Irahistan

{{Infobox settlement

| name = Irahistan

| other_name =

| native_name = ایراهستان

| settlement_type = Historical region

| image_skyline = Achomies.png

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| pushpin_label_position = right

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| subdivision_type = Country

| subdivision_name = {{flag|Iran}}

| subdivision_type1 = Province

| subdivision_name1 = Parts of Fars province, Hormozgan, Kerman and Bushehr province

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| parts_style = para

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| population_as_of = 2006

| population_footnotes =

| population_total = 356,210

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| timezone = IRST

| utc_offset = +3:30

| timezone_DST = IRDT

| utc_offset_DST = +4:30

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Irahistan ({{langx|fa|ایراهستان}}) or Irahestan is a historical region in Iran.{{cite journal |last1=Le Strange |first1=G. |date=1912 |title=IX. Description of the Province of Fārs, in Persia, at the Beginning of the Twelfth Century ad.|journal=Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society |volume=44 |issue=2 |pages=311–339 }}{{cite web |author=Mehran |date=2 March 2023 |title=كتاب تاريخ جنوب فارس لارستان وبستك |url=https://www.neelwafurat.com/itempage.aspx?id=lbb391342-388816&search=books |language=Arabic}}{{cite web |author=khodo mania |date=27 April 2023 |title=كتاب تاريخ جنوب فارس لارستان وبستك |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=USI2LPGol30 |via=YouTube |language=Arabic}} It is also known by some of the locals as Achomestan.{{Cite web |title=اچمستان – معنی در دیکشنری آبادیس |trans-title=Achomestan – meaning in Abadis dictionary |url=https://abadis.ir/fatofa/%D8%A7%DA%86%D9%85%D8%B3%D8%AA%D8%A7%D9%86/ |access-date=2024-10-20 |website=abadis.ir}}

The region of Irahistan consists of several counties in Fars province (Larestan, Khonj County, Gerash County, Lamerd County, and Mohr County) and Bastak County, Bandar Lengeh County and Parsian County in Hormozgan. The region's importance grew during the Sassanid period with vast expansion of settlements in Irahistan.{{cite book |last=Christensen |first=Peter |date=1993 |title=The decline of Iranshahr: irrigation and environments in the history of the Middle East, 500 BC to AD 1500. |publisher=Museum Tusculanum Press |page=166}}{{Cite book |last=Kokherdi |first=Mehran |title=تاريخ جنوب فارس لارستان و بستك |edition=1st |pages=11–168 |language=ar |trans-title=History of South Persia Laristan and Bastak}}

In the book "Kar-Namag i Ardashir i Pabagan," which is written in Middle Persian, in the section describing the second war between Ardeshir and Haftvad, the name of Irahistan is mentioned:{{Cite web |last=سردبیر |date=2016-07-20 |title=ایراهستان چیست و کجای فارس است؟ |url=https://khabarparsi.ir/11316/11316-2/ |access-date=2025-02-25 |website=خبر ‏پارسی |language=fa-IR |quote=در کتاب کارنامه اردشیر بابکان که به زبان پارسی میانه نوشته شده در بخش شرح جنگ دوم اردشیر و هفتواد نام ایراهستان ذکر شده‌است: «… سپاه بدرگاه خواست و خویشتن با لشکری بسیار به کارزار کرمان شتافت. و چون به دژ نزدیک شد سپاه کرمان همگی درون دژ نشسته و اردشیر پیرامون دژ فرا گرفت. هفتان‌بخت را هفت پسر بود. که هر یکی را با هزار مرد به شهری گمارده بود و در این هنگام یکی از ایشان که به ایراهستان بود با سپاهی انبوه از تازیان و عمانیان از دریا گذشته به کرمان آمد و با اردشیر بجنگ ایستاد.» |trans-quote=In the book Karnameh Ardeshir Babakan, which is written in Middle Persian, in the section describing the second war between Ardeshir and Haftvad, the name of Irahistan is mentioned: "... The army wanted to go to the court and rushed to the campaign of Kerman with a large army. And when he approached the fortress, the army of Kerman all sat inside the fortress and Ardashir surrounded the fortress. Haftan Bakhtar had seven sons. He had assigned each of them to a city with a thousand men, and at this time one of them, who was in Iristan, came to Kerman with a large army of greyhounds and Omanis across the sea and fought against Ardashir.}}

