Iran

Coordinates: 32°N 53°E / 32°N 53°E / 32; 53
Page semi-protected
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Islamic Republic of Iran
جمهوری اسلامی ایران (Persian)
Jomhuri-ye Eslâmi-ye Irân
Motto: استقلال، آزادی، جمهوری اسلامی
Esteqlâl, Âzâdi, Jomhuri-ye Eslâmi
"Independence, freedom, the Islamic Republic"
(de facto)[1]
Anthem: سرود ملی جمهوری اسلامی ایران
Sorud-e Melli-ye Jomhuri-ye Eslâmi-ye Irân
"National Anthem of the Islamic Republic of Iran"
Capital
and largest city
Tehran
35°41′N 51°25′E / 35.683°N 51.417°E / 35.683; 51.417
Official languagesPersian
Recognised regional languages
Ethnic groups
(2003 estimate)[5]
Demonym(s)Iranian
GovernmentUnitary presidential theocratic Islamic republic
Ali Khamenei
• President
Ebrahim Raisi
Mohammad Mokhber
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf
Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i
Ahmad Jannati
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian
LegislatureIslamic Consultative Assembly
Establishment history
c. 3200 BC
c. 678 BC
550 BC
247 BC
224 AD
819
934
1501
1736
1751
1796
15 December 1925
11 February 1979
3 December 1979
28 July 1989
Area
• Total
1,648,195 km2 (636,372 sq mi) (17th)
• Water (%)
1.63 (as of 2015)[6]
Population
• 2024 estimate
89,658,000[7] (17th)
• Density
55/km2 (142.4/sq mi) (132nd)
GDP (PPP)2023 estimate
• Total
Increase $1,808 trillion[8] (19th)
• Per capita
Increase $19,942[8] (78th)
GDP (nominal)2022 estimate
• Total
Increase 594,892 billions[9] (21nd)
• Per capita
Increase $4,234[8] (120th)
Gini (2019)40.9[10]
medium
HDI (2022)Increase 0.780[11]
high (78th)
CurrencyIranian rial (ریال) (IRR)
Time zoneUTC+3:30 (IRST)
Date formatyyyy/mm/dd (SH)
Driving sideright
Calling code+98
ISO 3166 codeIR
Internet TLD

Iran,[a] also known as Persia[b] and officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI),[c] is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Iraq to the west and Turkey to the northwest, Azerbaijan, Armenia, the Caspian Sea and Turkmenistan to the north, Afghanistan to the east, Pakistan to the southeast, the Gulf of Oman & the Persian Gulf to the south. With almost 90 million people in an area of 1.648 million square kilometres (0.64 million square miles), Iran ranks 17th in the world in both geographic size and population. The country is divided into five regions with 31 provinces. The nation's capital and most populous city is Tehran, with around 16 million people in its metropolitan area, other major urban centres include Mashhad, Isfahan, Karaj, and Shiraz.

Iran is one of the world's oldest civilizations, beginning with the Elamites in the fourth millennium BC. It was first unified by the Medes in the seventh century BC and reached its territorial height in the sixth century BC, when Cyrus the Great founded the Achaemenid Empire, one of the largest empires in antiquity. Alexander the Great conquered the empire in the fourth century BC, and it was subsequently divided into several Hellenistic states. An Iranian rebellion established the Parthian Empire in the third century BC, which was succeeded in the third century AD by the Sasanian Empire. Arab Muslims conquered the region in the seventh century AD, leading to its Islamization. Iran became a major centre of Islamic culture and learning, and its culture, language, and customs spread across the Muslim world. A series of native Iranian Muslim dynasties ruled the country until the Seljuk and the Mongol conquests of the 11th to 14th centuries. In the 16th century, the native Safavids re-established a unified Iranian state with Twelver Shia Islam as the official religion, marking the beginning of modern Iranian history.

Under Nader Shah Afshar in the 18th century, Iran was a leading world power, though by the 19th century, it had lost significant territory through a series of conflicts with the Russian Empire. The early 20th century saw the Persian Constitutional Revolution, the establishment of the Pahlavi dynasty, and efforts at modernization. Attempts to nationalise the country's vast fossil fuel supply led to an Anglo-American coup in 1953. After the Iranian Revolution, the monarchy was overthrown in and the Islamic Republic of Iran was established by Ruhollah Khomeini, who became the country's first supreme leader. Iran is officially governed as an Islamic Republic with a presidential system, albeit with ultimate authority vested in a theocratic supreme leader (rahbar), currently Ali Khamenei since Khomeini's death in 1989. The Iranian government is authoritarian and has attracted widespread criticism for its constraints and violations of human rights.

Iran is a major emerging, middle and regional power, due to its large reserves of fossil fuels, including the world's second largest natural gas supply, third largest proven oil reserves, its strategic location in the Asian continent, its military capabilities, its regional influence, and its role as the world's focal point of Shia Islam. It is a founding member of the United Nations, the ECO, the OIC, the OPEC, the SCO, the G77, and a member of BRICS.[13] Owing it to its long history and rich cultural legacy, Iran is home to 27 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, the 10th highest number in the world, and ranks 5th globally in the number inscriptions of Intangible Cultural Heritage, or human treasures.[14][15] The people of Iran are multicultural and comprise a wide variety of ethnic, linguistic, and religious groups.

Etymology

Inscription of Ardeshir Babakan (ruling 224–242) in Naqsh-e Rostam
The well-preserved Inscription of Ardashir Babakan (224–242 AD) in Naqsh-e Rostam: "This is the figure of Mazdaworshipper, the lord Ardashir, King of Iran." [16]

The term Iran ("the land of the Aryans") derives from Middle Persian Ērān, first attested in a third-century inscription at Naqsh-e Rostam, with the accompanying Parthian inscription using Aryān, in reference to the Iranians.[17] The terms Ērān and Aryān are oblique plural forms of gentilic nouns ēr- (Middle Persian) and ary- (Parthian), both deriving from Proto-Iranian language *arya- (meaning "Aryan", i.e. "of the Iranians"),[17][18] recognised as a derivative of Proto-Indo-European language *ar-yo-, meaning "one who assembles (skilfully)".[19] According to Iranian mythology, the name comes from Iraj, a legendary king.[20]

Historically, Iran has been referred to as "Persia" by the West,[21][22] due mainly to the writings of Greek historians who referred to all of Iran as "Persís" (Ancient Greek: Περσίς),[23] meaning "the land of the Persians".[24] "Persia" is the Fars province in southwest Iran, also known as "Pârs".[25] The Persian word "Fârs" (فارس), derived from the earlier form "Pârs" (پارس), which is in turn derived from Pârsâ (Old Persian: 𐎱𐎠𐎼𐎿). Due to the province's historical importance,[26][27] the term "Persia" originated from this region by the Greeks in around 550 BC[28], and Westerners started to refer the entire country as "Persia",[29][30] until 1935, when Reza Pahlavi requested the international community to refer to the country by its native and original name, Iran.[31][32] While the Iranians had been calling their nation Iran since at least 1000 BC, this name change was only made so that the Western World would begin to refer to the country by the same name as its people.[33] Today, both Iran and Persia are used in cultural contexts, while Iran remains mandatory in official state contexts.[34][35][36][37][38][39]

The Persian pronunciation of Iran is [ʔiːˈɾɒːn]. Common Commonwealth English pronunciations of Iran are listed in the Oxford English Dictionary as /ɪˈrɑːn/ and /ɪˈræn/,[40] while American English dictionaries such as Merriam-Webster's provide pronunciations which map to /ɪˈrɑːn, -ˈræn, ˈræn/,[41] or likewise in Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary as /ɪˈræn, ɪˈrɑːn, ˈræn/. The Cambridge Dictionary lists /ɪˈrɑːn/ as the British pronunciation and /ɪˈræn/ as the American pronunciation. The pronunciation guide from Voice of America also provides /ɪˈrɑːn/.[42] The American English pronunciation /ˈræn/ may be heard in U.S. media.

History

Prehistory

Chogha Zanbil (14th-13th century BC), an ancient Elamite complex in Khuzestan, built by Untash-Napirisha. UNESCO World Heritage Site.[43]

The earliest attested archaeological artifacts in Iran confirm human presence since the Lower Palaeolithic.[44] Iran's Neanderthal artifacts have been found mainly in the Zagros region, at sites such as Warwasi and Yafteh.[45][46][47] From the tenth to the seventh millennium BC, early agricultural communities began to flourish in and around the Zagros region, including Chogha Golan,[48][49] Chogha Bonut,[50][51] and Chogha Mish.[52][53][54][55] The occupation of grouped hamlets in the area of Susa ranges from 4395 to 3490 BC.[56] There are dozens of prehistoric sites across the Iranian Plateau, pointing to the existence of ancient cultures and urban settlements in the fourth millennium BC.[55][57][58] During the Bronze Age, the territory was home to several civilizations,[59][60] including Elam, Jiroft, and Zayanderud. Elam, the most prominent of these, developed in the southwest alongside those in Mesopotamia, and continued its existence until the emergence of the Iranian empires. The advent of writing in Elam was parallelled to Sumer; the Elamite cuneiform developed beginning in the third millennium BC.[61]

Diverse artifacts from The Bronze Age, huge structures from the Iron Age and various sites dating back to the Sassanid, Parthian and Islamic eras indicated suitable conditions for human civilization over the past 8,000 years in Piranshahr.[62][63]

From the 34th to the 20th century BC, northwestern Iran was part of the Kura-Araxes culture, which stretched into the neighbouring Caucasus and Anatolia. Since the earliest second millennium BC, Assyrians settled in swaths of western Iran and incorporated the region into their territories.

Ancient Iran

Inscription of Ardeshir Babakan (ruling 224–242) in Naqsh-e Rostam
Ecbatana (present-day Hamadan) was chosen as the capital of the Medes Empire by Deioces, in 678 BC.

By the second millennium BC, the ancient Iranian peoples arrived in what is now Iran from the Eurasian Steppe,[64] rivalling the native settlers of the region.[65][66] As the Iranians dispersed into the wider area of Greater Iran and beyond, the boundaries of modern Iran were dominated by Median, Persian, and Parthian tribes.

From the late tenth to the late seventh century BC, the Iranian peoples, together with the "pre-Iranian" kingdoms, fell under the domination of the Assyrian Empire, based in northern Mesopotamia.[67][68] Under king Cyaxares, the Medes and Persians entered into an alliance with Babylonian ruler Nabopolassar, as well as the fellow Iranian Scythians and Cimmerians, and together they attacked the Assyrian Empire. Civil war ravaged the Assyrian Empire between 616 and 605 BC, freeing their respective peoples from three centuries of Assyrian rule.[67] The unification of the Median tribes under king Deioces in 728 BC led to the foundation of the Median Empire and their capital Ecbatana, which by 612 BC, controlled almost the entire territory of present-day Iran and eastern Anatolia.[69] This marked the end of the Kingdom of Urartu, which was subsequently conquered and dissolved.[70][71] In 550 BC, Cyrus the Great took over the Median Empire, and founded the Achaemenid Empire by unifying other city-states. The conquest of Media was a result of what is called the Persian Revolt. Later conquests under Cyrus and his successors expanded the empire to include Lydia, Babylon, Egypt, parts of the Balkans and Eastern Europe, as well as lands to the west of the Indus and Oxus rivers. In 539 BC Persian forces defeated the Babylonian army at Opis, marking the end of around four centuries of Mesopotamian domination of the region by conquering the Neo-Babylonian Empire.[72][73]

Persepolis, the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire (550–330 BC). It is one of the key Iranian Cultural Heritages.
The Achaemenid Empire at its greatest extent, around the time of Darius the Great and Xerxes I.

In 518 BC, Persepolis was founded by Darius the Great as the ceremonial capital of the Achaemenid Empire which, at its greatest extent, was the largest empire the world had yet seen,[73] and at its peak it ruled over 44% of the world's population.[74] The Achaemenid Empire is noted for the release of the Jewish exiles in Babylon,[75] building infrastructures such as the Royal Road and the Chapar (postal service), and the use of an official language, Imperial Aramaic.[73] In 334 BC, Alexander the Great defeated the last Achaemenid emperor, Darius III, at the Battle of Issus. Following the premature death of Alexander, Iran came under the control of the Hellenistic Seleucid Empire.

In the middle of the second century BC, the Parthian Empire rose to become the main power in Iran, and the century-long geopolitical arch-rivalry between the Romans and the Parthians began, culminating in the Roman–Parthian Wars. The Parthian Empire continued as a feudal monarchy for nearly five centuries, until 224 CE, when it was succeeded by the Sasanian Empire.[76] They and their neighbouring arch-rival, the Roman-Byzantines, were the world's two dominant powers for over four centuries.[77][78]

The Sasanians established an empire within the frontiers achieved by the Achaemenids, with their capital at Ctesiphon. Late antiquity is considered one of Iran's most influential periods, as under the Sasanians,[79] their influence reached ancient Rome (and through that as far as Western Europe),[80][81] Africa,[82] China, and India,[83] and played a prominent role in the formation of the mediaeval art of both Europe and Asia.[77][78]

Mediaeval period and Iranian Intermezzo

Falak-ol-Aflak in Khorramabad, built in 240–270 AD during the Sasanian Empire.
The Sasanian Empire (224–651 AD) in 620 at its greatest extent, under Khosrow II.

The prolonged Byzantine–Sasanian wars, most importantly the climactic war of 602–628, as well as the social conflict within the Sasanian Empire, opened the way for an Arab invasion in the seventh century.[84][85] The empire was initially defeated by the Rashidun Caliphate, which was succeeded by the Umayyad Caliphate, followed by the Abbasid Caliphate. A proloynged and gradual process of state-imposed Islamization followed, which targeted Iran's then Zoroastrian majority and included religious persecution,[86][87][88] demolition of libraries[89] and fire temples,[90] a special tax penalty ("jizya"),[91][92] and language shift.[93][94]

In 750, the Abbasids overthrew the Umayyads.[95] Arabs Muslims and Persians of all strata made up the rebel army, which was united by the converted Persian Muslim, Abu Muslim.[96][97][98] In their struggle for power, society gradually became cosmopolitan. Persians and Turks began to replace Arabs in most fields. A hierarchy of officials emerged, a bureaucracy at first Persian and later Turkish which decreased Abbasid prestige and power for good.[99]

After two centuries of Arab rule, various native semi-independent and independent Iranian dynasties in the Iranian Plateau rose, namely the Tahirids, Saffarids, Sajids, Samanids, Ziyarids, Buyids, Sallarids, Rawadids, Marwanids, Shaddadids, Kakuyids, Annazids and Hasanwayhids, appearing on the fringes of the declining Abbasid Caliphate.[100] The period, known as the Iranian Intermezzo, was an interlude between the decline of Abbasid rule and power by Arabs and the "Sunni Revival" with the 11th-century emergence of the Seljuks. It consisted Iranian support based on Iranian territory, and most significantly a revived Iranian national spirit and culture in an Islamic form. It also revived the Persian language, with the most significant Persian-language literature from this period being Shahnameh by Ferdowsi, the country's national epic.[101][102][103][104]

Tomb of Ferdowsi, a 10th-century AD Persian poet and the author of Shahnameh, the national epic of Iran.
The Iranian Intermezzo (821–1055) saw the revival of Persian language, and a revived Iranian national spirit in an Islamic form.

The blossoming literature, philosophy, mathematics, medicine, astronomy and art became major elements in a new age for Iranian civilization, during a period known as the Islamic Golden Age.[105][106] The Islamic Golden Age reached its peak by the 10th and 11th centuries, during which Iran was the main theatre of scientific activities.[107] The tenth century saw a mass migration of Turkic tribes from Central Asia into the Iranian Plateau.[108] Turkic tribesmen were first used in the Abbasid army as mamluks (slave-warriors).[96] As a result, the Mamluks gained significant political power. In 999, large portions of Iran came briefly under the rule of the Ghaznavids, and longer subsequently under the Seljuk and Khwarezmian empires.[108] The Seljuks subsequently gave rise to the Sultanate of Rum in Anatolia.[109][110] The result of the adoption and patronage of Persian culture by Turkish rulers was the development of a distinct Turco-Persian tradition.

From 1219 to 1221, under the Khwarazmian Empire, Iran suffered a devastating invasion by the Mongol Empire. According to Steven R. Ward, "Mongol violence and depredations killed up to three-fourths of the population of the Iranian Plateau, possibly 10 to 15 million people. Some historians have estimated that Iran's population did not again reach its pre-Mongol levels until the mid-20th century."[111] Most modern historians either outright dismiss or are highly skeptical of such statistics and deem them to be exaggerations by Muslim chroniclers of that era. Indeed, as far as the Iranian plateau was concerned, the bulk of the Mongol onslaught and battles were in the northeast Iran, such as in the cities of Nishapur and Tus.[112][113][114]

Following the fracture of the Mongol Empire in 1256, Hulagu Khan established the Ilkhanate Empire in Iran. In 1357, the capital Tabriz was occupied by the Golden Horde khan Jani Beg and the centralised power collapsed, resulting in the emergence of rivalling dynasties. In 1370, yet another conqueror, Timur, took control over Iran, establishing the Timurid Empire. In 1387, Timur ordered the complete massacre of Isfahan, killing 70,000 citizens.[115]

Early modern period

Safavids

Ismail I, the founder of Safavid Empire

By the 1500s, Ismail I established the Safavid Empire,[116][117] with his capital at Tabriz.[108] Beginning with Azerbaijan, he extended his authority over the Iranian territories, and established an intermittent Iranian hegemony over large parts of Greater Iran.[118] Iran was predominantly Sunni,[119] but Ismail instigated a forced conversion to the Shia branch, marking one of the most important turning points in the history of Islam, and the beginning of modern Iranian history.[120][121][117][122][123] As a result, Iran is the only official Shia nation today, with it holding an absolute majority in Iran and the Republic of Azerbaijan.[124][125]

The relationship between the Safavids and the West begins with the presence of the Portuguese in the Persian Gulf from the 16th century, oscillating between alliances and open war between the 17th and 18th century. The Safavid era saw the start of mass integration from Caucasian populations and their mass resettlement within the heartlands of Iran. In 1588, Abbas the Great came to the throne during a troubled period. Under his leadership, Iran developed the ghilman system where thousands of Circassian, Georgian, and Armenian slave-soldiers joined the civil administration and the military. With the help of these newly created layers in Iranian society, Abbas eclipsed the power of the Qizilbash in the civil administration, the royal house, and the military. Abbas was a great builder and moved his capital from Qazvin to Isfahan, making the city the pinnacle of Safavid architecture. Tabriz was returned to Iran after 18 years of Ottoman rule. In his later years, following a court intrigue involving several leading Circassians, Abbas became suspicious of his own sons and had them killed or blinded. Following a gradual decline in the late 1600s and the early 1700s, which was caused by internal conflicts, the continuous wars with the Ottomans, and the foreign interference (most notably Russian), the Safavid rule was ended by the Pashtun rebels who besieged Isfahan and defeated Soltan Hoseyn in 1722.

Afsharids

The Afsharid Empire at its greatest extent, under Nader Shah Afshar (1741–1745)

In 1729, Nader Shah successfully drove out and conquered the Pashtun invaders. He took back the annexed Caucasian territories which were divided among the Ottoman and Russian authorities by the ongoing chaos in Iran. During the reign of Nader Shah, Iran reached its greatest extent since the Sasanian Empire, reestablishing Iranian hegemony over the Caucasus, as well as other major parts of west and central Asia, and briefly possessing arguably the most powerful empire at the time.[126][127][128][126]

Nader Shah invaded India and sacked Delhi by the late 1730s. His territorial expansion and military successes declined following the final campaigns in the Northern Caucasus against then revolting Lezgins. The assassination of Nader Shah sparked a brief period of civil war and turmoil, after which Karim Khan of the Zand dynasty came to power in 1750.[111]

Zands

The Zand Empire at its greatest extent, under Karim Khan (1751–1779)

Compared to its preceding dynasties, the geopolitical reach of the Zand dynasty was limited. Many of the Iranian territories in the Caucasus gained de facto autonomy and were locally ruled through Caucasian khanates. However, they remained subjects and vassals to the Zand king. It later quickly expanded to include much of the rest of contemporary Iran (except for the provinces of Balochistan and Khorasan) as well as parts of Iraq. The lands of present-day Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia were controlled by khanates which were de jure part of the Zand realm, but the region was de facto autonomous.[129] The island of Bahrain was also held for the Zands by the autonomous Al-Mazkur sheikhdom of Bushire.[130][131] The reign of its most important ruler, Karim Khan, was marked by prosperity and peace. With his capital in Shiraz, arts and architecture flourished, with some themes in architecture being revived from the nearby sites of the Achaemenid and Sasanian era's of pre-Islamic Iran. Another civil war ensued after the death of Karim Khan in 1779, out of which Agha Mohammad Khan emerged, founding the Qajar Empire in 1794.

Qajars

Map of Iran during the Qajar Empire in the 19th century, the international borders of today's Iran.

Agha Mohammad Khan's reign is noted for the return of a centralized and unified Iran and for relocating the capital to Tehran.[132] In 1795, following the disobedience of the Georgian subjects and their alliance with the Russians, the Qajars captured Tbilisi by the Battle of Krtsanisi, and drove the Russians out of the Caucasus, reestablishing Iranian suzerainty over the region. The Russo-Iranian wars of 1804–1813 and 1826–1828 resulted in large territorial losses for Iran in the Caucasus, comprising all of the South Caucasus and Dagestan.[127] As a result of the 19th-century Russo-Iranian wars, the Russians took over Iran's integral territories in the region (comprising modern-day Dagestan, Georgia, Armenia, and Republic of Azerbaijan), which was confirmed per the treaties of Gulistan and Turkmenchay.[128][133][134][135][136][137][138][139]

The weakening of Persia made it a victim of the colonial struggle between Russia and Britain known as the Great Game.[140] Especially after the treaty of Turkmenchay, Russia was the dominant force in Iran,[141] while the Qajars would also play a role in several 'Great Game' battles such as the sieges of Herat in 1837 and 1856. As Iran shrank, many South Caucasian and North Caucasian Muslims moved towards Iran,[142][143] especially until the aftermath of the Circassian genocide,[143] and the decades afterwards, while Iran's Armenians were encouraged to settle in the newly incorporated Russian territories,[144][145][146] causing significant demographic shifts. Around 1.5 million people—20 to 25% of the population of Iran—died as a result of the Great Famine of 1870–1872.[147]

Constitutional Revolution

The first national Iranian Parliament was established in 1906 during the Persian Constitutional Revolution.

Between 1872 and 1905, protesters objected to the sale of concessions to foreigners by Qajar monarchs Naser-ed-Din and Mozaffar-ed-Din, leading to the Constitutional Revolution in 1905. The first Iranian constitution and the first national parliament were founded in 1906, through the ongoing revolution. The Constitution included the official recognition of Iran's three religious minorities: Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians.[148] The struggle related to the constitutional movement was followed by the Triumph of Tehran in 1909, when Mohammad Ali Shah was forced to abdicate. In 1907, the Anglo-Russian Convention divided Qajar Iran into influence zones, formalising many of the concessions. On the pretext of restoring order, the Russians occupied northern Iran and Tabriz and maintained a military presence in the region for years. But this did not end the civil uprisings and was soon followed by Mirza Kuchik Khan's Jungle Movement against both the Qajar monarchy and foreign invaders.

Despite Iran's neutrality during World War I, the Ottoman, Russian, and British Empires occupied western Iran and fought the Persian campaign before fully withdrawing their forces in 1921. At least 2 million Persian civilians died in the fighting, the Ottoman-perpetrated anti-Christian genocides or the war-induced famine of 1917–1919. A large number of Iranian Assyrian and Iranian Armenian Christians, as well as those Muslims who tried to protect them, were victims of mass murders committed by the invading Ottoman troops.[149][150][151][152][153]

Apart from the rule of Agha Mohammad Khan, the Qajar rule is characterised as misrule.[108] The inability of Qajar Iran's government to maintain the country's sovereignty during and immediately after World War I led to the British-directed 1921 Persian coup d'état and Reza Shah's establishment of the Pahlavi dynasty. Reza Shah became Prime Minister and was declared monarch in 1925.

Pahlavis

The "Big Three" at the Tehran Conference in November 1943, Winston Churchill, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Joseph Stalin.

During World War II, in July and August 1941 the British demanded that the Iranian government expel all Germans. Reza Shah refused and on 25 August 1941, the British and Soviets launched a surprise invasion; Reza Shah's government quickly surrendered.[154] The invasion's strategic purpose was to secure a supply line to the USSR (later named the Persian Corridor), secure the oil fields and Abadan Refinery (of the UK-owned Anglo-Iranian Oil Company), prevent a German advance on Baku's oil fields, and limit German influence in Iran. Following the invasion, on 16 September 1941 Reza Shah abdicated and was replaced by Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.[155][156][157] Iran became a major conduit for British and American aid to the Soviet Union and an avenue through which over 120,000 Polish refugees and Polish Armed Forces fled the Axis advance.[158] At the 1943 Tehran Conference, the Allied "Big Three"—Joseph Stalin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Winston Churchill—issued the Tehran Declaration to guarantee the post-war independence and boundaries of Iran. However, at the end of the war, Soviet troops established two puppet states in north-western Iran: the People's Government of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Mahabad. This led to the Iran crisis of 1946, one of the first confrontations of the Cold War, which ended after oil concessions were promised to the USSR and Soviet forces withdrew in May 1946. The two puppet states were soon overthrown, and the oil concessions were later revoked.[159][160]

1951–1978: Mosaddegh, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi

Mohammad Mosaddegh, who nationalized the oil industry of Iran in 1951

In 1951, Mohammad Mosaddegh was elected Prime Minister of Iran. Mosaddegh became enormously popular after he nationalized the oil industry, which had been largely controlled by foreign interests. He worked to weaken the monarchy until he was removed in the 1953 Iranian coup d'état—initially an Anglo-American covert operation that marked the first time the US had participated in an overthrow of a foreign government during the Cold War.[161]

After the coup, the Shah became increasingly autocratic and sultanistic, and Iran entered a decades-long phase of controversially close relations with the United States and other foreign governments.[162] While the Shah increasingly modernised Iran and claimed to retain it as a fully secular state,[163] arbitrary arrests and torture by his secret police, the SAVAK, were used for crushing political opposition.[164]

Ruhollah Khomeini, a radical Muslim cleric,[165] became a critic of the Shah's reforms known as the White Revolution. Khomeini publicly denounced the government and was imprisoned for 18 months. After his release in 1964, he was eventually sent into exile.

