Zagros mountain range is one of the high mountain ranges in Kurdistan which begins from Bamir in the southern regions of the east of Iran. This mountain range begins from the Suleiman Mountain in the east of Balouchestan Province, and it passes through Kerman, Hormozgan, and Boushehr in Iran and it reaches Lorestan. This mountain range later stretches to the northwest and reaches Van Lake in the Northern part of Kurdistan.
Zagros is the largest mountain range in Kurdistan that stretches through Kurdistan Land. This mountain range begins from Van Lake in the North part of Kurdistan and reaches Lorestan in the East part of Kurdistan which covers more than 1400 kilometers of land while it is as wide as 80 to 125 kilometers.
The highest mountain peaks of the Zagros Mountain Ranges are:
Dena: 4409 meters - It is located in the Bakhtiyari region of Lorestan Province.
Zarko: 4221 meters - It is located in the Bakhtiyari region of Lorestan Province.
Halgurd: 3607 meters - It is located near Choman in Hawler Province.
Haji Ibrahim: 3587 meters - It is located between Hawler and Urmia Provinces.
The Great Qandil (Siyakew): 3442 meters - It is located between Urmia and Hawler Provinces.
Piraw: 3405 meters - It is located in Kermashan Province.
Shaho: 3390 meters - It is located between the Sna and Kermashan Provinces.
Small Qandil: 3250 meters - It is located between Hawler and Urmia Provinces.
Humans began to dominate this region from the Stone eras thus, it is one of the oldest places where humans began to inhabit. The oldest monuments belonging to humans have been found in the Zagros mountains. Shandar, Bestoun, and Wezma caves are among the oldest caves in the world that are located in the Zagros Mountain Ranges which prove the ancient history of Zagros. Those monuments found in Shandar are as ancient as 65000 to 35000 years ago.
The signs of inhabitance in Zagros caves go back to 100 thousand years ago and it shows the route of human inhabitance from the Stone Ages (300 thousand years ago) to the time of Ilam Civilization (30 thousand years ago). The ancient signs of agriculture and farming have been found in the mountain skirts of Zagros which trace back to 9000 BC. Some of the most ancient items found are equipment for producing wine in these mountains and they indicate a history of 3500 to 5400 BC.
The Geology of Zagros Mountain Ranges
The geologists say that Zagros Mountain Ranges were made of the strong interrelation of both the Arabic and Eurasia plates and this collision occurred in the Miocene period which caused the formation of strong earthquakes as a result of the de-carbonization of the coal layer and the survival of the Miocene on the Iranian plate, thus, it has been on the line of plate movements in such a way that this collision and pushing the plates against each other continues until today. The Arabic plate is strongly pushing the Eurasian plate, so the Zagros mountains continue to rise.
The Name of Zagros
The Zagros and Torres mountains were home to the ancestors of the Kurds who created the first civilization of mankind. The word "Zagros" is a compound word composed of the Sumerian "Zag" meaning "birth" and the Kurdish word "sun" thus, the name Zagros means "birth of the sun".
Since the sun rose every morning from behind these mountains and shined in this region's sky, the people of this area thought that the sun was born from these mountain ranges.
Another opinion about the name of Zagros is that the word Zagros is an Avesta word and the Greeks added the affix of "s" to the end of the word to make it sound like a Greek word.
The Climate
The annual rainfall amount in Zagros Mountain ranges is 400 to 800 mm (15 to 31 inches) and it rains in winter and spring mostly. This region's winters are very harsh and the weather temperature drops to minus 25 degrees Celsius (minus 13 degrees Fahrenheit).
The snow remains on this mountain chain throughout the year and gives the region a special beauty in other seasons.
The Zagros Mountains is known for its dense forests, and the soil here is dry so there is always the possibility of big fire happening here in these lands. Zagros forests cover a 6-million-hectare area, which is 40% of the forests in Iran. Most of this 6-million-hectare is in Kurdistan. More than 70% of this forest is oak tree.
