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About Iran
Iran, also known as Persia officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (Persian:
Jomhuri-ye Eslāmi-ye Irān), is a sovereign state in Western Asia. With over 81
million inhabitants, Iran is the world's 18th-most-populous country. Comprising
a land area of 1,648,195 km2 (636,372 sq mi), it is the second-largest country
in the Middle East and the 17th-largest in the world. Iran is bordered to the
northwest by Armenia and the Republic of Azerbaijan, to the north by the Caspian
Sea, to the northeast by Turkmenistan, to the east by Afghanistan and Pakistan,
to the south by the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, and to the west by Turkey
and Iraq. The country's central location in Eurasia and Western Asia, and its
proximity to the Strait of Hormuz, give it geostrategic importance. Tehran is
the country's capital and largest city, as well as its leading economic and
cultural center.
Iran is home to one of the world's oldest civilizations, beginning with the
formation of the Elamite kingdoms in the fourth millennium BC. It was first
unified by the Iranian Medes in the seventh century BC and reached its greatest
extent during the Achaemenid Empire founded by Cyrus the Great in the sixth
century BC, stretching from Eastern Europe to the Indus Valley, becoming a
larger empire than previously ever existed in the world. The Iranian realm fell
to Alexander the Great in the fourth century BC, but reemerged shortly after as
the Parthian Empire, followed by the Sasanian Empire, which became a leading
world power for the next four centuries.
Arab Muslims conquered the empire in the seventh century AD, ultimately leading
to the displacement of the indigenous faiths of Zoroastrianism and Manichaeism
with Islam. Iran made major contributions to the Islamic Golden Age that
followed, producing many influential figures in art and science. After two
centuries, a period of various native Muslim dynasties began, which were later
conquered by the Turks and the Mongols. The rise of the Safavids in the 15th
century led to the reestablishment of a unified Iranian state and national
identity, which followed the country's conversion to Shia Islam, marking a
turning point in Iranian and Muslim history. By the 18th century, under Nader
Shah, Iran briefly possessed what was arguably the most powerful empire at the
time. The 19th-century conflicts with the Russian Empire led to significant
territorial losses. Popular unrest culminated in the Constitutional Revolution
of 1906, which established a constitutional monarchy and the country's first
legislature. Following the coup of 1953, which was instigated by the United
Kingdom and the United States, Iran gradually became closely aligned with the
West, and grew increasingly autocratic. Growing dissent against foreign
influence and political repression led to the 1979 Revolution, which followed
the establishment of an Islamic republic, a political system which includes
elements of a parliamentary democracy vetted and supervised by a theocracy
governed by an autocratic "Supreme Leader". During the 1980s, the country was
engaged in a war with Iraq, which lasted for almost nine years and resulted in a
high number of casualties and financial loss for both sides.
Iran is a founding member of the UN, ECO, NAM, OIC, and OPEC. It is a major
regional and middle power and its large reserves of fossil fuels – which include
the world's largest natural gas supply and the fourth-largest proven oil
reserves – exert considerable influence in international energy security and the
world economy.
The country's rich cultural legacy is reflected in part by its 22 UNESCO World
Heritage Sites, the third-largest number in Asia and eleventh-largest in the
world. Iran is a multicultural country comprising numerous ethnic and linguistic
groups, the largest being Persians (61%), Azeris (16%), Kurds (10%), and Lurs
(6%).
CLIMATE
Having 11 climates out of the world's 13, Iran's climate is diverse, ranging
from arid and semi-arid, to subtropical along the Caspian coast and the northern
forests. On the northern edge of the country (the Caspian coastal plain),
temperatures rarely fall below freezing and the area remains humid for the rest
of the year. Summer temperatures rarely exceed 29 °C (84.2 °F). Annual
precipitation is 680 mm (26.8 in) in the eastern part of the plain and more than
1,700 mm (66.9 in) in the western part. Gary Lewis, the United Nations Resident
Coordinator for Iran, has said that "Water scarcity poses the most severe human
security challenge in Iran today".
To the west, settlements in the Zagros basin experience lower temperatures,
severe winters with below zero average daily temperatures and heavy snowfall.
The eastern and central basins are arid, with less than 200 mm (7.9 in) of rain
and have occasional deserts. Average summer temperatures rarely exceed 38 °C
(100.4 °F). The coastal plains of the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman in southern
Iran have mild winters, and very humid and hot summers. The annual precipitation
ranges from 135 to 355 mm (5.3 to 14.0 in).
FAUNA
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The wildlife of Iran is composed of several animal species, including bears, the
Eurasian lynx, foxes, gazelles, gray wolves, jackals, panthers, and wild pigs.
Other domestic animals of Iran include Asian water buffaloes, camels, cattle,
donkeys, goats, horses, and the sheep. Eagles, falcons, partridges, pheasants,
and storks are also native to the wildlife of Iran.
One of the most famous members of the Iranian wildlife is the critically
endangered Asiatic cheetah, also known as the Iranian cheetah, whose numbers
were greatly reduced after the 1979 Revolution. The Persian leopard, which is
the world's largest leopard subspecies living primarily in northern Iran, is
also listed as an endangered species. Iran lost all its Asiatic lions and the
now extinct Caspian tigers by the earlier part of the 20th century. |
 Iranian Female Cheetah |
RELIGION
Historically, early Iranian religions such as the Proto-Iranic religion and the subsequent Zoroastrianism and Manichaeism were the dominant religions in Iran, particularly during the Median, Achaemenid, Parthian, and Sasanian eras. This changed after the fall of the Sasanian Empire by the centuries-long Islamization that followed the Muslim Conquest of Iran. Iran was predominantly Sunni until the conversion of the country (as well as the people of what is today the neighboring Republic of Azerbaijan) to Shia Islam by the order of the Safavid dynasty in the 16th century.
Today, Twelver Shia Islam is the official state religion, to which about 90% to
95% of the population adhere. About 4% to 8% of the population are Sunni
Muslims, mainly Kurds and Baloches. The remaining 2% are non-Muslim religious
minorities, including Christians, Jews, Bahais, Mandeans, Yezidis, Yarsanis, and
Zoroastrians.
Judaism has a long history in Iran, dating back to the Achaemenid Conquest of
Babylonia. Although many left in the wake of the establishment of the State of
Israel and the 1979 Revolution, about 8,756 to 25,000 Jewish people live in
Iran. Iran has the largest Jewish population in the Middle East outside of
Israel.
Around 250,000 to 370,000 Christians reside in Iran, and Christianity is the
country's largest recognized minority religion. Most are of Armenian background,
as well as a sizable minority of Assyrians.
Christianity, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, and the Sunni branch of Islam are
officially recognized by the government and have reserved seats in the Iranian
Parliament.
The government has not released statistics regarding irreligiosity. However,
irreligious figures are growing and are higher in the diaspora, notably among
Iranian Americans.