Kurdistan Province
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35.7277777846.9672222222Coordinates: 35° 44′ N, 46° 58′ E
Kordestān, also Kurdistan or Kordestan (Persian استان کردستان Ostān-e Kordestān, Kurdish کوردستان Kurdistan), is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is part of the Kurdish settlement area and should not be confused with the larger geographical area of Kurdistan.
The province is home to 1,603,011 people (2016 census). The area of the province covers 29,137 square kilometers. The population density is 55 inhabitants per square kilometer.
Kordestān is located in the west of Iran on the border with Iraq. To the north lies the province of Western Azerbaijan, to the northeast is Zanjan, to the east is Hamadan, and to the south is Kermānschāh.
The capital of the province is Sanandaj (Sine in Kurdish) with a population of 316,862 (2006 census). Other large cities are Marivan, Baneh, Saqqez, Qorveh and Bijar.
Administration
The province is divided as follows:
| Shahrestan (administrative district) | Bachsch (district) | Main site |
| Baneh | Armardeh, Baneh, Buin-e Sofla, Kani Sur | Baneh |
| Bijar | Bijar, Babarashani, Yasukand | Bijar |
| Divanderre | Divanderre, Zarrineh | Divanderre |
| Dehgolan | Dehgolan, Bolbanabad | Dehgolan |
| Kamyaran | Kamyaran, Mukheesh | Kamyaran |
| Marivan | Marivan, Chenareh, Kani Dinar | Marivan |
| Qorveh | Qorveh, Delbaran, Dezedj, Serishabad | Qorveh |
| Sanandaj | Sanandaj, Shuyezh | Sanandaj |
| Saqqez | Saqqez, Saheb | Saqqez |
| Sarvabad | Sarvabad | Sarvabad |
Administrative districts of the province of Kordestān
Location of Kordestāns and neighbouring provinces
History
Kordestān, along with the entire Zagros region, is one of the earliest settlement sites of the Medes and Persians. From here the Assyrian empire was subjugated in 612 BC. After the defeat of the Sasanids in 634 AD by the Muslim Arabs, Iran became Muslim. However, there were still regional uprisings from time to time. For example, the Kurds here rebelled against the Caliph al-Mutasim in 835.
Over the next centuries, Kordestān, like other regions, was ravaged by the Mongols and Timur Lenk. After the Europeans used the sea route for trade with India and China as an alternative for the Silk Road in the 16th century, Kordestān lost economic importance. Sultan Mohammed Chodabandeh built Sultanabad Chamchal, near the Bisutun region, as the administrative seat of the province in about 1220. In 1372, however, the administration then moved to Hassanabad, which is 6 km south of Sanandaj. In the 13th century, the Kurdish dynasty of Ardalan came to power and ruled Kordestān until 1867.
Abandoned village in Kordestān
View of the capital Sanandaj
