Interesting Facts About Iran
Iran is the 18th largest country in the world and it is located in the Middle East. With a land area of 1,648,195 km2 (636,372 sq mi) Iran is home to approximately 74,700,000 people. The capital city of Iran is Tehran which is also its largest city. Iran shares a border with Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan to the north, Afghanistan and Pakistan to the east, and Iraq and Turkey to the west. It also borders the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman to the south. Iran has had a long and interesting history and it is one of the oldest civilizations in the world.
Interesting facts about Iran
The official name of the country of Iran is the Islamic Republic of Iran. The country is also commonly referred to as Persia and was known by this name internationally until 1935.
The countries motto is Independence, Freedom, Islamic Republic.
Many languages are spoken in Iran including Azeri, Assyrian Neo-Aramaic, Armenian, Kurdish, Lori, Balochi, Gilaki, Mazandarani, Arabic, Turkmen but the official language of the country is Persian.
Iran has the world’s second largest deposit of natural gas and the world’s third largest deposits of oil, which helps to make the country a regional power.
Historical and urban settlements in Iran have been dated back to 4000BC, which makes Iran one of the oldest continuing civilizations in the world.
Iran is home to the Mausoleum of Maussollos, which is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
Iran is one of the world’s most mountainous countries and is dominated by mountain ranges. The highest point in Iran is Mount Damavand at 18,406 feet (5,610 m) and is located in the western part of Iran which is the most mountainous. Iran also has large areas of desert and jungle.
Due to its varied landscape the climate of Iran ranges for subtropical to arid. Temperatures along the coast of the Caspian Sea and in the northern Forests stay quite humid and warm throughout the year. In the west of the country subzero winters and heavy snowfall are the norm. The eastern and central areas of Iran are arid and receive very little rainfall. The average summer temperature is above 38oC (100.4o F).
Iran is home to the Asiatic Cheetah which is on the critically endangered species list.
90-95% of the population of Iran belongs to the Twelve Shia branch of Islam. The second largest city in Iran Mashhad is home to a sacred Shia shrine, the Imam Reza shrine. Approximately 15-20 million pilgrims visit the city each year.
Iran is recognized as the world’s fourth largest nation of bloggers.
Iran is the birthplace of polo, but many other sports are played within the country. The countries national sport of freestyle wrestling, but the most popular sport is soccer with the national team winning the Asian cup 3 times.
Iran does not maintain diplomatic relations with Israel or the United States because it does not recognize Israel as a country and sees the U.S as a threat since the Iranian Revolution.
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