Gilak people have so much in common with Mazanis. Though they speak different languages, the root is the same. In Iran, the whole area along the Caspian Sea used to be called Tabarestan which included Gilan and Mazandaran. Therefore it is very normal that their languages, traditions, clothing, and their lifestyles be so much alike.
Gilaks either live in the pasturelands in the altitudes or live in the lower plain lands, close to the sea.
The first group living in the altitudes is called “Deylam”. Some of them used to have a nomadic pastoral lifestyle and the same story went on as other nomads.
There is a difference between Deylam nomads and Qashqai and Bakhtiari nomads. Deylams didn’t have to go as far as Qasgqais and Bakhtiaris to find someplace with good weather and grasslands for their herds. Since the Caspian Sea area is green as heaven.
Deylams who are not nomads do animal husbandry or grow wheat on their farmlands.
The Second group living in the plain lands is called “Gil” and their major job was farming. Today yet mosts Gils work on their farmlands but unfortunately as the result of every-day expanding growth of urban life, many farms are being left to be barren. The old farmers put them for sale. And the farmlands turn into a place to build houses. As the number of houses increases, the number of farms decreases.
These are all happening for the reason that the young workforces have left the small cities and are not available for farming anymore. On the other hand, the population is increasing, the new generation who do not have any tendency to work on the farms but behind the desks.
Anyways the good news is Gilaks are still the big suppliers in the country for rice, grains, tea, tobacco, and silk. They share their position in fishing and Caviar exports with Mazanis, too. Gilaks and Mazanis are Shia Muslims.
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