Khorramabad

Khorramabad is a city and the capital of Lorestan Province, on the Zagros Mountains. Its old name was Shapurkhast.

The city population is predominantly Lur and Lak, although the two groups are closely related. Although not a major tourist destination, it is quite scenic and possesses several attractions, such as five Paleolithic cave-dwelling sites. In the city centre, a citadel called Falak-ol-Aflak (The Heaven of Heavens), a relic of the Sassanid era is now a nationally popular museum.

“KhorMoah” is the way locals call it. “KhorMoa” in Lori and Laki, local languages, means “the place that you can see the sunset”.

“KhorMoah” has been translated as “Khorram Abad” in Farsi which means “the green and beautiful place”.

Modern Persian -âbâd, meaning “settlement” or “abode”, derives from Middle Persian āpāt (“populous”). However, according to linguist Sasha Lubotsky, the Persian term ābād might derive from Proto-Iranian *āpāta (“protected”), rooting from Proto-Indo-European *peh₂- (“to protect”). Thus, it can mean “protected settlement”.

During the late third millennium B.C. and early second millennium B.C., when Simashki sovereigns were ruling on Elam, for the first time a fort was built on the peak of a natural cliff to protect the city against its enemies. Sixty hundred years later, Ellipi kings built a new fort on the ruins of the old one. Simash was the name of the place. It was the capital of Simashki dynasty

In the texts of historians, Shapurkhast has been considered one of the most important and developed cities of the region during this period. Falak-ol-Aflak castle ( Dež-e Shāpūr-Khwāst) was built by Shapur I the Sasanid.

Probably in the late seventh century CE, Shapurkhast was destroyed and the people of Shapurkhast moved to the western part of Falak-ol-Aflak Castle, which offered plenty of water as well as safety.

Hamdallah Mustawfi writes: Khorramabad was a beautiful city, now it is destroyed.

The founder of the Hazaraspid dynasty was Abu Tahir ibn Muhammad, a descendant of the Shabankara chieftain Fadluya. Fadluya was initially a commander of the Salghurids of Fars and was appointed governor of Kuhgiluya but eventually gained independence in Luristan and extended his realm as far as Isfahan. He assumed the prestigious title of atabeg.

During the reign of the Safavid dynasty, Khorramabad was the administrative centre of Luristan Province. In the wake of the demise of the Safavids, after the signing of the Treaty of Constantinople (1724) with Imperial Russia, the Ottomans conquered Khorramabad on 6 September 1725.

In Qajar period, the city of Khorramabad was limited to the environs of Falak-ol-Aflak Castle. This period was the beginning of a migration of people from small villages into Khorramabad. The increase in population led to the expansion of the city and the creation of new districts.