World Atlas: Iran. On this page you can see the map, country flag and many detailed information about the people, history and economy of Iran.
Here you can find online selected information about the geography, inhabitants, government, economy and history of Iran. Included are selected statistics, an overview map and the detailed map of Iran. But let's start with the flag of Iran here:
Iran - Overview:
What you should know about Iran? Let's start with this: Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling monarchy was overthrown and Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces led by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority vested in a learned religious scholar referred to commonly as the Supreme Leader who, according to the constitution, is accountable only to the Assembly of Experts (AOE) - a popularly elected 86-member body of clerics. US-Iranian relations became strained when a group of Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran in November 1979 and held embassy personnel hostages until mid-January 1981. The US cut off diplomatic relations with Iran in April 1980. During the period 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq that eventually expanded into the Persian Gulf and led to clashes between US Navy and Iranian military forces. Iran has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world and remains subject to US, UN, and EU economic sanctions and export controls because of its continued involvement in terrorism and concerns over possible military dimensions of its nuclear program. Following the election of reformer Hojjat ol-Eslam Mohammad Khatami as president in 1997 and a reformist Majles (legislature) in 2000, a campaign to foster political reform in response to popular dissatisfaction was initiated. The movement floundered as conservative politicians, supported by the Supreme Leader, unelected institutions of authority like the Council of Guardians, and the security services reversed and blocked reform measures while increasing security repression. Starting with nationwide municipal elections in 2003 and continuing through Majles elections in 2004, conservatives reestablished control over Iran's elected government institutions, which culminated with the August 2005 inauguration of hardliner Mahmud Ahmadi-nejad as president. His controversial reelection in June 2009 sparked nationwide protests over allegations of electoral fraud, but the protests were quickly suppressed. Deteriorating economic conditions due primarily to government mismanagement and international sanctions prompted at least two major economically based protests in July and October 2012, but Iran's internal security situation remained stable. President Ahmadi-nejad's independent streak angered regime establishment figures, including the Supreme Leader, leading to conservative opposition to his agenda for the last year of his presidency, and an alienation of his political supporters. In June 2013 Iranians elected a moderate conservative cleric Dr. Hasan Fereidun Ruhani to the presidency. He is a longtime senior member in the regime, but has made promises of reforming society and Iran's foreign policy. The UN Security Council has passed a number of resolutions calling for Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment and reprocessing activities and comply with its IAEA obligations and responsibilities, and in July 2015 Iran and the five permanent members, plus Germany (P5+1) signed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (Jcpoa) under which Iran agreed to restrictions on its nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. Iran held elections in 2016 for the AOE and Majles, resulting in a conservative-controlled AOE and a Majles that many Iranians perceive as more supportive of the Ruhani administration than the previous, conservative-dominated body. Iran will hold presidential elections in May 2017. Ruhani is currently favored to win a second term.
Geography of Iran
Where on the globe is Iran? The location of this country is Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan. Total area of Iran is 1,648,195 sq km, of which 1,531,595 sq km is land. So this is very large country. How could we describe the terrain of the country? This way: rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts. The lowest point of Iran is Caspian Sea -28 m, the highest point Kuh-e Damavand 5,625 m. And the climate is mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast.
Inhabitants of Iran
Let's take a look how many people live in Iran. The number is: 82,021,564 (July 2017 est.). So this country is among the most populous in the World. Who lives here? Persian, Azeri, Kurd, Lur, Baloch, Arab, Turkmen and Turkic tribes. What are the languages in Iran? Persian (official), Azeri Turkic and Turkic dialects, Kurdish, Gilaki and Mazandarani, Luri, Balochi, Arabic, othe. And the religions: Muslim (official) 99.4% (Shia 90-95%, Sunni 5-10%), other (includes Zoroastrian, Jewish, and Christian) 0.3%, unspecified 0.4% (2011 est.). How old are the people in average? 30.3 years. We have to add that this number is the median - so one half of the people is older than this, one half is younger. And what is their life expectancy (at birth)? This: 74 years. Where the people live in Iran? Here: population is concentrated in the north, northwest, and west, reflecting the position of the Zagros and Elburz Mountains; the vast dry areas in the center and eastern parts of the country, around the deserts of the Dasht-e Kavir and Dasht-e Lut, have a much lower population density. The major urban areas of Iran are: Tehran (capital) 8.432 million; Mashhad 3.014 million; Esfahan 1.88 million; Karaj 1.807 million; Shiraz 1.661 million; Tabriz 1.572 million (2015).
Government and Economy of Iran
The capital of Iran is Tehran and the government type theocratic republic. Let's take a look at the administrative divisions - 31 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Alborz, Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi (West Azerbaijan), Azarbayjan-e Sharqi (East Azerbaijan), Bushehr, Chahar Mahal va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan-e Jonubi (South Khorasan), Khorasan-e Razavi (Razavi Khorasan), Khorasan-e Shomali (North Khorasan), Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Bowyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan. Regarding the economy of Iran, important industrial products are petroleum, petrochemicals, gas, fertilizer, caustic soda, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), ferrous and nonferrous metal fabrication, armaments. Important agricultural products are wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, sugarcane, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; cavia. The most important export commodities are petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets, cement, ore and the most important export partners are China 30.1%, India 16.7%, South Korea 9.7%, Turkey 9.5%, Japan 6.8% (2016). The most important import commodities are industrial supplies, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services and the most important import partners are UAE 27.4%, China 13.2%, Turkey 7.8%, South Korea 4.3%, Germany 4% (2016). How rich is Iran and how rich are people in this country? The most important number here is GDP per capita (PPP): $20,000 (2017 est.). This is quite good. Let's add that this means Gross Domestic Product per person, which is recalculated with respect to the relative cost of local goods and services. And one more important number - population below poverty line: 18.7% (2007 est.).