Isfahan is located at the intersection of the two principal routes that traverse Iran, north–south and east–west. Isfahan flourished between the 9th and 18th centuries. Under the Safavid Empire, Isfahan became the capital of Iran, for the second time in its history, under Abbas the Great. It is known for its Persian–Muslimarchitecture, grand boulevards, covered bridges, palaces, tiled mosques, and minarets. Isfahan also has many historical buildings, monuments, paintings, and artifacts. The fame of Isfahan led to the Persian proverb Esfahān nesf-e-jahān ast (Isfahan is half (of) the world).[4]Naqsh-e Jahan Square in Isfahan is one of the largest city squares in the world, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[5]
The name Espahan is derived from Middle PersianScript error: No such module "Lang"., which is attested by various Middle Persian seals and inscriptions, including that of the ZoroastrianmagiKartir.[6]
The region is denoted by the abbreviation GD (Southern Media) on Sasanian coins. In Ptolemy's Geographia, it appears as Script error: No such module "Lang". (Script error: No such module "Lang".), which translates to "place of gathering for the army". It is believed that Script error: No such module "Lang". is derived from Script error: No such module "Lang". "the armies", the Old Persian plural of Script error: No such module "Lang"., from which is derived Script error: No such module "Lang". (Script error: No such module "Lang".) 'army' and Script error: No such module "Lang". (Script error: No such module "Lang"., 'soldier', literally 'of the army') in Central Persian. Some of the other ancient names include Gey, Jey (old form Zi),[7] Park, and Judea.[8][9]
History
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Human habitation in the Isfahan region can be traced back to the Palaeolithic period. Archaeologists have found artifacts dating back to the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic, Bronze, and Iron ages. During the Median rule, Isfahan became a regional centre, especially from the benefits of the Zayandehrud River. It was a religiously and ethnically diverse city during the reign of Cyrus the Great, and exhibited religious tolerance.
The Arabs captured Isfahan in 642 CE. They made it the capital of al-Jibal province. The city further grew under the Buyid dynasty, and under the Seljuk dynasty. With the fall of the Seljuks in 1200 CE, the city temporarily declined but regained its importance during the Safavid era (1501–1736) with the city's golden age under the rule of Abbas the Great who also moved his capital from Qazvin to Isfahan. During his reign, Turkish, Armenian, and Persian craftsmen were forcefully resettled in the city to ensure its prosperity. Later, the city also had enclaves for people of Georgian, Circassian, and Daghistani descent. The city once again declined after the Siege of Isfahan by Afghan invaders in 1722.
In the 20th century, Isfahan was resettled by many people from southern Iran, especially during the population migrations at the start of the century and in the 1980s following the Iran–Iraq War.
Under Median rule, the commercial entrepôt began to show signs of more sedentary urbanism, growing into a regional centre that benefited from the fertile soil on the banks of the Zayandehrud River, in a region called Aspandana or Ispandana.
When Cyrus the Great unified Persian and Median lands into the Achaemenid Empire, the religiously and ethnically diverse city of Isfahan became an early example of the king's fabled religious tolerance. It was Cyrus who, having just taken Babylon, made an edict in 538 BCE declaring that Jews in Babylon could return to Jerusalem.[10] Later, some of the Jewish immigrants settled in Isfahan instead of returning to their homeland. The 10th-century Persian historian Ibn al-Faqih wrote:
When the Jews emigrated from Jerusalem, fleeing from Nebuchadnezzar, they carried with them a sample of the water and soil of Jerusalem. They did not settle until they reached the city of Isfahan, whose soil and water was deemed to resemble that of Jerusalem. Thereupon they settled there, cultivated the soil, raised children and grandchildren, and today the name of this settlement is Yahudia.[11]
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The Parthians (247 BCE – 224 CE), continued the tradition of tolerance after the fall of the Achaemenids, fostering a Hellenistic dimension within Iranian culture and the political organization introduced by Alexander the Great's invading armies. Under the Parthians, Arsacid governors administered the provinces of the nation from Isfahan, and the city's urban development accelerated to accommodate the needs of a capital city.
