Elburz Mountains

Alborz Mountains

Mount Damavand, Iran's tallest mountain is located in Alborz mountain range.

Alborz (in Persian البرز), also written as Alburz or Elburz, is a mountain range in northern Iran stretching from the borders of Armenia in the northwest to the southern end of the Caspian (Mazandaran) Sea, and ending in the east at the borders of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. The largest mountain in the Middle East, Mount Damavand, is located in the range.

The Alborz mountain range forms a barrier between the south Caspian and the Qazvin-Tehran plateau. It is only 60-130 km wide and consists of sedimentary series dating from Upper Devonian to Oligocene, prevalently jurassic limestone over a granite core.

Zoroastrians may identify the range with the dwelling place of the Peshyotan, and the Zoroastrian Ilm-e-Kshnoom sect identify Mount Davamand as the home of the Saheb-e-Dilan ('Masters of the Heart'). In his epic Shahnameh, the poet Ferdowsi speaks of the Alborz as if it lay in India.^[1]

Also due to its great snowy winters there are several ski resorts, some consider that a few of these are among the best in the world. Some of most important ones are: Dizin, Shemshak, Tochal, and Darbandsar.

It should not be confused with Mount Elbrus in the Caucasus Mountains, which also derives its name from the legendary mountain Harā Bərəzaitī of the Avesta.

Etymology

The name Elbrus is a sound metathesis derived from Alborz. ^[1] The name Alborz is derived from that of Harā Bərəzaitī, a legendary mountain in the Avesta ^[1]. Harā Bərəzaitī reflects Proto-Iranian *Harā Bṛzatī</ref> *Bṛzatī is the feminine form of the adjective *bṛzant- "high", the ancestor of modern Persian boland (بلند) and Barz/Berazandeh^[1]. Harā may be interpreted as "watch" or "guard", from an Indo-European root *ser- "protect"^[1]. . In Middle Persian, Harā Bərəzaitī became Harborz, Modern Persian Alborz, which is cognate with Elbrus^[1].

Mounts, summits, and attractions

• Mount Damavand
• Tochal mount and summit
• Tangeh Savashi, A popular attraction
• Alam Kuh
• Alamut
• Dizin
• List of mountains in Iran

Map of central Alborz	Peaks:	1 `Alam Kūh
-25m to 500m     500m to 1500m     1500m to 2500m     2500 to 3500m     3500m to 4500m     4500m to 5671m	2 Āzād Kūh	3 Damāvand
	4 Do Berar	5 Do Khaharan
	6 Ghal`eh Gardan	7 Gorg
	8 Kholeno	9 Mehr Chal
	10 Mīšīneh Marg	11 Naz
	12 Shah Alborz	13 Sīālān
	14 Tochal	15 Varavašt
	Rivers:	0
	1 Alamūt	2 Chālūs
	3 Do Hezār	4 Harāz
	5 Jājrūd	6 Karaj
	7 Kojūr	8 Lār
	9 Nūr	10 Sardāb
	11 Seh Hazār	12 Shāh Rūd
	Cities:	1 Āmol
	2 Chālūs	3 Karaj
	Other:	D Dīzīn
	E Emāmzādeh Hāšem	K Kandovān Tunnel
	* Latīān Dam	** Lār Dam

Source

• North, S.J.R., Guide to Biblical Iran, Rome 1956, p. 50

Notes

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Alborz

• Maps, Photos and a List of peaks

Coordinates: 36°4′33″N, 51°47′46″E

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