Sayram (, ,
Isfijab, , UniPers:
Espijab) is a rural locality located in southeastern
South Kazakhstan Region on the Sayram Su River, which rises at the nearby 4000-meter mountain Sayram Su. In medieval times, the city and countryside were located on the banks of the
Arys River, into which the Sayram Su river flows. It is now a suburb of
Shymkent. Population:
The city celebrated the 3,000th anniversary of its founding in 1999. It is among the oldest cities in
Kazakhstan, site of the first
mosque in Kazakhstan, and similarly among the oldest cities in
Transoxania. Sayram is significant today for maintaining mud-brick architecture and the absence of Soviet-style architecture. There are many pre-20th-century mausoleums, and more continue to be built.