Population In 1951, Qaem Shahr's population was around 18,000, growing to 123,684 in 1991. At the time of the 2006 National Census, the city's population was 174,246 in 48,055 households. The following census in 2011 counted 196,050 people in 60,347 households. The 2016 census measured the population of the city as 204,953 people in 68,407 households.
History According to existing evidence, including religious sites such as Imamzadeh Yousef Reza and the tomb of the scholar and jurist
Sheikh Tabarsi, Qaem Shahr reflects a long-standing history of civilization and culture dating back to before the 6th century AH. In the city of Shahi, a weekly bazaar was held every Wednesday. On these days, locals from nearby districts, as well as merchants from surrounding villages and even other cities, brought their goods and products to this market for sale. Over time, this bazaar gained significance and established a certain level of prominence and centrality in the region. During the era of the Umayyad dynasty, the Arab rulers, aiming to control and dominate the southern regions of the Caspian Sea, established 44 military outposts stretching from present-day Astara to Esterabad (modern-day Gorgan). One of the most prominent of these posts was the Arta military fortress. These 44 outposts were commonly known as “Dine Sar,” which essentially means “protector of religion.” At the Arta military fortress, a commander named Bani Abbas, accompanied by 330 soldiers, governed the areas of present-day Qaem Shahr, Arateh, and Sari.
Before Christ Based on the presence of ancient hills, Qaem Shahr boasts a deep and long-standing history:
Gardkooh Jemanoon Hill: The antiquity of Gardkooh Hill dates back to the Iron Age.
Taleghani Hill: Archaeological findings, historical relics, and human remains from the first millennium have been unearthed here.
Dineh Kafashgarkola Hill in Arateh: This hill, located in the village of Kafashgarkola Arateh in Qaem Shahr County, dates back to the first millennium BC, further proving the region's ancient history.
Ancient Era Before
Islam, Mazandaran Province was known as
Tapurstan (in
Pahlavi: ), derived from the name of the
Tapur tribe (in
Greek: Τάπυροι). After Islam, the
Tabari tribe inherited the name, and their homeland became known as
Tabarestan. According to
Vasily Bartold, the
Tapurs lived in the southeastern regions of the province and were subjects of the
Achaemenid Empire. The
Amardians were defeated by
Alexander the Great, and later subdued by the
Parthians, who resettled them near Rey in the 2nd century BC. The Tapurs then occupied the former lands of the Amardians. In his description of the Deylam region (eastern Gilan on the shores of the Caspian Sea), Ptolemy mentions only the
Tapurs. According to
Mojtaba Minovi, the Amardian and
Tapur tribes inhabited the land of
Mazandaran. The Tapurs resided in the mountainous areas, while the Amardians lived in the plains of Mazandaran. In 176 BC,
Phraates I relocated the Amardian tribe to the Khvar region, allowing the Tapurs to occupy the entire Mazandaran area, which then became known as Tapurstan. The cities of Amol, Chalous, Klar, Saeedabad, and Royan were part of the Tapur tribe's territory.
William Smith, in the
Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, writes that the Tapur tribe was a people whose settlement throughout different historical periods seems to have extended across a vast area from
Armenia eastward to the Oxus River (
Amu Darya).
Strabo places them near the Caspian Gates and Rey, in Parthia, between the Derbices and Aserm Hyrcania, alongside the
Amardians and other groups along the southern shores of the
Caspian Sea. This last perspective, which locates the Tapurs along the southern coasts of the
Caspian Sea, aligns with the views of
Quintus Curtius Rufus,
Dionysius, and
Pliny the Elder.
Ptolemy at times considers the Tapurs as part of the peoples of
Media, while elsewhere he associates them with
Margiana. There is no doubt that the region currently known as
Tabarestan derives its name from the Tapurs mentioned by
Pliny and
Quintus Curtius.
Aelian provides a peculiar description of the Tapurs who lived in Media.
Background Throughout its history, Qaem Shahr has been known by various names such as Chamno, Tooji, Aliabad, and Shahi. The earliest recorded name of the city, mentioned in Islamic-era sources from the 7th to 9th centuries AH, is Chamno or Jamno. Chamno was the site of a battle in the 3rd century between Soleiman bin Abdollah, a Taherian ruler of Tabarestan, and Hasan bin Zayd, the leader of the
Alavids of Tabarestan. Other historical and geographical sources also refer to the city as Tooji, Triji, or Taranjeh. This fortified city, which also had a castle, has been mentioned under different names. Some sources consider Taranjeh and Tooji to be the same location, while others treat them as two distinct places.
