Golpaygan

Golpaygan is the name of a city in Isfahan Province. It extends north to Mahallat and Khomein, south to Khansar, East to Mimeh, and west to Ali Gudarz.
According to the census carried out in 1385, solar calendar, the city has a population of 48,987, and is regarded as the large cities of the province. Ghomrud River flows through the city. In the foreseeable future the huge Dam of Kuchari will come into operation. The residents are active in agriculture and industry.
Among its main factories are, Saipa, Diyar Khodro, and Behran Mehvar. Also the large dairy factory of Pegah is located in Golpaygan. The old city is estimated to be up to 7,000 years old, according to researchers. Its famous historical highlights include, 900-year-old Jame Mosque, historic citadel of Gogad, the minaret left from the Seljuk, and Hefdah Tan Mausoleum.
According to what is recorded in historical texts like Nozhat Algholoob by Hamdollah Mostowfi, Golpaygan was built 5,225 years after the descent of Adam by Homay Cher Azad, the daughter of Bahman Kiyani, also known as Bahman Deraz Dast when Pur Esfandiyar Rooin Tan sat on the throne. She gave it her own name from the very beginning; Chehr Azadegan, or Golbadegan. ( Hamdollah Mostowfi, 1366, p.75)
Based on the archaeological evidence and studies on inscriptions, the early settlements in Golpayegan Plain date back to about 7,000 years ago.
But modernity started in mid-Alchaemenid era, when the city served as an extensive garrison and even some believe that its original name was Gord Pazegan. ( Borhan Ghatee, 1361, below Golpaygan ).
Still some others say its former name was Gar Padegan. Gar in middle Persian means mountain.
Gariveh and Gariban are also derived from it.
Anyway, after the attack by Arab Muslims, some resided in the area and make the word Arabic : Jarfadeghan.
After the rise of Islam especially in the time of Abbasid, Golpayegan was considered a valuable and green place. But when Mohammad Bin Malik Shah Saljughi was the king, in the Seljuk era, it thrived greatly and there are historical sites left from the Seljuk.
After that, following the unrest by the Ismailiyeh and the plot by the Mongol as well as Timur 's attack, the city lost its boom and thrive. Only at the time of Ozoon Hassan, it again gained it's importance as it was placed on the commercial route from Hamedan to Isfahan. The last golden era when historic sites and buildings indicated the fame of the city, was when Shah Abbas Kabir was the ruler and Imam Gholi Khan, the great commander of the Safavid built his mansion in Golpayegan.
When the riots by the Afghans in Golpayegan, which was the headquarter for Ali Mardan Khan Bakhtiyari and where aid forces to Isfahan were based, took place Mahmud Afghan damaged the city revengefully and he not only massacred many locals but he also devastated the historic sites, agricultural facilities and subterranean canals. Therefore, the city could never again achieve its importance and fame.
A city which once had a population of about 200,000 to 300,000, according to Zil Alsoltan, which in itself should be looked at with doubt, at the time of his reign hardly had a population of of approximately 15,000 and the city had turned to a huge ruin. ( Eshraghi, 1383, p. 157 , a quote from Tarikh Masoodi by Zil Alsoltan ).