File:Esfahan scheme middle ages fr.pngIsfahan at the end of the 6th century (top), consisting of two separate areas: Sassanid Jay and Jewish Yahudia. In the 11th century (bottom), these two areas were completely merged.
The next empire to rule, the Sassanids (224–651 CE), presided over massive changes in their realm, instituting sweeping agricultural reforms and reviving Iranian culture and the Zoroastrian religion. Both the city and region were then called by the name Aspahan or Spahan. The city was governed by a group called the Espoohrans, who descended from seven noble Iranian families. Extant foundations of some Sassanid-era bridges in Isfahan suggest that the Sasanian kings were fond of ambitious urban-planning projects. While Isfahan's political importance declined during this period, many Sassanid princes would study statecraft in the city, and its military role increased. Its strategic location at the intersection of the ancient roads to Susa and Persepolis made it an ideal candidate to house a standing army, which would be ready to march against Constantinople at any moment. The words "Aspahan" and "Spahan" are derived from the Pahlavi or Middle Persian meaning 'the place of the army'.[12]
Although many theories have mentioned the origins of Isfahan, little is known of it before the rule of the Sasanian dynasty. The historical facts suggest that, in the late 4th and early 5th centuries, Queen Shushandukht, the Jewish wife of emperor Yazdegerd I (reigned 399–420), who was also the mother of his successor Bahram V, settled a colony of Jewish immigrants in Yahudiyyeh (also spelled Yahudiya and Jouybareh), a settlement Template:Convert northwest of the Zoroastrian city of Gabae (its Achaemid and Parthian name; Gabai was its Sasanic name, which was shortened to Gay (Arabic 'Jay') that was located on the northern bank of the Zayanderud River (the colony's establishment was also attributed to Nebuchadrezzar, though that's less likely).[13] The gradual population decrease of Gay (Jay) and the simultaneous population increase of Yahudiyyeh and its suburbs, after the Arab conquest of Iran, resulted in the formation of the nucleus of what was to become the city of Isfahan. The words "Aspadana", "Ispadana", "Spahan", and "Sepahan", all from which the word Isfahan is derived, referred to the region in which the city was located.
Isfahan and Gay were supposedly both circular in design, which was characteristic of Parthian and Sasanian cities.[14] However, this reported Sasanian circular city of Isfahan has not yet been uncovered.[15]
When the Arabs captured Isfahan in 642 CE, they made it the capital of al-Jibal ("the Mountains") province, an area that covered much of ancient Media. Isfahan grew prosperous under the Persian Buyid (Buwayhid) dynasty, which rose to power and ruled much of Iran when the temporal authority of the Abbasid leaders waned in the 10th century. The city walls of Isfahan are thought to have been constructed during the tenth century.[16][17][18] The Turkish conqueror and founder of the Seljuq dynasty, Toghril Beg, made Isfahan the capital of his domains in the mid-11th century; but it was under his grandson Malik-Shah I (r. 1073–92) that the city grew in size and splendour.[19]
After the fall of the Seljuqs (Template:Circa), Isfahan temporarily declined and was eclipsed by other Iranian cities, such as Tabriz and Qazvin. During his visit in 1327, Ibn Battuta noted that "The city of Isfahan is one of the largest and fairest of cities, but it is now in ruins for the greater part."[20]
In 1387, Isfahan surrendered to the warlord Timur. Initially treated with relative mercy, the city revolted against Timur's punitive taxes by killing the tax collectors and some of Timur's soldiers. In retribution, Timur ordered the massacre of the city residents, his soldiers killing a reported 70,000 citizens. An eye-witness counted more than 28 towers, each constructed of about 1,500 heads.[21]
Isfahan regained its importance during the Safavid period (1501–1736). The city's golden age began in 1598 when the Safavid ruler Abbas the Great (reigned 1588–1629) made it his capital and rebuilt it into one of the largest and most beautiful cities in the 17th-century world. In 1598, he moved his capital from Qazvin to the more central Isfahan. He introduced policies increasing Iranian involvement in the Silk Road trade.[22]Turkish, Armenian, and Persian craftsmen were forcefully resettled in the city to ensure its prosperity.[23] Their contributions to the economic vitality of the revitalized city supported the recovery of Safavid glory and prestige, after earlier losses to the Ottomans and Qizilbash tribes,[23] ushering in a golden age for the city.
