South of Urumia is the town of Ushnai, in lat. 36° 55' 29", at the foot of the great Kurdistan mountains of Turkish Kurdistan. The inhabitants are Kurds of the tribe of Zerza, formerly 4000, but now only 800 houses, the plague having carried off numbers of them.
The Mengur, a division of the Balbas Kurd, ate nomades who pasture their flocks in summer upon the Persian frontier; between Sardasht and Ushnae, and in winter retire far within the Turkish line.
The Bera-Dust, a celebrated tribe, inhabit the district of Karnresh, west of lake Urumia, in the Persian province of Azarbijan. They formerly gave chiefs to Sumai and Terkur.
Baban, a tribe of Kurds between lake Uremia and Kerkuh.
The Kurds of Guran of Kirmanshali are frank and hospitable, of the AR Bahl religion, mixed with doctrines of Judaism, Christianity, and Shie' Muhammadanism. They are supposed to be of Ilebrew origin. Major Rawlinson raised a regi ment amongst them. The Shard Bayene tribe, between Zohab and Sulimani, are supposed to be Guran Kurd.
The Baho and Dastiari districts of Persian Mak ran are occupied by the Jagdal, Hot, Latti, Raisi, Kosagi, and Shahzadah.
Adian, a tribe of Kurds claiming descent from Shaikh Adi, the Kurd saint. They dwell on the banks of the Bata!).
Ali Arus, a nomade tribe of Arabs dependent on Hawizel, district of Kurdistan.
Bandivan, a Kurd tribe in the valley of Amadia and left bank of the Tigris. The chiefs of Amadia claim descent from the Abbassi khalifs, and assume a saintly character. Some of the chiefs have imitated. the latter khalifs by covering their face with a veil, so that no one may see their face.
Bulbassi is a Kurd tribe composed of the fol lowing sections:-1. The Kabaiz, the reigning family ; 2. Manzoor ; 3. Mtunash ; 4. Pirau ; 5. Rummook ; 6. Sinn ; and 7. Taafah. The chiefs of tribes are called Muzzin. The Bnlbassi will not bestow a girl in marriage on a person of another tribe or people. They have courtship among them, and carrying off a girl by the lover is common. When a chief dies, lie is succeeded by the best or bravest of his family, with the common consent of his tribe. If his eldest son be incapable, the best of the brothers succeeds. In their own country the Bulbassi do not willingly acknowledge any superior, either Turkish or Persian ; but when they descend into the regions of Karatchuk, they pay a tribute of sheep to the Bey. Most of the principal people among them possess a complete suit of mail. They sew a wounded man in the skin of a bullock fresh stripped off the animal, leaving only his head out ; and they leave him in it till the skin begins to putrefy. They say this never fails to cure the most desperate spear or sabre wound.
Baliki, a large Kurd tribe of 10,000 families, occupying a strong secluded country which forms the prolongation of the Ushnai mountains. They claim descent from Sharezer or Sanaser, son of Sennacherib. They mix up a belief in Moses, Christ, Mahomed, and Ali.
Kelowski or white caps, called also Guran, are scattered all over Kurdistan. They are deemed ignoble.
Khazanli, a Kurd tribe in the Kharzandagh mountains, formerly preditory.
Khoshnav, a Kurd tribe in the north part of the country. They have three branches. Their lan guage partakes of the Bebbeh and Bandinan dialects. Khoshnav and Rowanduz Kurd are
brutally savage. They rigidly follow their prayer times, but do not scruple to kill their enemy, even in their mosque.
Luristan, a province of Persia, of 19,500 square miles, extending for 270 miles westward from the borders of Fars to those of Kirmanshab. It has a population of 56,000, composed of the Feili. It is divided into Luristan Buzurg and Luristan Kuchak (greater and lesser). The former is the mountainous country of the Bakhtiari, stretching from the frontiers of Fars to the river Dizful ; and Luristan Kuchak is situated between the river and the plains of Assyria. From the 12th to the 17th century, Luristan Kuchak was ruled by a race of independent princes who were styled Atabeg, the last of whom, Shah Verdi Khan, was displaced by Shah Abbas the Great, and the country, with the title of Wali, granted to Husain Khan, a rival chief. The Feili clan is that of Husain Khan. When the whole of the Luristan Kuchak was under the dominion of a wall, all the tribes were desig nated Feili, but it is now applied only to those of the Pasht - i -Koh behind the great Zagros chain. Major Rawlin son gives Luristan Kuchak to six tribes and twenty-seven clans. The women perform all the labour. Their religion is an off shoot of that of the Ali Ilahi sect, with many local superstitions. The Lur do not revere Ma homed or the Koran. They worship Baba Buzurg, and regard several holy men amongst them with little short of adoration, And many of their observances are traceable to a time long prior to Mahomed. Macdonald Kinneir had noticed their midnight orgies of Chiragh Kusban, which are probably not now continued, but they were com mon till the beginning. of the 19t1r century, and are supposed to have been a remnant of the physiological worship of Anaitis and Mithra, from the time that Sesostris erected the emblems of the worship, and Semiramis followed them in practice. .
Mahmaseni, properly Muhammad Huseni, one of the most turbulent and lawless tribes of Persia, are settled to the north of Kazerun, in the province of Fars. - They claim descent from Rustam. They have six clans,—Rustami, Gavi, Zali,Bekesh, Dash man, Ziari, and Zoi. Their families have been estimated at from 400 to 12,000. They dis possessed the former inhabitants of Fehlian from all the arable land. Regular troops were sent against them after the death of Fatah All Shah, on which they threw themselves and children over a precipice and destroyed themselves.
The Rustami of Sarab-i-Silah and Digar, in the plain of Bairam in Fars, are esteemed the bravest of the tribe. They can bring 200 well-mounted and well-armed horsemen into the field.
Laristan, a province of Persia, in lat. 26° 30' to 28° 35' N., and long. 30' to 55° 30' E., extend ing along the north shore of the Persian Gulf, and is 210 miles long and 120 miles broad. The coast is in the possession of different Arab tribes, all predatory. The interior has an aboriginal race who speak a dialect of the Pehlavi.
Azarbijan province is in the extreme N.W. corner of Persia. Colonel Shiel gave the numbers of their tents at 65,000, as under :—