The earliest artifacts of Zuzan date back to the 4th century. Zuzan was the site of an medieval city, flourishing most notably during the reign of theKhwarazmian Empire. Zuzan was at a distance of other major medieval metropolises such asKhargerd,Nishapur,Herat,Jam, andMerv.[7]
The city was rectangularly planned and contained irrigation systems and dams.[8] Most of the historical remnants of the city have been lost to time,[7] but two major historical monuments remain, the Zuzan Madrasa and theMalek Zuzan Mosque.
The historical city is on the Iranian tentative list forUNESCO World Heritage nomination.[8]
Although only parts of the inscription containing the date of the monument remain, this monument can be dated to 1219.[9]Andre Godard, a French archaeologist first described the building and attributed it to the Khwarazmian Empire in 1949.[10] Godard initially misidentified the building as a mosque but an inscription dedicated toAbu Hanifa shows that the building was actually anHanafitemadrasa.[11]
Architecturally, the madrasa is influenced byGhurid and Khwarazmian architecture.[12] The building used a typical four-iwan plan type of the region, although only twoiwans now remain. The building contains sophisticated ceramics and highly stylized inscriptions.[13]
At the time of the 2006 National Census, the village's population was 2,183 in 479 households.[14] The following census in 2011 counted 2,585 people in 626 households.[15] The 2016 census measured the population of the village as 2,677 people in 744 households. It was the most populous village in its rural district.[2]
Abu Sahl Zawzani,Persian statesman who served as the chief secretary of theGhaznavids briefly in 1040, and later from 1041 to an unknown date was from Zuzan.[17]
Qiwam al-Din Muayyid al-Mulk Abu Bakr ibn Ali al-Zuzani, the governor of the area from the 1200 to 1220, who constructed the most notable sites in the village; the Madrasa and Mosque of Malek Zuzan.[10]
^Zuzan can be found atGEOnet Names Server, atthis link, by opening the Advanced Search box, entering "-3089621" in the "Unique Feature Id" form, and clicking on "Search Database".
^abHabibi, Hassan (c. 2024) [Approved 2 April 1372].Approval letter regarding reforms in Khorasan province.qavanin.ir (Report) (in Persian). Ministry of the Interior, Political-Defense Commission of the Government Council. Archived fromthe original on 7 January 2024. Retrieved7 January 2024 – via Laws and Regulations Portal of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Hendrix, Scott; Okeja, Uchenna, eds. (2018).The World's Greatest Religious Leaders: How Religious Figures Helped Shape World History [2 volumes]. ABC-CLIO. p. 11.ISBN978-144084138-5.
"Zuzan". UNESCO World Heritage Centre. 9 August 2007. Retrieved14 August 2019.
