Mashhad
Mashhad (Persian: مشهد, romanized: Mašhad [mæʃˈhæd] ⓘ), also spelled Mashad, was the capital of Persia during the Afsharid dynasty by Nader Afshar and now is the second-most-populous city in Iran, located in the relatively remote north-east of the country about 900 kilometres (560 miles) from Tehran. In the Central District of Mashhad County, it serves as the capital of Razavi Khorasan Province, the county, and the district. It has a population about 3,400,000 (2016 census), which includes the areas of Mashhad Taman and Torqabeh.
Mashhad
Persian: مشهد Sanaabad, Tus, Alexandria | |
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Left to right from top: bird's eye view of Mashhad; Ferdowsi Tomb; Nader Shah Tomb; the great museum of Khorasan; Space age memorial monument; Imam Reza Shrine; Imam Hossein (Kalaat) square; and Mashhad at night. | |
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Seal | |
| Motto(s): Mashhad: Smart City, City of Hope and Life | |
Mashhad Location in Iran | |
| Coordinates: 36°19′35″N 59°32′36″E | |
| Country | Iran |
| Province | Razavi Khorasan |
| County | Mashhad |
| District | Central |
| Mashhad-Sanabad-Tus | 818 AD |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Mohammad Reza Ghalandar Sharif |
| • Chairperson of City Council | Hassan Movahedian |
| Area | |
| • City | 351 km2 (136 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 995 m (3,264 ft) |
| Population (2016 census) | |
| • Urban | 3,372,090 |
| • Metro | 3,600,650 |
| • Population Rank in Iran | 2nd |
| Over 2 million pilgrims and tourists per year | |
| Demonym(s) | Mashhadi, Mashadi, Mashdi (informal) |
| Time zone | UTC+03:30 (IRST) |
| Climate | BSk |
| Largest district by area | District 9 (64 km2, land area) |
| Largest district by population | District 2 (480,000) |
| Website | www.mashhad.ir |
At the 2006 census, its population was 2,410,800 in 621,697 households. The following census in 2011 counted 2,766,258 people in 804,391 households. The 2016 census showed a population of 3,001,184 people in 914,146 households.
The city has been governed by different ethnic groups over the course of its history. Mashhad was once a major oasis along the ancient Silk Road connecting with Merv to the east. It enjoyed relative prosperity in the Mongol period. The city is named after the shrine of Imam Reza, the eighth Shia Imam, who was buried in a village in Khorasan which afterward gained the name, meaning the "place of martyrdom". Every year, millions of pilgrims visit the Imam Reza shrine. The Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid is also buried within the same shrine.
Mashhad is also known colloquially as the city of Ferdowsi, after the Iranian poet who composed the Shahnameh. The city is the hometown of some of the most significant Iranian literary figures and artists, such as the poet Mehdi Akhavan-Sales, and Mohammad-Reza Shajarian, the traditional Iranian singer and composer. Ferdowsi and Akhavan-Sales are both buried in Tus, an ancient city that is considered to be the main origin of the current city of Mashhad. On 30 October 2009 (the anniversary of Imam Reza's martyrdom), Iran's then-President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad declared Mashhad to be "Iran's spiritual capital".