Adherents of tke King

Nomads who live in Mugan plain in Iran under the general title of "Shahsavan" organized by Shah Esmael Safavi to deal with the rebel Qizilbash tribes.

The name Shahsevan means "Adherents of the king". According to available resources, there are three beliefs about the Shahsavan tribe:

1- The survivors of “Ghuzz or Turkmen " who have lived in the region since the fourth century AD (Mugan plain).

2- A group also migrated to Iran by Mongol and Timurid attacks In the eleventh century.

3- Survivors of Turkish tribes from Asia Minor that have come to Azerbaijan in the fourteenth century.

Whatever the real story, one thing is clear: the history of the Shahsavan tribes goes back to the Safaviyeh king's era, they were organized by Shah Esmael (II) Safavi for authenticating the status of the Turkish tribe Ghezelbash. Shah Abbas established the Shahsavan tribe, meaning King Lovers to deal with the rebel tribes Qizilbash too. The tribe had more than 100’000 people who had already been reduced. The family names of these tribes end with the suffix “Lou”, such as Surkhandarya Big Lou, Tales Mikael Lou, and Moghan Lou.

During the Qajar era, many activities took place in the territory of Shahsavan, especially in the time of Fath Ali Shah. It was concluded by the “Golestan contract” between Iran and Russia. Russians residents in theTalesh area and northern regions threatened the Qeshlaqs (Winter quarters’ place) of the Shahsevans and due to the “Turkmenchay treaty”, Iranian borders were limited from the north.

The hills of the Sabalan mountain in the province of Ardabil are some of the best regions for seeing their habitat. Now Elders usually live in traditional tents while younger prefer canvas tents. Traditional tents have decorations made of wool yarns; the newer canvas tents have fewer traditional decorations.

• What is the best time to go?

Because of the height and cold weather, The best time to go is from April to August.

• Getting there

There are different ways to reach Ardabil like use an airplane or go by bus. But for seeing the Shahsavan tribe you have to take a taxi to Alvares ski resort. HiPersia offers an amazing 17-day tour (FOLLOW IN PILGRIM'S FOOTSTEPS)