The village was formerly the territory of Zêbari tribe and was part of Badinan under the name Baziran. In the 19th century, the village was the residence of a Naqshbandi Sheikh and his followers, now known as the Barzani tribe.[3]
In 1914, Barzan was the site of a Russian-supported Kurdish uprising led by Ebduselam Barzani against the Ottoman Empire, which was fought concurrently with the Bitlis uprising.[4]
The tribe was nominally autonomous from the Ottoman Empire until 1915 when the Ottomans stormed the village and hanged the local sheikh. In the early 20th century, the village had a conflict with the neighboring Bıradost tribe which necessitated intervention from Iraqi authorities.
Barzan has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate (Csa) with hot, dry summers and cool, rainy winters. It is one of the rainiest cities in Iraq. Winter nights average below freezing most of the time, providing frost in the city. Snow occasionally occurs.
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