Sonqor County () is in Kermanshah province, Iran. Its capital is the city of Sonqor.
History In 2021, Bavaleh and Gavrud Rural Districts were separated from the Central District in the formation of Bavaleh District.
Demographics Language and ethnicity The majority of the people in this county are Kurds and Turks. Sonqor county is made up of two distinct population elements. The city of Sonqor and the villages of Qalʿa-ye Farhād Khan and Qorva are predominantly populated by Turks, whose ancestors reportedly arrived during the Mongol domination of Iran. The Turkic people of Sonqor originally speak the Sonqori dialect. The dialects of Sonqori spoken in Qalʿa-ye Farhād Khan and Qorva differ barely from this main dialect.
The other areas within Sonqor County are predominantly populated by Kurds most of whom have originally been agriculturalists. Many Kolya'i Kurds moved to the city of Sonqor where they detribalized due to the urban environment.Borjian, Habib. “The Kolyāʾi Kurdish Tribe and Its Language.” Штудии По Кавказско-Каспийской Словесности, vol. 4, no. 1-2, 2023, pp. 41. More Kurds came to the city of Sonqor during the Iran–Iraq War and had an effect on the demographics.Linguistic Convergence and Areal Diffusion: Case Studies from Iranian, Semitic and Turkic, 2004, pp. 241, ISBN 9781134396313. The chiefs of the Kurds of Sonqor County belonged to the Kulya'i tribe. These Kurdish feudal lords (khans) were in control of the Kurdish-populated parts of the county until early 20th century Qajar Iran, and were reportedly scions (in the eighth generation) of a certain Safi Khan who lived in the later Safavid period. In 1786, the district was ceded to Ardalan as a gift from Agha Mohammad Khan Qajar. In 1798, Ali Hemmat Khan and his brother Baba Khan of the Nanakali tribe were executed by Iranian ruler Fath-Ali Shah Qajar (1797-1834) as they had supported Soleyman Khan, the pretender to the Iranian throne. The Kulya'i Kurds of the Sonqor District speak a Kurdish dialect that resembles the dialect of Kermanshah, and, according to the second edition of the Encyclopaedia of Islam are thought to be affiliated to the Ahl-e Haqq syncretic religion. At least 177 villages in the county speak the Kulya'i dialect, 112 of these are in the Kolyai District.
Population At the time of the 2006 National Census, the county's population was 95,904 in 23,755 households. The following census in 2011 counted 91,935 people in 26,201 households. The 2016 census measured the population of the county as 81,661 in 25,554 households.
Administrative divisions
Sonqor County's population history and administrative structure over three consecutive censuses are shown in the following table.
+ Sonqor County Population Administrative Divisions 2006 2011 2016 Central District 80,304 78,282 70,284 Ab Barik RD 6,419 5,605 4,328 Bavaleh RD 9,364 9,069 7,114 Gavrud RD 9,512 7,719 5,770 Parsinah RD 5,899 5,478 4,364 Sarab RD 5,926 5,457 4,452 Sonqor (city) 43,184 44,954 44,256 Bavaleh District Bavaleh RD Gavrud RD Kolyai District 15,600 13,653 11,363 Agahan RD 5,061 4,189 3,424 Kivananat RD 4,095 4,056 3,130 Satar RD 5,160 4,181 3,761 Satar (city) 1,284 1,227 1,048 Total 95,904 91,935 81,661
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