The origin of the island and its geological structure
About 200 million years ago, in the continuation of the movements of the huge continental plates and their pressure against each other, which was accompanied by folds and the phenomenon of orogeny, the Arabian Peninsula moved to the north along with the African continental plate, and as a result It was separated from Africa and connected to Asia. The pressure caused by the effect of this movement, which entered Iran from the southwest, caused a huge folding of this part of the Iranian plateau in the form of the Zagros highlands, and its mountain ranges were formed perpendicular to this pressure, i.e., in the northwest and southeast directions. . The height of the Zagros mountain range from the Dana peak gradually decreases towards the Persian Gulf, its continuation is hidden in the deep waters of the Persian Gulf in the form of folds under the water. Kish Island and other islands in the Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf are part of the anticlines of these folds and are part of the Zagros structures. Hondurabi and Lawan islands in the northwest and southeast of Kish are other anticlines of Zagros structures close to it.
After the formation of Kish, every now and then, with the change of the water level of the Persian Gulf and its rise, it sank in a small depth of water. The relative warmth of these times, a little depth of water and plenty of light and other favorable environmental conditions created the most suitable substrate for the growth of corals, aquatic animals and water stones, oysters and other animals and aquatic animals on the surface of the island submerged in water. And over time, it forms a compact layer of the remnants of their calcareous shell in the form of coral limestone on the surface of the island submerged in water.
The forerunner of Kish in the ages
The island of Kish has been hit by severe blows of destruction and destruction many times in the turmoil of the storms of events and events of the times. And with the repeated hand to hand between the invaders and the dominance of the foreigners, it suffered terrible and heavy losses from time to time. The ancient history of Kish is connected to the ancient history of Iran. What is certain is that the first sailors of this region, due to the geographical features of Kish Island, especially its proximity to the contiguous land of Iran, and the fact that the sailors were not yet able to penetrate the vast expanse of seas and oceans, and had to use the nearby waters They used to go to the coasts to get water, food and other sea travel necessities from the islands along the way. Kish Island, with its geographical location, business prosperity, proximity to land, security and other capabilities, was always a fixed base for commercial ships to stop on their travels.
Strategic location of Kish
During the time of the kings of Elam and Assyria and the clash of the civilizations of that time, especially the Elamite and Sumerian civilizations, it was very important and Kish was deeply influenced by the cultures of these civilizations. The route of most of the early sailing ships of the ancient times, which came directly to the Persian Gulf from Shush and the Karun River, and from the Persian Gulf followed the route of the northern coast, the islands of Hormuz and Qeshm in the Persian Gulf Strait and Kish near the end of this The range was one of their main stops for the provision of needs and exchanges of commercial goods, and one of the reliable naval bases of that time. During the power period of the Medes, Persians and especially the Aryans and even during the era of the Elamite kings and after that, like the other southern parts of the Iranian plateau, Kish was considered a part of the bed of these civilizations. Politically and economically, Kish was more or less subordinate to the Elam civilization, and with the extinction of this civilization, Kish also lost its privileged position. And once upon a time it was subjected to disturbances and hand to hand between the rulers and the vassals and the local tyrant rulers who were subject to the aggressors. And with the removal of the Sumerians' control over this region and the advance of the Achaemenid Empire and their brilliant civilization, the Persian Gulf, in the light of its brilliance, has the most advanced constructions of that day for shipping, marking, installation of lighthouses and other facilities. It was equipped. Obviously, Kish Island found a special and important position due to its proximity to the entire territory of Iran, next to this fiery civilization, and this position continued until the Parthian and Sasanian empires.
Kish during different regimes
Europe was to Iran, almost regained its past prosperity. But this time was the period of emergence of the ominous phenomenon of colonialism and expansion of the influence of colonial countries on other lands. The prosperity of trade, the importance, the maritime location and the location of Kish at the entrance of the Strait of Hormuz as an important economic and strategic base like other islands were the constant attention and temptation of Europeans and colonial invaders. Unfortunately, the weakness of the central governments, the existence of unsympathetic, money-loving and tyrannical rulers of these islands, made it very easy for the European aggressors, who had a strong and coherent naval force, to occupy the Persian Gulf islands, including the island of Kish.
Kish experienced a very difficult time during the ups and downs of occupation, domination and freedom from the shackles of foreigners. During the era of Shah Abbas Safavi, Nader Shah, Karim Khan Zand, many times it was removed from the control of foreigners. During the reign of Shah Abbas, the invading Portuguese suffered a severe defeat with the bravery of the famous Iranian general Imam Qoli Khan and his tact, and they left some Iranian islands such as Qeshm.
