Iran

Region: Middle East

Official language: Persian (Farsi)

Population: 87,590,873 (2023 est.)

Nationality: Iranian(s) (noun), Iranian (adjective)

Land area: 1,531,595 sq km (591,352 sq miles)

Water area: 116,600 sq km (45,019 sq miles)

Capital: Tehran

National anthem: "Soroud-e Melli-ye Jomhouri-ye Eslami-ye Iran" (National Anthem of the Islamic Republic of Iran), by Multiple Authors/Hassan Riahi

National holiday: Republic Day, April 1 (1979)

Population growth: .93% (2023 est.)

Time zone: UTC +3.5

Flag: The flag of Iran features three horizontal bands of color: green (top), white, and red (bottom). In the center of the white band rests Iran’s national emblem: a red, tulip-shaped symbol meant to represent the word “Allah” in a stylized fashion. The phrase “Allah Akbar,” or “God Is Great,” runs in white script along the bottom length of the green band and along the top length of the red band.

Independence: April 1, 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed); notable earlier dates: January 16, 1979 (Shah Reza Pahlavi flees Iran to escape popular political revolt against his rule); December 12, 1925 (modern Iran established under the Pahlavi Dynasty); 1905-1907 (constitutional revolution resulting in establishment of a parliament); A.D. 1501 (Iran reunified under the Safavid Dynasty)

Government type: theocratic republic

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Legal system: religious legal system based on secular and Islamic law

The proper name of Iran is the Islamic Republic of Iran. It is located in southwestern Asia, in the region known as the Middle East. Iran is bordered to the north by the Caspian Sea and Turkmenistan and to the northwest by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Turkey. Its western border is dominated by Iraq. The Persian Gulf stretches along its southwestern border, where it meets the Strait of Hormuz, which then meets the Gulf of Oman. Iran is bordered to the east by Afghanistan and to the southeast by Pakistan. Iran was known as Persia until 1935.

Note: unless otherwise indicated, statistical data in this article is sourced from the CIA World Factbook, as cited in the bibliography.

People and Culture

Population:Persians make up the majority of Iranians, but there are several other ethnic populations in Iran as well, including Azeri, Kurds, Lurs, Baloch, Arabs, Turkmen, and other Turkic tribes. Although Persian is the official language of Iran, there are many other languages and dialects spoken throughout the country, including Azeri Turkic, Kurdish, Gilaki and Mazandarani, Luri, Balochi, and Arabic.

An estimated 99.6 percent of Iran's population is Muslim—the vast majority are Shia Muslims, but Sunni Muslims account for 5 to 10 percent of the Muslim population. Religious minorities, primarily Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians, have a long history of living in Iran, but by the twenty-first century made up a very small percentage of Iran's population. Islam dominates Iranian social and political life.

In 2022, the majority of Iranians (approximately 77.3 percent) lived in urban areas. Iran's highest population density areas are in the north central and northwestern regions. While the birth rate slowed in the 2000s, Iran remains a young country, with a median age of 31.7 years in 2020. People in Iran have a life expectancy of 75.44 years (2023 estimate).

Iran is composed of thirty-one provinces. The capital and biggest city is Tehran, a city of approximately 9.5 million people (2023) that sits at the base of the Alborz mountain range in north central Iran, south of the Caspian Sea. Tehran may have been founded as long ago as the ninth century. It became the capital of Persia in 1795.

Other important cities in Iran are Mashhad, Esfahan, Karaj, Shiraz, and Tabriz. The 2021–2 United Nations Human Development Index ranked Iran at 76th out of 191 countries; this rank is based on such factors as life expectancy, adult literacy, and GDP per capita.

Education: Iranian students attend primary school for several years, then attend a middle school for three years to determine possible career paths, and then attend a four-year high school. A national college placement examination is given once yearly, and only a few thousand out of millions of applicants are placed in universities.

Iranian schools are guided by Islamic law and principles. All public school students must study Islam, and university applicants must pass an Islamic theology examination to be accepted at university. Some people both inside and outside Iran find this to be a discriminatory practice because it links religious preference to one's chances of receiving a higher education.

Iran boasts many prestigious universities and colleges, such as the University of Tehran, which claims to be the oldest and largest science, education, and research institution in Iran, and Sharif University of Technology.

