Bam (Persian: بم‎‎) is a city in and the capital of Bam County, Kerman Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 73,823, in 19,572 families.The modern Iranian city of Bam surrounds the Bam citadel. Before the 2003 earthquake the official population count of the city was roughly 43,000. There are various opinions about the date and reasons for the foundation of the citadel. Some people believe that Bam city was founded during the Parthian Empire.