INTRODUCTION TO IRAN

Geography

Iran is located in the Middle East, in southwest Asia.  It lies between Iraq and Afghanistan.  With an area of almost 636,000 square miles (about 1,648,000 square kilometers), it is one of the largest countries in the Middle East.  Its territory is just slightly larger than that of the State of Alaska, making it one-sixth the size of the United States.  Iran is the sixteenth largest country in the world.

It is bordered in the north by, Armenia, Azerbaijan, the Caspian Sea and Turkmenistan; in the east by Afghanistan and Pakistan, in the west by Iraq and Turkey; and in the south by the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

Iran is a land of extremes, with vast and treacherous deserts, lush, imposing mountains, and some coastal lowlands.

The Desert Plateaus

Iran’s central plateau is a rather high desert.  It reaches as high as 4,000 feet (1,219 meters) above sea level.  It is the driest region on earth.  The two deserts found here are the Dasht-e Kavir and the Dasht-e Lut.

The Dasht-e Kavir is a land covered by a thick white crust of salt crystals.  It runs 500 miles long and 200 miles wide.  Dasht-e Kavir, however, was known in the past as the Silk Road, because Iran, known then as Persia, was the shortest and most ideal commercial route connecting China, India, Arabia, Asia Minor and the Mediterranean.

The Dash-e Lut is a desert of sand, about 300 miles long and 200 miles wide.  Unlike Dasht-e Kavir, it is a barren land; with the exception of very thinly scattered bushes and trees growing here and there, most of the area is an empty wasteland.

There are parts where the swampy winter floodwaters have dried out under the intense heat of the sun, and have formed a salty crystal surface.  Dry and dangerous to travel on foot, it often cracked wide open, swallowing the camels and the caravans passing through, into the quicksand below.

Caravanserai Safavid between Nain and Yazd

The Mountains

There are two impressive mountain ranges in Iran:  the Alburz Mountains and the Zagros Mountains.  The Alburz range runs throughout the northern part of the country, and the Zagros range connects the northwestern portion of the plateau through the western part of the country to the Persian Gulf in the south.

The Alburz Mountains in the north rise to the nation’s highest peak, known as Mount Damavand, which is 18,605 feet (5,671 meters) high. 

There are at least 30 high peaks in the mountains in Iran.  The second highest peak in the Alburz Mountains is the Sahand, reaching 9, 843 feet (3,000 meters) in elevation.  Sabalaan and Ararat are two other well-known peaks in the Alburz Mountains.  All these peaks are volcanic and covered by snow all year round.  They sputter and spew every few years.  The volcanic activities of this range have been linked to the earthquakes that from time to time shake parts of Iran.  The latest powerful earthquake in June of 2002, in the city of Bam in Kerman Province, destroyed the whole city and killed several thousand people.

The Gates of Bam

The rugged Zagros mountain range is the longer of the two; it runs 875 miles throughout the western part of the country, and circles along the southern border down to the Persian Gulf.  The total length of the Zagros is an estimated 1,100 miles.  In some areas Zagros is made of row after row of jagged peaks, each higher than the one before.  Between the rows lie long, narrow valleys with flat floors.

There are also the Khorassan Mountains in the eastern part of Iran.  Smaller and less impressive than the two long and high mountain ranges of the north and west, they shelter lush, fertile valleys, ideal for sustaining livestock.

At the foot of the surrounding mountains in Iran, where streams and springs provide permanent sources of water, cities of various sizes are found.  Villages are mostly located in the valleys between the mountains. Tehran, the capital of Iran with more than 15 million inhabitants, lies at the foot of Damavand Mountain.

There are also two coastal lowlands in Iran; one lies along the Caspian shoreline north of the Elburz Mountains.  The other stretches along the coast of the Persian Gulf.

The Rivers

There are three main and several small rivers in the country.  The three main rivers are the Karun Rud in the south, the Zayandeh Rud in north central part, and the Safid Rud in the north.

The Karun Rud (river) is the longest, about 528 miles long.  As a convergence of various small streams from the snow covering the Zagros Mountains, it winds down the western slope of this range and then flows down to the south to the Iran-Iraq border where it joins the Shatt-al –Arab, and then empties into the Persian Gulf.  The Karun is the only navigated river in Iran, and even it is shallow, permitting boat travel only a few miles upstream from its mouth.

Esfahan

The Zandeh Rud, made of the converging streams of the eastern Zagros Mountains, runs for 250 miles before ending up in a salt marsh in the interior.  The word Zayandeh in Farsi means “giving birth.”  It was given this name for bringing water to the oasis of Esfahan, one of Iran’s major cities and a former capital.

The third main river is the Safid Rud. It is 450 miles long. It originates in the snow of the Elburz Mountains and travels through many valleys, villages and cities down to the Caspian Sea.  There are several dams built along these rivers, providing hydroelectric power and water for irrigation.

