīšāpūr. Thus, most probably, it can be identified with Farāgerd, ca. 65 km south of Mašhad, reported by 19th-century travelers. Asfand, as a consequence, was the medieval name of the region the modern center of which is Farīman.

 

Bibliography:

Ebn Rosta, pp. 171, 172.

Moqaddasī, pp. 300, 319 n.

Yāqūt, I, p. 280; III, p. 887.

Le Strange, Lands, p. 388.

L. W. Adamec, Historical Gazetteer of Iran II, Graz, 1981, p. 169.

 

Search terms:

 اسفند  esfand

 

(H. Gaube)

Originally Published: December 15, 1987

Last Updated: August 16, 2011

This article is available in print.
Vol. II, Fasc. 7, pp. 743-744