Iran

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Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling monarchy was overthrown and the shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority nominally vested in a learned religious scholar. Iranian-US relations have been strained since a group of Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq that eventually expanded into the Persian Gulf and led to clashes between US Navy and Iranian military forces between 1987-1988. Iran has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world and remains subject to US economic sanctions and export controls because of its continued involvement. Following the elections of a reformist president and Majlis in the late 1990s, attempts to foster political reform in response to popular dissatisfaction floundered as conservative politicians prevented reform measures from being enacted, increased repressive measures, and made electoral gains against reformers. Parliamentary elections in 2004 and the August 2005 inauguration of a conservative stalwart as president, completed the reconsolidation of conservative power in Iran's government. Iran's religiosity is its most striking cultural feature - it pervades all aspects of life. The national language of Iran is Persian, also known as Farsi, an Indo-European language.

Iran & Iranian Culture of Acient Persian - A Culture Like No Other

The other main regional languages are Azari, Kurdish, Arabic and Lori (spoken by the Lors); and there are dozens of other tongues throughout the 26 provinces, such as Gilaki, Balouchi and Turkmen. The Arabic script was adapted to Persian after the arabs invasion. There is no standard method of transliterating Persian into English. In Iran, as in all Islamic societies, art favors the non -representational, the derivative and the stylized. Many Iranian art forms predate the Arab conquest, but since nearly all of them reached their peak within the Islamic era, religious influences are rarely absent. Persian carpets are Iran's most famous cultural export, dating back to the 5th century BC, and are still an integral part of religious and cultural festivals (and the economy). The most appealing and melodious traditional music is found among the ethnic minorities, such as the Turkmen, Azari, Kurd, Balouch and Lor.

Persian poetry first appeared in the 9th century AD and slowly developed into the enduring canon of epic poems and non-rhyming couplet poems which are part of its cultural treasury today. Persian painting dates back to the Seljuq period, which then faded until the 16th century when it flourished along with calligraphy, especially in Shiraz. Other notable Persian crafts include metalwork, glass ware and woodwork, while, more recently, Iranian films have been remarkably successful. Mohsen Makhmalbaf, maker of Gabbeh, is Iran's most controversial, and most lauded, filmmaker.

Iran & Iranian Culture of Acient Persian At its best, Iranian cuisine is very good. It's heavily based on rice, bread, fresh vegetables, herbs and fruit. Meat, usually lamb or mutton minced or cut into small chunks, is used to add flavor but is rarely the dominant ingredient, except in kebabs. Sadly for travelers, this usually translates into the same two or three standard dishes of kebabs or chicken, with rice, vegetables and bread - you need to be invited into homes or splurge on up market hotels to eat the best Iranian food. The national drink of Iran is undoubtedly chaay (tea), always served scalding hot, black and strong.

Official language: Persian

National Institutions:

Representations in Foreign Countries:

Political Parties:

Communist Party of Iran
Tudeh Party of Iran
Green Party of Iran
Worker-communist Party of Iran
Marze Por-Gohar [Glorious Frontiers Party]
Union of Communists of Iran (Sarbedaran)
Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan

Additional Information:

General Information:

The World Factbook (by the CIA)
Atlapedia Online (by Latimer Clarke Corporation)
Information Please: Countries of the World (by Information Please LLC)

Political Information:

Elections around the world (by Wilfried Derksen)
Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members (by the CIA)
Political Leaders (by Roberto Ortíz de Zárate)
World Statesmen (by Benjamin Cahoon)
Political Resources on the Net (by Roberto Cicciomessere)
The Political Reference Almanac (by Keynote Publishing Co.)
Regents of the world (by Enno Schulz)

Information from Encyclopedias:

Columbia Encyclopedia (by Columbia University Press)

Touristic Information:

World Travel Guide (by Columbus Publishing Ltd.)
Lonely Planet Destinations (by Lonely Planet Publications)

Information on Human Rights:

Amnesty International Publications (by Amnesty International)
Freedom in the World (by Freedom House, Inc.)

Other Information:

Human Development Report (by United Nations Development Programme)
Ethnologue: Languages of the World (by Summer Institute of Linguistics, Inc.)
Flags Of The World (by Giuseppe Bottasini, Rob Raeside, Mark Sensen and others)
World Flag Database (by Graham Bartram)