GORGAN

also spelled Gurgan, formerly Asterabad, town, north-central, Iran. It is situated along a small tributary of the Qareh River, 23 miles (37 km) from the Caspian Sea. The town, in existence since Achaemenian times, long suffered from inroads of the Turkmen tribes who occupied the plain north of the Qareh River and was subjected to incessant Qajar-Turkmen tribal conflicts in the 19th century. It was renamed Gorgan in the 1930s after being devastated by an earthquake. Articles of trade include cereals, soap, and carpets. In modern times the plain around Gorgan has become a flourishing granary. Pop. (1986) 139,430; (1991) 162,468.