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More than
half of Iran's international border of 4,430 km is coastline, including
740 km along the Caspian Sea in the north and 1,700 km along the Persian
Gulf and Oman Sea in the south. Bandar-e-Abbas
is the largest harbor in the south of Iran located on the Strait of
Hormoz, the narrow passage separating the
Persian Gulf and Oman
Sea through which tens of
oil tankers are heading for various destinations in different corners of
the world everyday.
Natural regions
One of
the world's most mountainous countries, Iran contains two major ranges of
mountains, the Alborz with the highest peak in Asia west of the Himalayas,
Damavand (5671 m above sea level) and the Zagros that cuts across the
country for more than 1,600 km extending from north west to the south east
of the country. The peaks exceeding 2,300 m in these two ranges capture a
considerable amount of moisture coming either from the Caspian Sea
southward or the Mediterranean eastward.
There
are also some other local ranges. Within these mountainous rims
lies a series of basins known collectively as the central
plateau. They include Dasht-e-Kavir, a huge salt-encrusted
desert in north central Iran and Kavir-e-Lut, a sand-and-pebble
desert in the southeast.
There
are several fertile oases in these regions that are living examples of
ancient Iranians? determination to survive and bestow life to the arid
areas.
There
are numerous rivers in Iran, but nearly all of them are relatively short,
shallow streams unsuitable for navigation. The country?s only navigable
river, the Karun, flows through the city of Ahvaz in the southwest and
empties to the Persian Gulf. Most rivers originate from the mountains and
drain into the interior basins.
Although
around 1/3 of Iran?s total territory is arable, only %10.4 is under cultivation. An
additional %6 of the total land is used for pasture. Forested areas have
declined slightly in recent decades and account for %4.5 of the total
territory.
Natural Resources
Iran's
extensive petroleum and natural gas deposits are located primarily in the
southwestern province of Khuzestan and in the Persian Gulf. Iran
also has one of the world's largest reserves of copper the deposits of
which are located throughout the country, but the major lode lies in
central Iran between the cities of Yazd and Kerman. This region also
serves as a center for the mining of bauxite, lead, zinc, iron ore and
coal. Other coalmines operate throughout the Alborz
Mountains. Iron ore mines also exist near Zanjan, near Mashad and on
Hormoz
Island in the Strait of Hormoz. Iran also
has valuable deposits of aluminum, chromites, manganese, gold, silver, tin
and tungsten. There are also various gemstones like lapis lazuli,
turquoise, amber and agate.
Plants
& Animals
More
than 10,000 plant species have been identified in Iran. The natural
vegetation in most of the country has been devastated and used for
cultivating crops or feeding cattle. Natural forests at the Alborz consist
of various trees like beech, oak, deciduous trees and conifers. There are
wooded areas in some regions of higher elevation in the Zagros Mountains
consisting primarily of oak. Wild fruit trees grow in both the Alborz and
Zagros mountains. They include almond, pear, pomegranate, and walnut. In
the more arid central part of the country, wild pistachio and other
resistant trees grow in areas that have not been disturbed by human
activities. Tamarisk and other salt-tolerant bushes grow along the margins
of the Dasht-e-Kavir.
A wide
variety of native mammals, reptiles, birds, and insects live in Iran. Many
species of mammals-including wolves, foxes, bears, mountain goats, red
mountain sheep, rabbits, and gerbils continue to thrive. Some species of
birds inhabit Iran and a large number of the species are migratory birds
that spend part of the year in other countries.
Population
The population of
Iran was estimated to be at about 67,000,000 in 2001. This figure is more
than double the 1975 population of 33,379,000. Between 1956 and 1986,
Iran's population growth rate was more than %3 per year. It began to
decline in the mid-1980s after the government initiated a major population
control program. By 2001, the growth rate had declined to %0.7 per year.
In 1998, %44 of the population was under the age 15, %53 was between 15
and 64, and only %4 was aged 65 or older. The country is almost entirely
Muslim no matter which ethnic or linguistic group they belong to.
Iran?s population is
made of numerous ethnic groups. Persians form %60, Azeris %25, Kurds %5
and Lurs % 2 of Iran?s inhabitants. The remainder of the population
comprises small communities of Arabs, Armenians, Assyrians, Baluchies,
etc.
Climates
The
totally different up and down altitudes of Iran are the major reasons for
the several various climates. The Caspian coastal plain on the northern
edge of the country with an average elevation of about the sea level
remains humid all year round. Winter temperatures rarely fall below
freezing point and maximum summer temperatures rarely exceed 29? C. Annual
precipitation averages 650 mm in the eastern part of the plain (Mazandaran
Province) and more than 1,900 mm in the western part (Gilan Province).
At
higher elevations to the west, the inhabited areas in the Zagros Mountains
experience lower temperatures with average daily temperatures below
freezing point in winter. They also experience warm summers with average
temperature of 25? C in the northwest and 33? C in the central and
southern Zagros. The average annual precipitation, including snowfall, is
more than 280 mm at higher elevations.
The
central plateau region also experiences regional variations. The arid
basins of central and eastern Iran generally receive less than 200 mm of
precipitation per year.
The
southern coastal plains of Iran have mild winters with average January
temperatures ranging from 7? C to 18? C in Khuzestan
Province, but the average temperatures in Bandar-e-Abbas on the
Strait of
Hormoz are even higher. Summers are very hot and humid with temperatures
exceeding 48? C during July in the interior areas. The Annual
precipitation ranges in this region are from 145 mm to 355 mm.
Large
Cities
The country?s
capital and largest city, Tehran, serves as the main administrative,
financial, industrial, commercial, educational and publishing center.
Iran's other major cities include Shiraz, Esfehan, Tabriz, Mashad and
Ahvaz.
Shiraz is a manufacturing center in the south near the ruins of the
most glorious ancient Persian monument called Persepolis.
Esfehan is a
manufacturing center with several masterpieces of Islamic architecture
from the 17th and 18th centuries.
Tabriz is the principal industrial and
commercial center of the northwest.
Mashad is a manufacturing and
commercial center in the northeast and the site of the country's most
important religious shrine where the body of the eighth Imam of Shiites
has been buried.
And Ahvaz is the major commercial and manufacturing
center in the southwest of Iran.
Written By:
Rahman Mehraby
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