khuzestan

Khuzestan (Persian: خوزستان) is one of the 30 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq's Basra Province and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahvaz and covers an area of 63,238 km². Other major cities include Behbahan, Abadan, Andimeshk, Khorramshahr, Bandar Imam, Dezful, Shushtar, Omidiyeh, Izeh, Baq-e-Malek, Mah Shahr, Dasht-i Mishan/Dasht-e-Azadegan, Ramhormoz, Shadegan, Susa, Masjed Soleiman, Minoo Island and Hoveizeh.

Historically Khuzestan is what historians refer to as ancient Elam, whose capital was in Susa. The Achaemenid Old Persian term for Elam was Hujiya, which is present in the modern name.

Khuzestan is the most ancient Iranian province and is often referred to as the "birthplace of the nation," since this is where the Persians, one of the branches of Aryan tribes, first settled, assimilating the native Elamite population, and thus laying the foundation for the future dynastic empires of Achaemenid, Parthia and Sassanid. The pre-Islamic Partho-Sassanid Inscriptions gives the name of the province as Khwuzestan. Khuzestan is also where the medical college and the town of Gundeshapur was located.

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Mah Shahr is an ancient city and port in the Khuzestan province in southwestern Iran. Originally known as Reyshahr and then Machuleh and Mahrouyan, it eventually came to be known as Bandar-e Ma'shoor. The name changed again in 1965, this time to Bandar-e Mah Shahr.

The word Mah-shahr is Persian and means "city of the moon". The city's port is one of the most important in Iran, exporting gas and refinery products from Abadan.

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