Hamadan

Hamadan (/ˌhæməˈdæn/ HAM-ə-DAN;[1] Persian: همدان, fa)[lower-alpha 1] is a mountainous city in western Iran. It is located in the Central District of Hamadan County in Hamadan province, serving as the capital of the province, county, and district.[2] As of the 2016 Iranian census, it had a population of 554,406 people in 174,731 households.

Hamadan is believed to be among the oldest Iranian cities. It was referred to in classical sources as Ecbatana (Old Persian Hamgmatāna). It is possible that it was occupied by the Assyrians in 1100 BCE; the Ancient Greek historian, Herodotus, states that it was the capital of the Medes, around 700 BCE.

Hamadan is situated in a green mountainous area in the foothills of the 3,574-meter Alvand Mountain, in midwestern Iran. The city is 1,850 meters above sea level. It is located approximately 360 kilometres (220 miles) southwest of Tehran.

The old city and its historic sites attract tourists during the summer. The major sights of this city are the Ganj Nameh inscription, the Avicenna monument and the Baba Taher monument. The main language in the city is Persian.[3][4][5]

## Contents

* 1 History
* 1.1 Pre-Islam
* 1.2 Early Islamic Era
* 1.3 Buyid Rule
* 1.4 Ottoman takeover and return to Iranian control
* 1.5 World War I
* 1.6 Post World War
* 1.7 Iran-Iraq War
* 1.8 2025–2026 Iranian protests
* 2 Demographics
* 2.1 Language
* 2.2 Population
* 3 Climate
* 4 Civilian casualties of 2025-26 Iranian protests in Hamadan
* 5 Gallery
* 6 Sport
* 7 Education
* 8 Notable people
* 8.1 Pre-Islamic celebrities
* 8.2 Famous names after Islam
* 9 Significant Incident
* 10 Contemporary people
* 10.1 Contemporary people
* 11 International relations
* 11.1 Twin towns – Sister cities
* 12 See also
* 13 References
* 14 Bibliography
* 15 External links

## History

### Pre-Islam

16th century map of Hamadan by Matrakçı Nasuh

According to Clifford Edmund Bosworth, "Hamadan is a very old city. It may conceivably, but improbably, be mentioned in cuneiform texts from ca. 1100 BC, the time of Assyrian King Tiglath-Pileser I, but is certainly mentioned by Herodotus who says that the king of Media Diokes built the city of Agbatana or Ekbatana in the 7th century BC."[6]

Hamadan was established by the Medes. It then became one of several capital cities of the Achaemenid Dynasty.

Hamadan is mentioned in the biblical book of Ezra (Ezra 6:2) as the place where a scroll was found giving the Jews permission from King Darius to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Its ancient name of Ecbatana is used in the Ezra text. Because it was a mile above sea level, it was a good place to preserve leather documents.

During the Parthian era, Ctesiphon was the capital of the country, and Hamadan was the summer capital and residence of the Parthian rulers. After the Parthians, the Sassanids constructed their summer palaces in this city. In 642 the Battle of Nahavand took place and Hamadan fell into the hands of the Muslim Arabs.

### Early Islamic Era

From the middle of the ninth century, the government of the city fell into the hands of Alavi Sadat. They ruled in Hamedan as Alawites. The valuable building of the Alavian dome is a relic of this period.

In 931 AD (319 AH), Hamedan was attacked by Mard Avij, the founder of the Al-Ziyar dynasty. Because the people of Hamedan had murdered his nephew, Abu al-Karadis, along with some of the army of Daylam, Mardavij turned the city into an arena of great plunder and massacre. Mardavij threw a stone lion through the gates of the city, and as a result, one of the two unique historical statues was completely shattered, and the other still remains.

### Buyid Rule

During the rule of the Buyid dynasty, the city suffered much damage. However, the city regained its former glory under the rule of the Buyid ruler Fanna Khusraw. The Seljuks launched campaigns to take the city in the 1040s,[7] ultimately taking the final Kakuyid fortress in 1047.[8] The Seljuks later shifted their capital from Baghdad to Hamadan. In 1220, Hamadan was destroyed by the Mongols[9] during the Mongol invasions of Georgia before the Battle of Khunan. The city of Hamadan, its fortunes following the rise and fall of regional powers, was completely destroyed during the Timurid invasions, but later thrived during the Safavid era.