As part of Abbas's forced resettlement of peoples from within his empire, as many as 300,000 Armenians (primarily from Jugha) were resettled in Isfahan during Abbas' reign.[24][25])[25] In Isfahan, he ordered the establishment of a new quarter for these resettled Armenians from Old Julfa, and thus the Armenian Quarter of Isfahan was named New Julfa (today one of the largest Armenian quarters in the world).[24][25]
Shah Abbas would also oversee a transformation of the urban pattern of Isfahan. The plans included the new, rectangular Shah Square and the linear Chahar Bagh Boulevard. Between these two focal points of Isfahan's urban revitalization was a large garden, what is today the Hasht Behesht Gardens. The new, geometric, planned portions of Isfahan would stand out against the old city's complex street layouts, attracting foreign emissaries and wealthy residents along the Chahar Bagh.[26] Shah Square would be adorned by 4 grand monuments on each side. Importantly to the north, a turquoise gate connected the new square to Isfahan's Grand Bazaar and old square, while to the south, the Shah Mosque would become the new primary place of worship for city residents.[27]
In the 16th and 17th centuries, thousands of deportees and migrants from the Caucasus settled in the city. Following an agreement between Abbas the Great and his Georgian subject Teimuraz I of Kakheti ("Tahmuras Khan"), whereby the latter became Muslim and accepted Safavid rule in exchange for being allowed to rule as the region's wāli (governor), with his son serving as dāruḡa (prefect) of Isfahan.[28] He was accompanied by a troop of soldiers,[28] some of whom were Georgian Orthodox Christians.[28] The royal court in Isfahan had a great number of Georgian ḡolāms (military servants), as well as Georgian women.[28] Although they spoke both Persian and Turkic, their mother tongue was Georgian.[28] Now the city had enclaves of those of Georgian, Circassian, and Daghistani descent.[28] Engelbert Kaempfer, who dwelt in Safavid Iran in 1684–85, estimated their number at 20,000.[28]Template:Sfn
During Abbas's reign, Isfahan became known in Europe, and European travellers, such as Jean Chardin, gave accounts of their visits to the city. The city was sacked by Afghan invaders in 1722, during a marked decline in Safavid influence. Thereafter, Isfahan experienced a decline in importance, culminating in moving the capital to Mashhad and Shiraz during the Afsharid and Zand periods, respectively, until it was finally moved to Tehran, in 1775, by Agha Mohammad Khan, the founder of the Qajar dynasty.
In the early years of the 19th century, efforts were made to preserve some of Isfahan's archeologically important buildings. The work was started by Mohammad Hossein Khan, during the reign of Fath Ali Shah.[29]
During World War II, Polish refugees, mostly children, were admitted in Isfahan (see also Iran–Poland relations).[30] There were 21 Polish childcare units, located in different parts of the city.[30] Some 2,600 Poles were housed there as of February 1943.[30] Over time, Polish children were evacuated further to Africa, India and New Zealand.[30]
The city has had four master development programs. The first one was created in 1971 by German engineering firm that included checkered streets' design.[31][32] In the 20th century, Isfahan was resettled by many people from southern Iran. Many of these migrants came during the population migrations at the start of the century and in the 1980s following the Iran–Iraq War. During the war, 23,000 from Isfahan were killed; and there were 43,000 veterans.[33] In 1921, a telephone office were first created on Shams Abadi street.[34]
Today, Isfahan produces carpets, textiles, steel, handicrafts, and traditional foods, including sweets. Isfahan is noted for its production of the Isfahan rug, a type of Persian rug typically made of merino wool and silk.
There are nuclear experimental reactors as well as uranium conversion facilities (UCF) for producing nuclear fuel in the environs of the city.[35] Isfahan has one of the largest steel-producing facilities in the region, as well as facilities for producing special alloys. The Mobarakeh Steel Company is the biggest steel producer in the Middle East and Northern Africa, and it is the biggest DRI producer in the world.[36] The Isfahan Steel Company was the first manufacturer of constructional steel products in Iran, and it remains the largest such company today.[37]
There is a major oil refinery and a large air force base outside the city. HESA, Iran's most advanced aircraft manufacturing plant, is located just outside the city.[38] Isfahan was also attracting international investment as of 2014.[39] Isfahan hosted the International Physics Olympiad in 2007.Script error: No such module "Unsubst".
