Kurdistan province

The population of the province in 1996 was 1,346,383 of which 52.42% were urban dwellers and 47.58% rural dwellers. According to the 2011 census, the population increased to 1,493,645 out of which 66% lived in urban area.[1]

Kurds are the majority of the population, but Azerbaijanis populate the eastern provincial borderlands. Most of the Kurdish population speak Sorani Kurdish, but Southern Kurdish is spoken in the eastern parts of the province, including in Bijar and Dezej, while Gorani is the main language in many villages in the southwestern part of the province. A distinct Azerbaijani dialect is the dominant language in the far-eastern part of the province, including in the cities of Delbaran, Pir Taj, Serishabad, Yasukand and Tup Aghaj. While not being the primary language in any settlement in the province, Persian is increasingly becoming the first language, especially among the population in the eastern parts of the province.[2]

A soldier statue from Ziwiye hoard

The earliest human occupation of Kurdistan dates back to Paleolithic Period when Neanderthal man lived in the Sirwan Valley of Kurdistan more than 40,000 years ago.[9]

A fine old Senneh prayer kilim from the 19th Century

Baneh

Bijar

Divandarreh

Kamyaran

Marivan

Qorveh

Dehgolan

Sanandaj

Saqqez

Sarvabad

Kurdistan Province (Kordestan Ostan) is sub-divided into 10 counties (shahrestan), with populations as follows at the 2006, 2011, and 2016 Censuses. Each county is named after the city or town which is its administrative capital.

• 2006 population included in figure for Qorveh County, from which it was split off in 2007.

The major activities of the inhabitants are agriculture and modern livestock farming. Wheat, barley, grains and fruits are the major agricultural products. The chemical, metal, textile, leather and food industries are the main industrial activities in this province. This province has one of the largest rates of unemployment in Iran. According to Iranian statistics, more than twenty thousand people depend on being a kolbar for sustenance.[10]

• Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences
  • Tohid Medical Center
• University of Kurdistan
• Islamic Azad University of Sanandaj

• Hajar Khatoon Mosque
• Uramanat Villages

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kurdistan Province.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Kurdistan (province).

Wikisource has the text of a 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article about Kurdistan province.

• Kordestan Province Cultural Heritage Organization
• Pālangān under snow - some photographs