BAKHTIARI, one of the great nomad tribes of Persia, whose camping-grounds are in the hilly district, known as the Bakhtiari province. The Bakhtiari are divided into the two great divisions, Haft-lang and Chahar-lang, and a number of branches and clans, and were known until the 15th century as the "Great Lurs," the "Little Lurs" being the tribes settled in the district now known as Luristan, with Khorremabad as capital. According to tradition the Lurs originally came from Syria in the loth century, but they were probably in Persia 15 centuries before. They speak the Lur language, a Persian dialect.
For accounts of the Bakhtiari see Mrs. Bishop (Isabella Bird), Journeys in Persia and Kurdistan (London, 1893) ; C. de Bode, Travels in Luristan (London, 1841) ; Lord Curzon, Persia and the Persian Question, vol. ii. 283-303 (London, 1892) ; Sir H. Layard, Early Adventures in Persia (London,