Sabzevār, city in
northeastern Iran, located in Knorāsān province. Sabzevār is the main
commercial center for an agricultural region that is noted for the
production of grapes and raisins. It has many small-scale industries,
especially for food processing and for the manufacture of cooperware
(wooden barrels and tubs) and electric motors. Sabzevār is also home to
an old bazaar where wholesale merchants arrange the export of fresh,
dried, and preserved fruits and vegetables. The main highway between
Tehrān and Mashhad (Meshed) passes through the city, while the highway
north to Bojnūrd connects Sabzevār to the Caspian Sea province of
Mārandarān. The city's major historical site is the 12th-century tower
of Khosrowgerd, located 6 km (4 mi) west of the city center. The
19th-century seminary founded by the renowned Muslim philosopher Hajji
Hadi Sabzevari is also in the city.
Sabzevār existed as a small town during the
Sassanian Empire (ad
224-651). It was relatively prosperous during the medieval period
(641-1500) but was captured and looted on several occasions. Its
development as an industrial center began in the late 1960s. As a result
of large-scale rural-to-urban migration, Sabzevār's population has more
than doubled since 1976. Population (1994) 160,755.
