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Māzandarān (Persian: مازندران, prior to 1596 known as Tabaristan / Tapuristan / Tapuria Persian: تبرستان / تپورستان) is a province in northern Iran, bordering the Caspian (Mazandaran) Sea in the north. Mazandaran was part of the Persian province of Hyrcania. Sari is the provincial capital. Gorgan also used to be a part of Mazandaran until recently, but is now the capital city of the new Iranian province of Golestan (since 1997). The Caspian Sea is to the north, the provinces of Tehran and Semnan provinces lie to the south. To the west it has common borders with Gilan province, and to the east stands the province of Golestan. In 1996, the province had a population of about 2.6 million.
History Climatic conditions of Mazandaran have prevented the preservation of historical monuments. Thus there are only a few sound vestiges remaining from pre-Islamic periods in the coastal plains of Mazandaran. But the province is known to have been populated from early antiquity, and Mazandaran has changed hands among various dynasties from early in its history. There are several fortresses remaining from Parthian and Sassanid times, and many older cemeteries scattered throughout the province. Image:Gold cup kalardasht.jpg|Achaemenid Golden cup. Dated first half of first millennium. Excavated at Kalardasht in Mazandaran. Image:Mazandaran imamzadeh.jpg|Imamzadeh Taher, built in 1424 CE near Noshahr. Image:MirHeydarAmoli.jpg|Mir Heydar Amoli (Seyyed Se Tan) shrine in Amol, 15th century Image:Abbasabad.jpg|Abbasabd historical sight and forest,Built by Shah Abbas the Safavid, near Behshahr. In 662 CE, ten years after the death of Yazdegerd III the last Sassanian Emperor, a large Muslim army under the command of Hassan ibn Ali (Imam Hassan, the second Shi'a Imam) invaded Tabarestan (Mazandaran as it was then called) only to be severely beaten, suffering heavy losses to the forces of the Zoroastrian princes of the Dabboyid house. For the next two hundred years, Tabaristan maintained an existence independent of the Umayyad Caliphate which supplanted the Persian Empire in the early seventh century, with independent Zoroastrian houses like the Bavand and Karen fighting an effective guerilla warfare against Islam. A short-lived Alid Shiite state collapsed before the subsequent take-over by the Ziyarid princes. Mazandaran, unlike much of the rest of the Iranian Plateau maintained a Zoroastrian majority until the 12th century, thanks to its isolation and hardy population which fought against the Caliph's armies for centuries. During the Abbasid caliphate of Abou Jafar Al-Mansur, Tabaristan witnessed a wave of popular revolt. Ultimately, Vandad Hormoz established an independent dynasty in Tabaristan in 783. In 1034, Soltan Mahmoud Ghaznavi entered Tabarestan via Gorgan followed by the invasion of Soltan Mohammad Kharazmshah in 1209. Thereafter, the Mongols governed the region and finally were overthrown by the Timurid Dynasty. After the dissolution of the feudal government of Tabaristan, Mazandaran was incorporated into modern Persian Empire by Shah Abbas I in 1596. During the reign of Nadir Shah, the province was briefly occupied by Russians in the aftermath of the Russo-Persian War, 1722-1723. Image:Caspian sea from namak abrood.jpg|View of the Caspian coast from the Namak-Abrud tourist resort. Image:Ramsar.jpg|Ramsar was a popular vacation resort for visiting Americans during the Shah's era. It continues to be used today as a tourist attraction for Iranians. Image:Mahmoodabad.jpg|The resort of National Iranian Oil Company, near Mahmoodabad. Image:Mazandaran_Sea_Sari_City.jpg|The Mazandaran (Caspian) Sea attracts millions of Iranian tourists to its coasts every year. Geography
Administrative Divisions The province covers an area of 46,656 km². According to the census of 1996, the population of the province was 2,602,008 of which 45.89% were registered as urban dwellers, 54.1% villagers, and remaining were non- residents. Sari is the capital city of the province. Mazandaran is connected to the capital of Iran, Tehran, through three transit roads of Haraz (Amol-Rudehen), Kandovan (Chalus-Karaj), and Firouzkouh (Qaem Shahr-Firouzkouh), while Sari, Nowshahr and Ramsar airports connect it to the other parts of the country. Counties of the province are: Language
Music Mazandaran has a diverse folk music culture that includes songs and instrumental and ritual music. Rhythm is usually simple in songs, which include: In Literature Mazandaran is mentioned frequently in Persian epic Shahnameh, it is an area in north of Iran which is mostly inhabited by Div (demons). The legendary Iranian Shah Kaykavoos as well as the Iranian hero Rostam each take turn to go to Mazandaran in order to battle the demons. A famous verse from Shahnameh is when Zal tells Kai Kavoos: شنیدم یکی نو سخن بس گران که شاه دارد آهنگ مازندران "I heard troubling news that the king is planning to go to Mazandaran" Significant natives of Mazandaran Mazandaran has been home to many significant Iranian figures. These range from scholars and poets to politicians and actors. Of the most notable Mazandaranian figure is Reza Shah Pahlavi who was born in Alasht, Savad Kooh, Mazandaran in 1877. Reza Pahvalavi became the Iranian Shah from 1925 until 1941, when he was forced to relinquish his throne to his son. Notable Mazandaranian poets include the modernist poet Nima Yooshij, the great late contemporary poet of Iran who was born in Yush, Mazandaran. Interesting note: Being formerly part of the greater province of Taparestan or Tabaristan, two famous 9th-century Persian scholars are from Mazandaran, both commonly called "al-Tabari" (meaning simply "from Tabaristan"). Economy
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