The Islamic Republic of Iran, formerly known internationally as Persia, is a Southwest
Asian country located in the geographical territories of the Middle East and Southern Asia.
The 18th largest country in the world, Iran is approximately the size of the United Kingdom, France, Spain, and Germany combined. It has a population of over seventy million people.
Iran borders Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan to the north; Afghanistan and Pakistan to the east; and Turkey and Iraq to the west. In addition, it borders the Persian Gulf, an important oil-producing area, Gulf of Oman, and the Caspian Sea. Shi'a Islam is the state religion and Persian the official language.
The political system of Iran comprises several intricately connected governing bodies. It is based on the 1979 Constitution. The highest state authority is the Supreme Leader, currently Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran as a land and a nation has one of the oldest histories in the world, extending nearly 6,000 years, and throughout history, Iran has been of geostrategic importance because of its central location in Eurasia. Iran is a founding member of the UN, NAM, OIC, OPEC, and ECO. Iran is a regional power in Southwest Asia and occupies an important position in the world economy due to its large reserves of petroleum and natural gas. The name Iran is a cognate of Aryan and literally means "Land of the Aryans".
Major Cities
Iran 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%. The United Nations predicts that by 2030 the urban population will form 80% of the overall population. Most of the internal migrants have settled near the cities of Tehran, Isfahan, Ahvaz, and Qom.
Culture
Iranian culture has long been a predominant culture of the Middle East and Central Asia, with Persian considered the language of intellectuals during much of the second millennium CE, and the language of religion and the populace before that. The Iranian New Year (Norouz) is celebrated on March 21 from Spain in the west to Kazakhstan in the east. It is celebrated as the first day of spring. Norouz was nominated as one of UNESCO's Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2004.
Iranian customs and traditions often seem complex to the foreigner, but after further study reveal a rich and often intensely warm characteristic. For example, respect for the elderly and hospitality for foreigners, remain highly visible parts of Iranian etiquette, while the highly familial nuclear structure of Iran's society is in stark contrast to many western societies. The Islamic conquest of Persia marks the beginning of the modern history of Persian language and literature. It is known as the golden era of Persian.The Islamic conquest of Iran commenced a synthesis of the Arabic and Iranian tongues.
By the tenth century, the effects of this diffusion threatened to erase native Persian entirely, as Persian writers, scientists, and scholars elected to write in Arabic, the lingua franca of the day. This prompted Ferdowsi to compose the Shahnameh, Iran's national epic, entirely in native Persian. This gave rise to a strong reassertion of Iranian national identity, and is in part responsible for the continued existence of Persian as a separate language.
Iranian Art
The Iranian Cultural Continent - consisting of the modern nations Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Azeraijan, Uzekistan, Turkmenistan and surrounding regions - is home to one of the richest art heritages in world history and encompasses many disciplines including architecture, painting, weaving, pottery, calligraphy, metalworking and stone masonry. The art of carpet weaving in Iran has its roots in the culture and customs of its people and their instinctive feelings. Weavers mix elegant patterns with a myriad of colors. The Iranian carpet is a re-enactment of the Persian garden: brimming with florae, birds, and beasts.
Cuisine
The cuisine of Iran is diverse, with each province featuring dishes, as well as culinary traditions and styles, distinct to their region. Iranian food is not spicy. Most meals consist of a large serving of seasoned rice and an accompanying course typically consists of meat, poultry, or fish. Herbs are used frequently.
Onions and garlic are normally used in the preparation of the accompanying course, but are also served separately during meals, either in raw or pickled form.
Science and Technology
An eighteenth-century Persian astrolabe. Throughout the Middle Ages, the natural philosophy and mathematics of the ancient Greeks and Persians were furthered and preserved within Persia. During this period, Persia became a center for the manufacture of scientific instruments, retaining its reputation for quality well into the nineteenth centurAn eighteenth-century Persian astrolabe. Throughout the Middle Ages, the natural philosophy and mathematics of the ancient Greeks and Persians were furthered and preserved within Persia. During this period, Persia became a center for the manufacture of scientific instruments, retaining its reputation for quality well into the nineteenth century.
Science in Iran, as the country itself, has a considerable history. From the Qanat to the Yakhchal, to the windmill, to the IMOD, Iran has reached scientific achievements and influenced world cultures for thousands of years. Iranians contributed significantly to the current understanding of astronomy, nature, medicine, mathematics, and philosophy. To mention just a few, Persians first invented Algebra and discovered alcohol.
Iran strives to revive the golden age of Persian science. The country 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.
Despite the limitations in funds, facilities, and international collaborations, Iranian scientists remain highly productive in several experimental fields as pharmacology, pharmaceutical chemistry, organic chemistry, and polymer chemistry. Iranian scientists are also helping construct the Compact Muon Solenoid, a detector for CERN's Large Hadron Collider due to come online in 2007.
In the biomedical sciences, Iran's Institute of Biochemistry and Biophysics is a UNESCO chair in biology, and in late 2006, Iranian scientists successfully cloned a sheep by somatic cell nuclear transfer, at the Rouyan research center in Isfahan.
The Iranian nuclear program was launched in the 1950s. Iran's current facilities includes several research reactors, a uranium mine, an almost complete commercial nuclear reactor, and uranium processing facilities that include a uranium enrichment plant. The Iranian Space Agency launched its first reconnaissance satellite named Sina-1 in 2006, and a "space rocket" in 2007, which aimed at improving science and research for university students.
Iran is now a world leader in theoretical disciplines like string theory. Iranian scientists are a significant portion of international scientific community. In 1960, Ali Javan invented first gas laser. In 1973 fuzzy set theory has been developed by Lotfi Zadeh. Iranian cardiologist, Tofy Mussivand invented the first artificial heart and developed it further afterwards. HbA1c was discovered by Samuel Rahbar and introduced to medical community. Vafa-Witten theorem was proposed by Cumrun Vafa, Iranian string theorist and his co-worker Edward Witten. KPZ equation has been named after Mehran Kardar, notable Iranian physicist.
13th century manuscript by Qotbeddin Shirazi, a Persian astronomer. The image depicts an epicyclic planetary model.
Sports
International Snowboard championship in Dizin. The ski resort of Dizin is situated to the north of Tehran in the Alborz Mountains range.
With two thirds of Iran's population under the age of 25, sports constitutes a highly active portion of Iran's society, both traditional and modern. Iran hence was the birthplace of sports such as polo, backgammon, Varzesh-e Pahlavani, and even indigenous modern martial arts styles such as Shinzen Karate and Kan-zen-ryu. Tehran was furthermore the first city in the Middle East to host the Asian Games in 1974.
Today, the most popular sport in Iran is football (soccer), with national team being a World Cup finalist three times, and having won the Asian Cup on three occasions. However, freestyle Wrestling is traditionally referred to as Iran's national sport.
Iran is home to several unique skiing resorts, with the Tochal resort being the world's fifth-highest ski resort (3,730 m at its highest station) situated only fifteen minutes away from Tehran. Being a mountainous country, Iran offers enthusiasts abundant challenges for hiking, rock climbing, and mountain climbing.
Women are primarily active in volleyball and badminton, but even in rallying, female drivers participate in national rally tournaments, such as Iran's successful female.
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