Marand

For the administrative subdivision, see Marand County. For the city in Fars Province, see Efzar.

Marand مرند
—  city  —
The lights of Marand on a cold winter's night
Marand
Coordinates: 38°25′58″N 45°46′30″E / 38.43278°N 45.775°E / 38.43278; 45.775Coordinates: 38°25′58″N 45°46′30″E / 38.43278°N 45.775°E / 38.43278; 45.775
Country	Iran
Province	East Azerbaijan
County	Marand
Bakhsh	Central
Population (2006)
– Total	114,165
Time zone	IRST (UTC+3:30)
– Summer (DST)	IRDT (UTC+4:30)

Marand (Persian: مرند; also Romanized as Morand)^[1] is a city in and the capital of Marand County, East Azerbaijan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 114,165, in 29,755 families.^[2]

Marand is among major cities in the province. It is located in the north-west of capital of the province Tabriz. Sheikh Usman Marandi commonly known as fardis nadimi was one of the most famous inhabitants of Marand. Marand had various names in history, such as Maryana and Mandagarana.

History

The history of the town goes back to the pre-Islamic era.^[3] Between 815 till 850, Marand was primarily controlled by Mohammad ibn Ba'ith who was Iranicized to a considerable extent.^[3] The elders of Maragha who quoted his Persian poetry also praised his bravery and his literatry ability.^[3] He was Iranicized to considerable extent and the statement of Tabari on him is evidence of the existence of the cultivation of poetry in Persian in northwest Persia at the beginning of the 9th century.^[3]

In the news

During February 2010, it was reported that an attack was carried out in the city of Marand, against a truck which was carrying tear gas and other substances for the use of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.^[4] The Iran Liberation Front claimed responsibility for the attack through a video posted on YouTube.^[5]

References

1. ^ Marand can be found at GEOnet Names Server, at this link, by opening the Advanced Search box, entering "-3074041" in the "Unique Feature Id" form, and clicking on "Search Database".
2. ^ "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1385 (2006)" (Excel). Islamic Republic of Iran. http://www.amar.org.ir/DesktopModules/FTPManager/upload/upload2360/newjkh/newjkh/03.xls. 
3. ^ ^{a b c d} Minorsky, “Marand” in Encyclopaedia of Islam. Edited by: P. Bearman , Th. Bianquis , C.E. Bosworth , E. van Donzel and W.P. Heinrichs. Vol. 6, (1991): pg 504 "According to one of al-Tabari's authorities (iii, 1388), the shaykhs of Maragha who praised the bravery and literary ability (adab) of Ibn Bai'th also quoted his Persian verses (bi'l-fdrisiyya). This important passage, already quoted by Barthold, BSOS, ii (1923), 836-8, is evidence of the existence of the cultivation of poetry in Persian in northwestern Persia at the beginning of the 9th century. Ibn Bai’th must have been Iranicised to a considerable extent, and, as has been mentioned, he relied for support on the non-Arab elements in his Rustakhs (‘Uludj Rasatikhi’)”
4. ^ http://www.corriere.it/esteri/10_febbraio_11/iran-donna-misteriosa-attacco-pasdaran-olimpio_e8d33d30-16de-11df-a022-00144f02aabe.shtml
5. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGjWYy-iUCo