### Ottoman takeover and return to Iranian control

Silver drachma of Parthian king Mithridates II, made in Ecbatana mint

Thereafter, in the 18th century, Hamadan was surrendered to the Ottomans, but due to the work of Nader Shah, Hamadan was cleared of invaders and, as a result of a peace treaty between Iran and the Ottomans, it was returned to Iran; During the early 18th century chaos in Iran, various tribal groups, including Kurdish tribes, took advantage of the instability. In 1719, Kurdish tribes temporarily seized Hamadan and advanced nearly as far as Isfahan.[10] Hamadan stands on the Silk Road, and even in recent centuries the city enjoyed strong commerce and trade as a result of its location on the main road network in the western region of Iran. In the late 19th century, American missionaries, including James W. Hawkes and Belle Sherwood Hawke,[11][12] established schools in Hamadan.

### World War I

The Ganjnameh, a cuneiform inscription in Hamadan

During World War I, the city was the scene of heavy fighting between Russian and Turko-German forces. It was occupied by both armies, and finally by the British, before it was returned to the control of the Iranian government at the end of the war in 1918.

### Post World War

At the end of the Qajar era, the city of Hamedan witnessed two major famines with a gap of 10 years. The first was the artificial famine of Hamedan during the reign of Ali Zahir al-Dawla due to the opposition of the Khans of Hamedan to the constitutionalist ideas of Zahir al-Dawla, the ruler of Hamadan, and the second famine was during the First World War and in the following years. During this war, the city of Hamedan was alternately occupied by Russian, Ottoman, and British forces, and this city was the headquarters of their armies.

### Iran-Iraq War

During the Iran-Iraq War, the city of Hamedan was repeatedly targeted by Iraqi bombardments. One of the most intense bombing attacks was on Friday, July 16, 1982, by Iraqi warplanes, which coincided with Quds Day. In this attack, dozens of residential houses in four districts of Hamedan city were destroyed, and 97 Hamedan citizens were killed and 595 others were injured.[13]

### 2025–2026 Iranian protests

During the 2025–2026 Iranian protests, protesters in Hamadan chanted "This is the final battle, Pahlavi will return".[14]

## Demographics

### Language

A majority of the population speaks the Hamadani dialect of Persian and standard Persian, with a Turkic minority.[15]

| Hamedan linguistic composition

Language |  |  | Percent |
Standard Persian |

| 75%
Turkic |

| 20%
Mixed |

| 5%
Judeo-Hamadani |

| 0.001%

### Population

At the time of the 2006 National Census, the city's population was 473,149 in 127,812 households.[16] The following census in 2011 counted 525,794 people in 156,556 households.[17] The 2016 census measured the population of the city as 554,406 people in 174,731 households.[18]

## Climate

Hamadan has a hot-summer, Mediterranean-influenced continental climate (Köppen: Dsa, Trewartha: Dc), in transition with a cold semi-arid climate (Köppen: BSk). The city experiences hot, dry summers, and cold, snowy winters. The temperature may drop below −30 °C (−22 °F) on the coldest days. Heavy snowfall is common during winter and this can persist for periods of up to two months. During the short summer, the weather is hot, and mostly sunny.

Lowest recorded temperature: −34.0 °C (−29 °F) on 7 January 1964[19]
Highest recorded temperature: 40.6 °C (105 °F) on 14 July 1989[19] Script error: No such module "weather box".

* Heydare, Hamadan

* Alvand Mountain

* Mishan, a plain of Alvand Mountain

* Hamadan spot (light blue in center) in Hamadan province topography map

1. ↑ Also romanized as Hamedān and Hamedan
2. ↑ Extremes for Hamadan were recorded at Nozheh air base from 1961 to 1975, in both airport and Nozheh stations from 1976 to 2010 and at the airport from 2011 to 2020. All of the references at the end of the table cite the extreme temperature values.

