About Iran
The map shows Iran, an Islamic state between the
Caspian Sea in the north and the
Persian Gulf in the south. The country is officially named the
Islamic Republic of Iran. Until the 1980s in the Western world, Persia was historically the common name for Iran.
Persia was a monarchy until 1979 when the last Persian Shah
Reza Pahlavi was overthrown in a popular uprising, headed by Ayatollah Khomeini.
Iran borders
Afghanistan,
Armenia,
Azerbaijan,
Iraq,
Pakistan,
Turkey, and
Turkmenistan. It shares maritime borders with
Bahrain,
Kuwait,
Oman,
Saudi Arabia, and the
United Arab Emirates.
With an
area of 1,648,195 km², Iran is almost three times the size of
France or somewhat smaller than the US state of
Alaska.
Large parts of the country occupy the Iranian Plateau (or Persian Plateau, a geological formation in Western and Central Asia). A broad portion of Iran's coastal regions at the Persian Gulf is part of the Arabian plate.
The highest mountain in
Iran is
Mount Damavand at 5,610 m (18,410 ft), a potentially active volcano in the Alborz mountain range south of the Caspian Sea, about 70 km northeast of Tehran.
Most rivers in Iran are relatively short, shallow streams, the only navigable river is the Karun (Karoun) with a length of 725 km.
The country has a
population of
82 million people (est. 2019). The largest city and capital is
Tehran. Other major cities are Mashhad, Isfahan, Karaj (a suburb of Tehran), Tabriz, Shiraz, Ahvaz, and Qom. Spoken
language is Persian (Farsi, official). The official religion is Shia Islam.
Regions of Iran
Iran is divided into five regions with thirty-one provinces. The five administrative regions are Tehran, Isfahan, Tabriz, Kermanshah, and Mashhad.
More about Iran
Aerial view of Tehran, with the Alborz mountain range in the background.
Photo: Ninara
Iran's largest cities are
Tehran, the capital of Iran, is located in the foothills of the Alborz Mountains. It replaced Isfahan as the capital of Persia in 1788.
Mashhad, the nation's second most populous city and the capital of Razavi Khorasan Province is located in the northeast of the country, near the borders with Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. Mashhad was an important oasis along the ancient Silk Road.
Isfahan is an industrial city in central Iran. It was the capital of Persia from 1598 until 1722.
Tabriz, the capital city of East Azerbaijan Province in northwestern Iran lies at the center of an active volcanic region. It is one of the historical capitals of Persia.
Shiraz, the capital of the Fars province, is a gateway to Persepolis, the ruined 6th-century-BC ceremonial capital of Persia under the Achaemenid dynasty.
Ahvaz, the capital city of Khuzestan province, is an industrial city at the Karun river with a population of about 1.2 million people.
Qom, the capital of Qom province, is considered holy by Shia Islam, the city is home to the shrine of Fatimah bint Musa, the sister of Ali al-Ridha (Imam Reza), a descendant of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, the founder of Islam.
You are free to
use above map for educational purposes, please refer to the Nations Online Project. 