Zahir al-Din Marashi refers to Tooji and Chamno as villages in the western parts of the Sari province. Based on Zahir al-Din Marashi's accounts, the city of Tooji should be located near present-day Qaem Shahr. In
Istakhri's
Masalik al-Mamalik, the location of Tooji is described as being near Sari and separate from Mamtabar. A significant historical event at the fortress of Tooji was the battle between the forces of Seyyed Kamal al-Din Marashi and Kiyavastasp Jalali. In sources from the 9th century AH, this city is referred to as the region of Aliabad. In the travelogues of Safavid-era explorers, such as Pietro della Valle, who visited Mazandaran and present-day Qaem Shahr, as well as in
Tarikh-e Giti Gosha related to the Zand dynasty period, the city is mentioned under the name Aliabad. In late February 1931, by order of
Reza Shah, Aliabad was renamed Shahi.
The position of Tujī in Tabarestan Tujī (also referred to as Trījī, Trījeh, Tarnjeh, and Barjī) is mentioned as one of the cities of
Tabarestan.
Ibn Rusta, a historian from the 3rd century, describes Tabarestan as bounded by Gorgan and Qumis in the east, Deylam in the west, the sea in the north, and certain regions of Qumis and Rey in the south. According to Ibn Rusta, Tabarestan consisted of fourteen districts, with Khore of Amol as the capital and central city of the region, and its cities included: Sari, Vasram, Mamteer,
Tarnjeh, Roubast, Mileh, Merarkadieh (Kadah), Mehrovan, Tamis, Tamar, Natel, Shalus, Royan, and Kalar (Kalardasht).
Estakhri writes that the cities of Amol, Natel, Salus (Chalous), Kalar (Kalardasht), Royan, Mileh,
Barjī, Cheshmeh Al-Ham, Mamteer, Sari, Asram, Mehrovan, Lamresk, and Tamisha are part of Tabarestan.
Ibn Hawqal, in describing Tabarestan, mentions that Amol is the largest city of Tabarestan and was the seat of government at his time. He describes the distances between cities: from Plur to Amol is one stage; Amol to Mileh is two farsakhs; Mileh to Trījī is two farsakhs; Trījī to Sari is one stage; Sari to Esterabad is four stages; Esterabad to Gorgan is two stages; Amol to Natel is one stage; Natel to Chalous is one stage; and towards the sea, Ayn Al-Ham is one stage. Ibn Hawqal lists the cities of Amol, Shalus (Chalous), Kalar (Kalardasht), Royan, Mileh,
Trījī, Ayn Al-Ham, Mamteer, Asram, Sariyeh, and Tamisha as belonging to the province of Tabarestan.
Maqdisi identifies "Jurjan, Tabarestan, Deylam, and Jilan" as belonging to the fifth climatic region of the world in
Ahsan al-Taqasim fi Ma'rifat al-Aqalim. According to
Hudud al-'Alam, Tamisha, Lamresk, Sari, Asram, Mamteer,
Trījī, Mileh, Amol, Al-Ham, Natel, Roudan, Chalous, and Kalar (Kalardasht) are among the cities of
Tabarestan. The author of Hudud al-'Alam notes that Natel, Roudan, Chalous, and Kalar (Kalardasht) were small towns located in the mountains and valleys, forming part of Tabarestan but under a different kingdom governed by a ruler called "Istandar." Abul Qasim ibn Ahmad Jihani in his book ''Ashkal al-'Alam'' mentions the cities of Tabarestan, including: Amol, Natel, Salus (Chalous), Kalaroudan (Kalardasht), Ayn Al-Ham, Mamteer, the ancient city of Asram, Sari, Tamisha, Esterabad, Jurjan, Abaskoon, and Dehestan. He notes the routes from Amol to Deylam, Amol to Natel, from Natel to Salus, from Salus to Kalar, and from Kalar to Deylam. Rabino notes that the extent of Deylam did not exceed more than one stage west of the Kalar region of Tabarestan.
Hamzeh Esfahani, a historian from the 3rd century, writes in his book
History of the Kings and Prophets that Tabarestan had many districts, one of which was the region of Deylam, and Iranians referred to the people of Deylam as the "Kurds of Tabarestan," just as Arabs called the people of Iraq the "Kurds of Sorestān."
Ibn Esfandiyar describes Tabarestan as spanning east to west, bounded by Dinargar to Malat, roughly equivalent to the present-day
Kordkuy and
Rudsar.
Zahir al-Din Mar'ashi in his book
History of Tabarestan, Royan, and Mazandaran describes the boundaries of Tabarestan: in the east, Dinargar, and ==Geography==