The Saint Mary Church of Hamadan, an Armenian Apostolic church A church in Ekbatan Hospital in Hamadan

## Civilian casualties of 2025-26 Iranian protests in Hamadan

Beginning on 28 December 2025, mass demonstrations erupted across multiple cities in Iran amid a deepening economic crisis and widespread dissatisfaction with the government. While initially sparked by frustration over skyrocketing inflation, rising food prices, and the severe depreciation of the Iranian rial, the protests quickly evolved into a broader movement demanding an end to the Islamic Republic's rule.[24]

Hengaw Organization of Human Rights reported the killing of Amir Hossein Bayat, a recently married resident of Hamadan, was shot and killed by government forces during protests on Friday, January 2, 2026. His body was transferred to Besat Hospital in Hamadan.[25] Sources familiar with the case report that security forces confiscated the mobile phones of several members of Bayat’s family following his death. Authorities have also refused to hand over his body and have pressured the family to publicly identify him as a member of the Basij.[25]

## Gallery

* Tomb of Baba Taher

* Inside the tomb of Baba Taher

* The Tomb of Avicenna

* The handwriting of Canon of Medicine in the Tomb of Avicenna

* Tomb of Esther and Mordechai, a tomb believed by some to hold the remains of Esther and Mordechai

* Inside the structure alleged by some to be the Tomb of Esther and Mordechai

* Emamzade Abdollah Mosque

* Alaviyan Dome related with Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani

* Qorban Tower

* Ganj Nameh

* Hamadan Central Square

* Ali-Sadr Cave

* Hamedan map (1330)

Hamadan at night.

## Sport

PAS Hamedan F.C. were founded on June 9, 2007, after the dissolution of PAS Tehran F.C. The team, along with Alvand Hamedan F.C., is in the Azadegan League.

Some sport complexes in this city include: Qods Stadium, Shahid Mofatteh Stadium, Takhti Sport Complex and the National Stadium of Hamadan.

## Education

Hamadan University of Technology, in Hamadan

Before the Persian Constitutional Revolution, education in Hamadan was limited to some Maktab Houses and theological schools. Fakhrie Mozafari School was the first modern school of Hamadan, which was built after that revolution. Alliance and Lazarist were also the first modern schools founded by foreign institutions in Hamadan.

Some of the popular universities in Hamadan include:

* Bu-Ali Sina University[26]
* Hamadan Medical University[27]
* Hamadan University of Technology[28]
* Islamic Azad University of Hamadan[29]

## Notable people

Hamadan celebrities are divided into 3 categories: pre-Islamic, post-Islamic and contemporary people.

### Pre-Islamic celebrities

Among the pre-Islamic celebrities in Hamadan is Mandana, the mother of Cyrus the Great and the daughter of the last king of Media, Ishtovigo.

### Famous names after Islam

Famous people of Hamadan after Islam are great people such as:

* Baba Taher, Famous poets of the fourth century AH.
* Badi'alzaman Hamadani, author of the oldest book in the art of maqam writing.
* Abul Ali Hassan Attar, a great literature and famous syntax, vocabulary and hadith in the fourth century AH.
* Tomb of Esther and Mordekhai, The Tomb of Esther and Mordechai is a tomb located in Hamadan, Iran. Iranian Jews and Iranian Christians believe it houses the remains of the biblical Queen Esther and her cousin Mordechai, and it is the most important pilgrimage site for Jews and Christians in Iran.
* Ibn Salah Hamadani, physician and mathematician of the fifth and sixth centuries AH.
* Khajeh Rashid al-Din Fazlullah, minister, scientist and expert physician of the sixth and seventh centuries AH.
* Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani, Mystics and followers of Sirusluk of the seventh century AH.
* Mirzadeh Eshghi is one of the shining stars of poetry and prose of the play during the Constitutional Revolution.
* Bu Ali Sina, one of the rare scientists and geniuses of the time, was born in 370 AH in Khoramisin, Bukhara. He entered this city in 406 AH when Hamadan was the capital of the buyid, and after a while, Shams al-Dawla Dailami made him his minister. During his stay in Hamadan, Bu Ali Sina taught at the city's large school and had the opportunity to complete many of his writings.
* The tomb of Bu Ali Sina is now located in a square of the same name in Hamadan.