{{Quote|text=The army wanted to go to the court and rushed to the campaign of Kerman with a large army. And when he approached the fortress, the army of Kerman all sat inside the fortress and Ardashir surrounded the fortress. Haftan Bakhtar had seven sons. He had assigned each of them to a city with a thousand men, and at this time one of them, who was in Irahistan, came to Kerman with a large army of greyhounds and Omanis across the sea and fought against Ardashir.}}

In medieval times, the region was ruled by local lords until they were removed by a Safavid invasion in 1610.{{cite book |last=Peacock|first=A. S. |date=2015 |title=Great Seljuk Empire. |publisher=Edinburgh University Press |page=244}} In the thirteenth century, the city of Lar became a center of trade and commerce in Irahistan and the population of this city grew rapidly, outpacing the more historical towns and cities. The people in this region speak Persian and Achomi.

Achomi people speak the Achomi language. The language is in decline and has reported eight dialects and it is understood by mainstream Persian speakers mostly.{{cite web |title=A Study of Personal Pronouns of Larestani Language as an Endangered Iranian Language |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/290821138 |website=researchgate.net}} The Achomi people are of Persian descent. The majority of Achomi people are Sunni Muslims,{{cite web |url=http://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/12996/IR|title=Larestani, Lari in Iran}}{{cite web |url=http://www.globalprayerdigest.org/index.php/issue/day/Larestani-people-of-Iran/|title=Larestani people of Iran|quote=The Larestani people are predominantly Sunni Muslims.}}{{cite web |url=http://www.globalprayerdigest.org/index.php/issue/day/Larestani-People/|title=Larestani|quote=While most people in Iran are Shi’ite Muslims, the Larestani are Sunnis.}}{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/islamicdeskrefer00donz_0|url-access=registration|quote=laristan sunni fars.|title=Islamic Desk Reference|publisher=BRILL|pages=[https://archive.org/details/islamicdeskrefer00donz_0/page/225 225]|isbn=9004097384|last1=Van Donzel|first1=E. J.|date=January 1994}} with a Shia minority.

In the thirteenth century, Lar briefly became a center of trade and commerce in southern Persia. Irahistan was nearly always an obscure region, never becoming involved in the politics and conflicts of mainstream Persia. This was due to independent rule during the Safavid times, but that has failed due to the British Empire "Anti Piracy Company" and continued to decline due to Reza Shah Pahlavi's centric policies and the Ayatollah policies.{{cite journal |title=Iranian and Arab in the Gulf: Endangered Language, Windtowers, and Fish Sauce |url=http://dro.dur.ac.uk/19543/1/19543.pdf |website=dro.dur.ac.uk|date=January 2014 |last1=Limbert |first1=John W. }}

Iranian historian and geographer Ahmad Eghtedari noted in his book Ancient Larestan (1955):

"To those people of the towns, villages, and ports of Larestan who have stayed in the land of their ancestors, with its glorious past and its desolate present. And to those who have endured the hardship of migration to earn a living on the islands of the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean and in the towns of India, Arabia and other places. They remember with joy their beloved birthplace and still grieve for its ruin."

Achomi people refer to themselves as Khodmooni ({{langx|fa|خودمونی}}), a term literally meaning "part of ourselves" ({{langx|fa|بخشی از خودمون}}).{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5G0GDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA10|title=Governance in Immigrant Family Businesses: Enterprise, Ethnicity and Family Dynamics|last1=Halkias|first1=Daphne|last2=Adendorff|first2=Christian|date=2016-04-22|publisher=Routledge|isbn=9781317125952|pages=10|language=en}}