In 2023, 200 Azan playing loudspeakers were installed in the city by the government.[40] The Municipality created a tourism app called Isfahanema.[41]
Farmers in Esfahan have been protesting for their water rights due to ongoing water shortages and mismanagement issues. In 2018 they protested Iranian regime mismanagement and its anti-American ideology, chanting "Our enemy is here, they are lying that it is America," and "Front toward homeland back to enemy in Friday prayers".[42][43]
Geography
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The city is located on the plain of the Zayandeh Rud (Fertile River) and the foothills of the Zagros mountain range. The nearest mountain is Mount Soffeh (Kuh-e Soffeh), just south of the city.
As of 2023 several public housing projects were being built.[44]
Hydrography
An artificial network of canals, whose components are called madi, were built during the Safavid dynasty for channeling water from Zayandeh Roud river into different parts of the city. Designed by Sheikh Bahaï, an engineer of Shah Abbas, the network has 77 madis in the northern course, and 71 in the southern course of the Zayandeh Rud. Template:As of, 91% of the centuries-old network's water was being used for agriculture purposes, 4% for industrial purposes, and 5% for domestic purposes.[45] 70 emergency wells were dug in 2018 to avoid water shortages.[46][47]
Towns and villages around Isfahan have emptied out due to drought and water diversion.[48][49] An anonymous journalist said that what's called drought is more often the mismanagement of water.[50][51][52] The subsidence rate is dire, and the aquifer level decreases by one meter annually.[53]
The Damask rose cultivar Rosa 'Ispahan' is named after the city. The mole cricket is one of the major pests of plants, especially grass roots.[57][58] By 2023, the city's green space was dying because of a water shortage; where trees need 150 liters, only 0.7 liter of gray recycled water was available.[59] There is a program to plant Celtis australis, oak trees.[60]
Cows endemic to Isfahan became extinct in 2020.[61]Wagtails are often seen in farmlands and parks.[62] Sheep and rams are symbols of Isfahan.[63]
Climate
Situated at Template:Convertabove sea level on the eastern side of the Zagros Mountains, Isfahan has a cold desert climate (KöppenBWk). No geological obstacles exist within Template:Convert north of the city, allowing cool winds to blow from this direction. Despite its altitude, Isfahan remains hot during the summer, with maxima typically around Template:Convert. However, with low humidity and moderate temperatures at night, the climate is quite pleasant. During the winter, days are cool while nights can be very cold. Snow falls an average of 6.7 days each winter.[64] However, generally Isfahan's climate is extremely dry. Its annual precipitation of Template:Convert is only about half that of Tehran or Mashhad and only a quarter that of more exposed Kermanshah.
The Zayande River starts in the Zagros Mountains, flowing from the west through the heart of the city, then dissipates in the Gavkhouniwetland. Planting olive trees in the city is economically viable because such trees can survive water shortages.[65]
The highest recorded temperature was Template:Convert on 11 July 2001 and the lowest recorded temperature was Template:Convert on 16 January 1996.
