Durham E-Theses Hiostorical development of the central Iranian cities during the Islamic period Rahimi, Kamal Niroumand How to cite: Rahimi, Kamal Niroumand (1977) Hiostorical development of the central Iranian cities during the Islamic period, Durham theses, Durham University. Available at Durham E-Theses Online: http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/10114/ Use policy The full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that: • a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in Durham E-Theses • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. Please consult the full Durham E-Theses policy for further details. Academic Support Oce, Durham University, University Oce, Old Elvet, Durham DH1 3HP e-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 0191 334 6107 http://etheses.dur.ac.uk 2 HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE CENTRAL IRANIAN CITIES DURING THE ISLAMIC PERIOD by KAMAL NIROUMAND RAHIMI The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. No quotation from it should be published without his prior written cansent and information derived from it should be acknowledged. Dissertation submitted for the Degree of Master of Arts In the Human Geography of the Middle East and Medltteranean. October, 1977 ABSTRACT The thesis examines the pattern of change and the historical development of the Central Iranian cities, particularly during the Islamic period. In a brief discussion the geographical context in which Iranian cities can be identified is introduced. The thesis tries to find an adequate periodization as regards the urban development In Iran. Urban morphology of each period Is examined In relation to the socio-economic conditions of the period. An attempt Is made to identify the urban structure of each period and compare It with other periods In order to follow the patterns of change. In this Investigation social and geographical forces have proved to be the most essential factors In the process of change. At the end some of the old central Iranian cities are examined as existing examples. 11 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my Indebtedness to Mr. R. Gazzard, my supervisor, for his encouragement, assistance, guidance and kindness that I have received throughout my study. Very special thanks are due to Dr. R.I. Lawless and Dr. G. Blake for their invaluable advice and constant help. I wish to thank all those people who showed Interest In my research and kindly offered me their help, especially Professor W.B. Fisher and the members of staff In the Geography Department of the University of Durham. My thanks are also due to the School of Oriental Studies, particularly members of staff in the library. I would like to thank Mrs. M. L. Bell for her patience and very careful typing. Finally I owe my thanks to all my friends who have helped me with the. English In preparation of this thesis. ill CONTENTS Page Introduction 1 Chapter I Geographical conditions of the Iranian Plateau In relation to City Centres Chapter II Emergence and development of 16 city centres and urban life In Iran 7th B.C. to 7th A.D. 1) Median civilization (700 B.C. - 550 B.C.) 18 2) The Empire 22 3) Hellenistic Influence 28 4) Indigenous Iranian Urban life 30 5) Urban developnent 3rd to 5th A.D. 35 42 Chapter III Early Mediaeval Iranian Urban life (7th A.D. to 9th A.D.) 1) Beginning of Islam 42 2) Muslim Persia 44 3) Classification of Persian cities In the 7th to 9th A.D. 45 4) Urban topography 48 5) Defensive factor 50 6) Islamic law 51 7) Town and city at the time of the Islamic Empire 53 8) Cities built In Iran after the Arab conquest. 67 69 Chapter IV Mediaeval towns and cities of the Iranian Plateau 1) Mediaeval, .cities 69 2) Tyopology of Mediaeval Iranian cities 77 3) Classification of townships in relation to the long distance trade 78 4) Position of urban centres In relation to major trade routes 80 5) Regional classification of the Iranian Plateau in relation to the mediaeval urban patterns 80 6) Some considerations on the preconditions of urban prosperity In mediaeval Iran 87 7) Morphology of cities 91 iv Page Chapter V Towns and Cities in Iran In the period 16th to 19th centuries A.D. 97 1) The new historical phase of urban life 99 2) Urban social classes 100 3) Urban manufacturing and trade 103 4) Ethnic groups 105 5) Urban structure 107 a) social elements 107 b) geographical elements 110 Chapter VI Observations on the historical 114 development of some of the Central Iranian Cities 1) Bam 114 2) Klrman 122 3) Isfahan 126 4) Kashan 129 Conclusion 136 Footnotes 144 Bibliography 159 List of Maps Map No. 1 7 9 Map No. 2 12 Map No. 3 19 Map No. 4 39 Map No. 5 47 Map No. 6 62 Map No. 7 66 Map No. 8 83 Map No. 9 115 Map No. 10 119 Map No. 11 121 Map No. 12 123 Map No. 13 117 Drawing No. 1 130 Drawing No. 2 Introduction For the last century the city has been a subject of study for several branches of human sciences. Each has approached the subject within the Interests and abilities of its own discipline. The research con• cerning history, geography, sociology and economics has questioned this phenomenon producing different answers with reference to certain aspects of the city. Despite the differences, they give unanimous support to the point that the city Is a man made and living phenomenon. Cities, like living things, are born and they develop. Hence they are subject to change. Dynamics of this change are, broadly speaking, subject to two sets of forces, social and environmental. As each of these forces influence different aspects of the city, the structure of the city is the outcome of those internal and external forces at any given time. Social forces form the urban morphology; they mould the pattern of spatial arrangement. It Is due to the relationship of men, their material lives, their beliefs and their every day practices that the spaces of a social environment such as a city are shaped. The subject of urban geography studies the outcome of those human interactions which are materialized In the form of urban districts, quarters, shanty towns, slums, settlements of minority groups, patterns of migrations, etc.. Geographical forces are also effective in shaping the physical cluster of the city. Climatic conditions and the availability of construction materials, for example, affect building techniques and produce specific forms. It is the variety in urban structure due to such geographical forces which has been the basis for the distinction and classification of cities. Cities of the Iranian Plateau are generally named as either Islamic or Middle Eastern. There are other classifications which do not consider them being cities at all.^* The latter argument Is based on presumptions made concerning an Ideal type historical urban develop• ment which has taken place In only one small part of the world I.e. western Europe. Those who speak of the Islamic city also construct their argument on an Ideal type In which Islamic institutions are the determinant factors 2 which give shape to the city. ' There are, however, two major weaknesses In their argument. First, the institutional analysis can not explain the transformation, nor can It see a phenomenon as an historical process. Thus this theory assumes the "Islamic City" to have a continuous traditional structure. Second, even with this static position. It falls to establish any relationship between different sectors of the society and comes to the conclusion that "Muslim cities are self contained entitles which comprise a distinct society and culture, radically different and opposed to that of the peasantry and the countryside." ' Further studies of "Muslim societies" In the late 1940's and 50's, however, forced those who supported the concept of "Islamic Cities" to reconsider their beliefs and accept the presence of an organic relationship between the town and the countryside. The Islamic City concept was also propounded by followers of the empirical method of investigation (mainly geographers). Through their observations of physical features in those cities such as mosque, maidan, bazaar, suq etc. some of them have tried to explain the "Islamic City" by its appearance and relate it to societies In which Islam Is the dominant religion. This attempt, however, failed to explain why the two most populated musllm regions of the world have not produced such cities (Indonesia and Bangladesh). Theoretical and even empirical difficulties of the "Islamic City" have led to the new generalization, more geographic• ally based, of the Middle Eastern city. The concept of the Middle Eastern city was, therefore, accepted by those who rejected the "Islamic City" for its inadequacy but not its theoretical framework. Methods of their study adopted were either functionalist or empiricist. Without discussing theoretical problems of any such concepts, this paper tries to follow the historic formation and transformation of urban centres in central Iranian Plateau mainly in its mediaeval period. The first major obstacle encountered is the inadequacy of actual periodization of the Iranian history (see Chapter 2). In order to divide the Iranian history into relevant periods concerning urban transformation, primary materials and archaeological studies are used as main sources. A second problem was to formulate a definition for "the city" which was adequate throughout the period of study.