The Shahsavan are a nomadic pastoralist tribe located in northwest Iran. These Azeri-Turkish speaking pastoralists migrate between their winter quarters, qishlaq, in the Mughan steppe of Azerbaijan, and their summer quarters, yeylaq, around Mount Sabalan, approximately one hundred fifty miles to the south.
The Shahsavan, unlike many other nomadic tribes in Iran, do not have just one recognized chief (khan). Instead the influential chiefs (begs) of the five or six principal tribes act as intermediaries with outside authorities.
