The Geography of Ray and Qazvin

Ali Maleki Mianaji [1]

Ray and Qazvin are two cities in central Iran. Ray, as one of the important regions from the period of Medes until the present time, has more or less maintained its political significance. The center of this region, The City of Ray, was considered as one of the most important cities of the world and Umm al-Bilads in the first centuries of Islam until the age of Moguls. In the Islamic period, at first the prevalent denomination in the city was Sunni; gradually however, Shiism took its place, so that at the age of the author of Naqd, i.e. mid sixth century, the major portion of the population composed of Shiites. Meanwhile, there were people from different denominations, sects and religions living in this city. The book of Naqd, provides useful information about this city. In this article the geography of Ray is depicted based on the information found in Naqd. The City of Qazvin, is an important city in the north of central Iran, the antiquity of which dates back to Sassanid period. In the first centuries of Islam, the city developed considerably. Until the period of the author of Naqd, the prevalent denominations in this area consisted of Shiism, Sunni and some other sects. Despite the fact that, Shiite formed a minority in this area, they enjoyed considerable authority. Part of the facts concerning this city has been referred to in Naqd. In this article the geography of Qazvin is depicted based on the information found in Naqd.

Key Words: the geography of Ray, the geography of Qazvin, Naqd, sixth century.

[1] Teacher and researcher in the field of history, geography, and theology.