Climate : Cold
OldName : Alamtoo
Area : 20133
Population : 557599
Ilam Province is one of the 31 provinces of
Iran. It is in the west of the country, bordering Iraq. Its provincial center is the city of
Ilam. Covering an area of 19,086 square kilometers, the cities of the province are
Ilam,
Mehran,
Dehloran,
...see more Dareh Shahr, Sarable, Eyvan, Abdanan and Arkwaz.
It neighbors khuzestan province in the south, Lurestan province in the east, Kermanshah province in the north and Iraq in the west with 425 kilometers of common border.
The population of the province is approximately 540,000 people (2005 estimate).
Limited archaeological studies and discoveries indicate 6,000 years of tribal residence in Ilam. Historical evidence indicates that Ilam province was part of the ancient Elamite Empire.
In some of the epigraphs left from Sumerian history, this territory was called Alam, Alamo, or Alamto meaning the high lands where the sun rises.
It was also part of the Achaemenid Empire. Existence of numerous historical vestiges in Lurestan and Ilam provinces belonging to the Sassanid period indicates the specific importance of the region in that time.
In this period Ilam province was divided into two regions, Mehrjankadak in the eastern part and Mâsabazân at the western part.
Kurdish tribes governed the region from the late 11th century till the early 13th century.
In the 1930 division of Iran, Ilam became a part of Lorestan province, Kermanshah and Khuzestanprovince province, only later to become a province by itself.
During the Iran-Iraq war, Ilam province suffered heavily and Iraq's intense bombings left no economic infrastructure for the province.
Only in recent years has the central government began investing in advanced industries like Petrochemical facilities, with Japanese help, in Ilam. Ilam also has a bright future in the tourist sector, with 174 historical sites listed under Iran's Cultural Heritage Organization, though it also remains undeveloped.
Reference : wikipedia.org
