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Iran

Middle East

Photos of Iran

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Much of the sediment clouding the water in this image of the Persian Gulf is from the Shatt al Arab River, which enters the Gulf in the north along the Iran-Iraq border. The river drains the combined waters of the Euphrates and Tigris Rivers of Iraq, and the Karun River of Iran. Though other rivers empty into the Persian Gulf, most of its fresh water comes from the Shatt al Arab. On the right edge of the image is the narrow Strait of Hormuz, which connects the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea, part of the northern Indian Ocean. The Persian Gulf is flanked to the west by wedge-shaped Kuwait and by Saudi Arabia with its vast tan-, pink-, and white-sand deserts; to the south by Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Oman; and to the east by the dry mountains of Iran. The wetlands and rivers of Mesopotamia border the Gulf on the north. The red dots mark gas flares in oil fields of Iran and Iraq. Image courtesy of NASA.
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Contents

Introduction

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Definitions and Notes
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Geography

Area

comparison ranking: total 19

Area - comparative

Area comparison map:
Area comparison map

People and Society

Languages

Persian audio sample:

Age structure

2023 population pyramid:
2023 population pyramid

Median age

comparison ranking: total 110

Population growth rate

comparison ranking: 104

Birth rate

comparison ranking: 119

Death rate

comparison ranking: 187

Net migration rate

comparison ranking: 113

Maternal mortality ratio

comparison ranking: 119

Infant mortality rate

comparison ranking: total 97

Total fertility rate

comparison ranking: 117

Tobacco use

comparison ranking: total 113

Education expenditures

comparison ranking: 137

Environment

Revenue from coal

comparison ranking: 47

Government

Economy

Real GDP growth rate

comparison ranking: 58

Real GDP per capita

comparison ranking: 115

Labor force

comparison ranking: 24

Unemployment rate

comparison ranking: 157

Public debt

comparison ranking: 134

Taxes and other revenues

comparison ranking: 110

Current account balance

comparison ranking: 28

Exports

comparison ranking: 46

Imports

comparison ranking: 46

Debt - external

comparison ranking: 97

Energy

Communications

Internet users

comparison ranking: total 13

Transportation

Airports

comparison ranking: 33

Railways

comparison ranking: total 25

Roadways

comparison ranking: total 21

Waterways

comparison ranking: 76

Merchant marine

comparison ranking: total 24

Military and Security

Military expenditures

comparison ranking: 62

Space

Terrorism

Transnational Issues

Contents