Traditionally the cornerstone of Isfahan's economy, the textile industry employed 18,000–20,000 workers in some 25 cotton- and wool-weaving mills by the mid-1960s—roughly half of Iran's total textile output at the time, and far ahead of other provincial centres such as Yazd and Kerman.[66] Although many natural-fibre mills later contracted, the city reinvented itself as the nation's leading producer of synthetic yarns: Polyacryl Iran Corporation, launched with DuPont technology in the late 1970s, operated five plants that by the late 1990s were turning out 70,000 metric tonnes of polyester and acrylic staple, yarn and tops—nearly 80 percent of all manmade fibre made in Iran.[66]
Steel and metalworking
The original Āryāmehr (Esfahan) Steel Mill southwest of the city and the newer Mobarakeh Steel Complex together form the country's largest integrated metals hub, supplying billets, bars, sheets and structural profiles to downstream pipe, appliance, and machinery plants across the province and beyond.[66] Their presence has anchored a supporting network of mining, transport and engineering firms and stimulated the growth of planned satellite towns.[66]
Agro-food and consumer goods
Modern vegetable-oil refineries, two large sugar-beet factories, and numerous plants producing flour, dairy products, meat, fruit juices and canned foods give Isfahan a national role in food processing.[66] Small and medium-sized enterprises continue to package dried fruits for export, while soft-drink bottling, leather goods, and assorted consumer products round out a diversified industrial landscape.[66]
Chemicals and construction materials
The province's chemical base spans fertilisers, explosives, petrochemicals and pharmaceuticals. Cement, tiles, bricks, building stone and concrete remain pillars of the construction-materials sector, serving both domestic mega-projects and export markets.[66]
Energy
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The nuclear facilities located in and near Isfahan include the Isfahan Nuclear Technology Center (INTC), the Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facility (UCF), the Isfahan Fuel Manufacturing Plant (FMP), the Isfahan Fuel Element Cladding Plant, the Isfahan Nuclear Fuel Research and Production Center (NFRPC), and the Isfahan Nuclear Waste Storage Facility,[67] and in July 2022, Iran announced plans to build a new nuclear research reactor at the Isfahan site.[68]
Suspected nuclear weapon development
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Isfahan is suspected of being the primary location for Iran's secret nuclear weapon development program.[67][69] In September 2008, IAEA experts stated that they only had limited access in Isfahan, and that a quantity of uranium sufficient for six nuclear weapons, were removed from Isfahan to undisclosed locations while still at a stage in the enrichment process which was not monitored.[70] In June 2022, the IAEA reported that 90% of Iran's most highly enriched uranium was moved to the facilities in Isfahan, which house the equipment used to convert uranium gas into uranium metal.[68][71]
In June 2025, the USAFattacked nuclear sites that, according to the United States and Israel, were used to develop nuclear weapons.
Military facilities
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According to some sources, the Polyacryl Iran Corporation, the Linear Alkyl Benzene Complex and the Chemical Industries Group (CIG) in Isfahan serve as installation sites for chemical weapons.[72] Reports from the NCRI asserted that nerve agents produced near Semnan were delivered to a missile plant in Isfahan for integration into ballistic-missile warheads, such as those of the Scud-B.[72]
The Chemical Industries Group, headquartered in the city, is widely described as the backbone of Iran's weapons industry. According to United States intelligence assessments, CIG also manufactures solid-fuel propellant powders for the country's ballistic-missile and artillery-rocket programmes.[72] Within this conglomerate, a modern chemical complex erected by Sweden's Bofors company in the late 1970s as a dual-use fertiliser-and-explosives facility did not begin operations until 1987, due to Iraqi artillery and missile strikes during the Iran-Iraq war.[72]
From 2002 to 2013, Isfahan's internal highway network underwent an expansion. Freeways connect the city to Iran's other major cities, including Tehran, Template:Convert to the north, and Shiraz, Template:Convert to the south. Highways also service satellite cities surrounding the metropolitan area.[78]
The oldest bridge over the Zayanderud is the Shahrestan Bridge, whose foundations were built during the Sasanian Empire (3rd–7th century Sassanid era); it was repaired during the Seljuk period. Further upstream is the Khaju Bridge, which Shah Abbas II built in 1650.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". It is Template:Convert long, with 24 arches; and it also serves as a sluice gate.
Another bridge is the Choobi (Joui) Bridge. Further upstream again is the Si-o-Seh Pol or bridge of 33 arches. It was built during the reign of Shah Abbas the Great by Sheikh Baha'i and connected Isfahan with the Armenian suburb of New Julfa. It is by far the longest bridge in Isfahan at Template:Convert. Another notable bridge is the Marnan Bridge.