From Qajar to today
Seven years after the death of Karim Khan Zand and the passing of riots by claimants to the throne and the period of instability that started from the beginning of the Qajar period. The Persian Gulf was in its worst political, security, social and economic conditions, and its islands, including Kish Island, suffered severe injuries and damages from this instability. The British first occupied Qeshm Island from this chaos, which they themselves caused, and by turning it into a naval base, they attacked other islands. The encroachment of the Portuguese, English, pirates, sheikhs and the Sultan of Muscat, most of which were carried out by the instigation of the British, made the sea area of the Persian Gulf completely unsafe, and this was the desire of the British to subjugate the Sheikh of Bahrain under this pretext. Iran's support was to force them to accept their protection and remove the said island from Iran's control. In these sharp ups and downs of the social and political situation in the Persian Gulf region, the economic and social situation of Kish Island reached a point where this bride of the Persian Gulf Islands, with all the legendary fame and wealth and commercial position of the past, at the beginning of the constitutional revolution, only with the amount of 250000 Rials to be sold by Mirza Ibrahim Khan Qawam al-Dawlah to Muhammad Reza Khan Bastaki.
Kish during the former regime (Pahlavi dynasty)
The unfortunate situation of Kish during the reign of Reza Shah was more or less the same as during the Qajar era. For a long time, the British occupied the waters of the Persian Gulf and its Iranian islands for several thousand years under the pretext of maintaining security and according to old imposed contracts, especially to preserve the oil lands. The rise of Iran exercised their sovereignty. The presence of foreigners and their imposed bitterness caused the Iranian islands of the Persian Gulf to be gradually depopulated and to find a semi-ruined and abandoned state. The market and trade in them were almost closed, this situation caused everyone to migrate from it, and the poverty and devastation of this island, which was the bride of the Persian Gulf, turned into a wasteland with a few old trees and a few hectares of arable land, and the inhabitants were helpless. Few of the women and children, old men and women, poor and disabled, who could not afford to emigrate. This unfortunate situation continued on the island with more or less minor changes in the years 1320 to 1347.
The beginning of changes
1347 was the beginning of administrative changes and some executive moves in Kish Island with the suggestions of American experts as a tourist free port. In 1349, exploitation of the geographical conditions and nature of Kish Island was taken into consideration, and Kish was chosen as an international tourist and commercial center. In 1351, the island took the name of Kish Development Organization and was registered with one billion capital. In 1352, the construction and construction operations of the Kish Civil Organization started from Masheh village in the northeast of the island, at the same time, the construction of an international airport equipped for the landing of the world's largest Concorde airplanes began in the central part of it inclined to the east. In 1356, the international tourist and commercial center of Kish was opened, and the construction of almost all the main service structures, which were relatively wide, was finished.
In 1358, i.e. one year after the revolution and the removal of the previous regime, the Kish Civil Organization was handed over to the Ministry of Guidance as an organization of Iranian tourism and tourism centers, but five months later the Revolutionary Council declared it the first free trade zone of the Islamic Republic in 1361 according to The approval letter of the government board of the Kish civil engineering organization was approved by the "subsets" of the minister's executive advisor. In 1365, the Revolutionary Council reopened Kish for people to travel and shop in its markets. That year is actually the year of revival of Kish under the title of free zone. Since then, with the influx of tourists to it, the continuous expansion of Kish with various commercial constructions, markets, the expansion of ports, the development of the airport, the construction of new hotels, industrial and commercial activities for export and import, new entertainment spaces. , squares, roads, green space according to the needs of the population and tourists (increasing to the island) started, and this activity gained more and more volume every day, and Kish achieved its prominent position among other free areas that were formed after that. They have gained with calculated plans.
Kish at the beginning of the Islamic period and after that
Kish had not surrendered to the Arabs until 23 AH. But the islands of the Persian Gulf (including Kish) because they were in the path of the Arab naval attacks on Fars and Kerman. Naturally, before the arrival and attack of the Arabs, Fars was attacked by them. The first ruler from the Arab side was a person from Abda Qais tribe, they say the name of the island is derived from the name of its first Islamic ruler Qais, which later became Kish. Of course, before the Islamic period and throughout history, Kish Island had other names in the texts of foreign historians. For example, in the 2nd century AD, the name of Kish in the writings of Kaminane historians was written in Greek as Arianusia, Arian, and finally Venus Island, and in the time of Alexander, Merkur Island, Khomein or Khen. But Iranian historians have written its name in the sound of Kian, Kiss, Geis, Qais, and even some have written Qeshm by mistake. In the first half of the first century of Hijri, which was the time of wars and revolts and uprisings of Iranians against the Arabs in the southern and western cities of Iran, Kish faced severe crises during the rapid movements of the aforementioned uprisings, and its commercial activity and past prosperity lost the
During the Saffarian period, especially during the Al-Buyeh era, and also during the Seljuk sultans period, which was the period of prosperity and promotion of culture, knowledge, prosperity and prosperity of trade, especially maritime trade. The cult of this jewel of the Persian Gulf regained its prosperity and during the period of Atabakan of Fars and King Seljuq, with the power they had in politics and governance in Fars, Kerman and the Persian Gulf, the cult reached its true position. This position was more or less maintained after the invasion of the Mongols to Iran, due to the tact of their Iranian ministers, and the prosperity of trade remained there.
