Meymand, Kerman

Meymand (Persian: ميمند, also Romanized as Maymand, Meimand and Maimand)[2] is a village in, and the capital of, Meymand Rural District of the Central District of Shahr-e Babak County, Kerman province, Iran.

For the administrative division, see Meymand Rural District. For other places with the same name, see Meymand.

Meymand
Persian: ميمند
Village
Meymand is located in Iran
Meymand
Meymand
Coordinates: 30°13′46″N 55°22′32″E[1]
Country Iran
ProvinceKerman
CountyShahr-e Babak
DistrictCentral
Rural DistrictMeymand
Population
 (2016)
 • Total105
Time zoneUTC+3:30 (IRST)
Official nameCultural Landscape of Maymand
CriteriaCultural: (v)
Reference1423rev
Inscription2015 (39th Session)
Area4,953.85 ha (12,241.2 acres)
Buffer zone7,024.65 ha (17,358.3 acres)

At the 2006 National Census, its population was 673 in 181 households.[3] The following census in 2011 counted 214 people in 74 households.[4] The latest census in 2016 showed a population of 105 people in 44 households.[5]

Meymand is an ancient village near Shahr-e Babak city in Kerman province. Meymand is believed to be a primary human residence in the Iranian Plateau, dating back to 12,000 years ago. Many of the residents live in the 350 hand-dug houses amid the rocks, some of which have been inhabited for as long as 3,000 years. Stone engravings nearly 10,000 years old are found around the village, and deposits of pottery nearly 6,000 years old attest to the long history of settlement at the village site.

Regarding the origin of these structures two theories have been suggested:[6] According to the first theory, this village was built by a group of the Aryan tribe about 800 to 700 years B.C. and at the same time with the Median era. It is possible that the cliff structures of Meymand were built for religious purposes. Worshippers of Mithras believe that the sun is invincible and this guided them to consider mountains as sacred. Hence the stone cutters and architects of Meymand have set their beliefs out in the construction of their dwellings. Based on the second theory the village dates back to the second or third century A.D. During the Arsacid era different tribes of southern Kerman migrated in different directions. Although, these theories do not coincide with the data of deposits found 12,000 years ago, which would take the site to circa 10,000BC. These tribes found suitable places for living and settled in those areas by building their shelters which developed in time into the existing homes. The existence of a place known as the fortress of Meymand, near the village, in which more than 150 ossuaries (bone-receptacle) of the Sassanid period were found, strengthens this theory.

Living conditions in Meymand are harsh due to the aridity of the land and to high temperatures in summers and very cold winters. The local language contains many words from the ancient Sassanid and Pahlavi languages.[7]

In 2005, Meymand was awarded the UNESCO-Greece Melina Mercouri International Prize for the Safeguarding and Management of Cultural Landscapes (about $20,000).[8]

On 4 July 2015, the village was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list.[9]

References
  1. OpenStreetMap contributors (9 July 2023). "Meymand, Shahr-e Babak County" (Map). OpenStreetMap. Retrieved 9 July 2023.
  2. Meymand can be found at GEOnet Names Server, at this link, by opening the Advanced Search box, entering "-3074825" in the "Unique Feature Id" form, and clicking on "Search Database".
  3. "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1385 (2006)". AMAR (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 08. Archived from the original (Excel) on 20 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
  4. "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1390 (2011)" (Excel). Iran Data Portal (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 08. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  5. "Census of the Islamic Republic of Iran, 1395 (2016)". AMAR (in Persian). The Statistical Center of Iran. p. 08. Archived from the original (Excel) on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  6. Siamak Hashemi, 2013, The Magnificence of Civilization in Depths of Ground (A Review of Underground Structures in Iran – Past to Present), Shadrang Printing and Publishing Co., Tehran.
  7. http://www.keacheh.blogfa.com/cat-8.aspxمیمنـــد
  8. "World Heritage Centre -".
  9. "Sites in China, Iran, Mongolia and Singapore inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List".
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