The story of the city of Merîvan

Merîvan is one of the cities of resistance in Rojhilat. It is an extraordinary city marked by history and culture.

Merîvan is one of the most beautiful cities in Rojhilat. It is a city marked by resistance, patriotism, culture and history. It is the city where Kak Fuat Merîvan was born and raised. The people of Merîvan are a generous people who do not bow to attacks and resist. Although the state does everything to make the people dependent on it, Merîvan people never knock at the state’s door and keep working on vineyards, gardens and with livestock. And it is this resilience which brings the state to attack Merîvan even more.

There are many legends about the city of Merîvan. One of these relates to its name. It is said that the name Merîvan comes from ducks. This is because there are so many duck species in the lake of the region, the Zeribar lake. It is stated that the name Miravî or Merîvan in Kurdish comes from there. According to another legend, Merîvan comes from the name Mehrevan. The name Merîvan comes from the region of Merh, or the region of love. According to this legend the name given was Merîvan because of the hospitality of the people of the region. A third legend says that after the Umayyads destroyed the area, the region was named Merîvan after the Marwanids migrated from Baghdad to Sharezor and Merîvan.

The legend of the 12 cavalrymen

The guerrillas talk about the legend of Merîvan as follows: "There are a few special symbols in Merîvan. One of them is the 12 horsemen. The characteristic of Merîvan's territory is that it is home to many animals such as pigs, ducks and storks. 12 cavalrymen are chosen by Ehmedxanî Baba from among the people and they are given the task of hunting the pigs. Undoubtedly, their sole purpose is not to kill pigs. Their main purpose is to defend the people. In other words, these 12 cavalrymen have been given the duty to serve and defend the society. They set out to defend the people, but they are very few against the enemy's army. So they develop a tactic: they will attack at night. They split into several sections. Drums, flutes, etc. they make noise with their instruments. The enemy thinks it is being surrounded by a huge army because of the noise. The 12 cavalrymen manage to win against the Safavids. These devoted 12 cavalrymen are the people who are devoted to their country and defend their lands. They have great willpower. These 12 cavalrymen turned into a symbol and their legend is still very much alive in Merîvan.

Another legend relating to Merîvan is as follows: Feylekus forces attacked a dervish and seized all of his gains. They escape with his wife, children and all his possessions. The dervish goes to the judge to complain after what happened. When he explains the situation, the judge is happy because he is also an ally of Feylekus.

The dervish prays as he passes by the Zirewarde water and says: "I will not revolt until this city is flooded." Feylekus, on the other hand, was persecuting the people of Merîvan day and night. However, despite all this, the people never went to the court to file a complaint. Because they were resisting by themselves. No matter how much the government tries, it cannot detach Merîvan from the culture of resistance.