General Information about Tehran

The city is located at the foothill of Alborz mountains with an approximate altitude of 1180 meters above sea level. Tehran is situated on a slope that goes up at the very north of Tehran making it a very favorable place to live where the temperature is always coolers than south of the city by a few degrees centigrade. Compared to the other parts of the country, Tehran has got relatively moderate temperature creating an enjoyable place to live. On the other hand, the city has got plenty of air and noise pollution partly because of its 12.5 million population.

When you visit Tehran and other cities of Iran, by comparison you find out it is very much more populated than other urban areas in Iran. The mass migration of 20th and 21st centuries to this gigantic city has occurred  in search for jobs and better living conditions. Many argue that Tehran should undergo some national decentralization process to be a better place to live.

History of Tehran

The location of Tehran has been historically known as Ray, which is now a county at the south of the present-day city of Tehran. Its history dates back to 6000 BC and  has been the capital of Medes and mentioned throughout the history till now. Today, you find several of Tehran tourist attractions here and at this part of Tehran.

Ray was destroyed by Arabs in 7th and Mongols in14th centuries. Yet, the inhabitants fled to Tehran, the nearby village at the time of Mongols’ invasion. Tehran began to prosper since then and came to the attention of the Iranian ruler, Karimkhan Zand, when he wanted to declare his capital city. Although he ordered a palace to be built for him in Tehran, he later decided to choose Shiraz.

With the rise of Qajars, Tehran gained its importance when it was declared the capital of Iran in 1795. Palaces were built one after another and continued to be built under the next dynasty, Pahlavi. Even after the monarchy fell apart in Iran as a result of the revolution in 1979, Tehran kept its significance as the capital of Iran.