Due to the 1973 spike in oil prices, the economy was flooded with foreign currency, causing inflation. By 1974, Iran was experiencing a double-digit inflation rate, and despite many large projects to modernise the country, corruption was rampant. By 1975 and 1976, a recession increased unemployment, especially among millions of youths who had migrated to the cities looking for construction jobs during the boom years of the early 1970s. By the late 1970s, many of these people opposed the Shah's regime and began protesting against it.[166]

Iranian Revolution

Millions of people protesting against the Pahlavis in Tehran, leading to the Iranian Revolution in 1979 and overthrow the monarchy.

The Iranian Revolution began in January 1978 with major demonstrations against Mohammad-Reza Pahlavi.[167] After a year of strikes and demonstrations paralyzing the country and its economy, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi fled to the United States, and Ruhollah Khomeini returned from exile in February 1979, forming a new government.[168] After holding a referendum, Iran officially became an Islamic republic in April 1979.[169] A second referendum in December 1979 approved a theocratic constitution.[170]

Immediate nationwide uprisings against the new government began with the 1979 Kurdish rebellion, the Khuzestan uprisings, and uprisings in Sistan and Baluchestan and other areas. Over the next several years, these uprisings were subdued violently. The new government began purging the non-Islamist political opposition, as well as Islamists who were not considered radical enough. Although both nationalists and Marxists had initially joined with Islamists to overthrow the Shah, tens of thousands were executed.[171] Following Khomeini's order to purge the new government of any remaining officials still loyal to Pahlavi, many former ministers and officials in Pahlavi's government, including former prime minister Amir-Abbas Hoveyda, were executed.

On 4 November 1979, after the United States refused the extradition of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, a group of Muslim students seized the US Embassy and took 52 personnel and citizens hostage.[172] Attempts by the Jimmy Carter administration to negotiate the release of the hostages, and a failed rescue attempt, helped with the falling popularity of Carter among US citizens. On Carter's final day in office, the last hostages were set free under the Algiers Accords.

The Cultural Revolution began in 1980, with threats to close universities which did not conform to Islamization demands from the new government. All universities were closed down in 1980, and reopened in 1983.[173][174][175]

On 22 September 1980, Iraq invaded the western Iranian province of Khuzestan, initiating the Iran–Iraq War. Although the forces of Saddam Hussein made several early advances, by mid-1982, the Iranian forces began to gain momentum, with successfully driving the Iraqis back into Iraq, and regaining all lost territory by June 1982. After pushing Iraqi forces back to the pre-war border lines, Iran rejected United Nations Security Council Resolution 514 and launched an invasion of Iraq, conquered Iraqi territory and captured cities such as Basra. The subsequent Iranian offensive within Iraqi territory lasted for five years, with Iraq taking back the initiative and subsequently launching a series of major counter-offensives. The war continued until 1988, when the Iraqi army defeated the Iranian forces inside Iraq and pushed the remaining Iranian troops back across the border. Subsequently, Khomeini accepted a truce mediated by the United Nations, with both sides withdraw to their pre-war borders. It was the longest conventional war of the 20th century and the second longest war of this century after the Vietnam War. The total Iranian casualties in the war were estimated to be 123,220–160,000 KIA, 60,711 MIA, and 11,000–16,000 civilians killed.[176][177]

An Iranian soldier wearing a gas mask on the front line during the Iran–Iraq War (1980–1988).

Following the Iran–Iraq War, in 1989, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani concentrated on a pragmatic pro-business policy of rebuilding and strengthening the economy without making any dramatic break with the ideology of the revolution. In 1997, Rafsanjani was succeeded by moderate reformist Mohammad Khatami, whose government attempted, unsuccessfully, to make the country freer and more democratic.[178]

The 2005 presidential election brought conservative populist candidate Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to power.[179] By the 2009 Iranian presidential election, the Interior Ministry announced incumbent President Ahmadinejad had won 62.63% of the vote.[180][181] The election results were widely disputed,[182][183] and resulted in widespread protests[184][185] and the creation of the Iranian Green Movement.

Hassan Rouhani was elected president on 15 June 2013,[186][187] improving relations with other countries.[188] The 2017–18 Iranian protests swept across the country in response to the economic and political situation.[189] The scale of protests and the number of people participating were significant,[190] and it was formally confirmed that thousands of protesters were arrested.[191] The 2019–20 Iranian protests started on 15 November in Ahvaz, spreading across the country within hours, after the government announced increases in fuel prices of up to 300%.[192] A week-long total Internet shutdown marked one of the most severe Internet blackouts in any country, and in the bloodiest governmental crackdown of the protestors in the history of Islamic Republic;[193] tens of thousands were arrested and hundreds were killed within a few days according to multiple international observers, including Amnesty International.[194] On 3 January 2020, the revolutionary guard's general, Qasem Soleimani, was assassinated by the US in Iraq, which considerably heightened existing tensions between the two countries.[195] His assassination lead to Operation Martyr Soleimani, the largest ballistic missile attack ever on Americans.[196] The BBC reported that millions of mourners attended Soleimani's funeral ceremony on 6 January.[197] Three days later, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched a retaliatory attack on US forces in Iraq and shot down Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, killing all aboard and leading to nation-wide protests. An international investigation led to the government admitting to the shootdown, calling it a "human error".[198][199]

Another Protests against the government began on 16 September 2022 after a woman named Mahsa Amini died in police custody following her arrest by the Guidance Patrol,[200][201][202] known commonly as the "morality police".[203]

On January 15, 2024, Iran launched ballistic missile and drone attacks against alleged Mossad headquarters in Iraqi Kurdistan,[204][205][206] and ISIS bases in northern Syria,[207][208][209] in response to the killing of Razi Mousavi and the 2024 Kerman bombings.[210][211][208] As one of Iran's most extensive operations, the attack caused significant collateral damage in Erbil.[212][213][214] A day after the attack, Iran carried out a similar series of strikes in Panjgur District of Pakistan, targeting the Sunni terror group Jaish ul-Adl.[215][216][210]

Geography

Mount Damavand, the highest volcano in Asia. It as has a special place in Persian mythology.[217][218]

Iran has an area of 1,648,195 km2 (636,372 sq mi).[4] It is the fourth-largest country entirely in Asia and the second-largest in West Asia.[219] It lies between latitudes 24° and 40° N, and longitudes 44° and 64° E. It is bordered to the northwest by Armenia (35 km or 22 mi), the Azeri exclave of Nakhchivan (179 km or 111 mi),[220] and the Republic of Azerbaijan (611 km or 380 mi); to the north by the Caspian Sea; to the northeast by Turkmenistan (992 km or 616 mi); to the east by Afghanistan (936 km or 582 mi) and Pakistan (909 km or 565 mi); to the south by the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman; and to the west by Iraq (1,458 km or 906 mi) and Turkey (499 km or 310 mi).

Iran is in a seismically active area.[221] On average, an earthquake of magnitude seven on the Richter scale occurs once every ten years.[222] Most earthquakes are shallow-focus and can be very devastating, such as the 2003 Bam earthquake.

Hyrcanian forests, a zone of lush lowland and montane forest in the very north of Iran.

Iran consists of the Iranian Plateau, with the exception of the coasts of the Caspian Sea and Khuzestan. It is one of the world's most mountainous countries, its landscape dominated by rugged mountain ranges that separate various basins or plateaus. The populous western part is the most mountainous, with ranges such as the Caucasus, Zagros, and Alborz, the last containing Mount Damavand, Iran's highest point at 5,610 m (18,406 ft), which is also the highest mountain in Asia west of the Hindu Kush.[223]

The northern part of Iran is covered by the lush lowland Caspian Hyrcanian mixed forests, near the southern shores of the Caspian Sea. The eastern part consists mostly of desert basins, such as the Kavir Desert, which is the country's largest desert, and the Lut Desert, as well as some salt lakes. The Lut Desert is the hottest recorded spot on the Earth's surface according to NASA, with 70.7 °C recorded in 2005.[224][225][226][227] The only large plains are found along the coast of the Caspian Sea and at the northern end of the Persian Gulf, where the country borders the mouth of the Arvand river. Smaller, discontinuous plains are found along the remaining coast of the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman.[228][229][230]

Islands

Iranian islands are mainly located in the Persian Gulf. Iran has 102 islands in Urmia Lake, 427 in Aras River, several in Anzali Lagoon, Ashurade Island in the Caspian Sea, Sheytan Island in the Oman Sea and several other inland islands. Iran also has an uninhabited island at the far end of the Gulf of Oman, near the Pakistani border. A small number of Iranian islands can be visited by tourists, as most are in the possession of the military or wildlife protection, and entry to them is generally prohibited or requires a permit.[231][232][233]

Iran took control of Bumusa, and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs in 1971, all located in the Strait of Hormuz between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Despite the islands being small and having little natural resources or population, they are highly valuable for their key strategic location.[234][235][236][237][238][239] Although the United Arab Emirates claims sovereignty over them,[240][241][242][243] it has constantly been met with strong response from the Iranian government,[244][245][246] based on their historical and cultural background.[247] Iran has control over the islands.[248][249]

Kish island, as a free trade zone, is touted as a consumer's paradise, with numerous malls, shopping centres, tourist attractions, and luxury hotels. Qeshm is the largest island in Iran, and a UNESCO Global Geopark since 2016.[250][251][252] Its salt cave, "Namakdan", is the largest salt cave in the world[253][254] and one of the world's longest caves.[255][256]

Climate

Iran map of Köppen climate classification zones.

Iran's climate is diverse, ranging from arid and semi-arid, to subtropical along the Caspian coast and the northern forests.[257] On the northern edge of the country (the Caspian coastal plain), temperatures rarely fall below freezing and the area remains humid. Summer temperatures rarely exceed 29 °C (84.2 °F).[258][259] 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".[260]

To the west, settlements in the Zagros basin experience lower temperatures, severe winters with freezing 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.[261] Average summer temperatures rarely exceed 38 °C (100.4 °F).[258] The southern coastal plains of the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman have mild winters, and very humid and hot summers. The annual precipitation ranges from 135 to 355 mm (5.3 to 14.0 in).[258]

Wildlife

Persian leopard, native to the Iranian Plateau

The wildlife of Iran includes bears, the Eurasian lynx, leopards, cheetahs, foxes, gazelles, grey wolves, jackals, panthers, and wild pigs.[262][263] Eagles, falcons, partridges, pheasants, and storks are also native to Iran. One of the most famous animals of Iran is the critically endangered Asiatic cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus venaticus), which today survives only in Iran. Iran lost all its Asiatic lions and the now extinct Caspian tigers by the early 20th century.[264]

There are around 200 protected areas in Iran to preserve the biodiversity and wildlife of the country, and as many as 16 of them are national parks.

Administrative divisions

The 31 provinces of Iran.

Iran is divided into five regions with 31 provinces (ostān, استان),[265] each governed by an appointed governor. The provinces are divided into counties, and subdivided into districts and sub-districts.

The country has one of the highest urban growth rates in the world. From 1950 to 2002, the urban proportion of the population increased from 27% to 60%.[266] Iran's population is concentrated in its western half, especially in the north, north-west and west.[267]

Tehran, with a population of around 8.8 million (2016 census), is Iran's capital and largest city. The country's second most populous city, Mashhad, has a population of around 3.3 million (2016 census), and is capital of the province of Razavi Khorasan. Isfahan has a population of around 2.2 million (2016 census) and is Iran's third most populous city. It is the capital of Isfahan province and was also the third capital of the Safavid Empire.

 
Largest cities or towns in Iran
2016 census
Rank Name Province Pop. Rank Name Province Pop.
Tehran
Tehran
Mashhad
Mashhad
1 Tehran Tehran 8,693,706 11 Rasht Gilan 679,995 Isfahan
Isfahan
Karaj
Karaj
2 Mashhad Razavi Khorasan 3,001,184 12 Zahedan Sistan and Baluchestan 587,730
3 Isfahan Isfahan 1,961,260 13 Hamadan Hamadan 554,406
4 Karaj Alborz 1,592,492 14 Kerman Kerman 537,718
5 Shiraz Fars 1,565,572 15 Yazd Yazd 529,673
6 Tabriz East Azarbaijan 1,558,693 16 Ardabil Ardabil 529,374
7 Qom Qom 1,201,158 17 Bandar Abbas Hormozgan 526,648
8 Ahvaz Khuzestan 1,184,788 18 Arak Markazi 520,944
9 Kermanshah Kermanshah 946,651 19 Eslamshahr Tehran 448,129
10 Urmia West Azarbaijan 736,224 20 Zanjan Zanjan 430,871

Government and politics

Supreme Leader

Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, meeting with his counterpart, China's Xi Jinping

The Supreme Leader ("Rahbar"), or Leader of the Revolution[268] is the head of state and is responsible for delineation and supervision of policy.[269] The Iranian president has limited power compared to the Rahbar Khamenei.[270] The current longtime Rahbar is Ali Khamenei.[271][272][273] Key ministers are selected with the Rahbar's agreement and he has the ultimate say on Iran's foreign policy.[270] The Rahbar is directly involved in ministerial appointments for Defence, Intelligence and Foreign Affairs, as well as other top ministries after submission of candidates from the president.[274] Iran's regional policy is directly controlled by the office of the Rahbar with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' task limited to protocol and ceremonial occasions. All of Iran's ambassadors to Arab countries, for example, are chosen by the Quds Corps, which directly reports to the Rahbar.[271] The Rahbar can also order laws to be amended.[275] Setad is estimated at $95 billion in 2013 by Reuters, accounts of which are secret even to the Iranian parliament.[276][277]

The Rahbar is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, controls the military intelligence and security operations, and has sole power to declare war or peace.[269] The heads of the judiciary, the state radio and television networks, the commanders of the police and military forces, and six of the twelve members of the Guardian Council are directly appointed by the Rahbar.[269]

The Assembly of Experts is responsible for electing the Rahbar, and has the power to dismiss him on the basis of qualifications and popular esteem.[278] To date, the Assembly of Experts has not challenged any of the Rahbar's decisions nor attempted to dismiss him.[279] The previous head of the judicial system, Sadeq Larijani, appointed by the Rahbar, said that it is illegal for the Assembly of Experts to supervise the Rahbar.[280] Many believe the Assembly of Experts has become a ceremonial body without any real power.[281][282][283] There have been instances when the current Rahbar publicly criticised members of the Assembly of Experts, resulting in their arrest and dismissal.

Guardian Council

Presidential candidates and parliamentary candidates must be approved by the Guardian Council (all members of which are directly or indirectly appointed by the Leader) or the Leader before running to ensure their allegiance.[284] The Leader very rarely does the vetting himself directly but has the power to do so, in which case additional approval of the Guardian Council would not be needed. The Leader can also revert the decisions of the Guardian Council.[285] The Guardian Council can and has dismissed elected members of the Iranian parliament.[286][287]

President

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan at the Sa'dabad Palace in Tehran.[288]

After the Rahbar, the Constitution defines the president of Iran as the highest state authority.[269][289] The President is elected by universal suffrage for a term of four years, but is required to gain the Leader's official approval before being sworn in before the Parliament (Majlis). The Leader also has the power to dismiss the elected president.[290] The President can only be re-elected for one term.[289]

The President is responsible for the implementation of the constitution, and for the exercise of executive powers in implementing the decrees and general policies as outlined by the Rahbar, except for matters directly related to the Rahbar, which has the final say.[269] The procedures for presidential election and all other elections in Iran are outlined by the Rahbar.[291] The President functions as the executive of affairs such as signing treaties and other international agreements, and administering national planning, budget, and state employment affairs, all as approved by the Rahbar.[292][293][273]

The President appoints the ministers, subject to the approval of the Parliament, as well as the approval of the Rahbar, who can dismiss or reinstate any of the ministers at any time.[294][295][296] The President supervises the Council of Ministers, coordinates government decisions, and selects government policies to be placed before the legislature.[297] Eight Vice Presidents serve under the President, as well as a cabinet of twenty-two ministers, who must all be approved by the legislature.[298]

Legislature

The Islamic Consultative Assembly, also known as the Iranian Parliament

The legislature of Iran, known as the Islamic Consultative Assembly, is a unicameral body comprising 290 members elected for four-year terms.[299] It drafts legislation, ratifies international treaties, and approves the national budget. All parliamentary candidates and all legislation from the assembly must be approved by the Guardian Council.[300]

The Guardian Council comprises twelve jurists, including six appointed by the Rahbar. Others are elected by the Parliament, from among the jurists nominated by the Head of the Judiciary.[301][302] The Council interprets the constitution and may veto the Parliament. If a law is deemed incompatible with the constitution or Sharia (Islamic law), it is referred back to the Parliament for revision.[289] The Expediency Council has the authority to mediate disputes between the Parliament and the Guardian Council, and serves as an advisory body to the Rahbar, making it one of the most powerful governing bodies in the country.[303] Local city councils are elected by public vote to four-year terms.

Law

Relief of Anushiruwan at the Courthouse of Tehran.

The Rahbar appoints the head of the Supreme Court and the chief public prosecutor.[279] There are several types of courts, including public courts that deal with civil and criminal cases, and revolutionary courts which deal with certain categories of offences, such as crimes against national security. The decisions of the revolutionary courts are final and cannot be appealed.[279]

The Chief Justice is the head of the judicial system and is responsible for its administration and supervision. He is also the highest judge of the Supreme Court of Iran. The Chief Justice nominates some candidates for serving as minister of justice, and then the President select one of them. The Chief Justice can serve for two five-year terms.[304]

The Special Clerical Court handles crimes allegedly committed by clerics, although it has also taken on cases involving laypeople. The Special Clerical Court functions independently of the regular judicial framework and is accountable only to the Rahbar. The Court's rulings are final and cannot be appealed.[279] The Assembly of Experts, which meets for one week annually, comprises 86 "virtuous and learned" clerics elected by adult suffrage for eight-year terms.

Foreign relations

Nations with which Iran has diplomatic relations.

Since the time of the Iranian Revolution, Iran's foreign relations have often been portrayed as being based on two strategic principles: eliminating outside influences in its region and pursuing extensive diplomatic contacts with developing and non-aligned countries.[305]

As of 2009, the government of Iran maintains diplomatic relations with 99 members of the United Nations,[306] but not with the United States, and not with Israel—a state which Iran has derecognised since the Revolution.[307] Among Muslim nations, Iran has an adversarial relationship with Saudi Arabia due to different political and Islamic ideologies.[308]

The building of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which extensively uses Achaemenid architecture in its facade, National Garden, Tehran.

Iran is a member of dozens of international organizations, including the G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, IDA, IDB, IFC, ILO, BRI, IMF, IMO, Interpol, OIC, OPEC,[309] WHO, and the United Nations, and currently has observer status at the World Trade Organization.

Iran's nuclear programme has become the subject of contention with the international community, mainly the United States. As of November 2023 Iran has uranium enriched to up to 60% fissile content, close to weapon grade.[310][311][312] Iran has been seeking nuclear weapons for decades.[313][314][315] Some analysts already regard the country as a de facto nuclear power.[316][317][318] Many countries have expressed concern that Iran could divert civilian nuclear technology into a weapons programme. This has led the United Nations Security Council to impose sanctions against Iran. On 14 July 2015, Iran and the P5+1 agreed to the Joint Comprehensive Plan on Action (JCPOA), aiming to end economic sanctions in exchange for Iran's restriction in producing enriched uranium after demonstrating a peaceful nuclear research project that would meet the International Atomic Energy Agency standards.[319]

Military

The Sejjil. Iran is the world's 6th missile power, and the 5th country in the world with hypersonic missile technology.

The Iranian military is organized under a unified structure, the Islamic Republic of Iran Armed Forces, comprising the Islamic Republic of Iran Army (Artesh), which includes the Ground Forces, Air Defence Force, Air Force, and Navy; the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (Sepah), which consists of the Ground Forces, Aerospace Force, Navy, Quds Force, and Basij; and the Law Enforcement Force (Faraja), which serves an analogous function to a gendarme. While the IRIAF protects the country's sovereignty in a traditional capacity, the IRGC is mandated to ensure the integrity of the Islamic Republic, principally against foreign interference, coups, and internal riots.[320] Since 1925, it is mandatory for all male citizen aged 18 to serve around 14 months in the IRIAF or the IRGC.[321][322][323][324]

Iran has over 610,000 active troops and around 350,000 reservists, totalling nearly 1 million trained military personnel, one of the world's highest percentage of citizens with military training.[325][326][327][328] The Basij, a paramilitary volunteer militia within the IRGC, has over 20 million members, 600,000 members available for immediate call-up, 300,000 reservists, and a million that could be mobilized when necessary.[329][330][331][332] Faraja, the Iranian uniformed police force, has over 260,000 active personnel. Most statistical organizations do not include the Basij and Faraja in their ratings report.

Excluding the Basij and Faraja, Iran has been identified as a major military power, owing it to the size and capabilities of its armed forces. It possess the world's 14th strongest military.[333] It ranks 13th globally in terms of overall military strength,[334] 7th in the number of active military personnel,[334] and 9th in the size of both its ground force and armoured force. Iran's armed forces are the largest in West Asia and comprise the greatest Army Aviation fleet in the Middle East.[335][336][337] Iran is among the top 15 countries in terms of military budget.[338] In 2021, its military spending increased for the first time in four years, to $24.6 billion, 2.30% of the national GDP.[339] Funding for the IRGC accounted for 34% of Iran's total military spending in 2021.[340]

Shahed 149. Iran is considered as a global leader and superpower in drone warfare and technology.

Since the Revolution, to overcome foreign embargoes, Iran has developed a domestic military industry capable of producing indigenous tanks, armoured personnel carriers, missiles, submarines, missile destroyer, radar systems, helicopters, navel vessels, and fighter planes.[341] Official announcements have highlighted the development of advanced weaponry, particularly in rocketry.[342][n 1] Consequently, Iran has the largest and most diverse ballistic missile arsenal in the Middle East and is only the 5th country in the world with hypersonic missile technology.[343][344] It is the world's 6th missile power.[345] Iran designs and produces a variety of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and is considered a global leader and superpower in drone warfare and technology.[346][347][348][349][350][351] It is one of the world's five countries with cyberwarfare capabilities and is identified as "one of the most active players in the international cyber arena".[352][353][354]

Following Russia's purchase of Iranian drones during the invasion of Ukraine,[355][356][357][358] in November 2023, the Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force (IRIAF) finalized arrangements to acquire Russian Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets, Mil Mi-28 attack helicopters, air defence and missile systems.[359][360][361][362]

The Iranian Navy has had joint exercises with Russia and China.[363][364][365][366][367]

Regional influence

Map showing parts of Iran's significant influence and foothold, often mentioned as the "Dawn of A New Persian Empire."[368][369][370][371]

Since the Iranian Revolution, Iran has grown its influence across and beyond the region.[372][373][374][375][376] It has built military forces with a wide network of state and none-state actors, starting with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 1982.[377][378][379] Since its establishment as a primary branch to the Iranian Army, the IRGC has been key to Iranian influence, through its Quds Force.[380][381][382][383][384] The instability in Lebanon (from the 1980s),[385] Iraq (from 2003) [386] and Yemen (from 2014) [387] have allowed Iran to build strong alliances and foothold beyond its borders. Iran has a prominent influence in the social services, education, economy and the politics of Lebanon,[388][389] and analysts have argued that Lebanon provides Iran access to the Mediterranean Sea.[390][391] Hezbollah's strategic successes against Israel, such as its symbolic victory during the 2006 Israel–Hezbollah War, elevated Iran's influence in Levant and strengthened its appeal across the Arab World.[392][393][394]

Since the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the arrival of ISIS in the mid-2010s, Iran has financed and trained militia groups in Iraq, including the PMF.[395][396][397][398] Since the Iran-Iraq war in 1980s and the fall of Saddam Hussein, Iran has shaped Iraq's politics.[399][400][401] Following Iraq's struggle against the ISIS in 2014, companies linked to the IRGC such as Khatam al-Anbiya, started to build roads, power plants, hotels and businesses in Iraq, creating an economic corridor worth around $9 billion before COVID-19.[402] This number is expected to grow to $20 billion in the coming years.[403][404]

The proud national legacy of the Persian Empire and history has persisted as a vital part of Iran's regional influence.[405][406][407]

During Yemen's civil war, Iran provided military support to the Houthis,[408][409][410] a Zaydi Shiite movement that has been fighting Yemen's Sunni government since 2004.[411][412] They gained significant power in recent years.[413][414][415] Iran also has considerable influence in Afghanistan and Pakistan through various militant groups such as Liwa Fatemiyoun and Liwa Zainebiyoun.[416][417][418][419]

In Syria, Iran has supported President Bashar al-Assad,[392][420][421][422] with the two countries being long-standing allies.[423][392] Iran has provided significant military and economic support to Assad's government,[420][424] and as a result, it has a considerable foothold in Syria.[425][426] Iran have long supported the anti-Israel fronts in North Africa in countries like Algeria and Tunisia, embracing Hamas in part to help undermine the popularity of the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) in North Africa.[427] Iran's support of Hamas emerged more clearly in later years.[428][429][430][431] According to US intelligence officials, Iran does not have full control over these state and none state groups.[432]

Human rights

Iran's human rights record is exceptionally poor.[433][434][435] The Iranian government is undemocratic,[436][437] has frequently persecuted and arrested critics of the government, and severely restricts the participation of candidates in elections and political activities. Sexual activity between members of the same sex is illegal and is punishable by death.[438][439]

UN Special Rapporteur Javaid Rehman has reported discrimination against several ethnic minorities in Iran.[440] A group of UN experts in 2022 urged Iran to stop "systematic persecution" of religious minorities, adding that members of the Baháʼí Faith were arrested, barred from universities, or had their homes demolished.[441][442]

Censorship

Censorship in Iran is ranked among the most extreme worldwide.[443][444][445] Iran also has strict regulations when it comes to internet censorship,[446] with the government and the IRGC persistently blocking social media and other websites.[447][448][449] In January 2021, Iranian authorities added Signal to the list of blocked social media platforms, which included Facebook, Telegram, Twitter and YouTube. They carried out arbitrary arrests for social media postings deemed "counter-revolutionary" or "un-Islamic".[450]

Economy

Iran's provinces by their contribution to national GDP (2020).
Historical GDP per capita development.

Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures.[451] In 2022, Iran's nominal GDP was $352.2 billion, while its nominal GDP per capita was $4,110.[452] The service sector contributes the largest percentage of the GDP, followed by industry (mining and manufacturing) and agriculture.[453]

The Central Bank of Iran is responsible for developing and maintaining the Iranian rial, the country's currency. The government does not recognise trade unions other than the Islamic labour councils, which are subject to the approval of employers and the security services.[454] The minimum wage in June 2013 was 487 million rials a month ($134).[455] Unemployment has remained above 10% since 1997, and the unemployment rate for women is almost double that of the men.[455]

In 2006, about 45% of the government's budget came from oil and natural gas revenues, and 31% from taxes and fees.[456] As of 2007, Iran had earned $70 billion in foreign-exchange reserves, mostly (80%) from crude oil exports.[457] Iranian budget deficits have been a chronic problem, mostly due to large-scale state subsidies, that include foodstuffs and especially petrol, totalling more than $84 billion in 2008 for the energy sector alone.[458][459] In 2010, the economic reform plan was approved by parliament to cut subsidies gradually and replace them with targeted social assistance. The objective is to move towards free market prices in a five-year period and increase productivity and social justice.[460]

The administration continues to follow the market reform plans of the previous one, and indicates that it will diversify Iran's oil-reliant economy. Iran has also developed a biotechnology, nanotechnology, and pharmaceutical industry.[461] However, nationalised industries such as the bonyads have often been managed badly, making them ineffective and uncompetitive. Currently, the government is trying to privatise these industries; problems include corruption in the public sector and lack of competitiveness.

Iran has leading manufacturing industries in the fields of automobile manufacture, transportation, construction materials, home appliances, food and agricultural goods, armaments, pharmaceuticals, information technology, and petrochemicals in the Middle East.[462] According to 2012 data from the Food and Agriculture Organization, Iran is among the world's top five producers of apricots, cherries, sour cherries, cucumbers and gherkins, dates, eggplants, figs, pistachios, quinces, walnuts, and watermelons.[463]

Economic sanctions against Iran have damaged the economy.[464] In 2015, Iran and the P5+1 reached a deal on the nuclear programme that removed the main sanctions pertaining to Iran's nuclear programme by 2016.[465] The United States under the Trump administration, withdrew from the deal on May 8, 2018, causing the return of sanctions and the resumption of uranium enrichment in Iran. Various countries, international organizations, and U.S. scholars have expressed regret or criticized the withdrawal, while U.S. conservatives, Israel and Saudi Arabia have supported it.

Tourism

Around 12 million tourists visit Kish Island annually.[466][467][468]

Iran's tourism had constantly been growing before the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching nearly 9 million visitors in 2019, the world's third fastest-growing tourism destination before the pandemic.[469][470] Iran's tourism experienced a growth of 48.5% in 2023, attracting over 5.2 million visitors, but 37% lower compared to the pre-COVID statistics in 2019.[471] Over 400,000 visitors were motivated by trade, medical treatment and pilgrimage.[472][473][474] In September and October 2023, Iran achieved a positive balance compared to the same period in 2019.[471] Alongside the capital, the most popular tourist destinations are Isfahan, Shiraz and Mashhad.[475] Iran is fast emerging as a preferred destination for medical tourism.[476][477]

1.8 million visitors from West Asia travelled to Iran in the first seven months of 2023, a 31% growth compared to the same period in 2022. This growth surpassed that of Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia.[478]

Domestic tourism in Iran is one of the largest in the world, with the Iranian tourists spent $33.3 billion in 2021.[479][480][481][482] Iran projects investment of over $32 billion in the country's tourism sector and targets 20 million tourists by 2026.[483]

Agriculture

Paddy field in Bandpey, Northern Iran.

Roughly one-third of Iran's total surface area is suited for farmland, but because of poor soil and lack of adequate water distribution, only 12% of the total land area is under cultivation. Less than one-third of the cultivated area is irrigated; the rest is devoted to dryland farming. Some 92 percent of agricultural products depend on water.[484] The western and northwestern portions of the country have the most fertile soils. Iran's food security index stands at around 96 percent.[485] At the end of the 20th century, agricultural activities accounted for about one-fifth of Iran's GDP and employed a comparable proportion of the workforce. Most farms are small, less than 25 acres (10 hectares), and are not economically viable, which has contributed to the wide-scale urbanization. In addition to water scarcity and areas of poor soil, seed is of low quality and farming techniques are antiquated.[486][487]

Industry and services

Iran is the world's 16th car manufacturer, with IKCO being the largest in Middle East.

Iran is globally ranked 16th in car manufacturing, ahead of the UK, Italy, and Russia.[488][489] It has outputted 1.188 million cars in 2023, a 12% growth compared to the previous years. Iran has exported various cars to countries such as Venezuela, Russia and Belarus. From 2008 to 2009, Iran leaped to 28th place from 69th in annual industrial production growth rate.[490] Iranian contractors have been awarded several foreign tender contracts in different fields of construction of dams, bridges, roads, buildings, railroads, power generation, and gas, oil and petrochemical industries. As of 2011, some 66 Iranian industrial companies are carrying out projects in 27 countries.[491] Iran exported over $20 billion worth of technical and engineering services over 2001–2011. The availability of local raw materials, rich mineral reserves, experienced manpower have all played crucial role in winning the bids.[492] 45% of large industrial firms are located in Tehran, and almost half of these workers work for the government.[493] The Iranian retail industry is largely in the hands of cooperatives, many of them government-sponsored, and of independent retailers in the bazaars. The bulk of food sales occur at street markets, where the Chief Statistics Bureau sets the prices.[494] Iran's main exports are to Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and other Central Asian countries, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Syria, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, France, Canada, Venezuela, Japan, South Korea and Turkey.[495][496] Iran's automotive industry is the second most active industry of the country, after its oil and gas industry.[497] Iran Khodro is the largest car manufacturer in the Middle East, and ITMCO is biggest tractor manufacturer. Iran is the 12th largest automaker in the world. Construction is one of the most important sectors in Iran accounting for 20–50% of the total private investment.

Iran is one of the most important mineral producers in the world, ranked among 15 major mineral-rich countries.[498] Iran's oil and gas industry is the most active industry of the country.[497] Iran has the fourth largest reserves of oil and second largest reserves of gas in the world.

Iran manufactures 60–70% of its industrial equipment domestically.[499][500][501] Iran has become self-sufficient in designing, building and operating dams and power plants. Iran is one of the six countries in the world that manufacture gas- and steam-powered turbines.[502]

Iran's domestic consumer electronic market was estimated at $7.3 billion in 2008 ($8.2 billion in 2010), with 47% market share for computer hardware, 28% Audio/Video and 25% mobile phone.[503][504]

Transportation

The National Airline of Iran, branded as Iran Air, is the flag carrier of Iran. Domestically, Iran Air is known as Huma, which is the name of a mythical Persian bird, and the symbol of the airways.

In 2011 Iran had 173,000 kilometres (107,000 mi) of roads, of which 73% were paved.[505] In 2008 there were nearly 100 passenger cars for every 1,000 inhabitants.[506] The Tehran Metro is the largest metro system in the Middle East.[507][508] It carries more than 3 million passengers a day. In 2018, 820 million trips were made on Tehran Metro.[509][510] Trains operate on 11,106 km (6,942 mi) of track.[511] The country's major port of entry is Bandar-Abbas on the Strait of Hormuz. After arriving in Iran, imported goods are distributed throughout the country by trucks and freight trains. The TehranBandar-Abbas railroad connects Bandar-Abbas to the railroad system of Central Asia via Tehran and Mashhad. Other major ports include Bandar e-Anzali and Bandar e-Torkeman on the Caspian Sea and Khorramshahr and Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni on the Persian Gulf.

Dozens of cities have airports that serve passenger and cargo planes. Iran Air, the national airline, was founded in 1962 and operated domestic and international flights. All large cities have mass transit systems using buses, and several private companies provide bus services between cities.

Transport in Iran is inexpensive because of the government's subsidization of the price of petrol. The downside is a huge draw on government coffers, economic inefficiency because of highly wasteful consumption patterns, smuggling to neighbouring countries and air pollution. In 2008, more than one million people worked in the transportation sector, accounting for 9% of GDP.[512]

Energy

South Pars Gas-Condensate field in Bushehr province, the world's largest natural gas field. It holds 8% of the world's total gas reserves.[513]

Iran has the world's second largest proved gas reserves, with 33.6 trillion cubic metres,[514] and the third largest natural gas production. It also ranks fourth in oil reserves with an estimated 153,600,000,000 barrels.[515][516] It is OPEC's second largest oil exporter. Despite this, Iran spent $4 billion on fuel imports as of 2005 due to a lack of domestic refining capacity.[517] Oil industry output averaged 4 million barrels per day (640,000 m3/d) in 2005, compared with the peak of six million barrels per day reached in 1974.[518]

In 2004, a large share of Iran's natural gas reserves were untapped. The addition of new hydroelectric stations and the streamlining of conventional coal and oil-fired stations increased installed capacity to 33,000 megawatts. Of that amount, about 75% was based on natural gas, 18% on oil, and 7% on hydroelectric power. In 2004, Iran opened its first wind-powered and geothermal plants, and the first solar thermal plant was to come online in 2009. Iran is the world's third country to have developed GTL technology.[519]

Demographic trends and intensified industrialization have caused electric power demand to grow by 8% per year. The government's goal of 53,000 megawatts of installed capacity by 2010 is to be reached by bringing on line new gas-fired plants, and adding hydropower and nuclear power generation capacity. Iran's first nuclear power plant went online in 2011. It is the second nuclear power plant in the Middle East.[520][521]

Education, science, technology and telecommunications

Science and technology

Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, a Persian polymath, architect, philosopher, physician, scientist, and theologian.

Iran has made considerable advances in science and technology, despite international sanctions during the past 30 years. In recent years, the growth in Iran's scientific output is reported to be the fastest in the world. In the biomedical sciences, Iran's Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics has a UNESCO chair in biology.[522] In late 2006, Iranian scientists successfully cloned a sheep at the Royan Research Center in Tehran.[523] Stem cell research in Iran is among the top 10 in the world.[524] Iran ranks 15th in the world in nanotechnologies.[525][526][527] Iranian scientists outside Iran have also made some major contributions to science. In 1960, Ali Javan co-invented the first gas laser, and fuzzy set theory was introduced by Lotfi A. Zadeh.[528] Iranian cardiologist Tofigh Mussivand invented and developed the first artificial cardiac pump, the precursor of the artificial heart. Furthering research and treatment of diabetes, the HbA1c was discovered by Samuel Rahbar. A substantial number of papers in string theory are published in Iran.[529] In August 2014, Iranian mathematician Maryam Mirzakhani became the first woman, as well as the first Iranian, to receive the Fields Medal, the highest prize in mathematics.[530] Iran has increased its publication output nearly tenfold from 1996 through 2004, and has been ranked first in terms of output growth rate, followed by China.[531] According to a study by SCImago in 2012, Iran would rank fourth in the world in terms of research output by 2018, if the current trend persists.[532]

The Iranian humanoid robot Sorena 2, which was designed by engineers at the University of Tehran, was unveiled in 2010. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has placed the name of Surena among the five prominent robots of the world after analyzing its performance.[533]

Education

Sharif University of Technology, in Tehran.

Education in Iran is highly centralised. K–12 is supervised by the Ministry of Education, and higher education is under the supervision of the Ministry of Science and Technology. According to UNESCO, Iran's literacy rate among people aged 15 years and older was 85.54% as of 2016, with men (90.35%) being significantly more educated than women (80.79%).[534] According to this report, Iranian government expenditure on education amounts to around 4% of the GDP.

The requirement to enter into higher education is to have a high school diploma and pass the Iranian University Entrance Exam (the konkur). Many students do a 1–2-year course of pre-university (piš-dānešgāh).[535] Iran's higher education is sanctioned by different levels of diplomas, including an associate degree (kārdāni; also known as fowq e diplom) delivered in two years, a bachelor's degree (kāršenāsi; also known as lisāns) delivered in four years, and a master's degree (kāršenāsi e aršad) delivered in two years, after which another exam allows the candidate to pursue a doctoral programme (PhD; known as doktorā).[536]

According to the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities (as of January 2017), Iran's top five universities include Tehran University of Medical Sciences (478th worldwide), the University of Tehran (514th worldwide), Sharif University of Technology (605th worldwide), Amirkabir University of Technology (726th worldwide), and the Tarbiat Modares University (789th worldwide).[537] Iran was ranked 62nd in the Global Innovation Index in 2023, up from 67th in 2020.[538][539]

Iranian Space Agency

The historic launch of Safir.

The Iranian Space Agency (ISA) was established on 28 February 2004. Iran became an orbital-launch-capable nation in 2009,[540] and is a founding member of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. Iran placed its domestically built satellite Omid into orbit on the 30th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution, on 2 February 2009,[541] through its first expendable launch vehicle Safir, becoming the ninth country in the world capable of both producing a satellite and sending it into space from a domestically made launcher.[542] Simorgh's launch in 2016, is the successor of Safir.[543]

On January 20, 2024, Iran launched the Soraya satellite into its highest orbit yet (750 km),[544][545] a new space launch milestone for the country.[546][547] It was launched by Qaem 100 rocket.[548][549][550]

On January 28, 2024, Iran successfully launched three indigenous satellites, The Mahda, Kayan and Hatef,[551] into orbit using the Simorgh carrier rocket.[552][553] It was the first time in country's history that it simultaneously sent three satellites into space.[554][555] The three satellites are designed for testing advanced satellite subsystems, space-based positioning technology, and narrowband communication.[556]

On February 29, 2024, Iran launched its domestically developed imaging satellite, Pars 1, from Russia into orbit.[557][558] This was done for the second time since August 2022, when Russia launched another Iranian remote-sensing, The Khayyam satellite, into orbit from Kazakhstan, reflecting deep scientific cooperation between the two countries.[559][560]

The Iranian nuclear programme was launched in the 1950s. Iran is the world's 7th country to produce uranium hexafluoride, and controls the entire nuclear fuel cycle.[561]

Telecommunication

Iran's telecommunications industry is almost entirely state-owned, dominated by the Telecommunication Company of Iran (TCI). Fixed-line penetration in 2004 was relatively well-developed by regional standards, at 22 lines per 100 people, compared with Egypt with 14. Iran had more than one mobile phone per inhabitant by 2012.[562]

As of 2020, 70 million Iranians use high-speed mobile internet. Iran is among the first five countries which have had a growth rate of over 20 percent and the highest level of development in telecommunication.[563] Iran has been awarded the UNESCO special certificate for providing telecommunication services to rural areas. By the end of 2009, Iran's telecom market was the fourth-largest market in the region at $9.2 billion.[564]

Demographics

Population of Iranian provinces and counties in 2021.

Iran's population grew rapidly from about 19 million in 1956 to about 85 million by February 2023.[565] However, Iran's fertility rate has dropped dramatically, from 6.5 children born per woman to about 1.7 two decades later,[566][567][568] leading to a population growth rate of about 1.39% as of 2018.[569] Due to its young population, studies project that the growth will continue to slow until it stabilises around 105 million by 2050.[570][571][572]

Iran hosts one of the largest refugee populations, with almost one million,[573] mostly from Afghanistan and Iraq.[574] According to estimates, about five million Iranian citizens have emigrated to other countries, mostly since the 1979 Revolution.[575][576]

According to the Iranian Constitution, the government is required to provide every citizen with access to social security, covering retirement, unemployment, old age, disability, accidents, calamities, health and medical treatment and care services.[577] This is covered by tax revenues and income derived from public contributions.[578]

Languages

"I am Cyrus the king, an Achaemenid." in Old Persian, Elamite and Akkadian languages, Pasargadae. UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The majority of the population speaks Persian, the official language of the country.[3] Others include speakers of several other Iranian languages within the greater Indo-European family and languages belonging to some other ethnicities living in Iran.

The Gilaki and Mazenderani languages are widely spoken in Gilan and Mazenderan, in northern Iran. The Talysh language is also spoken in parts of Gilan. Varieties of Kurdish are concentrated in the province of Kurdistan and nearby areas. In Khuzestan, several distinct varieties of Persian are spoken. Southern Iran also houses the Luri and Lari languages.

Azerbaijani, the most-spoken minority language in the country,[579] and other Turkic languages and dialects are found in various regions, especially Azerbaijan.

Notable minority languages in Iran include Armenian, Georgian, Neo-Aramaic, and Arabic. Khuzi Arabic is spoken by the Arabs in Khuzestan, and the wider group of Iranian Arabs. Circassian was also once widely spoken by the large Circassian minority, but, due to assimilation, no sizable number of Circassians speak the language anymore.[580][581][582][583]

Percentages of spoken language continue to be a point of debate, most notably regarding the largest and second largest ethnicities in Iran, the Persians and Azerbaijanis. Percentages given by the CIA's World Factbook include 53% Persian, 16% Azerbaijani, 10% Kurdish, 7% Mazenderani and Gilaki, 7% Luri, 2% Turkmen, 2% Balochi, 2% Arabic, and 2% the remainder Armenian, Georgian, Neo-Aramaic, and Circassian.[4]

Ethnic groups

Ethnic group composition remains a point of debate, mainly regarding the largest and second largest ethnic groups, the Persians and Azerbaijanis, due to the lack of Iranian state censuses based on ethnicity. The World Factbook has estimated that around 79% of the population of Iran is a diverse Indo-European ethno-linguistic group,[584] with Persians (including Mazenderanis and Gilaks) constituting 61% of the population, Kurds 10%, Lurs 6%, and Balochs 2%. Peoples of other ethnolinguistic groups make up the remaining 21%, with Azerbaijanis constituting 16%, Arabs 2%, Turkmens and other Turkic tribes 2%, and others (such as Armenians, Talysh, Georgians, Circassians, Assyrians) 1%.[4]

The Library of Congress issued slightly different estimates: 65% Persians (including Mazenderanis, Gilaks, and the Talysh), 16% Azerbaijanis, 7% Kurds, 6% Lurs, 2% Baloch, 1% Turkic tribal groups (including Qashqai and Turkmens), and non-Iranian, non-Turkic groups (including Armenians, Georgians, Assyrians, Circassians, and Arabs) less than 3%.[585][4][586]

Health

Razavi Hospital, accredited by ACI for its quality Health Services.[587]

Healthcare is provided by the public-governmental system, the private sector, and NGOs.[588] The healthcare sector's market value in Iran was almost US$24 billion in 2002.

The country faces the common problem of other young demographic nations in the region, which is keeping pace with growth of an already huge demand for various public services. An anticipated increase in the population growth rate will increase the need for public health infrastructures and services.[589] Total health spending was equivalent to 6% of GDP in Iran in 2017. About 90% of Iranians have some form of health insurance.[590] Iran is also the only country with a legal organ trade.[591] Iran has been able to extend public health preventive services through the establishment of an extensive Primary Health Care Network. As a result, child and maternal mortality rates have fallen significantly, and life expectancy at birth has risen. Iran's medical knowledge rank is 17th globally, and 1st in the Middle East and North Africa. In terms of medical science production index, Iran ranks 16th in the world.[592]

Religion

Iranian people by religion,
2011 General Census Results[593]
Note: other groups are officially excluded
Religion Percent Number
Muslim 99.3789% 74,682,938
Christian 0.1566% 117,704
Zoroastrian 0.0336% 25,271
Jewish 0.0117% 8,756
Other 0.0653% 49,101
Undeclared 0.3538% 265,899

Twelver Shia Islam is the official state religion, to which about 90% to 95% of the population adhere.[594][595][596] According to the World Values Survey, 96.6% of Iranians believe in Islam, but 14.3% identify as not religious.[597] A self-selecting social media-based Gamaan survey found only 40.4% identified as Muslim, and 22.2% identified with no religion.[598][599] About 4% to 8% of the population are Sunni Muslims, mainly Kurds and Baloches. Other religious minorities include Christians, Baháʼís, agnostics, Zoroastrians, Jews,[4] Mandaeans[600] and Yarsanis. Iran was scored zero out of 4 for religious freedom by Freedom House.[601]

Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad, the largest mosque in the world by area.[602]

There is a large population of adherents of Yarsanism, a Kurdish indigenous religion,[603][604][605] estimated to be over half a million[606] to one million followers.[607] The Baháʼí Faith is not officially recognized and has been subject to official persecution.[608] According to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Iran, Baháʼís are the largest non-Muslim religious minority in Iran, with an estimated 350,000 adherents.[609] Since the Revolution, the persecution of Baháʼís has increased.[608][610][611]

Christianity, Judaism, Zoroastrianism, and the Sunni branch of Islam are officially recognised by the government and have reserved seats in the Iranian Parliament.[148] Iran has the largest Jewish population in the Middle East outside of Israel.[612] Around 250,000 to 370,000 Christians reside in Iran,[613][614] and Christianity is the country's largest recognised minority religion.[615] Most are of Armenian background, as well as a sizable minority of Assyrians.[616] The Iranian government has supported the rebuilding and renovation of Armenian churches, and has supported the Armenian Monastic Ensembles of Iran. In 2019, the government registered the Vank Cathedral, in the New Julfa district of Isfahan, as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Currently three Armenian churches in Iran have been included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.[617][618]

Culture

Art

Kamal-ol-molk's Mirror Hall of Golestan Palace, often considered a starting point in Iranian modern art.[619]

The art of Iran encompasses many disciplines, including stonemasonry, metalworking, pottery, painting, and calligraphy. Iranian works of art show a great variety in style, in different regions and periods.[620] The art of the Medes has been theoretically attributed to the Scythian style.[621] The Achaemenids borrowed heavily from the art of their neighbouring civilizations,[622] but produced a synthesis of a unique style.[623] Greek iconography was imported by the Seleucids, followed by the recombination of Hellenistic and earlier Near Eastern elements in the art of the Parthians.[624]

By the time of the Sasanians, Iranian art came across a general renaissance.[625] During the Middle Ages, Sasanian art played a prominent role in the formation of both European and Asian mediaeval art.[626][627][628][629] The Safavid era is known as the Golden Age of Iranian art.[630] Safavid art exerted noticeable influences upon the neighbouring Ottomans, the Mughals, and the Deccans, and was also influential through its fashion and garden architecture on 11th–17th-century Europe.

Iran's contemporary art traces its origins to the time of Kamal-ol-molk,[631] a prominent realist painter at the court of the Qajar dynasty who affected the norms of painting and adopted a naturalistic style that would compete with photographic works. A new Iranian school of fine art was established by Kamal-ol-Molk in 1928,[631] and was followed by the so-called "coffeehouse" style of painting.

Iran's avant-garde modernists emerged by the arrival of new western influences during World War II.[631] The vibrant contemporary art scene originates in the late 1940s, and Tehran's first modern art gallery, Apadana, was opened in September 1949 by painters Mahmud Javadipur, Hosein Kazemi, and Hushang Ajudani.[632] The new movements received official encouragement by the mid-1950s,[631] which led to the emergence of artists such as Marcos Grigorian.[633]

Architecture

Chehel Sotoun Palace in Isfahan, built during the 17th century with example of a talar, UNESCO World Heritage Site.[634]

The history of architecture in Iran goes back to the seventh millennium BC,[635] with an eclectic architecture remaining at sites such as Persepolis and Pasargadae. The Iranians made early use of mathematics, geometry and astronomy in their architecture, yielding a tradition with both great structural and aesthetic variety.[636] The guiding motif of Iranian architecture is its cosmic symbolism.[637] Iran ranks seventh among UNESCO's list of countries with the most archaeological ruins and attractions from antiquity.[638] Iranian architecture displays great variety, both structural and aesthetic, from a variety of traditions and experience. Without sudden innovations, and despite the repeated trauma of invasions and cultural shocks, it developed a recognizable style distinct from other regions of the Muslim world. Its virtues are "a marked feeling for form and scale; structural inventiveness, especially in vault and dome construction; a genius for decoration with a freedom and success not rivalled in any other architecture".[639]

Weaving

Iran's carpet-weaving has its origins in the Bronze Age and is one of the most distinguished manifestations of Iranian art. Iran is the world's largest producer and exporter of handmade carpets, producing three-quarters of the world's output and having a share of 30% of export markets.[640][641] In 2010, the "traditional skills of carpet weaving" in Fars Province and Kashan were inscribed to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.[642][643][644] Carpet weaving is an essential part of Persian culture and Iranian art. Within the group of Oriental rugs produced by the countries of the "rug belt", the Persian carpet stands out by the variety and elaborateness of its manifold designs. Carpets woven in towns and regional centres like Tabriz, Kerman, Ravar, Neyshabour, Mashhad, Kashan, Isfahan, Nain and Qom are characterized by their specific weaving techniques and use of high-quality materials, colours and patterns. Hand-woven Persian rugs and carpets have been regarded as objects of high artistic and utilitarian value and prestige since the first time they were mentioned by ancient Greek writers.

Literature

Tomb of Hafez, an influential Persian poet from the mediaeval period.

