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GORGĀN iii. Population Population of Gorgān will be described in two sections: (1) Population of the province, which has been formed recently under the name of Golestān Province with Gorgān City as its capital; and (2) population of Gorgān City and Gorgān Sub-province. 1. THE PROVINCE In June 1997 the…

GORGĀN iv. Archeology The plain of Gorgan, situated on the southeast shore of the Caspian Sea, has always been regarded as an important region for its archeological deposits dating from the pre-historic to the Islamic period. Figure 1. Aerial map of the old city of Gorgān (Jorjān). (Courtesy of the…

GORGĀN v. Pre-Islamic history Gorgān (Latin Hyrcania), the district of “the wolves” (still seen thereabouts), north of the Alborz (q.v.) watershed, and adjoining the southeastern quarter of the Caspian Sea, is mentioned already as Varkāna- in the Behistun inscription (2.92; see BĪSOTŪN iii). The area comprises two distinct climatic zones:…

GORGĀN vi. History From The Rise Of Islam To The Beginning Of The Safavid Period Gorgān, OP Varkāna-, classical Hyrcania, Arabized form Jorjān (see Markwart, Erānšahr, p. 72), formed in Sasanian and pre-modern Islamic times a transitional zone, a corridor, between the subtropical habitat and climate of Māzandarān to its…

GORGĀN vii. History from the Safavids to the end of the Pahlavi era Two characteristics dominated the history of Gorgān in the period between the 16th and early 19th centuries: incessant tribal unrest and power politics. These features reflected the rather particular tribal structure and the geopolitical situation of this…

GORGĀNI, FAḴR-AL-DIN ASʿAD (fl. ca. 441/1050), poet, best known for his verse romance Vis o Rāmin, completed in 447/1055 or shortly thereafter and dedicated to the Saljuq governor of Isfahan, the ʿAmid Abu’l-Fatḥ Moẓaffar b. Moḥammad. Virtually all that is known about this poet is derived from his own statements…

GORGIJANIDZE, PARSADAN (b. Gori, Georgia, ca. 1626; d. 1696), a distinguished Georgian literary figure who served in the Safavid administration as deputy governor (nāʾeb-e dāruḡa) of Isfahan and royal chamberlain (išik-āqāsi); he was also a historian. During the 16th and early 17th century, Georgians held important positions in the government…

GORGIN, son of Milād, one of the heroes of the reigns of Kay Kāvus and Kay Ḵosrow (Šāh-nāma, ed. Khaleghi, III, p. 11,) and the head of the Milād family. Ṭabari’s mention of Gorgin (I, pp. 608, 614) as the name of both the son and father of Milād is…

GORGIN KHAN (also known as Giorgio XI and Šāhnavāz Khan II), Georgian prince (d. 1709), who was alternately ruler of Georgia and holder of high positions in the Safavid administration and military. Gorgin Khan was the son of Šāhnavāz Khan I (Wakhtang V), the Safavid viceroy (wāli) of Kartli (Kārtil),…

GORGIN, IRAJ (b. Isfahan, 25 Bahman 1313 Š./14 February 1935; d. Virginia, U.S.A., 13 January 2012), prominent radio and television broadcaster and journalist (Figure 1; Figure 2) Iraj Gorgin was born to Mirzā Ḥeydar, the head of the Customs and Tariffs Office of southern Iran, and ʿEffat ʿAẓimā, a trained…