The Holeylan and Zardalan were a historical collection of tribes living in the regions around Holeylan and Zardalan in western Iran. The regions of Holeylan and Zardalan later became part of Ilam province. The tribes spoke Kurdish and Luri and mainly followed Shia Islam.
History Historically, the Kurdish and Luri tribes of the regions of Holeylan and Zardalan were often collectively referred to as Holeylani and Zardalani. Mehmed Hurşid Paşa, a member of the Russian-Ottoman-Persian border surveying commission from 1848 to 1852, mentioned the Holeylani tribes as Osmanwand, Jalalwand, Dajiyawand, Balawand, and Suramiri, and labelled them all as Feyli Kurds.van Bruinessen, Martin. Faylis, Kurds and Lurs: Ambiguity on the Frontier of Iran and Iraq. An Overview of the Literature. pp. 8-9. Mohammad Javadipour listed the tribes of Holeylan and Zardalan as Holeylan, Zardalan, Osmanvand, Jalalvand, Balavand, Kowsavand, and Dajivand.مجموعۀ اطلاعات در بارۀ ايران و ایرانیان، محمد جوادی پور، pp. 594, 1985. Iraj Asfhar Sistani listed the tribes of Holeylan and Zardalan as the Balavand, Zardalani, Tarhani, Jalalvand, and Osmanvand, adding that they were entirely Shia Muslims.ايلام و تمدن ديرينۀ آن، افشار سيستانى، ايرج، ١٩٩٣، ص. 400. Others generally listed the same tribes.مجموعۀ راهنماى جامع ايرانگردى، حسن زنده دل، 2000, pp. 37, . Jacques de Morgan described the tribes of Holeylan as "Laki Kurds" and distinguished them from the nearby community of "Feyli Lurs".Mission scientifique en Perse, Volume 2, Études Géographiques, pp. 73, 234, Jacques de Morgan, Paris, 1895. The Balavand, Zardalani, and Tarhani tribes historically lived close to the tribes of Tarhan in Lorestan, although within the Ilam province. Holeylan, along with Harsin, were historically bordered by Luristan to the southwest, and were traditionally part of Kermanshah.Minorsky, V. (1986). "Luristān". In Bosworth, C. E.; van Donzel, E.; Lewis, B. & Pellat, Ch. (eds.). The Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Volume V: Khe–Mahi. Leiden: E. J. Brill. pp. 829–832. . The Holeylan were considered an important Kurdish tribe to the southeast of Kermanshah.
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