Khorramdin

Khorramdin refers to the Khurramdinan movement, a 9th-century Iranian rebellion against the Abbasid Caliphate led by Babak Khorramdin. The uprising began in the Azerbaijan region of northwestern Iran around 816 CE and continued until about 837 CE. It drew support from local landholders, Zoroastrian communities, and others seeking greater autonomy from centralized Abbasid rule and tax pressure.

The movement centered on the figure of Babak Khorramdin, who united diverse groups in opposition to external domination and the imposition of Islamic authority in the region. The rebels built fortified strongholds and waged a protracted resistance against Abbasid forces. A fortress strongly associated with the rebellion is commonly linked to Babak’s name, often identified with the Babak Fort near Kaleybar in present-day East Azerbaijan Province, although exact details vary among sources. The Abbasid campaigns eventually crushed the revolt, and Babak is believed to have died in the conflict after the fall of the last fortress. The rebellion did not persist as a political entity, but it left a lasting impression on regional history.

Legacy and scholarship describe the Khorramdin movement as one of the most significant Iranian resisters to early Islamic rule in Iran. It is cited in discussions of regional autonomy, anti-Caliphate uprisings, and the interplay between pre-Islamic Iranian identities and Islam in the region. Medieval chronicles and later historical works provide the primary sources for the event, though details such as chronology and leadership differ across accounts.