Saqqez
Saqqez ( , , ), also known as Saghez, Saqez, Saqqiz, Saqiz, and Sakīz, is a city which is the capital of Saqqez County, Kurdistan Province, Iran. According to the 2016 census, its population was 165,258. Etymology. The name Saqqez derives from the Scythian word ""Eskit"" and than ""Sakez"". Before that It was Izirtu the capital of Mannaeans. On some historical sources has been mentioned that the name of the city is derived from the name of powerful Median ruler Cyaxares (reigned 625 – 585 BC), who turned the empire into a regional power. But some Other historians believe that the name of the  city is derived from "Sakez" and is attributed to the Scythians who settled in the city during the reign of Cyaxares.' Demographics. The city is populated by Kurds who speak Sorani. David D'Beth Hillel (d. 1846) stated that the city was home to a small Jewish community with one synagogue . History. Saqqez's history goes back to the seventh millennium BC. Based on historical ruins and Antiques which have been found in Saqqez, like the historical treasures of Ziwiye hoard in the Ziwiyeh Castle, experts like Roman Ghirshman believe that the modern city of Saqqez is built on the site  of ancient capital of the Median empire. when Sargon II (reigned 722 – 705 BC) attacked the Median Empire and forced them to flee to Ecbatana (modern day Hamadan) and made this city his capital. On the attack of Sargan II, the ruler of the Assyrian, the Medes were defended and their fortifications destroyed. Thereafter, the Scythians tried to rebuild this city and they chose Saqqez, then named Eskit as their capital. This city was repeatedly attacked by Assyrians and Romans. Culture and Art. The city of Saqqez has been a place of culture and art since ancient times. At this  city, Performing Arts and culture has a special place and artists have created valuable works in various fields of art such as theater, painting, sculpture, music, literature, poetry and cinema. In this city, every year at the end of the autumn season, a theater festival called The Kurdish Theater Festival is held, in which theater groups from all over Kurdistan perform their works. Also, in Saqqez, famous musicians and singers, such as Rashid Fayznejad perform their musics and songs in Kurdish language. Also there are well-known poets in this city, such as Abdul Karim Sahib, Mullah Ghafoor Dabbaghi, Jila  Hosseini, Rahim Loghmani, Malekoalkalam majdi and Sheikh Hassan Molanabad. Geography. Geology. The city of Saqqez is built on long plains and hills, which are crossed by the main tributaries of rivers such as Zarrineh River and Simineh River. The lowlands and heights inside the city and the view of Saqqez River that passes through the center of this city are its special features. Saqqez is located in mountainous and highlands between the irregular heights of Zagros Mountains, and this special geomorphological feature has led to relatively cold climates and long winters and sometimes frost. Climate. At an altitude of 1,476  metres (4,842 feet), Saqqez has a Mediterranean continental climate (Köppen climate classification "Dsa") with hot, very dry summers and cold, snowy winters. Summers feature large diurnal temperature variation due to decreased air density at high altitude and low humidity. In 1969 Saqqez recorded a temperature of , the lowest ever recorded by an Iranian weather station until Kheirabad Zanjan recorded on January 29, 1997. Saqqez again reached −36 °C during the February 3–9 1972 Iran blizzard. Saqqez unofficially reached in December 2006 and in January 2007, the lowest temperatures recorded in an Iranian city. Rainfall is mild throughout the year , with late winter and early autumn having the most precipitation, and the summers being practically rainless. Due to the foehn effect, the rainfall is not as heavy as it is in the exposed sites of the Zagros to the west, such as in Sardasht, which lies on the same altitude but is more exposed to the westerly cold front systems.