46 Facts About Tehran

Tehran was first chosen as the capital of Iran by Agha Mohammad Khan of the Qajar dynasty in 1786, because of its proximity to Iran's territories in the Caucasus, then separated from Iran in the Russo-Iranian Wars, to avoid the vying factions of the previously ruling Iranian dynasties.

Large-scale demolition and rebuilding began in the 1920s, and Tehran has been a destination for mass migrations from all over Iran since the 20th century.

Tehran is home to many historical locations, including the royal complexes of Golestan, Sa'dabad, and Niavaran, where the two last dynasties of the former Imperial State of Iran were seated.

Tehran has an international airport, a domestic airport (Mehrabad Airport), a central railway station, a rapid transit system, Tehran Metro, a bus rapid transit system, trolleybuses, and a large network of highways.

Iranian linguist Ahmad Kasravi, in an article "Shemiran-Tehran", suggested that Tehran and Kehran mean "the warm place", and "Shemiran" means "the cool place".

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Tehran listed cities with the same base and suffix and studied the components of the word in ancient Iranian languages, and came to the conclusion that Tehran and Kehran meant the same thing in different Iranian language families, as the constant "t" and "k" are close to each other in such languages.

Tehran provided evidence that cities named "Shemiran" were cold, and those named "Tehran" or "Kehran" very hot.

Tehran considered other theories not considering the ancient history of Iranian languages such as "Tirgan" theory and "Tahran" theory folk etymology.

Tehran is in the historical Media region of in northwestern Iran.

Mount Damavand, the highest peak of Iran, which is located near Tehran, is an important location in Ferdowsi's Sahname, an Iranian epic poem based on the ancient legends of Iran.

Tehran was aware of the loyalties of the inhabitants of former capitals Isfahan and Shiraz to the Safavid and Zand dynasties respectively, and was wary of the power of the local notables in these cities.

Up until the 1870s, Tehran consisted of a walled citadel, a roofed bazaar, and the three main neighborhoods of Udlajan, Chale-Meydan, and Sangelaj, where the majority resided.

In 1943, Tehran was the site of the Tehran Conference, attended by U S President Franklin D Roosevelt, Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin, and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

Metropolis of Tehran is divided into 22 municipal districts, each with its own administrative center.

Northern Tehran is the wealthiest part of the city, consisting of various districts such as Zaferanie, Jordan, Elahie, Pasdaran, Kamranie, Ajodanie, Farmanie, Darrous, Qeytarie, and Qarb Town.

Tehran has a Mediterranean climate, bordering on a cold semi-arid climate (BSk), with hot dry summers and cool rainy winters.

Tehran's climate is largely defined by its geographic location, with the towering Alborz mountains to its north and the country's central desert to the south.

Tehran has seen an increase in relative humidity and annual precipitation since the beginning of the 21st century.

Tehran is one of the world's most polluted cities and is located near two major fault lines.

Tehran is considered one of the strongest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the Middle East.

City of Tehran has a population of approximately 10 million in 2016.

Tehran saw a drastic change in its ethnic-social composition in the early 1980s.

Unstable situation and the war in neighbouring Afghanistan and Iraq prompted a rush of refugees into the country who arrived in their millions, with Tehran being a magnet for much seeking work, who subsequently helped the city to recover from war wounds, working for far less pay than local construction workers.

Many of these refugees are being repatriated with the assistance of the UNHCR, but there are still sizable groups of Afghan and Iraqi refugees in Tehran who are reluctant to leave, being pessimistic about the situation in their own countries.

Tehran relies heavily on private cars, buses, motorcycles, and taxis, and is one of the most car-dependent cities in the world.

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The Tehran Stock Exchange, which is a full member of the World Federation of Exchanges and a founding member of the Federation of Euro-Asian Stock Exchanges, has been one of the world's best-performing stock exchanges in recent years.

Tehran has a wide range of shopping centers, and is home to over 60 modern shopping malls.

Metropolis of Tehran is equipped with a large network of highways and interchanges.

Tehran has a central railway station that connects services round the clock to various cities in the country, along with a Tehran–Europe train line running.

Tehran is served by the international airports of Mehrabad and Khomeini.

The Parks and Green Spaces Organization of Tehran was established in 1960, and is responsible for the protection of the urban nature present in the city.

Tehran is the largest and most important educational center in Iran.

Since the establishment of Dar ol Fonun by the order of Amir Kabir in the mid-19th century, Tehran has amassed a large number of institutions of higher education.

Samuel M Jordan, whom Jordan Avenue in Tehran was named after, was one of the founding pioneers of the American College of Tehran, which was one of the first modern high schools in the Middle East.

Tehran is home to Iran's largest military academy, and several religious schools and seminaries.

In Greater Tehran, monuments dating back to the Seljuk era remain as well; notably the Toqrol Tower in Ray.

Tehran only had a small population until the late 18th century but began to take a more considerable role in Iranian society after it was chosen as the capital city.

Tehran is Iran's primate city, and is considered to have the most modernized infrastructure in the country.

Previously a low-rise city due to seismic activity in the region, modern high-rise developments in Tehran have been built in recent decades in order to service its growing population.

Leila Araghian's Tabiat Bridge, the largest pedestrian overpass in Tehran, was completed in 2014 and is considered a landmark.

Under the reign of the Qajars, Tehran was home to the royal theatre of Tekye Dowlat, located to the southeast of the Golestan Palace, in which traditional and religious performances were observed.

Tehran is the site of the national stadium of Azadi, the biggest stadium by capacity in West Asia, where many of the top matches of Iran's Premier League are held.

Today, Tehran's oldest existing football club is Rah Ahan, which was founded in 1937.

Tehran is home to the F C Ararat Tehran, a popular Armenian football team based at the Ararat Stadium.

In recent years, Tehran Municipality has been using graffiti in order to beautify the city.

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Several graffiti festivals have taken place in Tehran, including the one organized by the Tehran University of Art in October 2014.