// Workers AI · dad joke modeWhat did the Tarhan tribe road say? It's a tar-rible path.

The Tarhan (Persian: طرهان) are a collection of tribes living mainly in western Iran, mostly around the region of Tarhan in northern and western Luristan, but also in other regions. Some of the tribes speak Luri, while others speak Laki. They mostly follow Shia Islam.

History

The region of Tarhan was located between the Karkheh and Kashgan rivers in the west of the Lorestan province, and included Kuhdasht. The main Lur tribes of Tarhan were the Suri and the Amra'i, and smaller ones such as Alivand, Khoshnamvand, Garma'i, and Shiravand. There were also the Lak tribes of Garavand, Adinavand, Kunani, Azadbakht, and Owlad-e Qobad. Minorsky wrote that the tribes of Tarhan (or Tarkhan) lived between the left bank of the Karkheh river and the lower course of its left bank tributary from Khorramabad. Oskar Mann and Rabino estimated the "Tarhan-Amra'i" at 1,582 families. The tribes of Tarhan were historically mainly Shia, with many of the Amala tribe also being Yarsani. Minorsky listed the main groups of Lur as the Tarhan, Delfan, Selseleh, and Bala Gariva, labelling the first three as Lak and the last as truly Lur. The Delfan and Selseleh were described as the two main subdivisions of the Laks. There were also Laki speakers among Luri speaking tribes. While Oskar Mann described the Tarhan as Lak majority, Amanollahi accounted for the Laks of Tarhan but did not describe them as the majority. The tribes of Tarhan and Bala Gariva historically made up the majority of the tribes of Pish-e-Kuh. Historically, the region of Tarhan generally consisted of the large area around Kuhdasht, which served as the center of Tarhan. The government of Borujerd and Luristan surveyed and listed the tribes of Tarhan as Amra'i, Suri, Garavand, Ramavand, Adinavand, Koruni (Kunani), Zeruni (Zerani), Kushaki, Garma'i, Saravand (Sohrabvand), Romiyani, Chavari, Bavali, Owlad-e Qobad, and Kamalvand. They were described as entirely Shia Muslims. The tribes of Tarhan being divided among Luri and Laki speakers contributed to the cultural differences which led to the division of the Tarhan across two factions.