The literacy rate in Iran is an estimated 88.7 percent (2021 estimate). Primary school net enrollment rate is 99.34 percent. Enrollment at secondary schools is about 72.68 percent for girls and about 72.37 percent for boys, based on data from 2015.

Health Care: The government of Iran provides all citizens with limited health care assistance. Since the 1979 revolution in Iran, the government has had great success in expanding the national health care system and promoting medical education among residents. The number of doctors and other health care workers in Iran has grown significantly, leading to better medical care generally throughout the country.

Despite these efforts, however, there are still millions of people without any type of medical coverage at all, and the majority of them live in rural areas.

Food: Common ingredients found in Iranian (often synonymous with Persian) cuisine are rice, herbs and spices such as coriander and mint, feta cheese, fruits such as dates and oranges, and meats such as lamb and beef. Tea is commonly served at meals. Popular dishes include kebabs (meat, vegetables, and other ingredients served on a skewer), polow (a rice dish), kookoo (souffles), and stews.

Ingredients in Iranian recipes are often symbolic; therefore, a "hot" ingredient may be combined with a "cold" ingredient to create a balanced dish. Iranians, like most other people, favor their own native cuisine, but globalization has brought many outside foods to the Iranian diet, including Western-style fast food.

To be a guest in an Iranian home is a privilege: one is seated in the most comfortable place at the table and served the best foods in the household. Many Iranians pride themselves on their excellent hospitality.

Arts & Entertainment: Persian culture and Iranian culture are intertwined. Traditional Persian arts still practiced in Iran today include carpet weaving, calligraphy, metal engraving, and pottery. Iranian craftsmen, as well as their fine works, are renowned throughout the world. Many examples of Persian carpets, engravings, paintings, and other graphic works are on display in such museums as the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts, and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England.

Persians developed their own forms of classical music and folk music as well. The classical musical style of musiqui-e assil combines such instruments as the dulcimer, drums, and flutes. Much of Iranian folk music is derived from styles that originated in the province of Mazandaran: Amiri and najma are two popular styles that are still in use. Iran has also embraced many Western forms as well, including electronic and techno music and rock music, although these may appear somewhat irreverent in the eyes of fundamentalist Muslims and occasionally draw criticism or even censorship from the Iranian government.

While drama has not traditionally held a prominent place in Iranian culture, its importance is growing as the Iranian theater evolves. Ta'zieh theater, a type of religious-themed play, has been popular for centuries, while more Western-based theater has only been in existence in Iran for a few decades.

An area of Iranian arts that has received a significant amount of attention in recent years is the cinema. Directors such as Mohsen Makhmalbaf and Bahman Ghobadi have achieved international recognition at such prominent venues as the Cannes Film Festival in France; Abbas Kiarostami was also a popular director. Iranian cinema has been recognized for ingenuity in cinematography, scriptwriting, and acting.

Literature has always been a significant part of Iranian culture. Important Iranian authors include the classical poets Ferdowsi, Omar Khayyam, and Rumi, and such modern writers as the novelist Bozorg Alavi, Ahmed Shamlou, and Sadegh Hedayat.

Iranians enjoy football (soccer). It is a very popular sport and a source of great pride among Iranians. Other popular sports in Iran include polo, wrestling, and weightlifting. Equestrian sports are also very popular.

Holidays: Iran celebrates several national holidays each year, such as Nowruz (March 21), which is the Persian New Year, Islamic Republic Day (April 1), Death of Imam Khomeini (June 3), and a holiday celebrating the nationalization of the oil industry in 1950 (March 19).

Religious holidays include celebrations of the birth of the prophet Mohammed (April 19), the birthday of Imam Ali (August 30) and the martyrdom of several important imams.

Environment and Geography

Topography: Iran is a mountainous country with a central basin region. Its topography includes deserts, mountains, and valleys. The Zagros Mountain range stretches 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) from the northwest section to the southeast, taking up most of the western part of the country.

The Alborz Mountain range stretches 600 kilometers (400 miles) along the northern border with the Caspian Sea. Within the Alborz range is Mount Damavand, which, at 5671 meters (18,605 feet), is the highest point in the country.

The eastern border of Iran has some highlands. The Central Plateau is surrounded on three sides by mountains

Although there are many rivers and streams in Iran, only one is considered navigable, the Karun. Three rivers (the Aras, the Atrek, and the Shatt al Arab) form part of Iran's international borders.

