Maku free zone
منطقه آزاد ماكو
city
Panoramic view
Panoramic view
Maku free zone is located in Iran Maku free zoneMaku free zone
Coordinates: 39°17′43″N 44°31′00″ECoordinates: 39°17′43″N 44°31′00″E
Country	 Iran
Province	West Azerbaijan
County	Maku
Bakhsh	Central
Population (2006)
 • Total	41,865
Time zone	IRST (UTC+3:30)
 • Summer (DST)	IRDT (UTC+4:30)
Maku (Persian: ماكو‎‎, Azerbaijani: ماكي - Makı; also Romanized as Mākū)[1] is a city in the West Azerbaijan Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 41,865, in 10,428 families.[2]

It is situated 22 kilometres (14 mi) from the Turkish border in a mountain gorge at an altitude of 1634 metres. The Zangmar River cuts through the city.[3][4] Maku Free Trade and Industrial Zone is Iran’s largest and the world’s second largest free trade zone and will encompass an area of 5000 square km when it was scheduled to open in 2011. Azerbaijanis and later Kurds constitute the population of the city.[5]

Contents  [hide] 
1	History
2	Climate
3	Population
4	References
5	External links
History[edit]
Maku was a region of the old Armenia c. 300-800, previously known as Artaz according to Aziz Atiya's History of Eastern Christianity.[6] A branch of the family Amatuni ruled it, as vassals of the family Ardzruni.

Maku was the capital of a Kangarli Khanate[7] one of numerous small, semi-independent Maku Khanates that resulted from the breakup of the Safavid empire in the 17th century.[8]

The city is well known in Bahá'í history for its fort where the Báb had been exiled to and imprisoned for nine months. At this fortress Mullá Husayn, the first Disciple of the Báb, arrived on Náw-Rúz of the year 1848 to see the Báb.

Climate[edit]
Maku has a semi-arid climate (Köppen BSk) owing to its location in the rain shadow of the Zagros Mountains. The city is hot and dry in the summer, and cold with little snow in the winter. Most precipitation comes from spring thunderstorms.

[hide]Climate data for Maku, Iran
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	11.5
(52.7)	14.0
(57.2)	23.0
(73.4)	27.5
(81.5)	30.6
(87.1)	36.0
(96.8)	37.0
(98.6)	37.8
(100)	34.2
(93.6)	28.0
(82.4)	20.8
(69.4)	19.0
(66.2)	37.8
(100)
Average high °C (°F)