As part of Iran's Islamic religious laws, women are forbidden to use the public bicycle-sharing network, as decreed by the representative of the Supreme Leader in Isfahan, Ayatollah Yousef Tabatabai Nejad, and General Attorney Ali Esfahani.[88]
Mass transit
The Isfahan and Suburbs Bus Company operates transit buses in the city. East-West BRT Bus Rapid Transit Line buses carry up to 120,000 passengers daily.[89]
The municipality signed a memorandum with Khatam-al Anbiya to construct a tram network in the city.[90] The Isfahan Metro was opened on 15 October 2015. It consists of one north–south line with a length of Template:Convert, and two more lines are under construction, alongside three suburban rail lines.[91]
In 2014, industry, mines, and commerce in Isfahan province accounted for 35% to 50% (almost $229 billion) of the Iranian Gross Domestic Product.[94][95] In 2019, Isfahan province's governorate said that tourism was the number one priority.[96]
The Template:Ill, established in 1992, maintains a privatized power grid in the city.[100][101]
As of September 2020, the handicrafts industry of Isfahan Province was contributing $500 million annually to the economy.[102]Isfahan Fair, a Template:Convert exhibition center aimed at increasing tourism, is under construction.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". The municipality has implemented internet payment software.[103][104]
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Isfahan city produces 1,300 tons of salmon. More than 28% of the country's ornamental fish is supplied from Isfahan province, from 780 farms, which in 2017 farmed 65.5 million fish.[106]
Opium was produced and exported from Isfahan from 1850 until it became illegal, and was an important source of income.[107] Isfahan has a large number of aqueducts, farmers having to divert water from the river to farms by canal.[108] Niasarm is one of the largest canals.[109]
From 2012 to 2013 there were large protests by farmers against the Isfahan-Yazd water tunnel. In 2019, eastern city farmers demanded water, otherwise they would sabotage water pipes.[110][111] Fruits and vegetables central market is where farmers sell their product wholesale, selling 10,000 tons a day.[112]
High tech and heavy industries
The industrialization of Isfahan dates from the Pahlavi period, as in all of Iran, and was marked by the growth of the textile industry, which earned the city the nickname "Manchester of Persia".[113] The Isfahan Scientific and Research Town started in 2001, to act as a mediator between government, industry, and academia in establishing a knowledge-based economy.[114] Isfahan is the third-largest medicine manufacturing hub in Iran.[115]
The Telecommunication Company of Iran and the Mobile Telecommunication Company of Iran provide 4G, 3G, broadband, and VDSL.[116][117]
In 2018–19 some 450,000 foreign nationals visited the city. Some 110 trillion rials (over $2 billion at the official rate of 42,000 rials in 2020) were invested in the province's tourism sector.[118]
Nazhvan Park hosts a reptile zoo with 40 aquariums.[119]
There are the Saadi water park and the Nazhvan water park for children.[120]Script error: No such module "Unsubst". There are party gardens and wedding halls.[121][122][123]
There are nine cinemas.[126] Historically, cinemas in old Isfahan were entertainment for the worker class.
Religious people considered cinema to be mostly an impure place and going to the cinema to be haram under Islam. During the 1979 revolution, many cinemas in Isfahan were burned down. Cinema Iran, now a ruin, was one of the oldest cinemas in the city. Great foreign filmmakers such as Agnès Varda and Pier Paolo Pasolini shot scenes from their films in Isfahan.[127][128][129]
Sports
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Sepahan has won the most league football titles among Iranian clubs (2002–03, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12 and 2014–15).[130] The Foolad Mobarakeh Sepahan handball team plays in the Islamic Republic of Iran Handball Federation. Sepahan has a youth women running team that became national champions in 2020.[131]
During the Pahlavi era, a large group of the Kurdish Gulbaghi tribe were moved from the north of Kurdistan province to the city of Isfahan and the cities of Kashan and Naein. Today, the Gulbaghi tribe are mostly assimilated elements in the population of these cities.[141][142]
While immigrants may reside and work in this city, in 12 surrounding communities they are denied entry.[143]
Religion
There are many churches and synagogues in the city, with the churches being for the most part in New Julfa.
