Sanandaj
The origins of the Kurds go back to an Indo-European people settled in the Kurdistan region. Kurds are members of an ethnic and linguistic group living in Iraq, Syria, southeastern Anatolia, and the Zagros Mountains in western Iran. Most Kurds live in contiguous regions of Iran, Iraq, and Turkey, a loosely defined geographic area called Kurdistan. In both Iran and Iraq these entities are officially recognized: the western Iranian province of Kurdistan and the autonomous Kurdish culture, in addition to poetry, traditional clothing, architecture and festivals, constantly maintains a musical form that is still practiced by Kurdish families in Iran. It is curious to know that in Iranian Kurdistan there is a culture linked to the production of pomegranates and that during the harvest, every year the villages organize a party in which the women carry the first pomegranates on a copper tray and the men attend the parade. Playing euphoric music on the typical Kurdish musical instrument, ‘the sitar’. Kurdish region of northern Iraq. Kurdish is an Iranian language similar to Persian and Pashtun. The Kurdish population is estimated to be 30-40 million people, including communities in Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Syria, and Europe.
Kurdish culture, in addition to poetry, traditional clothing, architecture and festivals, constantly maintains a musical form that is still practiced by Kurdish families in Iran. It is curious to know that in Iranian Kurdistan there is a culture linked to the production of pomegranates and that during the harvest, every year the villages organize a party in which the women carry the first pomegranates on a copper tray and the men attend the parade. Playing euphoric music on the typical Kurdish musical instrument, ‘the sitar’.
Sanandaj is the capital of the Kurdistan Province in Iran. The population of the province is mainly Kurdish and the language spoken is Kurdish. The economy is based on the production of carpets, leather and wood.
Sightseeing places in Sanandaj
Sanandaj Bazaar
It is located in the central part of the city and dates back four centuries. It was built during the Safavid dynasty. Unlike other bazaars in Iran that were built in a linear plan, the Sanandaj bazaar has a rectangular plan, and shares exactly the same principles as Naqsh-e Jahan Square in Isfahan, built in the 17th century. In the center of the rectangle there are many places such as small squares, warehouses, saray and timché, baths and art workshops. The Sannadaj bazaar offers a panoramic view from an anthropological point of view, as all the inhabitants of the surrounding small towns flock to this bazaar. Sanandaj Bazaar covers a very wide area because in addition to the shops and boutiques of the closed market, there are hundreds of stalls, shops, street vendors, bakeries, delicatessens, fishmongers and much more outside the bazaar. To meet the Kurdish people, hear them speak, to see their clothes, their turbans and their Giveh (shoes), you have to lose yourself in their culture.
Asif Khan Vaziri House, Kurdish House; Anthropology Museum
The Asif mansion, also called Khane Kord in Sanandaj, is a symbol of the cultural identity of the Kurdish people and an anthropological treasure that is one of the most valuable historical and cultural monuments in Kurdistan. The house is divided into several parts: the royal hall, the bedrooms and adjoining rooms, the outer courtyard, and the servants’ courtyard in its present form.
Salar Saeid House
This building was founded at the end of the reign of Nasser al-Din Shah Qajar by Mullah Lotf Allah Sheikh al-Islam, one of the famous Sunni scholars of the time. It was later recognized as the property of Salar Saied Sanandaji. The stained-glass window in the royal hall is one of the largest in Iran, made by the famous Kurdish master Habib Allah Sanandaji.
Sanandaj Mosque
A historical and religious attraction that attracts many visitors each year. It seems that the Dar-ol Ehsan Mosque was built by order of the governor of Kurdistan during the Qajar dynasty. The mosque is believed to have been built on top of a ruined mosque from the Safavid dynasty. The magnificent tiles, bricks, stone and wood used in the design of the mosque make it a unique example in the province.
Hammam-e Khan
A bathroom located on the north side of the old bazaar in Enqelab square in Sanandaj. The interior decorations and the drawings on the walls are interesting.
Sanandaj Museum
Kurdistan province has only one archaeological museum, it is located in the Salar Seyed building in the city of Sanandaj. Several relics from the Kurdistan region and other parts of Iran are preserved there.
Salavat Abad village
It is situated 15 km east of Sanandaj. The village was surrounded by Mount Kacheh Resh in the northwest, Mount Lul in the northeast, and Mount Gojeh in the east and southeast, so it has a cold and semi-dry climate. The mountainous area of the province prompted its inhabitants to build houses at the back of the mountain, to cultivate on the steep slopes, and to fight the biting cold of winter. There are many villages in the province that can be compared to Palangan, developed in the form of slopes.
Galin town
It is another typical and unique town where the roof of the lower house is the courtyard of the upper house and the front areas of the houses and roofs are used as sidewalks. The materials used in the construction of the houses are indigenous and most of them are rocks fixed with mud and lime mortar. The town of Galin is the first and only town in Iran in which the inhabitants, to facilitate the distribution of oil, have invented a particular system with pipes derived from the great reservoir of the town to have oil in the tap – considering the difficulty of going up and lowering and transporting the 20-liter tanks at a time – so the oil-adapted water system makes the town of Galin one of the forerunners of this invention in the Kurdistan province.
Chehel Cheshmeh by Divandareh
A high mountain (3,173 m) north of the Zagros mountain range and is located 53 km southeast of Saqez and northwest of Divandareh. The Shurqi, Chehel Cheshmeh, Kalleh Bad, and Cham Jaqtu rivers originate at these altitudes. Many rivers that flow from the slopes of this mountain have also given it a special beauty. Due to its beautiful nature, Kurdistan Province generally attracts the attention of hikers and mountaineers.
If you are passionate about mountains, cultural festivals, mountaineering, hiking, skiing, anthropology, historical landscapes and the fascinating culture of the Middle East, SITO Travel will help you organize your trip to Iran. Contact us because our experience is born and developed in the field.
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