The capital of Sistan, called by the Persians Zarang, a great walled city in the Helmand delta near the lakes.
The geographers describe its walls and gates, the markets and gardens outside, the Great Mosque that the sand kept filling, and the canals that brought the river water through the streets; Mustawfi later praised its fruit. It will be destroyed by Timur in 1383, and its ruins lie round the villages of Zahidan and Shahristan (Le Strange). In 1200 it is the seat of the Nasrid malik.
Who holds it
- Name
- Taj al-Din Harb ibn Muhammad
- Title
- Capital of the malik of Nimruz
- Since
- About 1167-69
- Confidence
- medium
Lord in 1200
Malik Taj al-Din Harb, a Ghurid tributary.
How things stand that morning
Seat of the malik, at peace.
Council
The malik and the notables; headman and judge not pinned.
Communities
Sistani Sunnis; Zoroastrians in the province (Karkuya).
Fairs and markets
Not pinned; no market days or fairs recorded for 1200 in what was consulted.
Walls and castle
City walls and gates; a citadel (not pinned in detail).
Trade and crafts
Grain, fruit and dates; the roads to Herat, Bust and Kerman meet here.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The geographers describe the city well for earlier centuries; little for 1200 itself.
Primary sources for Sistan
Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.
- The Nasirid Generations: a General History of the Muslim Dynasties, Minhaj-i Siraj Juzjani (1259 to 1260, at Delhi). The Ghurid court's own history, by a man born in 1193 whose family served the sultans of Ghur and Ghazna. Read online
Sources and studies
- G. Le Strange, The Lands of the Eastern Caliphate (1905), searched on archive.org
- Wikipedia, 'Nasrid dynasty (Sistan)'
- Minhaj al-Din Juzjani, Tabaqat-i Nasiri, tr. H. G. Raverty, vol. 1 (searched on archive.org)
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.