Ferdows City

Ferdows (Ferdos) lies on he slopes of the Kalat mountains. The salt desert is situated to the west and north of Ferdows and has a changeable climate. In ancient times it was called ‘Toom’ (Toon) and was founded in the pre-Islamic era. Ferdows lies 1,158 km. from Tehran and today is a thriving city.

History of Ferdows:

Founded by the Medes, Ferdows is currently a city. It was a large and famous city in ancient days. There is an unproven theory that the town's name in ancient days was "Taban" (or shining; تابان in Persian). In Islamic times it became known as Toon or Tūn, a name retained until 1929, when it was changed to Ferdows.

The first people to inhabit Ferdows were traditionally a group of Sagartians. Toon was a famous and thriving city both before and during the Islamic era, until the raid of the Mongols. It was one of the most prominent cities of Ghohestan, along with Qaen; Nasir Khusraw mentioned Toon as a large city in the 11th century. Toon was plundered and destroyed by the Mongols in 1239. After the Mongol invasion, Toon eventually recovered and became one of the major cities of Ghohestan again. Marco Polo mentioned the south Khorasan region as Toonoqaen, apparently in reference to the two largest cities, Toon and Qaen.

Ferdows was still a famous and prosperous city in Khorasan at the beginning of the 20th century and the Municipality of Ferdows, originally formed in 1925 (under the name of Toon), was one of the first Municipalities of Khorasan province. But the city was devastated in a huge earthquake in 1968 and significantly declined thereafter.