## Significant Incident

In February 1990, the bank's central branch in Hamadan experienced a tragic robbery. The event resulted in the loss of life of the bank manager Abdulrahman Nafisi, his family, and a security guard. The bank manager, Abdulrahman Nafisi, displayed extraordinary courage by prioritizing the safety of the bank's funds over his own life. Despite being under torture, he pleaded with the robbers to take his personal belongings instead of the people's money.[30]

## Contemporary people

### Contemporary people

* Baba-Taher-e Oryan, a poet (1100 AD)
* Rashid-al-Din Hamadani, Persian statesman, historian and physician of the 13th-14th centuries
* Ein-Alqozat Hamadani (1098–1131), a great philosopher and sufist (1100 AD)

Shirin Ebadi

* Abolhassan Banisadr (1933–2021), economist, politician, and the first post-revolutionary elected president of the Islamic Republic of IranFazlollah Zahedi and his family
* Ahmad NikTalab (1934–2020), a contemporary poet
* Aminollah Rezaei (1936–2004), poet, the Father of Iranian Surrealism
* Amir Nosrat'ollah Balakhanlou, born in Tehran — two-time mayor and MP for Hamadan City (1950s and early 1960s)
* Amir-Shahab Razavian (born 1965), film director, writer and producer
* Ehsan Yarshater (1920–2018), historian, scientists, and founder of Encyclopædia Iranica
* Fakhr-al-Din Iraqi, a poet (1300 AD)
* Fazlollah Zahedi (1892–1963), military general
* Fereydoun Moshiri, contemporary poet (originally from Hamadan, but born in Tehran)
* Hossein Noori Hamedani (born 1925), Iranian Shia Marja
* Hanieh Tavassoli (born 1979), actress
* Joseph Emin (born 1726), a major activist in the attempts to liberate Armenia during the 18th century
* Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani (1312–1384), poet and scholar
* Mirzadeh Eshghi (1893–1924), a nationalist poet
* Moshfegh Hamadani (1912–2009), writer, journalist and translator
* Abdulrahman Nafisi (1948–1990), bank manager
* Parviz Parastouei, acclaimed actor
* Shirin Ebadi, lawyer and the 2003 Nobel Peace Laureate
* Samuel Rahbar, scientist
* Wojtek, a bear who was born in Hamadan and would grow up to become a corporal in the Polish army during World War 2.
* Viguen, known as the king of Persian pop and jazz music
* Shahla Sarshar شهلا سرشار, Iranian singer "Hear Our Prayer" Patrick O Hearn
* Jamshid Barzegar, Author, Journalist
* Hassan Solhjou, TV presenter and producer

## International relations

### Twin towns – Sister cities

Hamadan is twinned with:

* Kulyab, Tajikistan
* Bukhara, Uzbekistan[31]
* Isparta, Turkey
* Yekaterinburg, Russia

## See also

* Ganj Nameh
* Mir Sayyid Ali Hamadani
* Baba Taher Orian
* Ali Sadr Cave
* Hamadan Airport
* Wojtek (soldier bear)

