The Historical and Urban Geography of Hamadan in the Early Islamic Centuries

The basic assumption of this paper is that the development of Iran's cities goes back to the early centuries of Islam. One of the consequences of this assumption is the issue of boundaries of the mountainous district and the position of Hamadan in it. It is known that Hamadan as well as Isfahan and Ray are mountainous areas but Hamadan has always been called the center of Jibal. This, along with the confusion about determining the boundaries of Jibal, increases the importance of the study of these boundaries to understand the position of Hamadan. The development of new cities and accelerated urban development are among the factors which contributed to the change of the boundaries and development and formation of social and economic fabric of the ancient cities including Hamadan. The findings of the research can be summarized as follows: Hamadan was the center of a district which was called Jibal in the strict sense of the word. Towards the end of Sasanid period this city declined and had an inferior position to that of Isfahan and Rey, despite its relative growth in the early Islamic centuries. Besides, it was a vast and decentralized city whose urban and social fabric was influenced by the rapid development in the early Islamic period.