Natural Resources: Iran's natural resources include petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, and lead. Air pollution from vehicle emissions is a major problem in high-density areas such as Tehran; factory and refinery emissions also contribute to air pollution.

Iran also experiences environmental problems from deforestation, oil spills into the Persian Gulf, and soil degradation. Water contamination is a source of ongoing concern to environmentalists working in Iran.

Plants & Animals: Iran is home to a diverse plant and animal population. Common plants found throughout the mountainous regions include beech, oak, and conifer trees, as well as date, walnut, Siberian elm, fig, and pomegranate trees. In more arid regions, cactus and scrub plants are common. Of the nearly 8,000 species of plants in Iran, only two are considered threatened, while around one hundred species of plants once found in the country are now extinct.

Common animals found in Iran include species of rabbits, fox, wolf, hyena, and sheep. Iran is home to about 500 bird species, including Pleskie's ground jay and the Siberian crane.

Climate: Iran is an arid country, with subtropical regions near the coast of the Caspian Sea. Rainfall is variable throughout the country: it is most common between October and April, with an average rainfall of around 25 centimeters (about 10 inches). Precipitation varies according to the region, with the mountains receiving about 50 centimeters (20 inches) per year, and 100 centimeters (40 inches) falling each year in the Caspian region.

The climate in Iran varies by region. In Tehran, which lies at the base of Alborz mountain range in the north central region, temperatures range between 5 degrees and 30 degrees Celsius (41 degrees and 88 degrees Fahrenheit). In Tabriz, in the far northwest of the country, temperatures range between 0 degrees and 26 degrees Celsius (32 degrees and 78 degrees Fahrenheit) with more annual snowfall on average than Tehran.

Economy

Iran's gross domestic product (GDP) in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP) was estimated at US$1.32 trillion in 2021. The per capita GDP that year was $15,000.

Iran suffers from high unemployment, particularly among young people. The unemployment rate for people between the ages of fifteen and twenty-four in Iran was estimated at 27.2 percent in 2021; the overall unemployment rate that year peaked at 11.46 percent.

Iran's most important export is petroleum, which accounts for around 60 percent of exports. Other important exports are chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets, cement, and ore. Iran exports most of its goods to China, India, South Korea, Turkey, Italy, and Japan. International sanctions led by the United States have, at times, contributed to serious strain on the Iranian economy and hampered international trade.

Industry: Most industry in Iran is state-controlled, although during the twenty-first century the government made efforts to sell off many state-owned businesses. It is considered a semideveloped nation according to international standards. The petroleum industry in Iran contributes the largest share of government revenue. Other most important industries in Iran are the service sector, mining and manufacturing, and agriculture as well as petrochemicals, textiles, and food processing.

Agriculture: Iran produces a wide variety of agricultural products, including wheat, rice, caviar, and various fruits (dates, figs, pomegranates); dried fruits and nuts are the country's major cash crops. Mutton, lamb, and poultry account for major livestock production.

Tourism: The tourism industry in Iran experienced a difficult period following the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and the subsequent war with Iraq. However, more than 6 million tourists were expected to visit the country in 2019, mostly from Muslim neighbors like Iraq, Azerbaijan, and Turkey. In 2019, travel and tourism accounted for a total of 6.8 percent of GDP. However, the COVID-19 pandemic, which began in 2020, negatively impacted the country's tourism sector. Violent government repression of protests, as well as regional instability, continued to impact the industry throughout the early 2020s.

Major attractions in Iran include the ancient cities of Persepolis and Hamadan; Shiraz and Esfahan, both former Persian capitals; seaside resorts along the Caspian coast; decorative arts and cultural museums in most major cities throughout the country; and a host of beautiful mosques in all population centers, some dating as far back as the earliest days of Islam. Iran is also well known for its gardens.

Government

Because of the close ties between religion and government in Iran, the country is considered a theocratic republic. The constitution of Iran was created in 1979 when Iran was declared an Islamic republic during the revolution. The government has authoritarian tendencies and has on multiple occasions violent quelled protest movements, including massive protests in 2022 and 2023 in response to the death of a young Kurdish woman, Mahsa Amini, who had died after being arrested for allegedly not wearing a hijab.

The office of prime minister was abolished in 1989 and the powers of the president expanded. Iran is governed by the Supreme Leader, who is the highest religious and political leader; he oversees the military and the intelligence services, and is elected by the Assembly of Experts to serve for life.

