Shahi Island
island in Iran
Shahi Island (Persian: جزیرهٔ شاهی, Azerbaijani: شاهی آداسؽ, Armenian: Արքայից կղզի) lit. 'King Island' is the largest island in the endorheic Urmia Lake, East Azerbaijan Province in Iran. Located in the eastern part of the lake, Shahi Island has a surface area of 23,000 hectares.
The island is the only inhabited island in Lake Urmia, with seven villages, including Burachalu, Ghebchagh, Teymurlu, and Bahramabad. These villages were located on the shores of the island. However the water level in the lake has been falling, and the "island" is now connected to the mainland on its eastern side and it forms a peninsula. The Shahi island is a rural district (dehestan) in Osku County.
History
In 1265, Hulagu Khan, the Mongol conqueror of Baghdad, was buried in a mountain (or castle) in the island, supposedly with all of his wealth. His tomb has not been found so far.
After the 1979 Iranian revolution and the overthrow of the Iranian monarchy, the revolutionaries changed the name of the island to Islami Island (Jazireh-ye-Eslami), which means Islamic Island.
“Shahi Island” enters the record as island in Iran. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Shahi, Island and island can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Shahi Island” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Shahi, Island and island provides the most credible route into that argument.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2016478. Authority coordinates are 37.850, 45.500. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1265 and 1979.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Shahi Island”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Shahi Island primary sources, Shahi Island archive and Shahi research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Shahi Island”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Shahi Island” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.