Iran's oldest literary tradition is that of Avestan, the Old Iranian sacred language of the Avesta, which consists of the legendary and religious texts of Zoroastrianism and the ancient Iranian religion.[645]

Persian is considered one of the four main bodies of world literature.[646] The Persian language was used and developed further through Persianate societies in Asia Minor, Central Asia, and South Asia, leaving extensive influences on Ottoman and Mughal literatures, among others. Iran has a number of famous mediaeval poets, most notably Rumi, Ferdowsi, Hafez, Sa'adi, Omar Khayyam, and Nezami Ganjavi.[647]

World Heritage Sites

Iran ranks 10th globally in terms of UNESCO-listed monuments, with 27.[648] These include Persepolis, Naghsh-e Jahan Square, Chogha Zanbil, Pasargadae, Golestan Palace, Arg-e Bam, Behistun Inscription, Shahr-e Sukhteh, Susa, Takht-e Soleyman, Hyrcanian forests, the city of Yazd and more. Iran also has 24 Intangible Cultural Heritage, or "Human treasures", which ranks 5th worldwide.[649][650]

Dance

Dancers on a piece of ceramic from Cheshmeh-Ali (Shahr-e-Rey), Iran, 5000 BC.

Iran has known dance in the forms of music, play, drama or religious rituals since at least the 6th millennium BC. Artifacts with pictures of dancers were found in many archaeological prehistoric sites.[651] Genres of dance in Iran vary depending on the area, culture, and language of the local people, and can range from sophisticated reconstructions of refined court dances to energetic folk dances.[652] Each group, region, and historical epoch has specific dance styles associated with it. The earliest researched dance from historic Iran is a dance worshipping Mithra. Ancient Persian dance was significantly researched by Greek historian from Herodotus. Iran was occupied by foreign powers, causing a slow disappearance of heritage dance traditions. The Qajar dynasty had an important influence on Persian dance. In this period, a style of dance began to be called "classical Persian dance". Dancers performed artistic dances in the court of the king for entertainment purposes such as coronations, marriage celebrations, and Norouz celebrations. In the 20th century, the music came to be orchestrated and dance movement and costuming gained a modernistic orientation to the West. In 1928, ballet came to Iran and impacted dance performance.[citation needed]

Philosophy

The Cyrus Cylinder, which is known as "the first charter of human rights", is often seen as a reflection of the questions and thoughts expressed by Zoroaster and developed in Zoroastrian schools of the Achaemenid era.[653][654] The earliest tenets of Zoroastrian schools are part of the extant scriptures of the Zoroastrian religion in Avestan. Among them are treatises such as the Zatspram, Shkand-gumanik Vizar, and Denkard, as well as older passages of the Avesta and the Gathas.[655] Contemporary Iranian philosophy has been limited in its scope by intellectual repression.[656] Scholars Pavilion is a monument donated by Iran to the United Nations Office at Vienna. The monument architecture is Persian Achaemenid architecture, with the statues of Iranian mediaeval scholars, Omar Khayyam, Al-Biruni, Rhazes and Avicenna inside the pavilion.[657]

Folklore

Statue of Rostam and Sohrab tragedy, two of the greatest Persian heroes, in Sabzevar.[658][659][660][661]

Storytelling has an significant presence in Iranian folklore and culture.[662][663] In classical Iran, minstrels performed for their audiences at royal courts[662] and in public theatres.[662][664] A minstrel was referred to by the Parthians as gōsān, and by the Sasanians as huniyāgar.[662][665] Since the Safavid Empire, storytellers and poetry readers appeared at coffeehouses.[662][666] After the Iranian Revolution, it took until 1985 to found the MCHTH (Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts),[667] a now heavily centralized organization, supervising all kinds of cultural activities. It held the first scientific meeting on anthropology and folklore in 1990.[668]

Mythology

The Huma, a mythical bird of Persian legends and fables.[669][670]

Iranian mythology consists of ancient Iranian folklore and stories of extraordinary beings reflecting on good and evil (Ahura Mazda and Ahriman), actions of the gods, and the exploits of heroes and creatures. The tenth-century Persian poet, Ferdowsi, is the author of the national epic known as the Šāhnāme ("Book of Kings"), which is for the most part based on Xwadāynāmag, a Middle Persian compilation of the history of Iranian kings and heroes,[671] as well as the stories and characters of the Zoroastrian tradition, from the texts of the Avesta, the Denkard, the Vendidad and the Bundahishn.

Music

Karna, an ancient Iranian musical instrument from the sixth century BC, kept at the Persepolis Museum.[672]

Iran is the apparent birthplace of the earliest complex instruments, dating to the third millennium BC.[673][better source needed] The use of angular harps have been documented at the sites Madaktu and Kul-e Farah, with the largest collection of Elamite instruments documented at Kul-e Farah. Xenophon's Cyropaedia mentions singing women at the court of the Achaemenid Empire. Under the Parthian Empire, the gōsān (Parthian for "minstrel") had a prominent role in society.[674][better source needed]

The history of Sasanian music is better documented than the earlier periods and is especially more evident in Avestan texts.[675] By the time of Chosroes II, the Sasanian royal court hosted a number of prominent musicians, namely Azad, Bamshad, Barbad, Nagisa, Ramtin, and Sarkash. Iranian traditional musical instruments include string instruments such as chang (harp), qanun, santur, rud (oud, barbat), tar, dotar, setar, tanbur, and kamanche, wind instruments such as sorna (zurna, karna) and ney, and percussion instruments such as tompak, kus, daf (dayere), and naqare.

Iran's first symphony orchestra, the Tehran Symphony Orchestra, was founded by Qolam-Hoseyn Minbashian in 1933. By the late 1940s, Ruhollah Khaleqi founded the country's first national music society and established the School of National Music in 1949.[676]

Iranian pop music has its origins in the Qajar era.[677] It was significantly developed since the 1950s, using indigenous instruments and forms accompanied by electric guitar and other imported characteristics. Iranian rock emerged in the 1960s and hip hop in the 2000s.[678][679][680][681]

Theatre

The oldest Iranian initiation of theatre can be traced to ancient epic ceremonial theatres such as Sug-e Siāvuš ("mourning of Siāvaš"), as well as dances and theatre narrations of Iranian mythological tales reported by Herodotus and Xenophon.

Iran's traditional theatrical genres include Baqqāl-bāzi ("grocer play", a form of slapstick comedy), Ruhowzi (or Taxt-howzi, comedy performed over a courtyard pool covered with boards), Siāh-bāzi (in which the central comedian appears in blackface), Sāye-bāzi (shadow play), Xeyme-šab-bāzi (marionette), and Arusak-bāzi (puppetry), and Ta'zie (religious tragedy plays).[682]

Before the Iranian Revolution, the Iranian national stage had become a famous performing scene for known international artists and troupes,[683] with the Roudaki Hall of Tehran constructed to function as the national stage for opera and ballet. The hall is home to the Tehran Symphony Orchestra, the Tehran Opera Orchestra, and the Iranian National Ballet Company, and was officially renamed Vahdat Hall after the Revolution.

Cinema and animation

Reproduction of the third-millennium BC goblet from Shahr-e Sukhteh, Iran, possibly the world's oldest example of animation, kept at the National Museum of Iran.[684]

A third-millennium BC earthen goblet discovered at the Burnt City in southeastern Iran depicts what could be the world's oldest example of animation.[685] The earliest attested Iranian examples of visual representations, however, are traced back to the bas-reliefs of Persepolis, the ritual centre of the Achaemenid Empire.[686]

The first Iranian filmmaker was probably Mirza Ebrahim (Akkas Bashi), the court photographer of Mozaffar-ed-Din Shah of the Qajar dynasty. Mirza Ebrahim obtained a camera and filmed the Qajar ruler's visit to Europe. Later in 1904, Mirza Ebrahim (Sahhaf Bashi) opened the first public cinema in Tehran.[687] The first Iranian feature film, Abi and Rabi, was a silent comedy directed by Ovanes Ohanian in 1930. The first sounded one, Lor Girl, was produced by Ardeshir Irani and Abd-ol-Hosein Sepanta in 1932.

Iran's animation industry began by the 1950s and was followed by the establishment of the influential Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults in January 1965.[688][689] With the screening of the films Qeysar and The Cow, directed by Masoud Kimiai and Dariush Mehrjui respectively in 1969, alternative films set out to establish their status in the film industry and Bahram Beyzai's Downpour and Nasser Taghvai's Tranquility in the Presence of Others followed soon. Attempts to organise a film festival, which had begun in 1954 within the framework of the Golrizan Festival, resulted in the festival of Sepas in 1969. The endeavours also resulted in the formation of Tehran's World Film Festival in 1973.[690] After the Revolution of 1979, and following the Cultural Revolution, a new age emerged in Iranian cinema, starting with Long Live! by Khosrow Sinai and followed by many other directors, such as Abbas Kiarostami and Jafar Panahi. Kiarostami, an acclaimed Iranian director, planted Iran firmly on the map of world cinema when he won the Palme d'Or for Taste of Cherry in 1997.[691] The continuous presence of Iranian films in prestigious international festivals, such as the Cannes Film Festival, the Venice Film Festival, and the Berlin International Film Festival, attracted world attention to Iranian masterpieces.[692] In 2006, six Iranian films represented Iranian cinema at the Berlin International Film Festival. Critics considered this a remarkable event in the history of Iranian cinema.[693][694]

Asghar Farhadi, a well-known Iranian director, has received a Golden Globe Award and two Academy Awards, representing Iran for Best Foreign Language Film in 2012 and 2017, with A Separation and The Salesman.[695][696][697]

In 2020, Ashkan Rahgozar's "The Last Fiction" became the first representative of Iranian animated cinema in the competition section in both Best Animated Feature and Best Picture categories at the Academy Awards.[698][699][700][701][702][703]

Observances

Haft-Seen, a custom of Nowruz, the Iranian New Year.[704][705]

Iran's official New Year begins with Nowruz, an ancient Iranian tradition celebrated annually on the vernal equinox and described as the Persian New Year.[706] It was registered on the UNESCO's list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2009.[707][708][709][710] On the eve of the last Wednesday of the preceding year, as a prelude to Nowruz, the ancient festival of Čāršanbe Suri celebrates Ātar ("fire") by performing rituals such as jumping over bonfires and lighting fireworks.[711][712]

Yaldā, another ancient tradition,[713] commemorates the ancient goddess Mithra and marks the longest night of the year on the eve of the winter solstice (usually falling on 20 or 21 December),[714][715] during which families gather to recite poetry and eat fruits.[716][717] In some regions of Mazanderan and Markazi,[718][719][720][721] there is a midsummer festival, Tirgān,[722] which is observed on Tir 13 (2 or 3 July) as a celebration of water.[723][724]

Islamic annual events such as Ramezān, Eid e Fetr, and Ruz e Āšurā are marked by the country's large Muslim population, Christian traditions such as Noel,[725] Čelle ye Ruze, and Eid e Pāk[726] are observed by the Christian communities, Jewish traditions such as Purim,[727] Hanukā,[728] and Eid e Fatir (Pesah)[729][730] are observed by the Jewish communities, and Zoroastrian traditions such as Sade[731] and Mehrgān are observed by the Zoroastrians.

Public holidays

Iran's official calendar is the Solar Hejri calendar, beginning at the vernal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere.[732] Each of the 12 months of the Solar Hejri calendar correspond with a zodiac sign, and the length of each year is solar.[732] Alternatively, the Lunar Hejri calendar is used to indicate Islamic events, and the Gregorian calendar marks international events.

Legal public holidays based on the Iranian solar calendar include the cultural celebrations of Nowruz (Farvardin 1–4; 21–24 March) and Sizdebedar (Farvardin 13; 2 April), and the political events of Islamic Republic Day (Farvardin 12; 1 April), the death of Ruhollah Khomeini (Khordad 14; 4 June), the Khordad 15 event (Khordad 15; 5 June), the anniversary of the Iranian Revolution (Bahman 22; 10 February), and Oil Nationalization Day (Esfand 29; 19 March).[733]

Lunar Islamic public holidays include Tasua (Muharram 9), Ashura (Muharram 10), Arba'een (Safar 20), the death of Muhammad (Safar 28), the death of Ali al-Ridha (Safar 29 or 30), the birthday of Muhammad (Rabi-al-Awwal 17), the death of Fatimah (Jumada-al-Thani 3), the birthday of Ali (Rajab 13), Muhammad's first revelation (Rajab 27), the birthday of Muhammad al-Mahdi (Sha'ban 15), the death of Ali (Ramadan 21), Eid al-Fitr (Shawwal 1–2), the death of Ja'far al-Sadiq (Shawwal 25), Eid al-Qurban (Zulhijja 10), and Eid al-Qadir (Zulhijja 18).[733]

Cuisine

Chelow kabab (rice and kebab), one of Iran's national dishes.[734][735][736]

Iranian main dishes include varieties of kebab, pilaf, stew (khoresh), soup and āsh, and omelette. Lunch and dinner meals are commonly accompanied by side dishes such as plain yogurt or mast-o-khiar, sabzi, salad Shirazi, and torshi, and might follow dishes such as borani, Mirza Qasemi, or kashk e bademjan.

In Iranian culture, tea is widely consumed.[737][738] Iran is the world's seventh major tea producer.[739] One of Iran's most popular desserts is the falude.[740] There is also the popular saffron ice cream, known as Bastani Sonnati ("traditional ice cream"),[741] which is sometimes accompanied with carrot juice.[742] Iran is also famous for its caviar.[743]

Sports

Iran is most likely the birthplace of polo,[744][745] locally known as čowgān, with its earliest records attributed to the ancient Medes.[746] Freestyle wrestling is traditionally considered the national sport of Iran, and the national wrestlers have been world champions on many occasions. Iran's traditional wrestling, called košti e pahlevāni ("heroic wrestling"), is registered on UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list.[citation needed]

Being a mountainous country, Iran is a venue for skiing, snowboarding, hiking, rock climbing,[747] and mountain climbing.[748][749] It is home to several ski resorts, the most famous being Tochal, Dizin, and Shemshak.[750] The resort of Tochal, located in the Alborz mountain rage, is the world's fifth-highest ski resort (3,730 m or 12,238 ft at its highest station). Dizin is the largest Iranian ski resort, and its officially granted the title by FIS to administer official and international competitions.[751]

Dizin is the biggest ski resort in the Middle East.
Azadi Stadium in Tehran is West Asia's largest football stadium.

Iran's National Olympic Committee was founded in 1947. Wrestlers and weightlifters have achieved the country's highest records at the Olympics. In September 1974, Iran became the first country in West Asia to host the Asian Games.[752][753][754]

Football is the most popular sport in Iran, with the men's national team having won the Asian Cup on three occasions. The men's national team ranks first in Asia and 22nd in the world according to the FIFA World Rankings (as of September 2021).[755] The Azadi Stadium in Tehran is the largest association football stadium in Western Asia and on the list of top-20 best stadiums in the world.[756]

Volleyball is the second most popular sport.[757][758] Having won the 2011 and 2013 Asian Men's Volleyball Championships, the men's national team is the strongest team in Asia, and ranks eighth in the FIVB World Rankings (as of July 2017).

Basketball is also popular,[759] with the men's national team having won three Asian Championships since 2007.

In 2016, Iran made global headlines for international female champions boycotting tournaments in Iran in chess (U.S. Woman Grandmaster Nazí Paikidze)[760][761] and in shooting (Indian world champion Heena Sidhu),[762] as they refused to enter a country where they would be forced to wear a hijab.

Museums

National Museum of Iran, in Tehran.

The National Museum of Iran in Tehran is the country's most important cultural institution.[763] As the first and biggest museum in Iran, the institution includes the Museum of Ancient Iran and the Museum of the Islamic Era. The National Museum is the world's most important museum in terms of preservation, display and research of archaeological collections of Iran,[764] and ranks as one of the few most prestigious museums globally in terms of volume, diversity and quality of its monuments.[765]

There are many other popular museums across the country such as the Golestan Palace (UNESCO World Heritage Site), The Treasury of National Jewels, Reza Abbasi Museum, Tehran Museum of Contemporary Art, Sa'dabad Complex, The Carpet Museum, Abgineh Museum, Pars Museum, Azerbaijan Museum, Hegmataneh Museum, Susa Museum and more. In 2019, around 25 million people visited the museums.[766][767]

Media

IRIB, the Iranian state-controlled media corporation.

According to the Press Freedom Index, Iran ranks 174th out of 180 countries as of 2021.[768][769] The Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance is responsible for the cultural policy, including activities regarding communications and information.[770] Most of the newspapers published in Iran are in Persian, the country's official language. The country's most widely circulated periodicals are based in Tehran, among which are Etemad, Ettela'at, Kayhan, Hamshahri, Resalat, and Shargh.[481] Tehran Times, Iran Daily, and Financial Tribune are among English-language newspapers based in Iran.

Since the Iranian Revolution, Iran's largest media corporation is the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB).[481] Despite the restrictions on non-domestic television, about 65% of the residents of Tehran and about 30 to 40% of residents outside the capital access worldwide television channels through satellite dishes, although observers state that the figures are likely to be higher.[771][772]

According to Internet World Stats, as of 2017, around 69.1% of the population are Internet users.[773] Iran ranks 17th among countries by number of Internet users. Google Search is Iran's most widely used search engine and Instagram is the most popular online social networking service.[774] Direct access to many worldwide mainstream websites has been blocked in Iran, including Facebook, which has been blocked since 2009 due to the organization of anti-governmental protests on the website.[775] However, as of 2017, Facebook has around 40 million subscribers based in Iran (48.8% of the population) who use virtual private networks and proxy servers to access the website.[773] About 90% of Iran's e-commerce takes place on the Iranian online store Digikala, which has around 750,000 visitors per day and is the most visited online store in the Middle East.[776][774]

Fashion and clothing

An Iranian model in Tehran, 2019.

The exact date of the emergence of weaving in Iran is not yet known, but it is likely to coincide with the emergence of civilization. Ferdowsi and many historians have considered Keyumars to be first to use animals' skin and hair as clothing, while others propose Hushang.[777] Ferdowsi considers Tahmuras to be a kind of textile initiator in Iran. The clothing of ancient Iran took an advanced form, and the fabric and colour of clothing became very important. Depending on the social status, eminence, climate of the region and the season, Persian clothing during the Achaemenian period took various forms. This clothing, in addition to being functional, had an aesthetic role.[777]