In 2015, the comprehensive atlas of the Isfahan metropolis, an online statistical database in Farsi, was made available, to help in planning.[152][153][154]
In 2020, the municipality directly employed 6,250 people with an additional 3,000 people in 16 subsidiary organizations.[155]
There have been four development programs since 1967,[156] In 2020, the municipality created a document outlining future development programs for the city.[157]
The color theme for the city has been turquoise for some time.[158]
Municipal government
The mayor is Ghodratollah Noroozi.Script error: No such module "Unsubst". The chairman of the city council is Alireza Nasrisfahani. There is also a leadership council within the city council.[159][160] The representative of the Supreme Leader of Iran, as well as the representative from Isfahan in the Assembly of Experts, is Yousef Tabatabai Nejad.[161]
City waste is processed and recycled at the Isfahan Waste Complex.[162]
The Template:Ill is responsible for piping water, waterworks installation and repair, maintaining sewage equipment, supervising sewage collection, and treatment and disposal of sewage in the city.[163][164]
Twenty five fire departments provide service.[165] Twenty private security armed service contractors existed as of 2012.[166]
Human resources and public health
As of June 2020, 65% of the population of Isfahan province had social security insurance.[167]
Isfahan is known as the multiple sclerosis capital of the world, due to the presence of polluting industries.[168]
In 2015, almost 15% of the people suffered from depression, from being cut off from the Zayandeh River, due to severe drought.[169] A male empowerment/rehab center opened in 2023, followed by a female support addiction center.[170][171][172][173]
Mass surveillance
In 2024–25, the Iranian regime used the city as a testing ground for enforcing hijab and chastity laws, employing cameras for surveillance and deploying government agents to report women who do not adhere strictly to the government-approved hijab dress code.[174]
Education and science
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The first elementary schools in the city were maktabkhanehs.[175][176][177][178] In World War II, Polish children sought refuge in the city; eight primary and technical trade schools were established. Between 1942 and 1945, approximately 2,000 children passed through, with Isfahan briefly gaining the nickname "City of Polish Children".[179][180] In 2019, there were 20 schools for trainables attended by 5,000 children.[181]
There were also in 2007 more than 50 technical and vocational training centres in the province, under the administration of the Isfahan Technical and Vocational Training Organization (TVTO), that provide free, non-formal, workforce-skills training programs.[188] As of 2020, 90% of workforce-skills trainees were women.[189]
Major philosophers include Mir Damad, known for his concepts of time and nature, as well as for founding the School of Isfahan,[190] and Mir Fendereski, who was known for his examination of art and philosophy within a society.[191]
Culture
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The Isfahan School of painting flourished during the Safavid era.[194][195][196]
The annual Isfahan province theatre festival takes place in the city.[197] Theater performances began in 1919 (1297 AH), and currently there are 9 active theaters.[198][199][200]
The awarding of an Isfahan annual literature prize began in 2004.[201][202]
Since 2005, November 22 is Isfahan's National Day, commemorated with various events.[203]
New Art Paradise, built in District 6 in 2019, has the biggest open-air amphitheatre in the country.[204]
Based on a statue creators' symposium in 2020, the city decided to add 11 permanent art pieces to the city's monuments.[205]
During the Qajar era, Farhang, the first newspaper publication in the city, was printed for 13 years.[219] Iran's Metropolises News Agency (IMNA), formerly called the Isfahan Municipality News Agency, is based in the city.[220] The state-controlled Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting system (IRIB) has a TV network and radio channel in the city.[221]
Cultural sites
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The city centre consists of an older section centered around the Jameh Mosque, and the Safavid expansion around Naqsh-e Jahan Square, with nearby palaces, bazaars, and places of worship,[222] which is called Seeosepol.[223]
Palaces and caravanserais located in Isfahan includes Ali Qapu (Imperial Palace, early 17th century), Chehel Sotoun (Palace of Forty Columns, 1647), Hasht Behesht (Palace of Eight Paradises, 1669), Talar-e-Ashraf (Palace of Ashraf) (1650), Shah Caravanserai.
On 29 April 2025, an explosion occurred at a company warehouse of Ava Nar, a Persian gunpowder manufacturer, located in central Isfahan. In the explosion two people were killed and two others were injured. The cause of the explosion is yet to be known. This event took place only three days after the explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port.[279]
↑Gaube Heinse, Iranian Cities, New York, 1979, p. 83
↑Hooshangi, Farideh. Isfahan, city of paradise; a study of Safavid urban pattern and a symbolic interpretation of the Chahar-Bagh gardens. Diss. Carleton University, 2000, p. 19-33.
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