Hormozgan Province
استان هرمزگان
Province
Map of Iran with Hormozgan province highlighted
Map of Iran with Hormozgan province highlighted
Coordinates: 27°06′N 56°00′E / 27.100°N 56.000°E / 27.100; 56.000
CountryIran
RegionRegion 2
CapitalBandar Abbas
Counties13
Government
 • Governor-generalMahdi Dousti
 • MPs of Assembly of ExpertsSeyed Ruhollah Sadr Al-Sadati
 • Representative of the Supreme LeaderMohammad Ebadizadeh
Area
 • Total70,697 km2 (27,296 sq mi)
Population
 (2016)[1]
 • Total1,776,415
 • Density25/km2 (65/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+3:30 (IRST)
ISO 3166 codeIR-22
Main language(s)Mostly Southwestern Iranian varieties like Garmsiri, a minority speaks Balochi and Gulf Arabic
HDI (2017)0.768[2]
high · 25th
Bandar Abbas International Airport
Kish International Airport

Hormozgan Province (Persian: استان هرمزگان) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the south of the country, in Iran's Region 2,[3] facing Oman, the United Arab Emirates and the Hormuz Straits. Its area is 70,697 km2 (27,296 sq mi),[4] and its provincial capital is Bandar Abbas. The province has fourteen islands in the Persian Gulf and 1,000 km (620 mi) of coastline.

At the time of the National Census of 2006, the Hormuzgan province population was recorded as 1,365,377 people in 303,323 households.[5] In the following census in 2011, the population had increased to 1,578,183 in 396,927 households.[6] By the time of the last census conducted in 2016, the population had risen to 1,776,415 in 493,660 households.[1]

History

Although Hormozgan is known to have been settled during the Achaemenid era when Nearchus passed through the region, recorded history of the main port of Hormozgan (Bandar‑e Hormoz) begins with Ardashir I of Persia of the Sassanid empire.

The province is said to have been particularly prosperous between 241 BC and 211 BC, but grew even further in trade and commercial significance with the beginning of the Islamic era.

Marco Polo visited the port of Bandar Abbas in 1272 and 1293. He reported widespread trading in Persian jewelry, ivory and silk of Indochina, and pearls from Bahrain in the bazaars of the port of Hormuz.

In 1497 Europeans landed in the region for the first time, headed by Vasco da Gama. In 1508 the Portuguese, led by Afonso de Albuquerque invaded the area with seven warships, under the pretext of protecting their interests from Egypt and Venice. The port of Hormuz at the time was considered strategically positioned for commercial interests in the Persian Gulf.

Ismail I who was trying to counter the Ottoman Empire to the west, was unable to save the port from the Portuguese, until Shah Abbas I was finally able to drive them out of the Persian Gulf with the aid of the British. The name of Bandar Abbas comes directly from the name of Shah Abbas I.

The British, meanwhile, were competing for influence in the region with Dutch colonialists, who invaded Qeshm Island and dispatched warships to Bandar Abbas during the final years of Shah Abbas' reign. The Persian government was unable to defend itself against this attack. However, with the souring of British and Dutch relations, military tensions grew in the region. The Dutch finally resorted to moving their base up to Kharg Island. The Amir of Kharg, Mir Mahna Baloch and Mir Hamal Kalmati with Baloch army defeated the Europeans from Bander Abbas till Karachi, so the Dutch and other forces at Kharg, leaving the British firmly in charge of the entire region. Soon Britain took control over the entire Persian Gulf via the British East India Company. The British adopted policy encouraging local autonomy throughout the Persian Gulf to in order to prevent a formidable unified force from threatening their establishments in the gulf.

The strategic importance of the Persian Gulf further increased after World War I with the discovery of oil in the region.

Geography and climate

The province is primarily mountainous, consisting of the southern tip of the Zagros Range. The province experiences a very hot and humid climate, with temperatures sometimes exceeding 120 °F (49 °C) in summers. There is very little precipitation year-round.

