Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. Its capital is the city of Shahr-e Kord. The province lies in the southwest of the country, with an area of 16,332 square kilometers. 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.

Demographics

Languages

Bakhtiāri, which belongs to the Luri language 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 (also in the Southwestern branch of Iranian) or Chaharmahali Turkic. Chārmahāli is transitional between Bakhtiari and Persian varieties of Isfahan province, but more similar to the latter. Chārmahāli varieties spoken in cities include Dehkordi (in Shahr-e Kord), Ghafarrokhi (in Farrokh Shahr), Heysheguni (in Hafshejān), and Borujeni (in Borujen). 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 (Azerbaijani) 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 (ALI) published a series of language maps for Chahar Mahal and Bakhtiari province, including a point-based and polygon (area-based) 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.

Population

At the time of the 2006 National Census, the province's population was 843,784 in 194,171 households. The following census in 2011 counted 895,263 people in 234,416 households. The 2016 census measured the population of the province as 947,763 in 270,434 households.

Administrative divisions

The population history and structural changes of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province's administrative divisions over three consecutive censuses are shown in the following table.

Cities

According to the 2016 census, 607,444 people (over 64% of the population of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province) live in the following cities:

Economy

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.

Natural attractions

Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province is the source and birthplace of many springs, rivers and waterfalls that supply the water of the two great and vital rivers of Zayanderud and Karoon and cause the development of many cities in the country. Natural attractions include Zayanderud river, Zamankhan bridge, Kouhrang 1 Dam, Dime spring, Sheik Ali Khan waterfall, Chama Ice cave, Darkesh varkesh canyon, Rostam Abad Sardab spring, Do Polan, Karoon-4 dam, Darreh Esgh (love valley), Atashgah waterfall, Choghakhor Wetland, Pire Ghar cave, Siasard spring, Helen protected area, Barm spring, Sendegan spring, Tang Sayyad national Park, Parvaz national park, Sarab cave, Gandoman wetland, Zard lime waterfall, Kordikon waterfall.

Colleges and universities