See also

Explanatory notes

References

Footnotes

Citations

  1. ^ Jeroen Temperman (2010). State-Religion Relationships and Human Rights Law: Towards a Right to Religiously Neutral Governance. Brill. pp. 87–. ISBN 978-90-04-18148-9. Archived from the original on 10 April 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2015. The official motto of Iran is [the] Takbir ('God is the Greatest' or 'God is Great'). Transliteration Allahu Akbar. As referred to in art. 18 of the constitution of Iran (1979). The de facto motto however is: 'Independence, freedom, the Islamic Republic.'
  2. ^ "Iran – Languages". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 5 May 2020. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
  3. ^ a b "Constitution of Islamic Republic of Iran, Chapter II: The Official Language, Script, Calendar, and Flag of the Country, Article 15". Iran Chamber Society. Archived from the original on 30 July 2022. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Iran". The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency (United States). Archived from the original on 8 February 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  5. ^ Tohidi 2009, p. 300.
  6. ^ "Surface water and surface water change". Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Archived from the original on 24 March 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Iran Population (2024) - Worldometer".
  8. ^ a b c "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2023 Edition. (Iran)". IMF.org. International Monetary Fund. 10 October 2023. Archived from the original on 13 October 2023. Retrieved 12 October 2023.
  9. ^ "UN Stats".
  10. ^ "Gini index". World Bank. Archived from the original on 21 July 2019. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  11. ^ "Human Development Report 2023/24" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 13 March 2024. p. 289. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 March 2024. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  12. ^ a b "Definition of IRAN". merriam-webster.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2022. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
  13. ^ "BRICS to Grow as Saudi, Iran, UAE, Egypt, Ethiopia Join Ranks". Bloomberg.com. 29 December 2023. Archived from the original on 2 January 2024. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  14. ^ "ایران در جایگاه پنجم جهانی ثبت آثار ناملموس در یونسکو قرار گرفت". Mehrnews. 6 December 2023. Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  15. ^ "ایران در جایگاه پنجم جهانی ثبت آثار ناملموس در یونسکو قرار گرفت". Dolat. 6 December 2023. Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  16. ^ The history of pre-Islamic literature of Persia, Ahmad Tafazzoli and Zhale Amoozgar, p 84, Sokhan publications, Tehran, ISBN 964-5983-14-2
  17. ^ a b MacKenzie 1998.
  18. ^ Schmitt 1987.
  19. ^ Laroche. 1957. Proto-Iranian *arya- descends from Proto-Indo-European (PIE) *ar-yo-, a yo-adjective to a root *ar "to assemble skillfully", present in Greek harma "chariot", Greek aristos, (as in "aristocracy"), Latin ars "art", etc.
  20. ^ Shahbazi 2004.
  21. ^ A. Fishman, Joshua (2010). Handbook of Language and Ethnic Identity: Disciplinary and Regional Perspectives (Volume 1). Oxford University Press. p. 266. ISBN 978-0-19-537492-6. " "Iran" and "Persia" are synonymous" The former has always been used by the Iranian speaking peoples themselves, while the latter has served as the international name of the country in various languages
  22. ^ Lewis, Geoffrey (1984). "The naming of names". British Society for Middle Eastern Studies Bulletin. 11 (2): 121–124. doi:10.1080/13530198408705394.
  23. ^ Persia Archived 15 June 2022 at the Wayback Machine, Encyclopædia Britannica, "The term Persia was used for centuries ... [because] use of the name was gradually extended by the ancient Greeks and other peoples to apply to the whole Iranian plateau."
  24. ^ Wilson, Arnold (2012). "The Middle Ages: Fars". The Persian Gulf (RLE Iran A). Routledge. p. 71. ISBN 978-1-136-84105-7.
  25. ^ "Your Gateway to Knowledge". Knowledge Zone. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  26. ^ Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica. "Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica". iranicaonline.org. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  27. ^ "Eight Thousand Years of History in Fars Province, Iran". Research Gate. 12 May 2005. Retrieved 3 April 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  28. ^ "From Cyrus to Alexander : a history of the Persian Empire | WorldCat.org". search.worldcat.org. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  29. ^ Austin, Peter (2008). One Thousand Languages: Living, Endangered, and Lost. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-25560-9.
  30. ^ Dandamaev, M. A. (1989). A Political History of the Achaemenid Empire. BRILL. ISBN 978-90-04-09172-6.
  31. ^ "This day in history, March 21: Social media website Twitter established with the sending of the first 'tweet' by co-founder Jack Dorsey". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 21 March 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  32. ^ "Persia Changes Its Name; To Be 'Iran' From Mar. 22". The New York Times. 1 January 1935. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  33. ^ "Your Gateway to Knowledge". Knowledge Zone. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  34. ^ "Persia or Iran, a brief history". Art-arena.com. Archived from the original on 23 May 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  35. ^ Richard N. Frye (20 October 2007). interview by Asieh Namdar. CNN. Archived from the original on 23 April 2016. I spent all my life working in Iran, and as you know I don't mean Iran of today, I mean Greater Iran, the Iran which in the past, extended all the way from China to borders of Hungary and from other Mongolia to Mesopotamia
  36. ^ Christoph Marcinkowski (2010). Shi'ite Identities: Community and Culture in Changing Social Contexts. LIT Verlag Münster. p. 83. ISBN 978-3-643-80049-7. Retrieved 21 June 2013. The 'historical lands of Iran' – 'Greater Iran' – were always known in the Persian language as Irānshahr or Irānzamīn.
  37. ^ Frye, Richard Nelson (October 1962). "Reitzenstein and Qumrân Revisited by an Iranian". The Harvard Theological Review. 55 (4): 261–268. doi:10.1017/S0017816000007926. JSTOR 1508723. S2CID 162213219. I use the term Iran in an historical context [...] Persia would be used for the modern state, more or less equivalent to "western Iran". I use the term "Greater Iran" to mean what I suspect most Classicists and ancient historians really mean by their use of Persia – that which was within the political boundaries of States ruled by Iranians.
  38. ^ Richard Frye (2012). Persia (RLE Iran A). Routledge. p. 13. ISBN 978-1-136-84154-5. Retrieved 21 June 2013. This 'greater Iran' included and still includes part of the Caucasus Mountains, Central Asia, Afghanistan, and Iraq; for Kurds, Baluchis, Afghans, Tajiks, Ossetes, and other smaller groups are Iranians
  39. ^ Farrokh, Kaveh. Shadows in the Desert: Ancient Persia at War. ISBN 1-84603-108-7
  40. ^ "Iran". Oxford Dictionaries. Archived from the original on 29 December 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  41. ^ "Iran". Merriam-Webster. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  42. ^ "How do you say Iran?". Voice of America. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  43. ^ "Tchogha Zanbil". Iranica. 15 December 1997. Archived from the original on 7 June 2020. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  44. ^ Biglari, Fereidoun; Saman Heydari; Sonia Shidrang. "Ganj Par: The first evidence for Lower Paleolithic occupation in the Southern Caspian Basin, Iran". Antiquity. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 27 April 2011.
  45. ^ "National Museum of Iran". Pbase.com. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  46. ^ J. D. Vigne; J. Peters; D. Helmer (2002). First Steps of Animal Domestication, Proceedings of the 9th Conference of the International Council of Archaeozoology. Oxbow Books, Limited. ISBN 978-1-84217-121-9.
  47. ^ Pichon, Fiona; Estevez, Juan José Ibáñez; Anderson, Patricia C.; Tsuneki, Akira (25 August 2023). "Harvesting cereals at Tappeh Sang-e Chakhmaq and the introduction of farming in Northeastern Iran during the Neolithic". PLOS ONE. 18 (8): e0290537. Bibcode:2023PLoSO..1890537P. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0290537. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 10456166. PMID 37624813.
  48. ^ Nidhi Subbaraman (4 July 2013). "Early humans in Iran were growing wheat 12,000 years ago". NBC News. Archived from the original on 2 November 2020. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  49. ^ "Emergence of Agriculture in the Foothills of the Zagros Mountains of Iran", by Simone Riehl, Mohsen Zeidi, Nicholas J. Conard – University of Tübingen, publication 10 May 2013
  50. ^ "Excavations at Chogha Bonut: The earliest village in Susiana". Oi.uchicago.edu. Archived from the original on 25 July 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  51. ^ Hole, Frank (20 July 2004). "NEOLITHIC AGE IN IRAN". Encyclopedia Iranica. Encyclopaedia Iranica Foundation. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 9 August 2012.
  52. ^ K. Kris Hirst. "Chogha Mish (Iran)". Archived from the original on 6 November 2013. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
  53. ^ Collon, Dominique (1995). Ancient Near Eastern Art. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0-520-20307-5. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
  54. ^ Woosley, Anne I. (1996). Early agriculture at Chogha Mish. The University of Chicago Oriental Institute publications. Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. ISBN 978-1-885923-01-1.
  55. ^ a b "New evidence: modern civilization began in Iran". News.xinhuanet.com. 10 August 2007. Archived from the original on 17 December 2007. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  56. ^ D. T. Potts (1999). The Archaeology of Elam: Formation and Transformation of an Ancient Iranian State. Cambridge University Press. pp. 45–46. ISBN 978-0-521-56496-0. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  57. ^ "Panorama – 03/03/07". Iran Daily. Archived from the original on 12 March 2007. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  58. ^ Iranian.ws, "Archaeologists: Modern civilization began in Iran based on new evidence", 12 August 2007. Retrieved 1 October 2007. Archived 26 June 2015 at the Wayback Machine
  59. ^ Whatley, Christopher (2001). Bought and Sold for English Gold: The Union of 1707. Tuckwell Press.
  60. ^ Lowell Barrington (2012). Comparative Politics: Structures and Choices, 2nd ed.tr: Structures and Choices. Cengage Learning. p. 121. ISBN 978-1-111-34193-0. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  61. ^ "Ancient Scripts:Elamite". 1996. Archived from the original on 13 May 2011. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
  62. ^ "8,000 years old artifacts unearthed in Iran". 7 January 2019. Archived from the original on 22 February 2019. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  63. ^ "8,000 years old artifacts unearthed in Iran". 8 January 2019. Archived from the original on 28 February 2024. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  64. ^ Basu, Dipak. "Death of the Aryan Invasion Theory". iVarta.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2012. Retrieved 6 May 2013.
  65. ^ Cory Panshin. "The Palaeolithic Indo-Europeans". Panshin.com. Archived from the original on 29 June 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  66. ^ Afary, Janet; Peter William Avery; Khosrow Mostofi. "Iran (Ethnic Groups)". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 28 April 2011.
  67. ^ a b Roux, Georges (1992). Ancient Iraq. Penguin Adult. ISBN 978-0-14-193825-7.
  68. ^ Connolly, Bess (13 November 2019). "What felled the great Assyrian Empire? A Yale professor weighs in". YaleNews. Archived from the original on 18 March 2024. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
  69. ^ "Median Empire". Iran Chamber Society. 2001. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  70. ^ A. G. Sagona (2006). The Heritage of Eastern Turkey: From Earliest Settlements to Islam. Macmillan Education AU. p. 91. ISBN 978-1-876832-05-6.
  71. ^ "Urartu civilization". allaboutturkey.com. Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
  72. ^ Llewellyn-Jones, L. (2022). Persians: The Age of the Great Kings. Basic Books. p. 5. ISBN 978-1-5416-0035-5.
  73. ^ a b c David Sacks; Oswyn Murray; Lisa R. Brody; Oswyn Murray; Lisa R. Brody (2005). Encyclopedia of the ancient Greek world. Facts On File. pp. 256 (at the right portion of the page). ISBN 978-0-8160-5722-1. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  74. ^ "Largest empire by percentage of world population". Guinness World Records. Archived from the original on 9 February 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  75. ^ "Cyrus the Great". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2018. In the Bible (e.g., Ezra 1:1–4), Cyrus is famous for freeing the Jewish captives in Babylonia and allowing them to return to their homeland.
  76. ^ Jakobsson, Jens (2004). "Seleucid Empire". Iran Chamber Society. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 29 April 2011.
  77. ^ a b Stillman, Norman A. (1979). The Jews of Arab Lands. Jewish Publication Society. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-8276-1155-9.
  78. ^ a b Jeffreys, Elizabeth; Haarer, Fiona K. (2006). Proceedings of the 21st International Congress of Byzantine Studies: London, 21–26 August, 2006, Volume 1. Ashgate Publishing. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-7546-5740-8.
  79. ^ Sarkhosh Curtis, Vesta; Stewart, Sarah (2005), Birth of the Persian Empire: The Idea of Iran, London: I.B. Tauris, p. 108, ISBN 978-1-84511-062-8, archived from the original on 28 March 2024, retrieved 20 June 2017, Similarly the collapse of Sassanian Eranshahr in AD 650 did not end Iranians' national idea. The name 'Iran' disappeared from official records of the Saffarids, Samanids, Buyids, Saljuqs and their successor. But one unofficially used the name Iran, Eranshahr, and similar national designations, particularly Mamalek-e Iran or 'Iranian lands', which exactly translated the old Avestan term Ariyanam Daihunam. On the other hand, when the Safavids (not Reza Shah, as is popularly assumed) revived a national state officially known as Iran, bureaucratic usage in the Ottoman empire and even Iran itself could still refer to it by other descriptive and traditional appellations.
  80. ^ Bury, J.B. (1958). History of the Later Roman Empire from the Death of Theodosius I. to the Death of Justinian, Part 1. Courier Corporation. pp. 90–92.
  81. ^ Durant, Will (2011). The Age of Faith: The Story of Civilization. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4516-4761-7. Repaying its debt, Sasanian art exported its forms and motives eastward into India, Turkestan, and China, westward into Syria, Asia Minor, Constantinople, the Balkans, Egypt, and Spain.
  82. ^ "Transoxiana 04: Sasanians in Africa". Transoxiana.com.ar. Archived from the original on 28 May 2008. Retrieved 16 December 2013.
  83. ^ Dutt, Romesh Chunder; Smith, Vincent Arthur; Lane-Poole, Stanley; Elliot, Henry Miers; Hunter, William Wilson; Lyall, Alfred Comyn (1906). History of India. Vol. 2. Grolier Society. p. 243.
  84. ^ George Liska (1998). Expanding Realism: The Historical Dimension of World Politics. Rowman & Littlefield Pub Incorporated. p. 170. ISBN 978-0-8476-8680-3.
  85. ^ "The Rise and Spread of Islam, The Arab Empire of the Umayyads – Weakness of the Adversary Empires". Occawlonline.pearsoned.com. Archived from the original on 15 June 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  86. ^ Stepaniants, Marietta (2002). "The Encounter of Zoroastrianism with Islam". Philosophy East and West. 52 (2). University of Hawai'i Press: 159–172. doi:10.1353/pew.2002.0030. ISSN 0031-8221. JSTOR 1399963. S2CID 201748179.
  87. ^ Boyce, Mary (2001). Zoroastrians: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices (2 ed.). New York: Routledge & Kegan Paul. p. 252. ISBN 978-0-415-23902-8. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  88. ^ Meri, Josef W.; Bacharach, Jere L. (2006). Medieval Islamic Civilization: L-Z, index. Medieval Islamic Civilization: An Encyclopedia. Vol. II (illustrated ed.). Taylor & Francis. p. 878. ISBN 978-0-415-96692-4. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 19 October 2020.
  89. ^ "Under Persian rule". BBC. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  90. ^ Khanbaghi, Aptin (2006). The Fire, the Star and the Cross: Minority Religions in Medieval and Early Modern Iran (reprint ed.). I.B. Tauris. p. 268. ISBN 978-1-84511-056-7.
  91. ^ Kamran Hashemi (2008). Religious Legal Traditions, International Human Rights Law and Muslim States. Brill. p. 142. ISBN 978-90-04-16555-7.
  92. ^ Suha Rassam (2005). Iraq: Its Origins and Development to the Present Day. Gracewing Publishing. p. 77. ISBN 978-0-85244-633-1.
  93. ^ Zarrinkub,'Abd Al-Husain (1975). "The Arab Conquest of Iran and Its Aftermath". In Frye, Richard N. (ed.). Cambridge History of Iran. Vol. 4. London: Cambridge University Press. p. 46. ISBN 978-0-521-20093-6.
  94. ^ Spuler, Bertold (1994). A History of the Muslim World: The age of the caliphs (Illustrated ed.). Markus Wiener Publishers. p. 138. ISBN 978-1-55876-095-0.
  95. ^ "Islamic History: The Abbasid Dynasty". Religion Facts. Archived from the original on 7 September 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  96. ^ a b Hooker, Richard (1996). "The Abbasid Dynasty". Washington State University. Archived from the original on 29 June 2011. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
  97. ^ Joel Carmichael (1967). The Shaping of the Arabs. Macmillan. p. 235. ISBN 978-0-02-521420-0. Retrieved 21 June 2013. Abu Muslim, the Persian general and popular leader
  98. ^ Frye, Richard Nelson (1960). Iran (2, revised ed.). G. Allen & Unwin. p. 47. Retrieved 23 June 2013. A Persian Muslim called Abu Muslim.
  99. ^ Sayyid Fayyaz Mahmud (1988). A Short History of Islam. Oxford University Press. p. 125. ISBN 978-0-19-577384-2.
  100. ^ "Iraq – History | Britannica". britannica.com. Archived from the original on 29 June 2022. Retrieved 29 June 2022.
  101. ^ "Ferdowsi and the Ethics of Persian Literature". UNC. 6 December 2023. Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 6 December 2023.
  102. ^ "The Shahnameh: a Literary Masterpiece". The Shahnameh: a Persian Cultural Emblem and a Timeless Masterpiece. Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  103. ^ "Shahnameh Ferdowsi". shahnameh.eu. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  104. ^ "Iran marks National Day of Ferdowsi". Mehr News Agency. 15 May 2023. Archived from the original on 25 December 2023. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  105. ^ Richard G. Hovannisian; Georges Sabagh (1998). The Persian Presence in the Islamic World. Cambridge University Press. p. 7. ISBN 978-0-521-59185-0. The Golden age of Islam [...] attributable, in no small measure, to the vital participation of Persian men of letters, philosophers, theologians, grammarians, mathematicians, musicians, astronomers, geographers, and physicians
  106. ^ Bernard Lewis (2004). From Babel to Dragomans : Interpreting the Middle East: Interpreting the Middle East. Oxford University Press. p. 44. ISBN 978-0-19-803863-4. Retrieved 21 June 2013. ... the Iranian contribution to this new Islamic civilization is of immense importance.
  107. ^ Richard Nelson Frye (1975). The Cambridge History of Iran. Vol. 4. Cambridge University Press. p. 396. ISBN 978-0-521-20093-6. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  108. ^ a b c d Gene R. Garthwaite (2008). The Persians. Wiley. ISBN 978-1-4051-4400-1.
  109. ^ Sigfried J. de Laet. History of Humanity: From the seventh to the sixteenth century Archived 28 March 2024 at the Wayback Machine UNESCO, 1994. ISBN 92-3-102813-8 p. 734
  110. ^ Ga ́bor A ́goston, Bruce Alan Masters. Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire Archived 28 March 2024 at the Wayback Machine Infobase Publishing, 2009 ISBN 1-4381-1025-1 p. 322
  111. ^ a b Steven R. Ward (2009). Immortal: A Military History of Iran and Its Armed Forces. Georgetown University Press. p. 39. ISBN 978-1-58901-587-6.
  112. ^ "Iran – The Mongol invasion". Encyclopedia Britannica. 3 August 2023. Archived from the original on 9 October 2023. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  113. ^ Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica. "Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica". iranicaonline.org. Archived from the original on 14 July 2021. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
  114. ^ Beckingham, C. F. (1972). "The Cambridge history of Iran. Vol. V: The Saljuq and Mongol periods. Edited by J. A. Boyle, pp. Xiii, 762, 16 pl. Cambridge University Press, 1968. £3.75". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain & Ireland. 104: 68–69. doi:10.1017/S0035869X0012965X. S2CID 161828080. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
  115. ^ "Isfahan: Iran's Hidden Jewel". Smithsonianmag.com. Archived from the original on 17 July 2010. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  116. ^ Spielvogel, Jackson J. (2008). World History, Volume I. Cengage Learning. p. 466. ISBN 978-0-495-56902-2. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  117. ^ a b Andrew J. Newman (2006). Safavid Iran: Rebirth of a Persian Empire. I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1-86064-667-6. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  118. ^ Why is there such confusion about the origins of this important dynasty, which reasserted Iranian identity and established an independent Iranian state after eight and a half centuries of rule by foreign dynasties? RM Savory, Iran under the Safavids (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1980), p. 3.
  119. ^ Thabit Abdullah (12 May 2014). A Short History of Iraq. Taylor & Francis. p. 56. ISBN 978-1-317-86419-6.
  120. ^ Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica. "Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica". iranicaonline.org. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
  121. ^ "Safavid Empire (1501–1722)". BBC Religion. 7 September 2009. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  122. ^ Savory, R. M. "Safavids". Encyclopaedia of Islam (2nd ed.).
  123. ^ Sarkhosh Curtis, Vesta; Stewart, Sarah (2005), Birth of the Persian Empire: The Idea of Iran, London: I.B. Tauris, p. 108, ISBN 978-1-84511-062-8, Similarly the collapse of Sassanian Eranshahr in AD 650 did not end Iranians' national idea. The name 'Iran' disappeared from official records of the Saffarids, Samanids, Buyids, Saljuqs and their successor. But one unofficially used the name Iran, Eranshahr, and similar national designations, particularly Mamalek-e Iran or 'Iranian lands', which exactly translated the old Avestan term Ariyanam Daihunam. On the other hand, when the Safavids (not Reza Shah, as is popularly assumed) revived a national state officially known as Iran, bureaucratic usage in the Ottoman empire and even Iran itself could still refer to it by other descriptive and traditional appellations.
  124. ^ Juan Eduardo Campo, Encyclopedia of Islam, p.625
  125. ^ Shirin Akiner (2004). The Caspian: Politics, Energy and Security. Taylor & Francis. p. 158. ISBN 978-0-203-64167-5.
  126. ^ a b Axworthy, Michael (2006). The Sword of Persia: Nader Shah, from Tribal Warrior to Conquering Tyrant. I.B. Tauris. pp. xv, 284. ISBN 978-0-85772-193-8.
  127. ^ a b Fisher et al. 1991, pp. 329–330.
  128. ^ a b Dowling, Timothy C. (2014). Russia at War: From the Mongol Conquest to Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Beyond. ABC-CLIO. pp. 728–730. ISBN 978-1-59884-948-6.
  129. ^ Perry, John R. (14 May 2015). Karim Khan Zand: A History of Iran, 1747-1779. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-66102-5.
  130. ^ Floor, Willem M. (2007). The Persian Gulf: The Rise of the Gulf Arabs : the Politics of Trade on the Persian Littoral, 1747-1792. Mage Publishers. ISBN 978-1-933823-18-8.
  131. ^ Encyclopedia of Soviet law By Ferdinand Joseph Maria Feldbrugge, Gerard Pieter van den Berg, William B. Simons, Page 457
  132. ^ "The Qajars". Iranologie.com. 25 April 2014. Archived from the original on 4 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  133. ^ Farrokh, Kaveh. Iran at War: 1500–1988. ISBN 1-78096-221-5
  134. ^ Swietochowski, Tadeusz (1995). Russia and Azerbaijan: A Borderland in Transition. Columbia University Press. pp. 69, 133. ISBN 978-0-231-07068-3.
  135. ^ L. Batalden, Sandra (1997). The newly independent states of Eurasia: handbook of former Soviet republics. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-89774-940-4. Archived from the original on 16 March 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
  136. ^ Ebel, Robert E.; Menon, Rajan (2000). Energy and conflict in Central Asia and the Caucasus. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 181. ISBN 978-0-7425-0063-1. Archived from the original on 27 October 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
  137. ^ Andreeva, Elena (2010). Russia and Iran in the great game: travelogues and orientalism (reprint ed.). Taylor & Francis. p. 6. ISBN 978-0-415-78153-4.
  138. ^ Çiçek, Kemal; Kuran, Ercüment (2000). The Great Ottoman-Turkish Civilisation. University of Michigan. ISBN 978-975-6782-18-7.
  139. ^ Ernest Meyer, Karl; Blair Brysac; Shareen (2006). Tournament of Shadows: The Great Game and the Race for Empire in Central Asia. Basic Books. p. 66. ISBN 978-0-465-04576-1.
  140. ^ Gozalova, Nigar (2023). "Qajar Iran at the centre of British–Russian confrontation in the 1820s". The Maghreb Review. 48 (1): 89–99. doi:10.1353/tmr.2023.0003. ISSN 2754-6772. S2CID 255523192. Archived from the original on 9 July 2023. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  141. ^ Deutschmann, Moritz (2013). ""All Rulers are Brothers": Russian Relations with the Iranian Monarchy in the Nineteenth Century". Iranian Studies. 46 (3): 401–413. doi:10.1080/00210862.2012.759334. ISSN 0021-0862. JSTOR 24482848. S2CID 143785614. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  142. ^ Mansoori, Firooz (2008). "17". Studies in History, Language and Culture of Azerbaijan (in Persian). Tehran: Hazar-e Kerman. p. 245. ISBN 978-600-90271-1-8.
  143. ^ a b А. Г. Булатова. Лакцы (XIX — нач. XX вв.). Историко-этнографические очерки. — Махачкала, 2000.
  144. ^ "Griboedov not only extended protection to those Caucasian captives who sought to go home but actively promoted the return of even those who did not volunteer. Large numbers of Georgian and Armenian captives had lived in Iran since 1804 or as far back as 1795." Fisher, William Bayne; Avery, Peter; Gershevitch, Ilya; Hambly, Gavin; Melville, Charles. The Cambridge History of Iran, Cambridge University Press – 1991. p. 339
  145. ^ (in Russian) A. S. Griboyedov. "Записка о переселеніи армянъ изъ Персіи въ наши области" Archived 13 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Фундаментальная Электронная Библиотека
  146. ^ Bournoutian. Armenian People, p. 105
  147. ^ Yeroushalmi, David (2009). The Jews of Iran in the Nineteenth Century: Aspects of History, Community. Brill. p. 327. ISBN 978-90-04-15288-5. Archived from the original on 16 September 2023. Retrieved 20 June 2015.
  148. ^ a b Colin Brock, Lila Zia Levers. Aspects of Education in the Middle East and Africa Symposium Books Ltd., 7 mei 2007 ISBN 1-873927-21-5 p. 99
  149. ^ Gingeras, Ryan (2016). Fall of the Sultanate: The Great War and the End of the Ottoman Empire 1908–1922. Oxford University Press, Oxford. p. 166. ISBN 978-0-19-166358-1. Retrieved 18 June 2016. By January, Ottoman regulars and cavalry detachments associated with the old Hamidiye had seized the towns of Urmia, Khoy, and Salmas. Demonstrations of resistance by local Christians, comprising Armenians, Nestorians, Syriacs, and Assyrians, led Ottoman forces to massacre civilians and torch villages throughout the border region of Iran.
  150. ^ Kevorkian, Raymond (2011). The Armenian Genocide: A Complete History. I.B. Tauris. p. 710. ISBN 978-0-85773-020-6. Retrieved 18 June 2016. 'In retaliation, we killed the Armenians of Khoy, and I gave the order to massacre the Armenians of Maku.' ... Without distorting the facts, one can affirm that the centuries-old Armenian presence in the regions of Urmia, Salmast, Qaradagh, and Maku had been dealt a blow from which it would never recover.
  151. ^ Yeghiayan, Vartkes, ed. (1991). British Foreign Office Dossiers on Turkish War Criminals. American Armenian International College. ... Assyrians who were killed in Khoy, some 700 Armenian residents of Khoy were also massacred at the same time, June 1918.
  152. ^ Hovannisian, Richard G. (2011). The Armenian Genocide: Cultural and Ethical Legacies. Transaction Publishers. pp. 270–271. ISBN 978-1-4128-3592-3.
  153. ^ Hinton, Alexander Laban; La Pointe, Thomas; Irvin-Erickson, Douglas (2013). Hidden Genocides: Power, Knowledge, Memory. Rutgers University Press. p. 117. ISBN 978-0-8135-6164-6.
  154. ^ Glenn E. Curtis; Eric Hooglund (2008). Iran: A Country Study. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 30. ISBN 978-0-8444-1187-3. Archived from the original on 18 March 2024. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  155. ^ Farrokh, Kaveh (2011). Iran at War: 1500–1988. Osprey Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-1-78096-221-4. Archived from the original on 20 March 2015.
  156. ^ David S. Sorenson (2013). An Introduction to the Modern Middle East: History, Religion, Political Economy, Politics. Westview Press. p. 206. ISBN 978-0-8133-4922-0. Archived from the original on 18 March 2024. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  157. ^ Iran: Foreign Policy & Government Guide. International Business Publications. 2009. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-7397-9354-1. Archived from the original on 12 October 2017.
  158. ^ T.H. Vail Motter (1952). United States Army in World War II the Middle East Theater the Persian Corridor and Aid to Russia. United States Army Center of Military History. Archived from the original on 23 December 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
  159. ^ Louise Fawcett, "Revisiting the Iranian Crisis of 1946: How Much More Do We Know?" Iranian Studies 47#3 (2014): 379–399.
  160. ^ Gary R. Hess, "The Iranian Crisis of 1945–46 and the Cold War." Political Science Quarterly 89#1 (1974): 117–146. online
  161. ^ Stephen Kinzer (2011). All the Shah's Men. John Wiley & Sons. p. 10. ISBN 978-1-118-14440-4. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  162. ^ Nikki R. Keddie, Rudolph P Matthee. Iran and the Surrounding World: Interactions in Culture and Cultural Politics University of Washington Press, 2002 p. 366
  163. ^ Cordesman, Anthony H. (1999). Iran's Military Forces in Transition: Conventional Threats and Weapons of Mass Destruction. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-275-96529-7. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 20 June 2017.
  164. ^ Baraheni, Reza (28 October 1976). "Terror in Iran". The New York Review of Books. 23 (17). Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 21 January 2019.
  165. ^ Christoffel Coetzee, Salidor (2021). The Eye of the Storm. Partridge Publishing Singapore. ISBN 978-1-5437-5950-1.
