Iran the country

Iran is the eighteenth largest country in the world. The total area of the country equals that of the United Kingdom, France, Spain and Germany combined.

Iran is located in Central Eurasia in the center of the Persian Gulf. It is also home to one of the oldest continuous civilizations in the world. The historical and urban settlements of Iran date back to around 4000 BC.

Because of the large reserves of petroleum and natural gas in Iran, it occupies a highly important position in the realms of international energy security and world economy.

Most of the area of Iran is located on the Iranian Plateau, with the exceptions of the coast of the Caspian Sea and Khuzestan. It is one of the most mountainous countries in the world. The landscape of Iran is primarily dominated by mountain ranges that separate various basins or plateaus from each other.

Mount Damavand stands at approximately 18,386 feet which makes it the highest mountain point in Iran and also the highest mountain on the Eurasian landmass west of the Hindu Kush. While the western region of Iran is highly mountainous, the eastern region consists most of desert basins and several salt lakes.

The climate in Iran is primarily arid with subtropical climates along the Caspian coast. In the northern regions of the country, temperatures generally fall well below freezing during winter and remain humid during other seasons. Summer temperatures generally fall around 84 degrees Fahrenheit and rarely go over this temperature.

The annual precipitation amounts are greater in the western regions, normally reaching more than 67 inches per year. Also in the western region, more specifically in the Zagros Mountains basin, temperatures during the winter months can dip well below sub-freezing and snowfall amounts are generally heavy.

In the eastern region basins, the temperatures during summer months frequently exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit and low rainfall amounts produce occasional desert.

The tourism industry in Iran took a significant decline during the war with Iraq in the 1980s; however it has begun to revive. During 2004, more than one millions foreign tourists visited Iran. Many of these came from Asian countries, while several were from areas in Europe and North America.

Iran currently ranks 68th in the tourism industry worldwide. With the beautiful and natural historical sites, it is currently ranked among the ten most touristic countries in the world.

Almost two percent of the national employment from Iran is contributed to the tourism industry, although that number is expected to increase significantly in the next few years.

This page was translated from German into English (englisch übersetzung) by twigg's translations.