Official English Name: Islamic Republic of Iran
Official Local Name(s): جمهوری اسلامی ایران
Common English Name: Iran
Capital: Tehran

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Official Language(s)

Persian
Secondary Languages: Kurdish, Luri, Balochi, Arabic

Resources

Petroleum, Natural gas, Coal, Chromium, Copper, Iron ore, Lead, Manganese, Zinc, Sulfur

Neighbors

Turkmenistan (North), Afghanistan (East), Pakistan (Southeast), Iraq (West), Turkey (Northwest), Armenia (Northwest), Azerbaijan (Northwest)

Ethnic groups

Persian (61%), Azeri (16%), Kurd (10%), Lur (6%), Baloch (2%)

People

Est. Population:

82,801,633

Demonym:

Iranian

Religions:

Muslim (99.4%)
Christian (0.2%)
Zoroastrian/Jewish/Other (0.1%)

Largest City:

Tehran (8,154,051)

Other Cities:

Mashhad (2,749,374)
Isfahan (1,756,126)
Karaj (1,614,626)
Tabriz (1,484,988)
Shiraz (1,460,665)

Geography

Region:

Middle East

Bodies of Water:

Persian Gulf (South)
Gulf of Oman (Southeast)
Caspian Sea (North)

Total Area:

1,648,195 km2 (92.9% land, 7.1% water)

Total Land:

5,894 km

Total Coastline:

2,440 km

Climate

Arid or semiarid
Subtropical along coast

Terrain:

Rugged, mountainous rim
Central basin containing deserts and mountains
Some plains

Highest Point

Kuh-e Damavand (5,671 m)

Lowest Point

Caspian Sea (-28 m)

Natural Disasters

Flooding
Droughts
Earthquakes
Dust storms
Sandstorms

Government

Type:

Theocratic Republic

Head of State:

Supreme Leader Sayyed Ali Hosseini Khamenei

Head of Government:

Prime Minister Hassan Rouhani

Admin. Divisions

31 Provinces

Independence:

1 April 1979 (Founding of Islamic Republic)

Nat'l Symbol:

Lion

Nat'l Anthem:

Soroud-e Melli-ye Jomhouri-ye Eslami-ye Iran

Economy

GDP Per Capita

$17,300 (USD)

Currency

﷼ (Iranian Rial)

Exchange Rate

$1 (USD) = ﷼ (Iranian Rial)42,105.00

Communication

Internet Code

.ir

Telephone Code

+98

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Cultural Notes

Making a "thumbs-up" gesture in Iran is considered rude and obscene.
When somebody offers you something, although you may want it, do not come across too eager to accept it. Politely decline two or three times first before accepting.

Sources

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ir.html (Majority of information)
http://bit.ly/2fl1C4h (Religious data)
https://www.amar.org.ir/english/Iran-Statistical-Yearbook (City population data)
Wolfram|Alpha (Currency exchange data)
Information accurate to best of ability as of 8 November 2016
1Iran's census does not collect data on ethnicity. The numbers shown are estimates from older World Factbook information.