  166. ^ Elizabeth Shakman Hurd (2009). The Politics of Secularism in International Relations. Princeton University Press. p. 75. ISBN 978-1-4008-2801-2. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  167. ^ "The Iranian Revolution". Fsmitha.com. 22 March 1963. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  168. ^ "BBC On this Day Feb 1 1979". BBC. Archived from the original on 24 October 2014. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  169. ^ Lori A. Johnson; Kathleen Uradnik; Sara Beth Hower (2011). Battleground: Government and Politics [2 volumes]: Government and Politics. ABC-CLIO. p. 319. ISBN 978-0-313-34314-8.
  170. ^ Jahangir Amuzegar (1991). The Dynamics of the Iranian Revolution: The Pahlavis' Triumph and Tragedy. SUNY Press. pp. 4, 9–12. ISBN 978-0-7914-9483-7.
  171. ^ Cheryl Benard (1984). "The Government of God": Iran's Islamic Republic. Columbia University Press. p. 18. ISBN 978-0-231-05376-1.
  172. ^ "American Experience, Jimmy Carter, "444 Days: America Reacts"". Pbs.org. Archived from the original on 19 January 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  173. ^ Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (4 March 2020). "The 1980 Cultural Revolution and Restrictions on Academic Freedom in Iran". Iran Press Watch. Archived from the original on 19 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  174. ^ Sobhe, Khosrow (1982). "Education in Revolution: Is Iran Duplicating the Chinese Cultural Revolution?". Comparative Education. 18 (3): 271–280. doi:10.1080/0305006820180304. ISSN 0305-0068. JSTOR 3098794. Archived from the original on 19 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  175. ^ Razavi, Reza (2009). "The Cultural Revolution in Iran, with Close Regard to the Universities, and Its Impact on the Student Movement". Middle Eastern Studies. 45 (1): 1–17. doi:10.1080/00263200802547586. ISSN 0026-3206. JSTOR 40262639. S2CID 144079439. Archived from the original on 13 November 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2023.
  176. ^ Hiro, Dilip (1991). The Longest War: The Iran-Iraq Military Conflict. New York: Routledge. p. 205. ISBN 978-0-415-90406-3. OCLC 22347651.
  177. ^ Abrahamian, Ervand (2008). A History of Modern Iran. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press. pp. 171–175, 212. ISBN 978-0-521-52891-7. OCLC 171111098.
  178. ^ Dan De Luce in Tehran (4 May 2004). "Khatami blames clerics for failure". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 28 August 2013. Retrieved 25 August 2010.
  179. ^ "Iran hardliner becomes president". BBC. 3 August 2005. Archived from the original on 26 January 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2006.
  180. ^ نتایج نهایی دهمین دورهٔ انتخابات ریاست جمهوری (in Persian). Ministry of Interior of Iran. 13 June 2009. Archived from the original on 18 June 2009. Retrieved 27 June 2009.
  181. ^ Ian Black (13 June 2009). "Ahmadinejad wins surprise Iran landslide victory". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 September 2013. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  182. ^ "Iran clerics defy election ruling". BBC News. 5 July 2009. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  183. ^ "Is this government legitimate?". BBC. 7 September 2009. Archived from the original on 9 April 2015. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  184. ^ Landry, Carole (25 June 2009). "G8 calls on Iran to halt election violence". Archived from the original on 12 March 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  185. ^ Tait, Robert; Black, Ian; Tran, Mark (17 June 2009). "Iran protests: Fifth day of unrest as regime cracks down on critics". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 21 December 2016. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  186. ^ "Hassan Rouhani wins Iran presidential election". BBC News. 15 June 2013. Archived from the original on 10 March 2022. Retrieved 15 June 2013.
  187. ^ Fassihi, Farnaz (15 June 2013). "Moderate Candidate Wins Iran's Presidential Vote". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 26 March 2015. Retrieved 16 June 2013.
  188. ^ Denmark, Abraham M.; Tanner, Travis (2013). Strategic Asia 2013–14: Asia in the Second Nuclear Age. p. 229.
  189. ^ Erdbrink, Thomas (4 August 2018). "Protests Pop Up Across Iran, Fueled by Daily Dissatisfaction". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  190. ^ "More Chants, More Protests: The Dey Iranian Anti-Regime Protests". Critical Threats. Archived from the original on 7 August 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  191. ^ "Iran arrested 7,000 in crackdown on dissent during 2018 – Amnesty". BBC News. 24 January 2019. Archived from the original on 28 May 2023. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  192. ^ "In Pictures: Iranians protest against the increase in fuel prices". Al-Jazeera. 17 November 2019. Archived from the original on 19 November 2019. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
  193. ^ Shutdown, Iran Internet. "A web of impunity: The killings Iran's internet shutdown hid — Amnesty International". Archived from the original on 10 January 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
  194. ^ "Special Report: Iran's leader ordered crackdown on unrest – 'Do whatever it takes to end it'". Reuters. Archived from the original on 23 December 2019. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  195. ^ Carolien Roelants, Iran expert of NRC Handelsblad, in a debate on Buitenhof on Dutch television, 5 January 2020.
  196. ^ Never-before-seen video of the attack on Al Asad Airbase, archived from the original on 23 February 2022, retrieved 8 January 2024
  197. ^ Millions turn out in Iran for General Soleimani's funeral - BBC News, archived from the original on 8 January 2024, retrieved 8 January 2024
  198. ^ "Ukrainian airplane with 180 aboard crashes in Iran: Fars". Reuters. 8 January 2020. Archived from the original on 8 January 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  199. ^ "Demands for justice after Iran's plane admission". BBC. 11 January 2020. Archived from the original on 12 January 2020. Retrieved 11 January 2020.
  200. ^ "Protests flare across Iran in violent unrest over woman's death". Reuters. 20 September 2022. Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 23 September 2022.
  201. ^ Strzyżyńska, Weronika (16 September 2022). "Iranian woman dies 'after being beaten by morality police' over hijab law". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 20 September 2022. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  202. ^ Leonhardt, David (26 September 2022). "Iran's Ferocious Dissent". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 27 September 2022.
  203. ^ "Who are Iran's 'morality police'? – DW – 12/04/2022". dw.com. Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  204. ^ Alkhshali, Helen Regan, Hamdi (16 January 2024). "Iran launches missile strikes in northern Iraq and Syria, claims to destroy Israeli spy base". CNN. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  205. ^ "Iran launches missiles attacks in Iraq and Syria to target Mossad headquarters". Business Today. 16 January 2024. Archived from the original on 19 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  206. ^ hhanes (16 January 2024). "U.S. strikes Houthi launch sites, Iran targets 'Mossad bases' in missile attack in northern Iraq". FDD. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  207. ^ "Iran launches missile strikes in Iraq and Syria citing security threats". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 16 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  208. ^ a b Rubin, Alissa J. (16 January 2024). "Iran Launches Missile Strikes in Iraq and Syria, Citing Terrorist Attacks". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 16 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  209. ^ Abdulkader, Omar (16 January 2024). "U.S. condemns Iran's "reckless missile strikes" near new American consulate in Erbil, northern Iraq - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  210. ^ a b "Iran demonstrates missile capabilities with regional strikes". 17 January 2024. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  211. ^ Livemint (17 January 2024). "Why Iran attacked Pakistan, Syria and Iraq". mint. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  212. ^ "Civilian Homes Damaged in Erbil After The Iranian Attack". Shafaq News. Archived from the original on 29 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  213. ^ Iddon, Paul (18 January 2024). "Iranian Ballistic Missile Strike Kills Prominent Businessman In Iraqi Kurdistan". Forbes. Archived from the original on 17 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  214. ^ Knight, Dean (6 September 2020). "Ameliorating the collateral damage caused by collateral attack in administrative law". dx.doi.org. doi:10.26686/wgtn.12923954.v1. S2CID 155505234. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  215. ^ "Iran Targets Terror Outfit Jaish Al-Adl Inside Pakistan". Voice of America. 17 January 2024. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  216. ^ AP (16 January 2024). "Iran attacks alleged militant bases in Pakistan; Islamabad says 'unprovoked' strikes kill 2 children". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 18 January 2024. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  217. ^ "The Mysteries of Iran's Sacred Peak, Mount Damavand". oxadventure.com. 18 April 2023. Archived from the original on 29 February 2024. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  218. ^ "Mount Damavand Mythology: Exploring the Mysterious Tales and Legends". Adventure & Cultural | Iran Exploration Tour Operator. 15 June 2023. Archived from the original on 29 February 2024. Retrieved 19 March 2024.
  219. ^ "Iran's Strategy in the Strait of Hormuz". The Diplomat. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  220. ^ "CIA – The World Factbook". Cia.gov. Archived from the original on 27 January 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
  221. ^ "Which country has the most earthquakes?". United States Geological Survey. Archived from the original on 22 May 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  222. ^ "هر ده سال، یک زلزله ۷ ریشتری در کشور رخ می‌دهد | خبرگزاری ایلنا". Ilna.news. 13 October 2012. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 5 August 2022.
  223. ^ "Apply Mubabol". en.mubabol.ac.ir. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  224. ^ "The 5 Hottest Deserts in the World". MapQuest Travel. 9 November 2009. Archived from the original on 31 December 2023. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  225. ^ "Where Is the Hottest Place on Earth?". earthobservatory.nasa.gov. 5 April 2012. Archived from the original on 3 November 2020. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  226. ^ "The hottest place on earth - Secret Compass". 22 February 2017. Archived from the original on 31 December 2023. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  227. ^ Sand-boarding.com (10 August 2023). "The Hottest Deserts on Earth Are Too Hot to Handle". Surf the Sand. Archived from the original on 31 December 2023. Retrieved 31 December 2023.
  228. ^ "Geography | Iranian Student Organization (IrSO) | Nebraska". unl.edu. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  229. ^ "IRAN TODAY - Geography..." allventure.com. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  230. ^ "Iran ecotourism | Iran Ecotour guide training course". arasbaran.org. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  231. ^ "Iran Islands Tours, Top 10 Islands You Must See in Iran – Iran Travel Information". Archived from the original on 13 December 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  232. ^ Motamedi, Maziar. "Iran's IRGC runs military drills on disputed islands claimed by UAE". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  233. ^ "Iran's Revolutionary Guard Runs Drill on Disputed Islands in Persian Gulf". Voice of America. 2 August 2023. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  234. ^ "Strait of Hormuz - About the Strait". The Strauss Center. Archived from the original on 31 December 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  235. ^ "Why is the Strait of Hormuz so strategically important?". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  236. ^ "The Strait of Hormuz Is at the Center of Iran Tensions Again. Here's How the Narrow Waterway Gained Wide Importance". TIME. 23 July 2019. Archived from the original on 14 December 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  237. ^ "Strait of Hormuz: the world's most important oil artery". Routers. 23 January 2024. Archived from the original on 5 December 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  238. ^ "The Strait of Hormuz is the world's most important oil transit chokepoint - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)". www.eia.gov. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  239. ^ National, The (17 June 2019). "Why is the Strait of Hormuz the most important oil tanker route?". The National. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  240. ^ "UAE demands return of three islands seized by Iran". Arab News. 25 September 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  241. ^ "United Arab Emirates calls on Iran to take dispute over islands to UN court | UN News". news.un.org. 26 September 2011. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  242. ^ "UAE official calls for international action to end "Iranian occupation" of disputed islands". Middle East Institute. Archived from the original on 27 July 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  243. ^ "Iran-UAE Island Dispute Could Escalate". Voice of America. 18 October 2012. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  244. ^ "Iran summons Russian envoy over statement on Persian Gulf disputed islands". AP News. 24 December 2023. Archived from the original on 31 December 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  245. ^ "Spokesman: Iran's Sovereignty over Three Persian Gulf Islands Undeniable | Farsnews Agency". www.farsnews.ir. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  246. ^ "Tehran dismisses UAE claim to three Iranian islands". Tehran Times. 25 September 2023. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  247. ^ "UAE-Iran islands dispute complicates regional diplomacy | Responsible Statecraft". responsiblestatecraft.org. Archived from the original on 22 January 2024. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  248. ^ "Hormozgan province | Visit Iran". visitiran.ir. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  249. ^ "Hormozgan Cultural Heritage, Handcrafts & Tourism Organization". Hormozgan Cultural Heritage, Handcrafts & Tourism Organization. Archived from the original on 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  250. ^ "Qeshm Island Geopark Becomes Global After Receiving UNESCO Green Card - Iran Front Page". ifpnews.com. 6 May 2017. Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  251. ^ "Qeshm island Geopark - Home". www.qeshmgeopark.ir. Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  252. ^ Visit of Qeshm UNESCO Global Geopark, 12 August 2021, archived from the original on 27 June 2022, retrieved 22 January 2024
  253. ^ "Namakdan Salt Cave: Qeshm's World-Famous Wonder |TAP Persia". 13 April 2023. Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  254. ^ www.sirang.com, Sirang Rasaneh. "Namakdan Salt Cave 2024 | Qeshm Island, Hormozgan | Sights - ITTO". itto.org | Iran Tourism & Touring. Archived from the original on 11 December 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  255. ^ "Namakdan Salt Cave | One of the Longest | Qeshm Attraction | Apochi.com". Apochi. Archived from the original on 29 November 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  256. ^ "Namakdan Salt Cave". IUGS. Archived from the original on 5 October 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  257. ^ Kiyanoosh Kiyani Haftlang; Kiyānūsh Kiyānī Haft Lang (2003). The Book of Iran: A Survey of the Geography of Iran. Alhoda UK. p. 17. ISBN 978-964-94491-3-5.
  258. ^ a b c R. Nagarajan (2010). Drought Assessment. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 383. ISBN 978-90-481-2500-5.
  259. ^ "Weather and Climate: Iran, average monthly Rainfall, Sunshine, Temperature, Humidity, Wind Speed". World Weather and Climate Information. Archived from the original on 22 September 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  260. ^ Moghtader, Michelle (3 August 2014). "Farming reforms offer hope for Iran's water crisis". Reuters. Archived from the original on 7 August 2014. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  261. ^ Sharon E. Nicholson (2011). Dryland Climatology. Cambridge University Press. p. 367. ISBN 978-1-139-50024-1.
  262. ^ April Fast (2005). Iran: The Land. Crabtree Publishing Company. p. 31. ISBN 978-0-7787-9315-1.
  263. ^ Eskandar Firouz (2005). The Complete Fauna of Iran. I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1-85043-946-2.
  264. ^ Guggisberg, C.A.W. (1961). Simba: The Life of the Lion. Howard Timmins, Cape Town.
  265. ^ همشهری آنلاین-استان‌های کشور به ۵ منطقه تقسیم شدند [Provinces were divided into five regions]. Hamshahri Online (in Persian). 22 June 2014. Archived from the original on 23 June 2014.
  266. ^ "Iran: Focus on reverse migration". Payvand. Archived from the original on 26 March 2006. Retrieved 17 April 2006.
  267. ^ "Population distribution – The World Factbook". cia.gov. Archived from the original on 6 October 2022. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
  268. ^ قانون اساسی جمهوری اسلامی ایران (in Persian). Archived from the original on 10 April 2008. Retrieved 23 January 2008.
  269. ^ a b c d e "Leadership in the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran". Leader.ir. Archived from the original on 12 June 2013. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  270. ^ a b "In jab at rivals, Rouhani says Iran protests about more than economy". Reuters. 8 January 2018. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  271. ^ a b Al-awsat, Asharq (25 September 2017). "Khamenei Orders New Supervisory Body to Curtail Government – ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive". Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
  272. ^ "Khamenei says Iran must go green – Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East". Al-Monitor. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015.
  273. ^ a b "Khamenei outlines 14-point plan to increase population". Al-Monitor. 22 May 2014. Archived from the original on 1 August 2017. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
  274. ^ Paolo Magri; Annalisa Perteghella (2017). Post-Vote Iran: Giving engagement a chance. Ledizioni. pp. 58–61. ISBN 978-88-6705-653-8.[permanent dead link]
  275. ^ "Khamenei orders controversial retirement law amended". Al-Monitor. 5 December 2018. Archived from the original on 7 December 2018. Retrieved 12 December 2018.
  276. ^ "Reuters Investigates – Assets of the Ayatollah". Reuters. 11 November 2013. Archived from the original on 12 November 2013. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  277. ^ Steve Stecklow, Babak Dehghanpisheh (22 January 2014). "Exclusive: Khamenei's business empire gains from Iran sanctions relief". Reuters. Archived from the original on 15 January 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  278. ^ Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. "Iran – The Constitution". Archived from the original on 23 September 2006. Retrieved 14 April 2006.
  279. ^ a b c d "Iran Chamber Society: The Structure of Power in Iran". Iranchamber.com. 24 June 2005. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  280. ^ Al-awsat, Asharq (15 December 2015). "Controversy in Iran Surrounding the Supervision of the Supreme Leader's Performance – ASHARQ AL-AWSAT". Archived from the original on 25 June 2016. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  281. ^ "Myths and Realities of Iran's Parliamentary Elections". The Atlantic. 23 February 2016. Archived from the original on 16 February 2017. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  282. ^ "Anomalies in Iran's Assembly of Experts Election – The Washington Institute for Near East Policy". Washingtoninstitute.org. 22 March 2016. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  283. ^ Majid Rafizadeh (24 June 2016). "Why Khamenei wants the next Supreme Leader to be 'revolutionary'". AlArabiya News. Archived from the original on 4 February 2017. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
  284. ^ Chibli Mallat (2004). The Renewal of Islamic Law: Muhammad Baqer As-Sadr, Najaf and the Shi'i International. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-53122-1. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  285. ^ and agencies (24 May 2005). "Iran reverses ban on reformist candidates". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 21 December 2016. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  286. ^ Dehghan, Saeed Kamali (15 April 2016). "Iran bars female MP for 'shaking hands with unrelated man'". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 11 August 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  287. ^ "Minoo Khaleghi summoned to court". 15 May 2016. Archived from the original on 11 August 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  288. ^ RFE/RL. "Putin Holds Meetings In Tehran With Iranian, Turkish Leaders". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Archived from the original on 25 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  289. ^ a b c "Iran The Presidency". Photius.com. Archived from the original on 22 June 2008. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  290. ^ Gladstone, Rick (5 August 2021). "Is Iran's Supreme Leader Truly Supreme? Yes, but President Is No Mere Figurehead". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 28 December 2021. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  291. ^ "Leader outlines elections guidelines, calls for transparency". Tehran Times. 15 October 2016. Archived from the original on 12 June 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
  292. ^ "Iran's Khamenei hits out at Rafsanjani in rare public rebuke". Middle East Eye. Archived from the original on 4 April 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
  293. ^ "Asking for a Miracle: Khamenei's Economic Plan". IranWire | خانه. Archived from the original on 22 October 2019. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  294. ^ "Iranian lawmakers warn Ahmadinejad to accept intelligence chief as political feud deepens". CP. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
  295. ^ "BBC NEWS – Middle East – Iranian vice-president 'sacked'". BBC. 25 July 2009. Archived from the original on 3 October 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2016.
  296. ^ Amir Saeed Vakil, Pouryya Askary (2004). constitution in now law like order. p. 362.
  297. ^ "Iran – The Prime Minister and the Council of Ministers". Countrystudies.us. Archived from the original on 20 May 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  298. ^ "The Structure of Power in Iran". Iranchamber.com. 24 June 2005. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  299. ^ "IFES Election Guide". Electionguide.org. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  300. ^ "Iran – The Council of Guardians". Countrystudies.us. Archived from the original on 20 May 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  301. ^ "Iran The Council of Guardians". Photius.com. Archived from the original on 24 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  302. ^ Manou & Associates Inc. "Iranian Government Constitution, English Text". Iranonline.com. Archived from the original on 17 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  303. ^ "Expediency council". BBC News. Archived from the original on 5 March 2008. Retrieved 3 February 2008.
  304. ^ Axel Tschentscher, LL.M. "ICL > Iran > Constitution". Servat.unibe.ch. Archived from the original on 22 April 2020. Retrieved 10 January 2022.
  305. ^ Iran Country Study Guide Volume 1 Strategic Information and Developments. IBP. 3 March 2012. p. 141. ISBN 978-1-4387-7462-6.
  306. ^ "Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Islamic Republic of Iran". 2008. Archived from the original on 28 February 2009. Retrieved 8 November 2011.
  307. ^ Seyed Hossein Mousavian; Shahir Shahidsaless (2014). Iran and the United States: An Insider's View on the Failed Past and the Road to Peace. Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 33. ISBN 978-1-62892-870-9.
  308. ^ Guffey, Robert A. (2009). Saudi-Iranian Relations Since the Fall of Saddam: Rivalry, Cooperation and Implication for US Policy. RAND Corporation. ISBN 978-0-8330-4657-4.
  309. ^ Rubin, Barry (1980). Paved with Good Intentions (PDF). New York: Penguin Books. p. 83. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2013.
  310. ^ Murphy, Francois (15 November 2023). "Iran's nuclear enrichment advances as it stonewalls UN, IAEA reports show". Reuters. Archived from the original on 6 December 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  311. ^ "Iran advances nuclear enrichment while still barring inspectors; IAEA". Aljazeera. 15 November 2023. Archived from the original on 20 December 2023. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  312. ^ "Iran Resumes Pace of 60% Uranium Enrichment, IAEA Says". Voice of America. 26 December 2023. Archived from the original on 11 January 2024. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  313. ^ "An atomic threat made in America". Chicago Tribune. 28 January 2007. Archived from the original on 5 April 2014. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
  314. ^ Canada, Global Affairs (19 October 2015). "Canadian Sanctions Related to Iran". GAC. Archived from the original on 28 December 2023. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
  315. ^ Womuhai, Julian Godfray, Norman (27 September 2023). "The UK, France and Germany announce continuation of Iranian nuclear-related sanctions". Global Sanctions and Export Controls Blog. Archived from the original on 28 December 2023. Retrieved 28 December 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  316. ^ "Iran puts its nuclear programme beyond the reach of American bombs". The Economist. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  317. ^ "Does Iran already have nuclear weapons?". The Washington Times. 19 April 2024.
  318. ^ Pletka, Danielle (18 April 2024). "Whatever Happened to Biden's Iran Policy?". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  319. ^ Kutsch, Tom (14 July 2015). "Iran, world powers strike historic nuclear deal". Aljazeera America. Archived from the original on 15 July 2015. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
  320. ^ "Profile: Iran's Revolutionary Guards" Archived 27 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine. BBC News. 18 October 2009.
  321. ^ "خبر فوری از کاهش مدت خدمت سربازی از زبان سخنگوی شورای نگهبان". www.khabaronline.ir (in Persian). 16 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  322. ^ "کاهش مدت سربازی به‌طور رسمی/ میانگین مدت: با آموزشی، 14 ماه". پایگاه خبری جماران (in Persian). 16 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  323. ^ "اخبار سیاسی ۲۶ اسفند؛ کمک رهبرانقلاب به زندانیان نیازمند/تایید کاهش مدت سربازی". ایسنا (in Persian). 16 March 2024. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  324. ^ روزبهی, محدثه (16 March 2024). "تایید مصوبه کاهش مدت سربازی در شورای نگهبان". پایگاه خبری اختبار (in Persian). Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  325. ^ Hussain, Murtaza. "Why war with Iran would spell disaster". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  326. ^ Jones, Seth G. (2020). Regular Military Power (Report). Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). pp. 19–27. JSTOR resrep29480.7.
  327. ^ "The Largest Armies in the World". WorldAtlas. 12 February 2024. Retrieved 18 March 2024.
  328. ^ Kaskanis, Angelos (2 December 2023). "Iran's Military Capabilities: Exploring the Power of the". Retrieved 18 March 2024.
  329. ^ Aryan, Hossein (5 February 2009). "Pillar Of The State". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  330. ^ "ارتش بیست میلیونی". www.imam-khomeini.ir. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  331. ^ "Iran's Revolutionary Guards: Powerful group with wide regional reach". DH. 3 April 2024.
  332. ^ "Iran's Basij Force -- The Mainstay Of Domestic Security". Radio Free Europe. 15 June 2024.
  333. ^ "2024 Iran Military Strength". globalfirepower.com. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  334. ^ a b Spirlet, Sinéad Baker, Thibault. "The world's most powerful militaries in 2023, ranked". Business Insider. Retrieved 28 December 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  335. ^ "General Ghorbani: Iran helicopter fleet, strongest in Middle East". iranpress.com. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  336. ^ "سازمان صنایع دریایی - پایگاه اطلاعات دریایی ایران". 13 August 2021. Archived from the original on 13 August 2021. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  337. ^ "Iran - Army Navy Air Force | budget, equipment, personnel". ArmedForces. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
  338. ^ "Iran Boosts Military Budget To Stand Among Top 15". Iran International. 26 April 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
  339. ^ "Iran Military Spending=Defense Budget 1960-2023". Macrotrends. 10 December 2023. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
  340. ^ "World military expenditure passes $2 trillion for first time". Sipri. 25 April 2022. Retrieved 10 December 2023.
  341. ^ Hossein Askari; Amin Mohseni; Shahrzad Daneshvar (2010). The Militarization of the Persian Gulf: An Economic Analysis. Edward Elgar Publishing. p. 93. ISBN 978-1-84980-186-7.
  342. ^ "Iran tests new long-range missile". BBC. 12 November 2008. Retrieved 12 November 2008.
  343. ^ Motamedi, Maziar (6 June 2023). "Fattah: Iran unveils its first hypersonic missile". Aljazeera.
  344. ^ "Are the Iran nuclear talks heading for a deal?". BBC News Online. Retrieved: 4 August 2016.
  345. ^ "Ex-official: Iran is world's 6th missile power". AP News. 18 August 2013. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
  346. ^ "Iran is emerging as a drone superpower". Middle East Monitor. 17 November 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  347. ^ "Iran becoming global drone producer on back of Ukraine war, says US". The Guardian. 8 December 2023. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  348. ^ "Iran's drone diplomacy is a danger to the West". Fathom. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  349. ^ News9Plus (30 April 2018), Watch How Iran Became a Drone Superpower on News9 Plus, retrieved 17 March 2024{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  350. ^ "How to Curb the Threat of Iranian Drones | Hudson". www.hudson.org. 28 February 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  351. ^ "Iran is becoming a drone superpower". The Hill. 17 March 2024.
  352. ^ "رادیو زمانه هک شد". BBC. 21 December 2023.
  353. ^ "How Iran's political battle is fought in cyberspace". BBC. 21 December 2023.
  354. ^ "What rules apply in cyber-wars". BBC. 21 December 2023.
  355. ^ "Inside the Russian effort to build 6,000 attack drones with Iran's help". Washington Post. 17 August 2023. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  356. ^ "Timeline: Iran-Russia Collaboration on Drones | The Iran Primer". iranprimer.usip.org. 1 March 2023. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  357. ^ Nissenbaum, Dion; Strobel, Warren P. (5 February 2023). "WSJ News Exclusive | Moscow, Tehran Advance Plans for Iranian-Designed Drone Facility in Russia". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  358. ^ "Russia aims to obtain more attack drones from Iran after depleting stockpile, White House says". AP News. 15 May 2023. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  359. ^ "Iran finalises deal buy russian fighter jets". Reuters. 11 January 2024.
