Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It lies in the southwestern part of the country. Its capital is Shahr-e Kord. The province was classified as part of Region 2 upon the division of the provinces into 5 regions solely for coordination and development purposes on June 22, 2014. It has an area of 16,332 square kilometers, and had a population of 895,263 in 2011. The history of the province is tied largely to that of the Bakhtiari tribe. The Bakhtiari tribe can be divided into two sub-tribes, Haft Lang and Chahar Lang, with various territorial affiliations. They are the main speakers of Lurish language. As the name of the province indicates, the other group of people in this ancient province are the Chahar Mahali. These people and the Lur speakers live side by side and share nearly similar customs. In addition, individuals have intermarried between these groups. The cities of Shahr-e Kord, Broujen, Ben, Naafch and Saman are within the Chahar Mahali area of the province. The Lur do not generally live here. The Bakhtiari territories at times have also come under Isfahan and Khuzestan province. The people of this province have had a subsistence economy. They have gained a reputation as excellent, if not the best, horsemen in Iran. The people of this province have practiced the Pahlevani wrestling/combat style of the traditional Zurkhane, which is practiced in all provinces. But they also have their own style of wrestling/unarmed combat as do other provinces. It is called jangi. The people have other specific customs associated with their tribal lives. Special forms of music, dance, and clothing are noteworthy.
Languages
, which belongs to the Southwestern branch of the Iranian language family, is the province's main language. Bakhtiāri is primarily spoken in the valleys of the higher areas in the western half of the province. It is also spoken in the lower areas around Lordegān in the south, and by speakers who have moved into the cities in the north-east. In the north-east quarter of the province, people in most cities and villages speak either Chārmahāli or Turkic. Chārmahāli is transitional between Bakhtiari and Persian varieties of Esfahan Province, but more similar to the latter. Chārmahāli varieties spoken in cities include Dehkordi, Ghafarrokhi, Heysheguni, and Borujeni. There are also many other varieties of Chārmahāli spoken in rural areas. Most types of Turkic spoken in this province are similar to Qashqa’i of Fars Province, but they are transitional to the Āzarbāyjāni language of north-west Iran. The Chārmahāli and Turkic language areas overlap with one another, and in the foothills of the Zagros and in the larger cities, they intermingle with Bakhtiāri as well. Tehrani-type Persian is now being taught by parents to children as a first language in some parts of the province, with the highest concentrations in the cities. The Atlas of the Languages of Iran published a series of language maps for Chahar Mahal va Bakhtiari Province, including a point-based and polygon language distribution maps, and several linguistic data maps. Written descriptions of some of the Bakhtiāri varieties in the province and a lexicon of the Bakhtiāri language have also been published.
The province is mainly active in the agriculture sector. Most of the industrial sector is clustered around the center of the province. The province has the potential to become a vibrant tourist attraction because of its natural resources.