## References

1. ↑ "Hamadan". Merriam-Webster Dictionary. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Hamadan. Retrieved 2023-06-16.
2. ↑ Habibi, Hassan (c. 2024) (in fa). ﻿Approval of the organization and chain of citizenship of the elements and units of the national divisions of Hamadan province, centered in Hamadan city﻿ (Report). Ministry of the Interior, Political Defense Commission of the Government Board. Proposal 3233.1.5.53; Letter 93808-907; Notification 82834/T134K. https://lamtakam.com/law/council_of_ministers/113025. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
3. ↑ "Introduction". http://www.hamadan.rmto.ir/English/Pages/Introduction.aspx.
4. ↑ Mohammad Jalal Abbasi-Shavazi, Peter McDonald, Meimanat Hosseini-Chavoshi, "The Fertility Transition in Iran: Revolution and Reproduction", Springer, 2009. pp 100-101: "The first category is 'Central' where the majority of people are Persian speaking ethnic Fars (provinces of Fars, Hamadan, Isfahan, Markazi, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Yazd and Tehran..."
5. ↑ (Parviz Aḏkāʾi and EIr, HAMADĀN i. GEOGRAPHY in Encyclopædia Iranica:"Languages spoken. Hamadān has been a crossroads of civilizations for millennia and a mosaic of cultures and dialects live there side by side. The main language spoken, especially in the provincial capital and its surroundings, is Persian, which is also the lingua franca in other regions. In the northern parts of the province, however, the language mostly spoken is Azeri Turkish, while in the northwest and west, near the provinces of Kurdistan and Kermānšāhān, people mostly speak Kurdish, while in some other cities such as Malāyer, Nehāvand, and Sāmen most people speak Lori and Lak (Faraji, p. 1296)."
6. ↑ Bosworth, Clifford Edmund (2008). Historic Cities of the Islamic World. Brill Academic Publishers. p. 151. ISBN 978-90-04-15388-2. https://books.google.com/books?id=UB4uSVt3ulUC&q=Hamadan+3000+BC&pg=PA151.
7. ↑ C. E. Bosworth, "ABŪ KĀLĪJĀR GARŠĀSP (I)," Encyclopædia Iranica, I/3, p. 328; an updated version is available online at http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/abu-kalijar-garsasp-i-ala-al-dawla-second-son-of-the-kakuyid-amir-of-jebal-ala-al-dawla-mohammad-b (accessed on 23 January 2024).
8. ↑ C. E. Bosworth, "KĀKUYIDS," Encyclopædia Iranica, Vol. XV, Fasc. 4, pp. 359-362; an updated version is available online at https://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/kuyids-dynasty (accessed on 23 January 2024).
9. ↑ "Hamadan | Iran | Britannica" (in en). https://www.britannica.com/place/Hamadan.
10. ↑ McDowall, David (1997) (in en). A Modern History of the Kurds. Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 978-1-86064-185-5. https://books.google.com/books?id=xpefAAAAMAAJ.
11. ↑ James W. Hawkes Collection , Rare Books and Manuscripts Division, Indiana State Library.
12. ↑ Zirinsky, Michael P. (1992). "Harbingers of Change: Presbyterian Women in Iran, 1883—1949". American Presbyterians 70 (3): 173–186. ISSN 0886-5159. https://www.jstor.org/stable/23333052.
13. ↑ "هفته نامه تاريخ شفاهي". http://ohwm.ir/show.php?id=666.
14. ↑ "Nighttime chants against Khamenei in southern and northern Iran". 29 December 2025. https://www.iranintl.com/en/202512299203.
15. ↑ "Language distribution: Hamedan Province - Hamadān". http://iranatlas.net/index.html?module=module.language-distribution.hamedan#eyJ0IjoieCIsImkiOiI2NGYwMzM4NzQzNDliYmUxMDg2YWJhZjg2OTZlY2YzNyIsInMiOjE2ODMyMjU3OTk2NDR9.
16. ↑ (in fa) (Excel) ﻿Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1385 (2006): Hamadan Province﻿ (Report). The Statistical Center of Iran. http://www.amar.org.ir/DesktopModules/FTPManager/upload/upload2360/newjkh/newjkh/13.xls. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
17. ↑ (in fa) (Excel) ﻿Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1390 (2011): Hamadan Province﻿ (Report). The Statistical Center of Iran. https://irandataportal.syr.edu/wp-content/uploads/Hamadan.xls. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
18. ↑ (in fa) (Excel) ﻿Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1395 (2016): Hamadan Province﻿ (Report). The Statistical Center of Iran. https://www.amar.org.ir/Portals/0/census/1395/results/abadi/CN95_HouseholdPopulationVillage_13.xlsx. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 "HAMEDAN NOZHEH - WMO Station Number: 40767". National Oceanic and Atmosoheric Administration. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/normals/WMO/1961-1990/RA-II/IR/40767.TXT.
20. ↑ "World Meteorological Organization climate normals for 1991-2020: Hamedan airport-40768" (CSV). National Oceanic and Atmosoheric Administration. https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/2.2/data/0-data/Region-2-WMO-Normals-9120/Iran/CSV/HamedanAirport_40768.csv.
21. ↑ "World Meteorological Organization Climate Normals for 1981-2010: Hamedan airport-40768". NOAA. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/pub/data/normals/WMO/1981-2010/RA-II/Iran/WMO_Normals_Excel_IRAN_060719.xls.
22. ↑ "TEMPERATURE RECORDS HIGHEST IN C. for Hamedan airport" (asp). Iran Meteorological Organization. http://www.chaharmahalmet.ir/stat/archive/iran/ham/HAMEDANF/7.asp.
23. ↑ "TEMPERATURE RECORDS LOWEST IN C. for Hamedan airport" (asp). Iran Meteorological Organization. http://www.chaharmahalmet.ir/stat/archive/iran/ham/HAMEDANF/6.asp.
24. ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/31/we-want-the-mullahs-gone-economic-crisis-sparks-biggest-protests-in-iran-since-2022
25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 https://hengaw.net/en/news/2026/01/article-19
26. ↑ "صفحه اصلی - دانشگاه بوعلی سینا". http://basu.ac.ir/.
27. ↑ "Hamedan Medical University Website". http://www.umsha.ac.ir/.
28. ↑ "Hamedan University of Technology Website". http://www.hut.ac.ir/.
29. ↑ "Welcome to Website Islamic Azad University of Hamedan Branch". 11 March 2005. http://www.iauh.ac.ir:80/default.htm.
30. ↑ "بازخوانی جنایت هولناک ۲۲ بهمن ۶۸ در همدان". 9 February 2021. https://www.isna.ir/news/99112116134/بازخوانی-جنایت-هولناک-۲۲-بهمن-۶۸-در-همدان.
31. ↑ "خبرگزاری فارس - "بخارا" زادگاه و "همدان" مدفن بوعلی‌سینا خواهرخوانده می‌شوند". 23 November 2011. https://www.farsnews.ir/news/13900902001469/-بخارا-زادگاه-و-همدان-مدفن-بوعلی‌سینا-خواهرخوانده-می‌شوند.