  360. ^ "Iran Finalizes Deal to Buy Russian Fighter Jets - Tasnim". Voice of America. 28 November 2023. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  361. ^ Helou, Agnes (28 November 2023). "Iran claims it has finalized long-awaited deal for Russian fighter jets, helos". Breaking Defense. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  362. ^ Dangwal, Ashish (28 November 2023). "Su-35 Flankers: Iran Says 'Deal Done' To Acquire Russian Military Aircraft Inc Su-35 Fighters, Mi-28 Choppers". Latest Asian, Middle-East, EurAsian, Indian News. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  363. ^ "Iranian Navy ships could reach the Atlantic by Thursday". POLITICO. 2 June 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  364. ^ "Iranian Naval Passage Through Atlantic Prompts US Concern". Voice of America. 25 June 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  365. ^ "Iran, Russia and China launch joint naval exercises in Indian Ocean". World Socialist Web Site. 19 February 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  366. ^ "China, Russia, Iran hold joint naval drills in Gulf of Oman". AP News. 15 March 2023. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  367. ^ "Iran seeking joint naval drills in Caspian Sea with regional states: Khanzadi". Mehr News Agency. 30 December 2019. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  368. ^ "Are We Witnessing The Dawn Of A New Persian Empire?". en.radiofarda.com. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  369. ^ "Piece by piece, Iran moves toward a 'new empire'". UPI. 21 November 2017.
  370. ^ Qatar, Middle East, politics, GCC, Iran, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Nuclear deal, Yemen, Trump, MENA, Turkey, Gulf Crisis. "Future Center - Can Iran turn itself into a "neo-Persian Empire"?". Futureuae. Retrieved 31 January 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  371. ^ Handberg, Hjalte (1 January 2019). "Understanding Iranian Proxy Warfare: A Historical Analysis of the Relational Development of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iraqi Insurgencies" (PDF). Diva Portal.
  372. ^ "A Revolution and A War: How Iran Transformed Today's Middle East". The Cairo Review of Global Affairs. 7 June 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  373. ^ "The Challenge of Iran | The Iran Primer". iranprimer.usip.org. 1 August 2015. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  374. ^ "Iran, a Geopolitical Player in the Middle East". www.iemed.org. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  375. ^ Team, G. P. F. (16 February 2018). "Iranian Expansion Spreads Beyond the Middle East". Geopolitical Futures. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  376. ^ "New report reveals extent of Iran's growing Middle East influence". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  377. ^ "What Is Hezbollah?". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  378. ^ Kane, J. Robert (2018). "A Life Cycle Analysis of Hezbollah: Where the Group Came from and Where It Is Going". American Intelligence Journal. 35 (2): 67–73. ISSN 0883-072X. JSTOR 26566567.
  379. ^ "Hezbollah's Record on War & Politics | Wilson Center". wilsoncenter.org. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  380. ^ "Profile: Iran's Revolutionary Guards". 8 April 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  381. ^ "Iran Deal: U.S. Sanctions on the IRGC | The Iran Primer". iranprimer.usip.org. 13 April 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  382. ^ "Timeline: Iran and Hezbollah | The Iran Primer". iranprimer.usip.org. 19 October 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  383. ^ "Hezbollah's Regional Activities in Support of Iran's Proxy Networks". Middle East Institute. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  384. ^ DeVore, Marc R. (2012). "Exploring the Iran-Hezbollah Relationship: A Case Study of how State Sponsorship affects Terrorist Group Decision-Making". Perspectives on Terrorism. 6 (4/5): 85–107. ISSN 2334-3745. JSTOR 26296878.
  385. ^ Kliot, N. (1987). "The Collapse of the Lebanese State". Middle Eastern Studies. 23 (1): 54–74. doi:10.1080/00263208708700688. ISSN 0026-3206. JSTOR 4283154.
  386. ^ "War, insurgency, IS and instability: Iraq since the 2003 US invasion". The Guardian. 19 March 2023. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  387. ^ "The Saudi-led War in Yemen: Frequently Asked Questions | Friends Committee On National Legislation". www.fcnl.org. 17 October 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  388. ^ Ali, Mohanad Hage (30 January 2024). "Hezbollahʼs Intervention in the Syrian Conflict". Power Points Defining the Syria-Hezbollah Relationship: 8–13. JSTOR resrep20960.6.
  389. ^ Akbar, Ali (8 August 2023). "Iran's soft power in the Middle East via the promotion of the Persian language". Contemporary Politics. 29 (4): 424–445. doi:10.1080/13569775.2023.2169305. ISSN 1356-9775.
  390. ^ "Tehran's Corridor to the Mediterranean Sea – EUROPolitika" (in Turkish). Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  391. ^ "Iran Threatens Mediterranean Closure Over Gaza Without Saying How". Voice of America. 23 December 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  392. ^ a b c "Institute for the Study of War". Institute for the Study of War. Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  393. ^ "Iran Thrives In The Levant On Weakened States Threatened By Sunni Radicalism". Hoover Institution. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  394. ^ How to Contain Iranian Influence in the Levant (Report).
  395. ^ "Institute for the Study of War". Institute for the Study of War. Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  396. ^ Feyli, Luca Nevola, Miran (23 May 2023). "The Muqawama and Its Enemies: Shifting Patterns in Iran-Backed Shiite Militia Activity in Iraq". ACLED. Retrieved 30 January 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  397. ^ Knights, Crispin Smith, Michael (20 March 2023). "Remaking Iraq: How Iranian-Backed Militias Captured the Country". Just Security. Retrieved 30 January 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  398. ^ "The Growing Influence of Iranian-Backed Militias in Iraq". The Cipher Brief. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  399. ^ "How Much Influence Does Iran Have in Iraq?". Council on Foreign Relations. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  400. ^ "Iran is still the main foreign power in Iraq". ISPI. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  401. ^ Motamedi, Maziar. "Where does Iran stand on neighbouring Iraq's political turmoil?". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  402. ^ "افزایش صادرات ایران به عراق تا 9 میلیارد دلار/ در تجارت با منطقه جایگاه مناسبی نداریم". KhabarFarsi.com (in Persian). Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  403. ^ "Iran-Iraq $20b trade target not out of reach: CBI governor". Tehran Times. 23 July 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  404. ^ "Iran, Iraq targeting annual trade vol. $20b". Mehr News Agency. 16 November 2020. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  405. ^ Aaberg, John (15 September 2019). "Understanding Iranian Proxy Warfare: A Historical Analysis of the Relational Development of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iraqi Insurgencies" (PDF). Diva Portal. Retrieved 3 April 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  406. ^ "The Rise of the Iranian Empire". The Tower. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  407. ^ Dagres, Holly (28 January 2019). "Persia is back, but in a different form". Atlantic Council. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  408. ^ "The Houthis, Iran, and tensions in the Red Sea". Middle East Institute. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  409. ^ "How Iran Helped Houthis Expand Their Reach". War on the Rocks. 23 August 2021. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  410. ^ Lester, Stephanie (19 December 2019). "Media Guide: Iran and the Yemeni Civil War". American Iranian Council. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  411. ^ "5 Things to Know About the Houthis, Their Attacks on Israel and the U.S., and Their Treatment of Yemen's Jews | AJC". www.ajc.org. 29 December 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  412. ^ Ignatius, David (16 January 2024). "Opinion | The Houthis sink an arrow into the West's Achilles' heel". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  413. ^ "Yemen's Houthi rebels seize cargo ship in Red Sea". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  414. ^ "A ship earlier hit by Yemen's Houthi rebels sinks in the Red Sea, the first vessel lost in conflict". AP News. 2 March 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  415. ^ Clinch, Matt (25 March 2022). "Yemen's Houthis claim attack on Aramco facility after reports of a huge fire in Saudi city of Jeddah". CNBC. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  416. ^ "Mission Accomplished? What's Next for Iran's Afghan Fighters in Syria". War on the Rocks. 13 February 2018. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  417. ^ "Liwa al-Fatemiyoun :: Jihad Intel". jihadintel.meforum.org. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  418. ^ "Meet the Zainebiyoun Brigade: An Iranian Backed Pakistani Shia Militia Fighting in Syria – The OSINT Blog". 2 May 2016. Archived from the original on 2 May 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  419. ^ "Iran's Tricky Balancing Act in Afghanistan". War on the Rocks. 28 July 2021. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  420. ^ a b "Why is Iran Involved in Syria: A Look at Multifaceted Reasons". 30 December 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  421. ^ Terrill, W. Andrew (2015). "Iran's Strategy for Saving Asad". Middle East Journal. 69 (2): 222–236. doi:10.3751/69.2.1. ISSN 0026-3141. JSTOR 43698235.
  422. ^ "Iran's Evolving Policy on Syria | The Iran Primer". iranprimer.usip.org. 30 July 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  423. ^ Samii, Abbas William (2008). "A Stable Structure on Shifting Sands: Assessing the Hizbullah-Iran-Syria Relationship". Middle East Journal. 62 (1): 32–53. doi:10.3751/62.1.12. ISSN 0026-3141. JSTOR 25482471.
  424. ^ "Iran Update, September 20, 2023". Critical Threats. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  425. ^ "After 7 years of war, Assad has won in Syria. What's next for Washington?". Brookings. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  426. ^ "Syria's Stalemate Has Only Benefitted Assad and His Backers". United States Institute of Peace. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  427. ^ "Iran and Hamas beyond the borders of the Middle East". Middle East Institute. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  428. ^ Skare, Erik (18 December 2023). "Iran, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad: A marriage of convenience". ECFR. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  429. ^ "The Hamas-Iran Relationship | The Washington Institute". www.washingtoninstitute.org. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  430. ^ "Hamas And Israel: Iran's Role | Wilson Center". www.wilsoncenter.org. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  431. ^ Lillis, Jake Tapper, Katie Bo (14 November 2023). "Found document suggests Iran sought to help Hamas make its own weapons ahead of attack, sources say | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved 30 January 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  432. ^ "US intelligence officials estimate Tehran does not have full control of its proxy groups". Politico. 2 January 2024.
  433. ^ "2018 will go down in history as a year of shame for Iran". amnesty.org. 24 January 2019. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  434. ^ "Nasrin Sotoudeh sentenced to 33 years and 148 lashes in Iran". amnesty.org. 11 March 2019. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  435. ^ "Iran". freedomhouse.org. 30 January 2019. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
  436. ^ "Democracy Index 2017 : Free Speech Under Attack" (PDF). eiu.com. 30 January 2018. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
  437. ^ Totten, Michael J. (16 February 2016). "No, Iran is Not a Democracy". Dispatches. World Affairs Institute. Archived from the original on 4 May 2018. Retrieved 3 May 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  438. ^ Avery, Daniel (4 April 2019). "71 Countries Where Homosexuality is Illegal". Newsweek.
  439. ^ "Iran defends execution of gay people". Deutsche Welle. 12 June 2019.
  440. ^ "Iran: UN expert says ethnic, religious minorities face discrimination". Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. New York. 22 October 2019.
  441. ^ "Rights experts urge Iran to end 'systematic persecution' of religious minorities". UN News. 22 August 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  442. ^ "UN Rights Experts Call On Iran To Stop Persecution Of Baha'is, Other Religious Minorities". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  443. ^ "Iran". Reporters Without Borders. Archived from the original on 19 January 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
  444. ^ "The World Press Freedom Index". Reporters Without Borders. 19 April 2016. Archived from the original on 19 April 2019. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
  445. ^ "Freedom in the World 2019, Iran". Freedom House. 30 January 2019. Archived from the original on 30 April 2019. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
  446. ^ "Iran shuts down country's internet in the wake of fuel protests". TechCrunch. 17 November 2019. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  447. ^ Taylor, Chloe (21 November 2019). "Iran's internet blackout enters fifth day as government claims victory over protesters". CNBC. Archived from the original on 22 November 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  448. ^ Mihalcik, Carrie. "Iran's internet has been shut down for days amid protests". CNET. Archived from the original on 26 November 2019. Retrieved 24 November 2019.
  449. ^ MacLellan, Stephanie (9 January 2018). "What You Need to Know about Internet Censorship in Iran". Centre for International Governance Innovation. Archived from the original on 24 November 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
  450. ^ "Iran Archives". Amnesty International. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
  451. ^ "Iran economy". Traveldocs.com. Archived from the original on 8 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  452. ^ "World Economic Outlook Database, April 2023". International Monetary Fund. April 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  453. ^ Iran Investment Monthly Archived 31 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine. Turquoise Partners (April 2012). Retrieved 24 July 2012.
  454. ^ "Iran's banned trade unions: Aya-toiling". The Economist. 20 April 2013. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
  455. ^ a b "Iran in numbers: How cost of living has soared under sanctions". BBC News. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
  456. ^ "IRNA: Crude price pegged at dlrs 39.6 a barrel under next year's budget". Payvand.com. 22 November 2006. Archived from the original on 22 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  457. ^ "Iran Daily Forex Reserves Put at $70b". Archived from the original on 27 March 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  458. ^ "Ahmadinejad's Achilles Heel: The Iranian Economy". Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  459. ^ "Energy subsidies reach $84b". Iran-Daily. 8 January 2007. Archived from the original on 6 May 2008. Retrieved 27 April 2008.
  460. ^ "Iran – Country Brief". Go.worldbank.org. Archived from the original on 10 February 2011. Retrieved 30 January 2010.
  461. ^ "List of Iranian Nanotechnology companies". Archived from the original on 14 November 2006. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  462. ^ "UK Trade & Investment". 13 February 2006. Archived from the original on 13 February 2006. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  463. ^ "FAOSTAT". faostat3.fao.org. Archived from the original on 28 July 2016. Retrieved 5 April 2015.
  464. ^ "Iran and sanctions: When will it ever end?". The Economist. 18 August 2012. Retrieved 23 June 2013.
  465. ^ Bijan Khajehpour: Preventing Iran's post-sanctions job crisis Archived 11 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Al-Monitor, 17 July 2015. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  466. ^ "Kish Island, Hormozgan province - ITTO". itto.org. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  467. ^ "بایگانی‌های Kish Island". Asian Mayors Forum. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
  468. ^ "Discover Beautiful Kish Island". visitiran.ir. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  469. ^ "Iran's tourist arrivals grow to over 8 Million: Minister". Irna. 18 August 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  470. ^ "Iran Third Fastest Growing Tourism Destination In 2019: UNWTO". MCTH. 7 December 2023. Archived from the original on 7 December 2023. Retrieved 7 December 2023.
  471. ^ a b "گردشگری ایران به قبل از کرونا برگشت؟". ایسنا (in Persian). 23 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  472. ^ "Iran's tourist arrivals reach 2.93 million in Jan-Jul 2023, UNWTO barometer indicates". Tehran Times. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  473. ^ "Minister: 4.4 million tourists have traveled to Iran in eight months". iranpress.com. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  474. ^ "4.4 million tourists have traveled to Iran in eight months". Mehr News Agency. 20 December 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  475. ^ Sightseeing and excursions in Iran Archived 18 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Tehran Times, 28 September 2010. Retrieved 22 March 2011.
  476. ^ "Medical Tourism in Iran". Medical Tourism. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  477. ^ "Iran Welcomes Millions of Medical Tourists Every Year". Financial Tribune. 18 July 2023.
  478. ^ "Foreign arrivals in Iran reach 4.4 million in 8 months, up by 48.5% y/y". Tehran Times. 12 December 2023. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  479. ^ "Iran's tourism among the top 20 countries". Iran Daily. 15 December 2023.
  480. ^ "Iran-daily.com". Archived from the original on 13 May 2008. Retrieved 7 November 2010.
  481. ^ a b c Ayse, Valentine; Nash, Jason John; Leland, Rice (2013). The Business Year 2013: Iran. London: The Business Year. p. 166. ISBN 978-1-908180-11-7. Archived from the original on 27 December 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
  482. ^ Brian Boniface, MA; Chris Cooper; Robyn Cooper (2012). Worldwide Destinations: The geography of travel and tourism. Routledge. p. 362. ISBN 978-1-136-00113-0.
  483. ^ "Iran sets up funds for tourism development". Tehran Times. 10 January 2023.
  484. ^ Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica. "Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica". iranicaonline.org. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  485. ^ "Iran's Food Security - Future Directions International". 7 May 2016. Archived from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  486. ^ Seyf, Ahmad (1984). "Technical Changes in Iranian Agriculture, 1800-1906". Middle Eastern Studies. 20 (4): 142–154. doi:10.1080/00263208408700603. ISSN 0026-3206. JSTOR 4283034.
  487. ^ "FAO recognizes new Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System in Iran | United Nations in Islamic Republic of Iran". iran.un.org. Retrieved 28 January 2024.[permanent dead link]
  488. ^ "Iran takes world's 16th place in car manufacturing: OICA". Mehr News Agency. 30 March 2024. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  489. ^ "Iran takes world's 16th place in car manufacturing: OICA". nournews. Retrieved 31 March 2024.
  490. ^ "Iran advances 41 places in industrial production". Tehran Times. 27 February 2010. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  491. ^ "Iran doing industrial projects in 27 countries". Mehr News Agency. 1 April 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  492. ^ "سازمان توسعه تجارت ایران". 28 January 2011. Archived from the original on 28 January 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  493. ^ "The US, Israel, the Arab States and a Nuclear Iran" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 August 2010. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  494. ^ "SCT - Shopping Centers Today Online". 3 April 2012. Archived from the original on 3 April 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  495. ^ "Iran's foodstuff exports near $1b". Tehran Times. 23 February 2010. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  496. ^ "Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 06/11/09". 14 June 2009. Archived from the original on 14 June 2009. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  497. ^ a b "Atieh Bahar - Resources - Iran's Automotive Industry Overview". 7 July 2011. Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  498. ^ "MINING.COM". MINING.COM. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  499. ^ "Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 11/09/08". 29 March 2011. Archived from the original on 29 March 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  500. ^ Camainks. "Overview of the Printing Industry in Iran and How to Buy Printers and Ink". Camainks. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  501. ^ "70% of Iran's medical equipment produced domestically". Tehran Times. 2 January 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  502. ^ "Official: Iran now among world's 6 turbine manufacturers - Tehran Times". 12 October 2012. Archived from the original on 12 October 2012. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  503. ^ "Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 08/15/09". 18 September 2009. Archived from the original on 18 September 2009. Retrieved 10 January 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  504. ^ "Iran Consumer Electronics Report Q1 2010 Market Research Report - 15 December 2009". 5 October 2011. Archived from the original on 5 October 2011. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  505. ^ "The Business Year – Moving Around". Archived from the original on 14 March 2014. Retrieved 14 March 2014.
  506. ^ "Iran Daily | Domestic Economy". iran-daily.com. Archived from the original on 18 June 2009.
  507. ^ Rohde, Michael. "World Metro Database - metrobits.org". mic-ro.com. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  508. ^ "Tehran Metro". Railway Technology. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  509. ^ Limited, Alamy. "March 18, 2023, Tehran, Tehran, Iran: A view of the Tehran metro station during the opening ceremony of 5 new stations of the Tehran Metro in the presence of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. The Tehran Metro is a rapid transit system serving Tehran, the capital of Iran. It is the most extensive metro system in the Middle East. The system is owned and operated by Tehran Urban and Suburban Railway. It consists of six operational metro lines (and an additional commuter rail line), with construction underway on three lines, including the west extension of line 4, line 6 and the north and east exte Stock Photo - Alamy". alamy.com. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  510. ^ "Tehran Urban & Suburban Railway Co (TUSRC)". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 30 December 2023.
  511. ^ "Islamic Republic Of Iran Railroads :: راه آهن جمهوري اسلامي ايران". Rai.ir. Archived from the original on 15 August 2012. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
  512. ^ "Iran Daily | Domestic Economy". iran-daily.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2009.
  513. ^ "Gas compression at South Pars". Shana. 18 May 2023. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  514. ^ "BP Cuts Russia, Turkmenistan Natural Gas Reserves Estimates". The Wall Street Journal.com. 12 June 2013. Archived from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
  515. ^ "CIA.gov". CIA.gov. Archived from the original on 13 June 2007. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
  516. ^ "Iran – U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA)". Eia.doe.gov. Archived from the original on 2 April 2009. Retrieved 7 April 2012.
  517. ^ Kim Murphy (7 January 2007). "U.S. targets Iran's vulnerable oil". Heraldextra.com. Archived from the original on 18 January 2007. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  518. ^ "Iranian oil production: from global domination to subjugation under sanctions". Iran Open Data. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  519. ^ "Iran, Besieged by Gasoline Sanctions, Develops GTL to Extract Gasoline from Natural Gas". Oilprice.com. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
  520. ^ "Iran" (PDF). Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  521. ^ Daniel Müller; Professor Harald Müller (2015). WMD Arms Control in the Middle East: Prospects, Obstacles and Options. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 140. ISBN 978-1-4724-3593-4.
  522. ^ "Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics". Ibb.ut.ac.ir. 2 February 2011. Archived from the original on 22 October 2006. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  523. ^ "The first successfully cloned animal in Iran". Middle-east-online.com. 30 September 2006. Archived from the original on 28 October 2011. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  524. ^ "Iranian Studies Group at MIT" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 October 2008. Retrieved 25 August 2010.
  525. ^ "INIC – News – 73% of Tehran's Students Acquainted with Nanotechnology". En.nano.ir. 18 January 2010. Archived from the original on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  526. ^ "Iran Ranks 15th in Nanotech Articles". Bernama. 9 November 2009. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  527. ^ "Iran daily: Iranian Technology From Foreign Perspective". Archived from the original on 15 April 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  528. ^ "Project Retired – EECS at UC Berkeley" (PDF). berkeley.edu. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 November 2007.
  529. ^ Vali Nasr (2007). The Shia Revival: How Conflicts within Islam Will Shape the Future. W.W. Norton. p. 213. ISBN 978-0-393-06640-1.
  530. ^ Ben Mathis-Lilley (12 August 2014). "A Woman Has Won the Fields Medal, Math's Highest Prize, for the First Time". Slate. Graham Holdings Company. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
  531. ^ Expert:VSR.Subramaniam (18 October 2006). "Economics: economic, medical uses of alcohol, uses of alcohol". Experts.about.com. Archived from the original on 26 April 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  532. ^ "Forecasting Exercise" (PDF). SCImago. 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
  533. ^ "No. 3817 | Front page | Page 1". Irandaily. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
  534. ^ "Iran (Islamic Republic of)". uis.unesco.org. 27 November 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2020.
  535. ^ Peter Krol. "Study in Iran :: Iran Educational System". arabiancampus.com. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  536. ^ "WEP-Iran". Wes.org. Archived from the original on 24 February 2012. Retrieved 7 February 2012.
  537. ^ "Iran (Islamic Republic of)". Ranking Web of Universities. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  538. ^ WIPO (30 December 2023). Global Innovation Index 2023, 15th Edition. World Intellectual Property Organization. doi:10.34667/tind.46596. ISBN 9789280534320. Retrieved 28 October 2023. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  539. ^ "Release of the Global Innovation Index 2020: Who Will Finance Innovation?". wipo.int. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  540. ^ Fathi, Nazila; Broad, William J. (3 February 2009). "Iran Launches Satellite in a Challenge for Obama". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
  541. ^ Brian Harvey; Henk H. F. Smid; Theo Pirard (2011). Emerging Space Powers: The New Space Programs of Asia, the Middle East and South-America. Springer Science & Business Media. p. 293. ISBN 978-1-4419-0874-2.
  542. ^ "The 6th International Conference on Heating, Ventilating and Air Conditioning" (PDF). Hvac-conference.ir. 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  543. ^ Stephen Clark (2 February 2009). "Iran Launches Omid Satellite Into Orbit". Space.com. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  544. ^ "Iran Launches Soraya Satellite Into Orbit 750 Km Above Earth - Iran Front Page". ifpnews.com. 20 January 2024. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  545. ^ "Iran says it launched a satellite despite Western concerns – DW – 01/20/2024". dw.com. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  546. ^ "Iran says launches satellite in new aerospace milestone". phys.org. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  547. ^ Presse, AFP-Agence France. "Iran Says Launches Satellite In New Aerospace Milestone". barrons.com. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  548. ^ "Iran's Soraya satellite signals received on earth". Mehr News Agency. 21 January 2024. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  549. ^ "Iran's Soraya Satellite Signals Received on Earth - Space/Science news". Tasnim News Agency. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  550. ^ "Iran successfully launches Soraya satellite using Qa'im 100 carrier". iranpress.com. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  551. ^ "Iran says it launches 3 satellites into space-Xinhua". english.news.cn. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  552. ^ "Iran launches three satellites simultaneously for first time – DW – 01/28/2024". dw.com. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  553. ^ "Iran launches 3 satellites into space that are part of a Western-criticized program as tensions rise". AP News. 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  554. ^ "Iran simultaneously launches three satellites - state media". The Economic Times. 28 January 2024. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  555. ^ "Iran Conducts Second Controversial Satellite Launch In One Week". Iran International. 28 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  556. ^ "Iran launches three satellites amid rising tensions with Western powers". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  557. ^ "Iran launches 'domestically developed' imaging satellite from Russia". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  558. ^ Online |, E. T. (29 February 2024). "Iran launches Pars 1 satellite from Russia amidst Western concern over Moscow-Tehrain ties". The Economic Times. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  559. ^ Motamedi, Maziar. "Russia launches Iranian satellite into space from Kazakhstan base". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  560. ^ "Russia launches Soyuz rocket into space carrying Iranian satellite Pars-I". WION. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  561. ^ "Iran says it controls entire nuclear fuel cycle". USA Today. 11 April 2009. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
