 The town is named after Ecbatana, the capital city of the ancient Median Empire around 700 BC.It was the first capital of ancient Iranians to be established in Western Asia, and is the ancestor of the modern city of Hamedan.The word "Ekbātān" is a variant of "Ecbatana" ( ) which derives from Old Persian "Haŋgmetana", meaning "place of gathering".