Semnan, Iran Semnan, Iran Semnan (; , also Romanized as Semnān and Samnān) is the capital city of Semnan Province, Iran. Its population was 153,680 people and 36,298 families as of the 2011 census. Semnan is located 216 kilometers east of Tehran in north central Iran. It is home to Semnani languages and is known as "Seman" locally. The city offer various recreational activities, historical and religious sites, festivals, gardens and parks, colleges and universities, and Semnani culture. The city serves as the cultural and political capital of the Semnan Province. The city's main souvenirs are daffodil flowers, Shirmal pastry, Kolüçe cookies,
History of Iran the Zand period. From his capital Shiraz, Karim Khan of the Zand dynasty ruled "an island of relative calm and peace in an otherwise bloody and destructive period," however the extent of Zand power was confined to contemporary Iran and parts of the Caucasus. Karim Khan's death in 1779 led to yet another civil war in which the Qajar dynasty eventually triumphed and became kings of Iran. During the civil war, Iran permanently lost Basra in 1779 to the Ottomans, which had been captured during the Ottoman–Persian War (1775–76), and Bahrain to Al Khalifa family after Bani Utbah invasion in