## Bibliography

* Bibliography of the history of Hamadan

## External links

* Ecbatana, Photos from Iran, Livius .
* Gandj Nameh, Photos from Iran, Livius .
* The Bisotun inscription, Photos from Iran, Livius .
* Photos from Hamadan City
* Hamadan City[Usurped!]
* Hamadan: Older than history
* Hamadan; Capital of Median Empire
* Iconos satellite photo (January, 2005)
* Google Satellite Picture
* Hamedan Cultural Heritage Organization Script error: The function "in_lang" does not exist.
* Hegmataneh Official Website
* Hamadān entries in the

Preceded by
- |  Capital of Median Empire
As "Ecbatana"
678–549 BCE  | Succeeded by

|
|

Preceded by
- |  Capital of Achaemenid Empire (Persia)
As "Ecbatana"
Served as Summer Capital
550–330 BCE  | Succeeded by

Preceded by
Isfahan |  Capital of Seljuq Empire (Persia)
(Western capital)
1118–1194  | Succeeded by

Preceded by
Isfahan |  Capital of Iran (Persia)
1118–1194  | Succeeded by
Gurganj

Template:Hamadan Province

Template:Hamadan County

* v
* t
* e

Provincial capitals of Iran

* Ahvaz
* Arak
* Ardabil
* Bandar Abbas
* Birjand
* Bojnord
* Bushehr
* Gorgan
* Hamadan
* Ilam
* Isfahan
* Karaj
* Kerman
* Kermanshah
* Khorramabad
* Mashhad
* Qazvin
* Qom
* Rasht
* Sanandaj
* Sari
* Semnan
* Shahr-e Kord
* Shiraz
* Tabriz
* Tehran
* Urmia
* Yasuj
* Yazd
* Zahedan
* Zanjan

0.00

(0 votes)

Original source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hamadan. Read more

|

Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Place:Hamadan&oldid=4183745"
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template