Iran at a glance

Iran is a sizable country. Getting to know the country better can be a bit difficult, especially when most of what the media says about Iran are negative images of war and nuclear nonsense. There’s more to Iran than these. In this text, we’re not going to cover them all. In fact, I doubt that such a post exists on the internet; a post that would cover the basic complexities of Iran should take the form of a book. Here we’re going to look at Iran, at a glance. (Hey! If you want to know more about Iran, read our other post: All About Iran)

Capital city: Tehran (population 9 million inhabitants)
Population: 83 million (2019)
Official language: Persian (Farsi)
Other languages: Azeri, Arabic, Gilaki, Baluchi, Kurdish, Luri, and many more.
Official Currency: Iranian Rial (but everyday people use Tomans instead!)
Government: Theocracy; Islamic Republic of Iran

Iran is the 19th largest country in the world. It is located in the Middle East, in the south-west corner of Asia and shares borders with seven countries: Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, and Turkmenistan.

Iranian’s as ethnically diverse nation, speaks dozens of different languages and dialects which most of them are closely related to Persian (Farsi) as the official language the native tongue of 58% of Iranians. Some of its Luri, Gilaki, and Mazandarani, Farsi is Approximately 89% of Iranians are Shi’a Muslim, while 9% more are Sunni.The remaining 2% are Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian.

Because of its formidable size, and the its geological location, Iran has 4 seasons. It has Lut Kavir (desert) which has one of the hottest places recorded in the world as well as Ardabil and the north-west where most winter it is white all around you because of the absurd amount of snow. In Iran, you can find green jungles, as well as snow-peaked mountains (such as Damavand in the Alborz mount range). You can find beautiful beaches in the south and the north of Iran (the Persian Gulf and the Caspian Sea); but also you can decide to sleep in the desert in the central Iran to see the star-lit sky. It’s all up to you. Iran has a lot to offer for everybody.

Iran has 24 UNESCO world heritage sites – 22 cultural and 2 natural ones (2019) and they are spread around the country. Some of the more major ones are Persepolis in Shiraz, The city of Yazd, Pasargadae and Bam citadel in Kerman.

One of the really important aspects of Iran is the hospitality of its people. This is what most visitors and guests talk about and remember most long after they have left Iran. Everywhere you go, you see the kindness of the people and the fact that everybody treats you nicely is just great.