Second in command is the president, who acts as the highest governmental figure in Iran; the president is elected by national election to a four-year term, as are members of the Parliament, or Majles. The president is served by multiple vice presidents. The Council of Guardians interprets sharia law (or law that is in line with the tenets of Islam).

In Iranian politics, political parties appear to be less persuasive in advancing agendas and special issues for consideration than are the special interest and pressure groups operating across the political spectrum. These include both religious and secular groups.

Following the joint covert efforts of the United States and Great Britain to overthrow the government of Prime Minister Mohammed Mossadegh in 1953, Shah Mohammed Reza Pahlavi was restored to power; this led to resentment among many Iranians toward any Western influence in Iran. It also stirred anger toward the Shah, who was seen as decadent (or immoral) because of his personal wealth and relations with Western powers such as the United States, and was also opposed by many due to his despotic rule. In the late 1970s, this anger boiled to the surface, particularly among students and religious fundamentalists. In 1979, the Shah was overthrown and the Islamic Republic of Iran was created, with Ayatollah Khomeini as the country's first supreme leader.

Between 1980 and 1988, Iran was engaged in a war against Iraq, its neighbor to the west. The conflict derived from territorial disputes, the threat posed to Iraq by the establishment of an Islamic republic in Iran, and the Iraqi perception that Iran was weak.

Since the time of the Iranian revolution and subsequent hostage crisis, during which employees of the US Embassy were held hostage by the Iranian government, Iran and the US have had a contentious relationship. Iran has long faced sanctions from the US and was named as part of US president George W. Bush’s “axis of evil” following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, along with North Korea and Iraq. Following the US invasion of Iraq, Iran was accused by US officials of providing support of Shiite insurgent groups in Iraq, which carried out attacks on both US forces and Sunni Iraqi civilians. In subsequent decades, Iran continued to face accusations that it supported armed separatists and terror groups throughout the Middle East.

In addition, the Iranian government continued to defy demands by the United Nations to stop development of its nuclear technology systems. Iran claims it has a right to develop nuclear power capabilities, but the United States and its supporters in the United Nations continued to accuse Iran of developing nuclear weapons technology. In 2015, Iran, the United States, and five other world powers reached an agreement regarding the future of Iran's nuclear program. This deal stipulated that Iran would severely reduce its stockpile of uranium as well as the number of centrifuges installed at its facilities, and that the country's nuclear sites would be consistently monitored by a global nuclear watchdog organization. In 2018, during the presidency of Donald Trump, the US withdrew from the agreement, which helped pave the way for increased tensions between Iran and the US into the early 2020s.

In May 2024, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian died in a helicopter crash in the mountains of northwestern Iran. Iranian officials later announced that the crash was caused by technical problems.

Interesting Facts

• Iran is slightly smaller than the US state of Alaska.
• Persian civilization dates back to the seventh century BCE.
• Iranians use a solar calendar which is significantly different from the Gregorian calendar used by much of the world; additionally, the Iranian calendar, known as the Solar Hijiri calendar, is one of the oldest calendars still in common use.
• Women in Iran (citizens and visitors) are required by law to wear a hijab, a traditional Islamic head covering.

Bibliography

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Human Development Insights, United Nations Development Programme, Sept. 2022, hdr.undp.org/data-center/country-insights#/ranks. Accessed 17 Nov. 2023.

"Iran." The World Factbook, Central Intelligence Agency, 14 Nov. 2023, www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/iran/. Accessed 17 Nov. 2023.

"Iran Country Profile." BBC News, 6 Sep. 2023, www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14541327. Accessed 17 Nov. 2023.

"Iran, Islamic Rep." The World Bank, 2022, data.worldbank.org/country/iran-islamic-rep. Accessed 17 Nov. 2023.

“Iran (Islamic Republic of).” Human Development Reports, United Nations Development Programme, 2020, hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/Country-Profiles/IRN.pdf. Accessed 2 June 2022.

"Iran: 2020 Annual Research: Key Highlights." World Travel and Tourism Council, 2020, wttc.org/Research/Economic-Impact. Accessed 8 Oct. 2020.

Maloney, Suzanne, and Keian Razipour. "The Iranian Revolution—a Timeline of Events." Brookings Institute, 24 Jan. 2019, www.brookings.edu/blog/order-from-chaos/2019/01/24/the-iranian-revolution-a-timeline-of-events/. Accessed 2 June 2022.