Qunats

Iranians dig underground canals to lead water from the mountains through the barren lands and deserts to the cities. This rather unique system of underground aqueducts is called a Qunat.  They sometimes go as deep as 500 to 600 meters underground to dig a canal.  Along the stretch of the underground canals, there are numerous regular narrow shafts seen on the surface. These shafts are dug to remove the soil displaced below.  Qunats are anywhere from half a mile to 50 miles long.  The piles of dirt and soil around the shaft openings are a familiar sight viewed from the air.  If you see it from the air, it looks like a string of doughnuts stretching from the villages to the mountains.  This way, pure snow water is shielded from contamination and evaporation, and is used for city consumption and irrigation.  The history of Qunat digging goes back 2500 years.  There are certain craftsmen capable of finding a water source and digging a Qunat with ample water.  Usually the profession runs in the family and is handed down from father to son.

The Lakes

There are two large lakes in Iran:  the Caspian Sea, and Lake Urmia.  The Caspian Sea is the largest inland sea in the world, spanning 144,000 square miles (373,000 sq km).  It is five times larger than the word’s second largest lake, Lake Superior in the United States.  Its water is salty but it provides a habitat to a variety of fish; it is ideal for sturgeon, which produces caviar, the world’s most expensive roe.  Oil and industrial pollution, as well as over fishing, have reduced the numbers of the sturgeon in the recent years.

The Caspian Sea’s longest shoreline is on Iran.  It also borders other countries as well, namely Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.

Lake Urmia is the largest lake with an area of 1,737 square miles (4,701 sq km), completely within Iran, located in the northwestern part of the country.  Its water, containing 25 percent minerals, about seven times as much as the oceans, is bitterly salty – too salty for any animal or plant to live in.  The water, however, is useful for relieving such diseases as rheumatism, arthritis and some skin problems.  There are spas and mud and shower facilities on its shores for those seeking such remedies.

Lake Urmia is a stopping place for migratory birds like the flamingo in their flight south.

Climate

Iran is a land of extreme climates, with hot summers and cold winters.  Because of its large territory and the presence of huge mountains, shutting out the moderating influence of the oceans, there are different climatic zones inside the country with differences in temperature of as much as 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

Inside the plateau, summers are dry and hot during day, while night temperatures can plunge.  Temperatures in Tehran range from 27º F in winter to 99º F in summer.  The coldest month in Tehran is normally January, with temperatures ranging from 27º to 45º F (-2.8º C to 7.2º C).  July, being the hottest month, has a temperature of 72º to 99º F (22.2º to 37.2º C).  Frost is common during the winter, and snow covers the mountain peaks most of the year.

Iran’s rainy season is mostly in the winter, between November and April.  The rainiest area is the Caspian Sea coast, where the annual rainfall exceeds 40 inches.  The rest of the country receives very little rainfall, making it difficult to farm without irrigation:  about 12 inches in the plateau and about 5 inches in the desert lands.  The skies over Iran are usually clear; cities, however, may be so polluted that one cannot see the sky. 

Population

The population of Iran in Jan. 2006 is estimated around 70 million.  The age group distribution in 2003 was:

0—14 years 17.1%

15—64 years 68%

The age median is 24.33.  The population is young, due to the encouragement of the Islamic Revolution.  The leaders of the new regime in 1979 encouraged families to have children.  They felt that large numbers of Iranians would help spread the ideas of the Islamic Revolution.

Despite losing more than a million young men during the 8-year war with Iraq from 1981 to 1989, the population exploded, resulting in a boost of 36 million people, from 34 million in 1979 to almost 70 million in 2006.  This rapid increase has created numerous socio-economic problems; the rate of unemployment has gone up considerably, and the country suffers a serious housing shortage.  The expansion of cities, the need to provide a water supply, power, sanitation, schools, hospitals and security, and many other related issues, have made it an overwhelming task for the government to cope with.

In recent years, the government reversed its policy and launched several educational projects to control the population.  However, it takes several generations to overcome the damage inflicted on the nation by the zealous but inexperienced people who ruled the country.  Today in Iran, only 4 percent of the people are older than sixty-five, and about half are under the age of twenty.  That means the nation in its age structure is very young and the population will continue to increase for several decades to come.  Life expectancy stands around 70.  The population growth is 77%.

The People

Iran is one of the oldest countries in the world.  Its history goes back to 6000 B.C.E.  There are historical documents indicating that the land at the head of the Persian Gulf and good parts of the Iranian plateau were filled with small villages and fertile land.  In addition to farming, the people of this region also engaged in animal husbandry; raising sheep, goats and other livestock.

Persepolis

Starting around 1500 B.C.E., a group of people called Aryans migrated from the north to Iran.  It is believed that settlement of the Aryans was the origin of the name of Iran, meaning “land of the Aryans.” The majority of Iranians are descendents of the country’s original settlers.  Being a remnant of the old Persian Empire, a superpower of its time which controlled Mesopotamia, Egypt, parts of Greece, Asia Minor and India, Iran has become a multiethnic society consisting of Azerbaijanis, Kurds, Arabs, Turks, Baluchis, Jews, Qashqa’I and a few Westerners.  Roughly 51 percent of its present-day citizens are the Aryans.

