*** Welcome to piglix ***

Qom Province

Qom Province
استان قم
Province
Map of Iran with Qom highlighted
Location of Qom within Iran
Coordinates: 34°38′44″N 50°52′47″E / 34.6456°N 50.8798°E / 34.6456; 50.8798Coordinates: 34°38′44″N 50°52′47″E / 34.6456°N 50.8798°E / 34.6456; 50.8798
Country  Iran
Region Region 1
Capital Qom
Counties 1
Area
 • Total 11,526 km2 (4,450 sq mi)
Population (2011)
 • Total 1,151,672
 • Density 100/km2 (260/sq mi)
Time zone IRST (UTC+03:30)
 • Summer (DST) IRST (UTC+04:30)
Main language(s) Persian, Azeri

Qom Province (Persian: استان قم‎‎, Ostān-e Qom) is one of the 31 provinces of Iran with 11,237 km², covering 0.89% of the total area in Iran. It is in the north of the country, and its provincial capital is the city of Qom. It was formed from part of Tehran Province in 1995. In 2011, this province had a population of 1,151,672 out of which 95.2% resided in urban areas and 4.8% in rural vicinities. The province contains one city, four counties, nine rural districts, and 256 villages.

The province was put as part of Region 1 upon the division of the provinces into 5 regions solely for coordination and development purposes on June 22, 2014.

The climate of Qom province varies between a desert and semi-desert climate, and comprises mountainous areas, foothills and plains. Due to being located near an arid region and far inland, it experiences a dry climate, with low humidity and scanty rainfall. Thus, agriculture is not possible in most of its areas, especially near the salt lake regions. Qom province has two large salt lakes, namely: Howz e Soltan Lake, which lies 36 km due north of Qom, and Namak Lake, which lies 80 km due east of Qom. Nearly a fifth of Namak Lake lies within Qom province.

Uniquely in Iran, Qom Province is with the Shahrestan (county) of Qom.

Qom is thought to have existed in pre-Islamic ages. Archeological discoveries indicate Qom as a residential area from the 5th millennium BCE. According to the pre-Islamic remaining relics and historical texts, Qom was a large city. 'Kom' was the name of the ancient rampart of the city of Qom, thus, the Arabs called it Qom during the Arab conquests of Iran.

It was during the reign of the second caliph Omar, that the Muslims captured Qom’s center. In 644-645 CE, Abu Moosa Ashari, dispatched forces under his command to Qom. Conflicts arose between the invading Arabs and the residents of the area.

During the persecution of the Alavids by the Abbasids and Umayyads, many Alavids fled to Qom, making it their permanent home. The Caliph Al-Ma'mun sent forces to Qom in the year 825 CE, resulting in a public massacre and destruction of the city.


...
Wikipedia

...