Kazerun (Persian: کازرون) is a city in the Central District of Kazerun County, Fars province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district.

History

The historic city Bishapur is near Kazerun; it was a capital of the Sasanian Empire.

The nearby ruins of the ancient city of Bishapur 12 mi (19 km) N., include bas-relief depictions from the Sasanid era (ca. 224–651). A statue of Shapur I (AD 241–272) can be found in a large cave at the site. The ruins of the Qaleh-ye Gabri (Castle of the Gabrs, or Zoroastrians) are located on a mound SE of Kazeroon., during the Qajar Dynasty many people from Kazerun migrated to Bahrain, today there are many people with the surname Kazeruni.

From 1548 to 1834, an Afshar family governed the district of Kazerun. In June 1824, a severe earthquake occurred in Kazerun and Shiraz that killed a few thousand people.

The nearby ruins of the ancient city of Bishapur 12 mi (19 km) N., include bas-relief depictions from the Sasanid era (ca. 224–651). A statue of Shapur I (AD 241–272) can be found in a large cave at the site. The ruins of the Qaleh-ye Gabri (Castle of the Gabrs, or Zoroastrians) are located on a mound SE of Kazeroon., during the Qajar Dynasty many people from Kazerun migrated to Bahrain, today there are many people with the surname Kazeruni.

Since 16 April 2018, as part of the 2017–18 Iranian protests, the city has experienced anti-government protests, with the proximate local cause being a plan by Kazerun lawmaker Hossein Rezazadeh to turn parts of the city's northern outlying districts of Nowdan and Qaemiyeh into a new city named Kuh-e-Chinar. On 18 May 2018, five people were killed after security forces opened fire on demonstrators.

Demographics

Population

At the time of the 2006 National Census, the city's population was 84,594 in 20,810 households. The following census in 2011 counted 89,685 people in 25,034 households. The 2016 census measured the population of the city as 96,683 people in 28,988 households. It is the fifth-largest city in Fars.

Climate

Kazerun has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification: BSh).

Economy

Its agricultural products include date palms, citrus orchards, wheat, tobacco, rice, cotton, and vines.

Places of interest

• Parishan Lake, which is near Kazeroon.
• Shapur River
• Shapur statue (the largest statue of ancient Iran), which is near Bishapur.
• National park Dašt-e Aržan, a vast green meadow on Kazerun–Shiraz highway.

Recreational places

Barm Plain is biggest Plain of Oak in Iran, Davan, Sarmashhad and Kaskan are three villages in Kazeroon. The old name of Kazeroon was "Green City".

Ashura and Tasua re-enactment

This re-enactment has been one of the most celebrated and unique reenactments in Iran. The date of this re-enactment is in the ninth and tenth of the month Moharram. In these two days, people go out and re-enact the Battle of Karbala. The theater starts from morning until noon. Almost all people in the city walk on the street together. They mourn for this historical event.

Sister cities

• Al-Mada'in, Iraq

Notable people

Nasrollah Mardani, a famous contemporary Persian poet, is from Kazeroon. It is also believed that Salman the Persian, a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, comes from this city. Haj Sadrallah Zamanian was a pillar of the community for many years. The town is also the scene of a famous battle in the novel My Uncle Napoleon. Kazeroon is a city of Science. Qotb al-Din Kazerooni, Allame Jalaladdin Davani, Allame Ali Davani are from Kazeroon. The mothers of Hafez and Saadi were also from Kazeroon. Firouz Naderi, (the associate director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), responsible for Project Formulation and Strategy), was born in Kazeroon. Reza Malekzadeh, a medical scientist and gastroenterologist who is well known in Iran is from Kazeroon.

See also

• Old Kazeruni dialect

Media related to Kazerun at Wikimedia Commons

Kazeroon travel guide from Wikivoyage

Iran portal