It is located at the foothill of the Alborz, highest mountain in Iran, Its highest peak, Mount Damavand, has an elevation of more than 18,400 feet (5,608 meters) and is visible from the city on clear days.
The location of Tehran has been historically known as Ray, which is now a small city in the south of the present-day of capital.
Ray was destroyed by Arabs in the 7th and Mongols in the 14th centuries and the inhabitants fled to Tehran, the nearby village at the time of Mongols invasion.