Description : Zanjan (Persian: زنجان; Azerbaijani: زنگان) is the capital of Zanjan Province in Iran. It lies 298 km (185 mi) north-west of Tehran on the main highway to Tabriz and Turkey and approximately 125 km (78 mi) from the Caspian Sea. Hamdollah Mostowfi, the Iranian traveler and historian, in his book claims that Zanjan was built by Ardashir I, the first king of the Sassanid Empire and named as "Shahin". One important moment in the history of the city was in 1851 when the city became a center for the suppressed Babi religious movement, along with Neyriz and a fortress known as Shaykh Tabarsi. The forces of the central government captured the Babi fort in Zanjan after a long siege on the orders of Grand Vizier (Prime Minister of Iran) Amir Kabir and killed or expelled the Bab's followers. According to Bosworth, who quotes Hamdollah Mostowfi, the inhabitants during the Ilkhanid era spoke "pure Pahlawi", a Median or northern form of Persian.
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