Location:
Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan

Geographic coordinates:
32 00 N, 53 00 E

Area:
Total: 1.648 million sq km
land: 1.636 million sq km
water: 12,000 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly larger than Alaska

Land boundaries:
Total: 5,440 km
border countries: Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan 432 km, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan

Coastline:
2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf
continental shelf: natural prolongation

Climate:
mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Kuh-e Damavand (Damavand Peak)5,671 m

Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur

People
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Population:
68,017,860 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 27.1% (male 9,465,475/female 8,973,828)
15-64 years: 68% (male 23,556,970/female 22,701,065)
65 years and over: 4.9% (male 1,637,512/female 1,683,010) (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
0.86% (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female
total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Iranian(s)
adjective: Iranian

Ethnic groups:
Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%,
Turkmen 2%, other 1%

Religions:
Muslim 98%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, 2%

Languages:
Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, other 5%

Government
-------------

Country name:
conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran
conventional short form: Iran
local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran
local short form: Iran
former: Persia

Capital:
Tehran

Administrative divisions:
30 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr,
Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman,
Kermanshah, Khorasan-e Janubi, Khorasan-e Razavi, Khorasan-e Shemali, Khuzestan,
Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan,
Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan

National holiday:
Republic Day, 1 April (1979)
note: additional holidays celebrated widely in Iran include Revolution Day,
11 February (1979); Noruz (New Year's Day), 21 March; Constitutional Monarchy Day, 5 August (1925)

Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem
(a stylized representation of the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of martyrdom)
in red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated
11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band

Economy
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Agriculture - products:
wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar

Industries:
petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials,
food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabrication, armaments

Currency:
Iranian Rial (IRR)

Internet country code:
.ir

Internet hosts:
5,269 (2004)

Internet users:
6.5 million (2005)

Transportation
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Railways:
total: 7,203 km
broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge
standard gauge: 7,109 km 1.435-m gauge (189 km electrified) (2003)

Highways:
total: 167,157 km
paved: 94,109 km (including 890 km of expressways)
unpaved: 73,048 km (1998)

Ports and harbors:
Abadan, Ahvaz, Bandar 'Abbas, Bandar-e Anzali, Bushehr, Bandar-e Emam Khomeyni,
Bandar-e Lengeh, Bandar-e Mah Shahr, Bandar-e Torkaman, Chabahar , Jazireh-ye Khark,
Jazireh-ye Lavan, Jazireh-ye Sirri, Khorramshahr, Now Shahr

Airports:
305 (2004 est.)