Administrative divisions

Hormozgan Province Population History
Administrative Divisions2006[5]2011[6]2016[1]
Abumusa County1,8605,2637,402
Bandar Abbas County498,644588,288680,366
Bandar Lengeh County113,625134,713159,358
Bashagard County1—40,00735,085
Bastak County65,71680,11980,492
Hajjiabad County62,44265,88969,625
Jask County75,76952,88258,884
Khamir County47,54552,96856,148
Minab County254,304235,705259,221
Parsian County37,36942,84350,596
Qeshm County103,881117,774148,993
Rudan County104,222118,547124,522
Sirik County2—43,18545,723
Total1,365,3771,578,1831,776,415
1Separated from Jask County
2Separated from Minab County

Cities

According to the 2016 census, 976,652 people (nearly 55% of the population of Hormozgan province) live in the following cities: Abu Musa 4,213, Bandar Abbas 526,648, Bandar Charak 4,066, Bandar Khamir 20,150, Bandar Lengeh 30,435, Bastak 9,959, Bika 7,190, Dargahan 14,525, Dashti 4,695, Fareghan 1,773, Fin 3,939, Garuk 4,008, Gowharan 1,170, Hajjiabad 28,977, Hasht Bandi 6,718, Hormuz 5,891, Jask 16,860, Jenah 6,910, Kish 39,853, Kong 19,213, Kuhestak 3,060, Kushk-e Nar 3,260, Lamazan 2,745, Minab 73,170, Parsian 18,045, Qaleh Qazi 5,286, Qeshm 40,678, Rudan 36,121, Ruydar 6,558, Sardasht 1,725, Sar-e Gaz-e Ahmadi 1,157, Senderk 1,915, Sirik 5,137, Suza 5,707, Takht 3,082, Tazian-e Pain 4,263, Tirur 4,871, and Ziarat-e Ali 2,679.[1]

Most populous cities

The following table lists the most populous cities in Hormozgan:[1]

Rank City County Population
1 Bandar Abbas Bandar Abbas 526,648
2 Minab Minab 73,170
3 Qeshm Qeshm 40,678
4 Kish Bandar Lengeh 39,853
5 Rudan Rudan 36,121
6 Bandar Lengeh Bandar Lengeh 30,435
7 Hajjiabad Hajjiabad 28,977
8 Kong Bandar Lengeh |19,213
9 Parsian Parsian |18,045
10 Jask Jask |16,860

Languages

Hormozgan is dominated by a variety of Iranian languages primarily of the Southwestern branch which are closely related to the Persian language, but Northwest Iranian Balochi is present as well. Arabic, a Semetic language, and Kholosi, an Indic language, are also found among a minority of speakers within the province.

Hormozgan Linguistic Composition[7]
language percent
Persian
 
 83.41%
Balochi
 
 7.31%
Arabic
 
 2.00%
Other, Unknown, mixed
 
 7.27%

Hormozgan today

Hormozgan today has 11 ports, five national airports, and three international airports. The province has an active agriculture sector, ranking first in Iran in lime production and second in date production. 30% of Iran's fishery produce comes from this province. Three major hydro dams serve the water needs of the province — Esteghlal Dam (i.e., Minab Dam, which supplies major part of consuming water of the Bandar Abbas), Jegin Dam, and Shemil Dam.

Germany has recently offered to build a bridge that would connect Qeshm island to the mainland, a formidable project.

Hormozgan has two free trade zones, one in Kish, the other on Qeshm island. Kish Island, situated in a free-trade zone, is home of the Iranian oil bourse (one of five exchanges of its kind in the world, and the only one explicitly not trading oil and derivatives in U.S. dollars).

Attractions

Poshtkuh shamil Hormozgan has four- and five-star hotels with modern amenities. The Cultural Heritage Organization of Iran lists 212 sites of historical and cultural significance in the province. Some of the more popular attractions are:

Colleges and universities

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1395 (2016)". AMAR (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 22. Archived from the original (Excel) on 5 May 2022. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  2. ↑ "Sub-national HDI – Area Database – Global Data Lab". hdi.globaldatalab.org. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  3. ↑ "همشهری آنلاین-استان‌های کشور به ۵ منطقه تقسیم شدند (Provinces were divided into 5 regions)". Hamshahri Online (in Persian). 22 June 2014 [1 Tir 1393, Jalaali]. Archived from the original on 23 June 2014.
  4. ↑ SCI.org
  5. 1 2 "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1385 (2006)". AMAR (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 22. Archived from the original (Excel) on 20 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
  6. 1 2 "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1390 (2011)" (Excel). Iran Data Portal (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 22. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  7. ↑ "Language distribution: Hormozgan Province". 2020. Retrieved August 27, 2023.

Further reading

  • Afshar Sistani, Iraj, Shenakht-e ostan-e Hormozgan, Tehran 2000
  • Barbera, Gerardo, "Hormozgan: Situação linguística e aspectos culturais", Âyiné. International Journal of Islamic Societies and Cultures, 1, 2013, pp. 130–147
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