  562. ^ "Iran reaches 100 percent telecommunications penetration: BMI - Telecoms & IT - Zawya". 12 May 2012. Archived from the original on 12 May 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  563. ^ "National Security and the Internet in the Persian Gulf: Iran". 3 July 2007. Archived from the original on 3 July 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  564. ^ "The Big Connection - The Business Year". thebusinessyear.com. 31 July 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  565. ^ "درگاه ملی آمار". درگاه ملی آمار ایران. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  566. ^ Latest Statistical Center of Iran fertility rate statistics (published February 2023). xlsx at page.
  567. ^ Roser, Max (19 February 2014). "Fertility Rate". Our World in Data.
  568. ^ "Children per woman". Our World in Data. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  569. ^ "Population growth (annual %) – Iran, Islamic Rep. | Data". data.worldbank.org. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  570. ^ U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2005. Unpublished work tables for estimating Iran's mortality. Washington, D.C.: Population Division, International Programs Center
  571. ^ Iran News, Payvand.com. "Iran's population growth rate falls to 1.5 percent: UNFP". Archived from the original on 27 December 2016. Retrieved 18 October 2006.
  572. ^ "World Population Prospects – Population Division – United Nations". esa.un.org. Archived from the original on 19 September 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  573. ^ "Refugee population by country or territory of asylum – Iran, Islamic Rep. | Data". data.worldbank.org. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  574. ^ "Afghanistan-Iran: Iran says it will deport over one million Afghans". Irinnews.org. 4 March 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  575. ^ Manouchehr Ganji (2002). Defying the Iranian Revolution: From a Minister to the Shah to a Leader of Resistance. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 210. ISBN 978-0-275-97187-8.
  576. ^ "Migration Information Institute: Characteristics of the Iranian Diaspora". Migrationinformation.org. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  577. ^ "Iran Social Security System" (PDF). World Bank. 2003. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  578. ^ Aurelio Mejía (2013). "Is tax funding of health care more likely to be regressive than systems based on social insurance in low and middle-income countries?". Universidad de Antioquia (78): 229–239. Archived from the original on 16 December 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  579. ^ Annika Rabo, Bo Utas. The Role of the State in West Asia Swedish Research Institute in Istanbul, 2005 ISBN 91-86884-13-1
  580. ^ Encyclopedia of the Peoples of Africa and the Middle East Facts On File, Incorporated ISBN 1-4381-2676-X p. 141
  581. ^ Oberling, Pierre (7 February 2012). "Georgia viii: Georgian communities in Persia". Encyclopaedia Iranica. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
  582. ^ "Circassian". Official Circassian Association. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
  583. ^ Chardin, Sir John (June 1997). "Persians: Kind, hospitable, tolerant flattering cheats?". The Iranian. Archived from the original on 20 June 1997. Retrieved 9 June 2014. Excerpted from:
  584. ^ J. Harmatta in "History of Civilizations of Central Asia", Chapter 14, The Emergence of Indo-Iranians: The Indo-Iranian Languages, ed. by A. H. Dani & V.N. Masson, 1999, p. 357
  585. ^ "Country Profile: Iran" (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. May 2008. p. xxvi. Retrieved 9 June 2014.
  586. ^ "World Heritage List". UNESCO.
  587. ^ سایت, مدیر (28 December 2023). "گفتگو با استادی که مبتکروآغاز کننده روش های جدید جراحی مغز در دانشگاه علوم پزشکی مشهد است". بیمارستان رضوی (in Persian). Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  588. ^ "Filepool - Detail | Organization for Investment Economic and Technical Assistance of Iran". 10 October 2016. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  589. ^ "Payvand". Payvand. 1 January 2024. Archived from the original on 29 November 2011. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  590. ^ "Iran Health Insurance in Brief". 17 August 2016. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  591. ^ Movassagh, Hooman (24 April 2016). "Human Organ Donations under the "Iranian Model": A Rewarding Scheme for U.S. Regulatory Reform?". Indiana Health Law Review. 13 (1): 82–118. doi:10.18060/3911.0013. ISSN 2374-2593.
  592. ^ kental_tour (24 January 2023). "Iran health care ranking". Kental Travel. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  593. ^ "Selected Findings of the 2011 National Population and Housing Census" (PDF). United Nations. Statistical Center of Iran. 2011.
  594. ^ Walter Martin (2003). Kingdom of the Cults, The. Baker Books. p. 421. ISBN 978-0-7642-2821-6. Retrieved 24 June 2013. Ninety-five percent of Iran's Muslims are Shi'ites.
  595. ^ Bhabani Sen Gupta (1987). The Persian Gulf and South Asia: prospects and problems of inter-regional cooperation. South Asian Publishers. p. 158. ISBN 978-81-7003-077-5. Shias constitute seventy-five percent of the population of the Gulf. Of this, ninety-five percent of Iranians and sixty of Iraqis are Shias.
  596. ^ "Iran". Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  597. ^ "WVS Database".
  598. ^ "Iranians' Attitudes Toward Religion: A 2020 Survey Report". Group for Analyzing and Measuring Attitudes in Iran (GAMAAN). Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  599. ^ Maleki, Ammar; Arab, Pooyan Tamimi (10 September 2020). "Iran's secular shift: new survey reveals huge changes in religious beliefs". The Conversation. Retrieved 11 September 2020.
  600. ^ Contrera, Russell. "Saving the people, killing the faith". The Holland Sentinel. Holland, MI. Archived from the original on 6 March 2012. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
  601. ^ "Iran: Freedom in the World 2024 Country Report". Freedom House. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
  602. ^ Higgins, Andrew (2 June 2007). "Inside Iran's Holy Money Machine". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 15 January 2024.
  603. ^ "In pictures: Inside Iran's secretive Yarsan faith". 13 November 2019. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  604. ^ Monazzami, Ardeshir (20 February 2022). "Rereading the Religiosity of Yarsan". Religious Research. 9 (18): 143–167. doi:10.22034/jrr.2021.261350.1805. ISSN 2345-3230.
  605. ^ "'Men and women have equal rights in the Yarsan community'". JINHAGENCY News. Retrieved 24 March 2024.
  606. ^ Hamzeh'ee (1990), p. 39.
  607. ^ Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa (Detroit: Thomson Gale, 2004) p. 82
  608. ^ a b International Federation for Human Rights (1 August 2003). "Discrimination against religious minorities in Iran" (PDF). fdih.org. p. 6. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  609. ^ Rehman, Javaid (18 July 2019). Situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran. 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly. New York: United Nations. p. 13. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
  610. ^ Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (2007). "A Faith Denied: The Persecution of the Bahá'ís of Iran" (PDF). Iran Human Rights Documentation Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 June 2007. Retrieved 19 March 2007.
  611. ^ Kamali, Saeed (27 February 2013). "Bahá'í student expelled from Iranian university 'on grounds of religion'". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  612. ^ "In Iran, Mideast's largest Jewish population outside Israel finds new acceptance by officials". Fox News. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  613. ^ "Iran Population 2015". World Population Review. 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  614. ^ Country Information and Guidance "Christians and Christian converts, Iran" December 2014. p.9
  615. ^ 2011 General Census Selected Results (PDF), Statistical Center of Iran, 2012, p. 26, ISBN 978-964-365-827-4
  616. ^ U.S. State Department (26 October 2009). "Iran – International Religious Freedom Report 2009". The Office of Electronic Information, Bureau of Public Affair. Archived from the original on 29 October 2009.
  617. ^ "Iran to Register Armenian Cathedral in Isfahan as UNESCO World Heritage Site" Archived 25 April 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Armenian National Committee of America. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  618. ^ Armenian Monastic Ensembles of Iran. Unesco.org. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  619. ^ "Kamāl-al-Molk, Moḥammad Ḡaffāri". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. XV. pp. 417–433. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
  620. ^ Hole, F.; Flannery, K. V. (1968). Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society.
  621. ^ "Art in Iran" [ii. Median Art and Architecture]. Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. II. pp. 565–569. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  622. ^ Ivanchik, Askolʹd Igorevich; Ličʻeli, Vaxtang (2007). Achaemenid Culture and Local Traditions in Anatolia, Southern Caucasus and Iran: New Discoveries. BRILL. p. 117. ISBN 978-90-04-16328-7.
  623. ^ Lipiński, Edward; Van Lerberghe, Karel; Schoors, Antoon (1995). Immigration and emigration within the ancient Near East. Peeters Publishers. p. 119. ISBN 978-90-6831-727-5.
  624. ^ "ART IN IRAN" [iv. Parthian Art]. Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. II. pp. 580–585.
  625. ^ "Sāsānian dynasty". Encyclopædia Britannica. 18 July 2017. Under the Sāsānians Iranian art experienced a general renaissance.
  626. ^ "Iran – A country study". Parstimes.com. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  627. ^ "History of Islamic Science 5". Levity.com. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  628. ^ Afary, Janet (2006). "Iran". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 29 October 2007.
  629. ^ "Art in Iran" [xii. Iranian Pre-Islamic Elements in Islamic Art]. Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. II. pp. 549–646. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  630. ^ Canby, Sheila R. (2002). The Golden Age of Persian Art: 1501–1722. British Museum Press. ISBN 978-0-7141-2404-9.
  631. ^ a b c d "Art in Iran" [xi. Post-Qajar (Painting)]. Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. II. pp. 640–646. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  632. ^ Gumpert, Lynn; Balaghi, Shiva (2002). Picturing Iran [Art, Society and Revolution]. I.B. Tauris. p. 48. ISBN 978-1-86064-883-0.
  633. ^ "Art in America: Modernity and revolution: a recent show of Iranian art focused on the turbulent time from 1960 to 1980, juxtaposing formally inventive works of art with politically charged photographs and posters – Art & Politics – Between Word and Image: Modern Iranian Visual Culture". looksmart. 25 November 2004. Archived from the original on 25 November 2004.
  634. ^ Grigor, Talinn (2021). The Persian Revival: The Imperialism of the Copy in Iranian and Parsi Architecture. Penn State Press. pp. 175–176. ISBN 978-0-271-08968-3.
  635. ^ Pope, Arthur Upham (1971). Introducing Persian Architecture. London: Oxford University Press.
  636. ^ Pope, Arthur Upham (1965). Persian Architecture. New York: George Braziller. p. 266.
  637. ^ Ardalan, Nader; Bakhtiar, Laleh. (2000). The Sense of Unity: The Sufi Tradition in Persian Architecture. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-1-871031-78-2.
  638. ^ "Virtual Conference". American.edu. Archived from the original on 24 November 2010. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  639. ^ "Arthur Upham Pope", Wikipedia, 12 October 2023, retrieved 18 March 2024
  640. ^ K K Goswami (2009). Advances in Carpet Manufacture. Elsevier. p. 148. ISBN 978-1-84569-585-9.
  641. ^ Khalaj, Mehrnosh (10 February 2010). "Iran's oldest craft left behind". Financial Times. Retrieved 4 October 2013.
  642. ^ "UNESCO - Traditional skills of carpet weaving in Fars". ich.unesco.org. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  643. ^ "UNESCO - Traditional skills of carpet weaving in Kashan". ich.unesco.org. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  644. ^ "Iran's carpet washing ritual registered on UNESCO representative list". Mehr News Agency. 8 December 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  645. ^ Malandra, W.W. (1973). "A Glossary of Terms for Weapons and Armor in Old Iranian". Indo-Iranian Journal. 15 (4). Philadelphia: Brill: 264–289. doi:10.1163/000000073790079071. JSTOR 24651454. S2CID 162194727.
  646. ^ David Levinson; Karen Christensen (2002). Encyclopedia of Modern Asia: Iaido to Malay. Charles Scribner's Sons. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-684-80617-4.
  647. ^ François de Blois (April 2004). Persian Literature: A Bio-bibliographical Survey. Vol. 5. Routledge. p. 363. ISBN 978-0-947593-47-6. Retrieved 21 June 2013. Nizami Ganja'i, whose personal name was Ilyas, is the most celebrated native poet of the Persians after Firdausi.
  648. ^ "Iran ranks 10th at UNESCO world heritage registration list". Mehr News Agency. 7 September 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  649. ^ "Iran secures 5th place worldwide for UNESCO-listed intangible treasures". Tehran Times. 8 December 2023. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  650. ^ asadian (6 December 2023). "Iran Reached 5th in UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list". International Shia News Agency. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  651. ^ Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica. "Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica". iranicaonline.org. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
  652. ^ "A Brief Introduction to Iranian Dance". Laurel Victoria Gray. 12 January 2024.
  653. ^ Carr, Brian; Mahalingam, Indira (2009). "Morals and Society in Zoroastrian Philosophy" in "Persian Philosophy". In Kreyenbroek, Philip G. (ed.). Companion Encyclopedia of Asian Philosophy. Routledge.
  654. ^ Carr, Brian; Mahalingam, Indira (2009). "The Origins of Zoroastrian Philosophy" in "Persian Philosophy". In Boyce, Mary (ed.). Companion Encyclopedia of Asian Philosophy. Routledge.
  655. ^ Nasr, S.H.; Aminrazavi, M. (2008). An Anthology of Philosophy in Persia: From Zoroaster to Omar Khayyam. I.B. Tauris. ISBN 978-1-84511-541-8.
  656. ^ Ayatollahy, Hamidreza (2006). "Philosophy in Contemporary Iran". Revista Portuguesa de Filosofia. 62 (2/4): 811–816. JSTOR 40419494.
  657. ^ "United Nations Information Service Vienna". United Nations : Information Service Vienna. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  658. ^ "Rustam, mythological Iranian hero". www.ferdowsihotel.com. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  659. ^ "Rostam, the Hero of Heroes". irantour.tours. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  660. ^ "Rostam and Sohrab: 'A Story Filling the Eyes with Tears'". www.leidenmedievalistsblog.nl. 30 October 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
  661. ^ "نصب تندیس رستم و سهراب در باغ ملی سبزوار: پايگاه خبري سبزوار پيام". sabzevarpayam.com. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  662. ^ a b c d e Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica. "Welcome to Encyclopaedia Iranica". iranicaonline.org. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  663. ^ "UNESCO - Naqqāli, Iranian dramatic story-telling". ich.unesco.org. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  664. ^ "Persian Poetry and Its Evolution in Pre-Islamic Royal Courts". old.saednews.com (in Persian). 20 January 2021. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  665. ^ "MYTHOLOGIES OF PERSIA (IRAN)". Indigenous Peoples Literature. 15 February 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  666. ^ Khandwala, Anoushka (30 March 2021). "From the Grounds Up: Coffeeshops and the History of Iranian Art". ELEPHANT. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
  667. ^ "Iran Cultural Heritage, Handcraft and Tourism Organization". Library of Congress. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  668. ^ "Iran Cultural Heritage, Handcraft and Tourism Organization". Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  669. ^ Nair, Nitten (21 January 2022). "Huma Bird : The Bird of Fortune". Mythlok. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
  670. ^ "The Huma Bird of Iranian Legend – Cultured Chef". Retrieved 26 December 2023.
  671. ^ Boyle, John Andrew. "Ferdowsī". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
  672. ^ "2600-Year-Old Instrument on Display in Persepolis Museum". IFP News. 26 December 2023.
  673. ^ Foundation, Encyclopaedia Iranica. "Music History" [i. Third Millennium B.C.E.]. Encyclopædia Iranica.
  674. ^ "GŌSĀN". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. Xi. pp. 167–170. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  675. ^ (Lawergren 2009) iv. First millennium C.E. (1) Sasanian music, 224–651.
  676. ^ "BBCPersian.com". BBC. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  677. ^ "Iran Chamber Society: Music of Iran: Pop Music in Iran". iranchamber.com. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  678. ^ "Iran's underground hip hop dance scene | The FRANCE 24 Observers". Observers.france24.com. 29 August 2013. Archived from the original on 28 February 2014. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
  679. ^ 'اسکورپیو' در آپارات. BBC Persian.
  680. ^ "Rebels of rap reign in Iran". SFGate. 16 April 2008. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  681. ^ Anuj Chopra in Tehran (28 January 2008). "Iran's 'illegal' rappers want cultural revolution". The Independent. Archived from the original on 3 October 2011. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  682. ^ "DRAMA". Encyclopædia Iranica. Vol. VII. pp. 529–535. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  683. ^ Kiann, Nima (2015). The History of Ballet in Iran. Wiesbaden: Reichert Publishing.
  684. ^ "کهن‌ترین انیمیشن جهان کجاست؟". ایسنا (in Persian). 19 March 2017. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  685. ^ "Oldest Animation Discovered in Iran". Animation Magazine. 12 March 2008. Archived from the original on 20 June 2010. Retrieved 4 August 2014.
  686. ^ Honour, Hugh and John Fleming, The Visual Arts: A History. New Jersey, Prentice Hall Inc., 1992. Page: 96.
  687. ^ "Massoud Mehrabi – Articles". massoudmehrabi.com. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  688. ^ "Tehran International Animation Festival (1st Festival 1999 )". tehran-animafest.ir. Archived from the original on 28 September 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2016.
  689. ^ "Tehran International Animation Festival (TIAF)". animation-festivals.com. Archived from the original on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  690. ^ Shahab Esfandiary (2012). Iranian Cinema and Globalization: National, Transnational, and Islamic Dimensions. Intellect Books. p. 69. ISBN 978-1-84150-470-4.
  691. ^ Hamid Dabashi (2007). Masters & Masterpieces of Iranian Cinema. Mage Publishers. p. intro. ISBN 978-0-934211-85-7.
  692. ^ Peter Decherney; Blake Atwood (2014). Iranian Cinema in a Global Context: Policy, Politics, and Form. Routledge. p. 193. ISBN 978-1-317-67520-4.
  693. ^ "Iran's strong presence in 2006 Berlin International Film Festival". BBC.
  694. ^ "BBC NEWS – Entertainment – Iran films return to Berlin festival". BBC. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  695. ^ Coates, Tyler (11 December 2021). "Hollywood Flashback: Asghar Farhadi's 'A Separation' Won Iran's First Oscar in 2012". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  696. ^ Shoard, Catherine (27 February 2017). "The Salesman wins best foreign language Oscar". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  697. ^ "The Salesman". Golden Globes. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  698. ^ "'The Last Fiction' qualified for Oscar". ifilm-آیفیلم. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  699. ^ "Iran to contend for 2020 Best Picture Oscar with 'The Last Fiction'". Mehr News Agency. 21 December 2019. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  700. ^ "Iran's "Last Fiction" among submissions for Oscars consideration". Tehran Times. 19 October 2019. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  701. ^ Wit, Alex Dudok de (1 October 2019). "'The Last Fiction' Set To Become First Iranian Animated Feature To Qualify For Oscars (Exclusive)". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  702. ^ "Oscars 2020: 'Last Fiction' First Iranian Film To Run For Best Animated Feature - Iran Front Page". ifpnews.com. 20 October 2019. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  703. ^ mhfard (1 October 2019). "'The Last Fiction' is First Iranian Animated Feature to Qualify for Oscars". Hoorakhsh Studios. Retrieved 9 January 2024.
  704. ^ parisa; Bakhtiari, Parisa (24 August 2019). "All About Haft-Sin: The 7 'S' of Iranian New Year". SURFIRAN Mag. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
  705. ^ "A Traditional Haft Sin Table Celebrating Nowruz - Society/Culture news". Tasnim News Agency. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
  706. ^ "Norouz Persian New Year". British Museum. 25 March 2010. Archived from the original on 6 March 2010. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  707. ^ "Proclamation of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity (2001–2005) – intangible heritage – Culture Sector – UNESCO". Unesco.org. 2000. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  708. ^ "General Assembly Fifty-fifth session 94th plenary meeting Friday, 9 March 2001, 10 a.m. New York" (PDF). United Nations General Assembly. 9 March 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 August 2006. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  709. ^ "Nowrooz, a Persian New Year Celebration, Erupts in Iran – Yahoo!News". News.yahoo.com. 16 March 2010. Archived from the original on 22 March 2010. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  710. ^ "US mulls Persian New Year outreach". Washington Times. 19 March 2010. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  711. ^ "Call for Safe Yearend Celebration". Financial Tribune. 12 March 2017. The ancient tradition has transformed over time from a simple bonfire to the use of firecrackers ...
  712. ^ "Light It Up! Iranians Celebrate Festival of Fire". NBC News. 19 March 2014.
  713. ^ Rezaian, Lachin (20 December 2015). "Yalda: Iranian celebration of winter solstice". Mehr News Agency.
  714. ^ Roessing, Lesley (2012). No More "us" and "them": Classroom Lessons and Activities to Promote Peer Respect. R&L Education. p. 89. ISBN 978-1-61048-812-9.
  715. ^ Hamedy, Saba (20 December 2013). "In ancient tradition, Iranians celebrate winter solstice". Los Angeles Times.
  716. ^ Foltz, Richard (2013). Religions of Iran: From Prehistory to the Present. Oneworld Publications. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-78074-307-3.
  717. ^ Alavi, Nasrin (8 November 2015). We Are Iran: The Persian Blogs. Soft Skull Press. p. 135.[permanent dead link]
  718. ^ "Historical ceremonies of Iran". IRIB English Radio. 29 April 2013. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. ... people in Mazandaran province celebrate Tirgan.
  719. ^ Ahmadzadeh, Fatemeh; Mohandespour, Farhad (February 2017). "Examining the Social Function of Dramatic Rituals of Mazandaran with Emphasis on Three Rituals of tir mā sizeŝu, bisto šeše aydimā, and čake se mā". Journal of History Culture and Art Research: 839. ... Tirgan called tir mā sizeŝu (thirteen night of Tir) is still held in Mazandaran.
  720. ^ Mehraby, Rahman (22 March 2010). "Ceremonies in Iran". DestinationIran.com. ... people in Mazandaran province celebrate Tirgan.
  721. ^ "Tirgan Festival in Markazi Province" (PDF). Iran Daily. 22 June 2011.
  722. ^ Leviton, Richard (16 July 2014). The Mertowney Mountain Interviews. iUniverse. p. 252. ISBN 978-1-4917-4129-0. ... the summer solstice festival, called Tiregan, ...
  723. ^ Hobson, Sarah; Lubchenco, Jane (5 August 1997). Revelation and the Environment, AD 95-1995. World Scientific. p. 151. ISBN 978-981-4545-69-3. Tirgan, is a joyous celebration of water in the height of summer, ...
  724. ^ Leahy, Robert L. (2015). Emotional Schema Therapy. Guilford Publications. p. 212. ISBN 978-1-4625-2054-1. ... , Tirgan (thanksgiving for water), ...
  725. ^ "In Iran, Muslim youth are 'even more excited about Christmas than Christians'". France 24. 23 December 2013.
  726. ^ "Iranian Christians cCelebrate Easter". Tasnim News Agency. 17 April 2017.
  727. ^ Secunda, Shai (13 March 2014). "Reading Megillah in Tehran: How Iranian Jews Celebrate Purim". Tablet.
  728. ^ "Iranian Jews observe Hanukkah". Al-Monitor. 28 November 2013. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  729. ^ "Iran Jews Celebrate Passover, Persian-style". Haaretz. 25 April 2011.
  730. ^ Holzel, David (24 May 2013). "Persian Passover". Washington Jewish Week. Archived from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 20 July 2017.
  731. ^ Dareini, Ali Akbar (31 January 2010). "Iranians celebrate ancient Persian fire fest". NBC News.
  732. ^ a b "Calendars" [The solar Hejrī (Š. = Šamsī) and Šāhanšāhī calendars]. Encyclopædia Iranica. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
  733. ^ a b "Iran Public Holidays 2017". Mystery of Iran. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  734. ^ "Dindin Kitchen – restaurant review". London Evening Standard. 1 May 2014.
  735. ^ "Restaurant review: Apadana, Huddersfield". Huddersfield Daily Examiner. 21 June 2013. Archived from the original on 30 December 2017.
  736. ^ Strochlic, Nina (10 August 2014). "A Maple Syrup Mecca for Iran's Gays". The Daily Beast.
  737. ^ Williams, Stuart. (October 2008). "DRINKING". Iran – Culture Smart!: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture. Kuperard. ISBN 978-1-85733-598-9. Iranians are obsessive tea drinkers
  738. ^ Maslin, Jamie. (2009). Iranian Rappers and Persian Porn: A Hitchhiker's Adventures in the New Iran. Skyhorse Publishing Inc. p. 58. ISBN 978-1-60239-791-0. Iran is a nation of obsessive tea drinkers
  739. ^ Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations—Production FAOSTAT. Retrieved 30 April 2010.
  740. ^ Foodspotting (18 March 2014). "24 / Dessert: Faloodeh". The Foodspotting Field Guide. Chronicle Books. ISBN 978-1-4521-3008-8.
  741. ^ Henninger, Danya (7 February 2017). "Franklin Fountain has an ImPeach sundae with 'nuts from the cabinet'". BillyPenn.com.
  742. ^ Duguid, Naomi (6 September 2016). Taste of Persia: A Cook's Travels Through Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, and Kurdistan. Artisan. p. 353. ISBN 978-1-57965-727-7. ... havij bastani, a kind of ice cream float, made with Persian ice cream and carrot juice
  743. ^ "Sturgeon Stocks Slump". Iran-daily.com. Archived from the original on 16 July 2005. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  744. ^ "The History of Polo". Polomuseum.com. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  745. ^ Ben Johnson. "The origins and history of Polo". Historic-uk.com. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  746. ^ Singh, Jaisal (2007). Polo in India. London: New Holland. p. 10. ISBN 978-1-84537-913-1.
  747. ^ "Rock Climbing Routes, Gear, Photos, Videos & Articles". Rockclimbing.com. 27 October 2009. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  748. ^ "Iran Mountain Zone (IMZ)". Mountainzone.ir. 11 June 1966. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  749. ^ "Mountaineering in Iran". Abc-of-mountaineering.com. Archived from the original on 7 July 2011. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
  750. ^ "Iran – Guide to Skiing and Snowboarding". Snowseasoncentral.com. 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  751. ^ "Dizi (IRI)". FIS. 15 December 2023.
  752. ^ "History of Asian Games". www.insidethegames.biz. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  753. ^ "Iranian Great Power Ambitions and China's Return to the Olympic Movement, 1973-74 | Wilson Center". www.wilsoncenter.org. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  754. ^ "Teenagers won titles in the Tehran 1974 Asian Games where South Korea and Iran were the bests". ASBCNEWS. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  755. ^ "Iran: FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA.com. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  756. ^ Hayward, Joshua. "Ranking the Top 20 Stadiums in World Football". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 26 December 2023.
  757. ^ "AIPS Web Site – USA Volleyball president tips Iran to qualify for Rio". aipsmedia.com. 2 December 2011. Archived from the original on 15 October 2015. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  758. ^ "WorldofVolley :: Volleyball pioneer Ahmad Masajedi says Iran's rise to the top won't stop". worldofvolley.com. 2 December 2011. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  759. ^ Alipour, Sam (21 April 2012). "Mission Improbable". ESPN. Retrieved 21 April 2012.
  760. ^ "The 22-year-old chess star boycotting Iran World Championships over hijab". BBC. 5 October 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  761. ^ "'I will NOT wear a hijab': U.S. chess star refuses to attend world championships in Iran". The Washington Post. 6 October 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  762. ^ "Shooter Heena Sidhu withdraws from tournament in Iran, says won't wear hijab". thenewsminute. 29 October 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  763. ^ "National Museum of Iran". letsgoiran.com. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  764. ^ "National Museum of Iran – Official Site For National Museum Of Iran" (in Persian). Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  765. ^ "National Museum of Iran". UNESCO. 7 January 2024.
  766. ^ "25 million people visited museums last year". IRNA. 7 January 2024.
  767. ^ "25 million visited Iran's heritage museums in calendar year". Tehran Times. 21 May 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
  768. ^ "2020 World Press Freedom Index". 2020.
  769. ^ "Iranian court imposes total ban on Telegram". Reporters Without Borders. 4 May 2018. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  770. ^ "Iran's Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance calls for expansion of ties with UNESCO". UNESCO. 15 December 2014. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  771. ^ "Nothing Comes Between Iranians And Their Satellite Dishes – Not Even The Police". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 13 March 2012.
  772. ^ "Iran's war on satellite dishes: "We just buy new ones the next day"". France 24. 20 December 2012.
  773. ^ a b "Iran Internet usage, broadband and telecommunications reports". Internet World Stats. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  774. ^ a b "Top Sites in Iran". Alexa Internet. Archived from the original on 10 December 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2018.
  775. ^ "Facebook Faces Censorship in Iran". American Islamic Congress. 29 August 2007. Archived from the original on 24 April 2008. Retrieved 30 April 2008.
  776. ^ Kamali Dehghan, Saeed (13 May 2015). "From Digikala to Hamijoo: the Iranian startup revolution, phase two". The Guardian.
  777. ^ a b پوشاک در ایران باستان، فریدون پوربهمن/ت: هاجر ضیاء سیکارودی، امیرکبیر. 2007. pp. 24, 25, 57.

Bibliography

External links

32°N 53°E / 32°N 53°E / 32; 53