Persepolis

History

There are prehistoric stone reliefs, pottery, metalworking and written records indicating that Iran was one of the first parts of the world to cultivate a civilization.  Their early settlements were supported by farming and domestication of livestock.

Persepolis

Iran’s recorded history goes back to 533 B.C. when the Persians, known as skillful archers, ruled by Cyrus the Great, conquered the whole region and named his dynasty the Achaemenid Empire. Cyrus’s vast empire included Babylonia, Palestine, Syria, and Asia Minor.

Stone relief

Throughout its 2,500 years of history, Iran has been jaded by war, invaded by other countries, or has engaged in aggression against others, and lost or conquered other lands.  Its territory once expanded from Greece to Egypt and encompassed the whole Middle East, Asia Minor, and India.  Persian forces were defeated a few times during its monumental history; by Alexander the Great in 333 B.C., by the Arabs in A.D. 637, and by the Mongols, led by the great feared Genghis Khan in 1258.  Each one of these major invasions left big cities destroyed and many people killed in its wake.  The direst of all was when the Khan’s grandson Hulegu killed the entire population of Persians and founded the Ilkhanate dynasty in 1258.

Shah Abbas rebuilt the city of Esfahan, which became the capital of the dynasty.  The arts and culture flourished during his time.  Esfahan is located 200 miles south of Tehran; as the capital of the Safavids’ dynasty, it developed into a highly respected city.  It was once an intellectual meeting place of artists, the trading center for merchants, and a prize destination of European travelers.  Today many of the historic monuments, mosques, palaces, bazaars (markets), and bridges built during Shah Abbas’ reign remain symbolic of a time when the city’s grandeur was aptly summarized by sixteenth-century travelers with the phrase, “Isfahan is half of the world.”

During the nineteenth century, Iran entered a period of turmoil.  The two great powers of the time, Great Britain and Russia, eroded the country.  The ruling dynasty of the time could not stand against the imperialistic aggression of these superpowers; it lost Asia Minor to Russia and the exploitation of its oil to Great Britain.  Persians, however, despite their losses, gained intellectual ideologies.  After traveling overseas, Persians returned home inspired with Western ideas of freedom and democracy, and fought for it against their kings.

In 1906, Muzaffar al-Din Shah of the Qajars dynasty wrote Persia’s first constitution establishing a parliament, or Majles, limiting the power of the Shahs and establishing a burgeoning democracy.  During World War I (1914-1917), Iran was used as a battleground for both the Russians and the British troops to reach opposing war zones.  Corruption, political turmoil and blatant interference by the two superpowers, along with financial bankruptcy of the government, culminated in anarchy and regional autocracy.  By 1925, Reza Khan, a British-supported military officer but also a very patriotic soldier, seized power in Tehran after a coup.  He demonstrated incredible statesmanship by eliminating the Qajars dynasty, crowning himself as the Shah of the new Pahlavi Dynasty, and launching a series of socio-economic reform projects.

In 1953, Persia, as it was known by the outside world, officially became Iran, as it was called inside the country.  During his reign, Reza Shah established security throughout the country, promoted a very strong central government controlling the country and eliminating regional autocracies.  Industrial modernization, the development of several infrastructural projects, like the building of roads and railroads, promoting agriculture and urbanization, and the founding of the University of Tehran, as well as many colossal hospitals and health centers, are all attributed to his reign.  The Shah was also instrumental in the introduction of civil law codes, a system of banking, and more permanent settlements by nomadic tribes.  However, he compromised genuine democracy in order to expedite his domestic security and to implement the development of his projects. Through his dictatorship, he made other reforms as well, such as relaxing religious laws enough to allow women to dress without the traditional veils.  He established mutually respectful relationships with the European countries.

Azadi Freedom Monument, Tehran

World War II (1939—1945) flames surrounded Iran and generated upheavals in this land of violence.  Reza Shah, led by his antagonism against the British and the Russians, who were always eyeing Iran for their imperialistic advantages, sided with the Germans in the war.  Iran being strategically located relative to Europe to Asia, having access to the warm water of the Persian Gulf leading to the Indian Ocean, and being rich in oil, was too precious for the Russians and Great Britain to give up.  The Russians from the north and the British from the south invaded Iran in 1941.  They forced Reza Shah to give up the throne to his son Mohammad Reza Shah, who was the last shah of Iran.

Finally, in 1946, the Soviets and the British left the region.  Mohammad Reza Shah gradually gained power and, like his father, promoted numerous economic development projects and social changes.  He was supported by the United States and Great Britain.  The Shah introduced drastic but major reform in the overall aspects of the nation, including land reform, reforming the social norms of the people, bypassing traditional customs and introducing the Western lifestyle.  The changes were too fast for the people to digest and too drastic for the religious leaders and clerics to accept.  The religious leaders felt disregarded and started a fight against the regime.  It took many years, but they finally succeeded in removing the Shah in 1979.

The Islamic Revolution and Foreign Relations with the US

Iranians, overwhelmed by the speed of development, angered by losing their own traditions and seeing them replaced with foreign Western traditions and ways of life, were agitated and felt restless. 

The resentment of the religious people against the Shah and the supporter of the Shah, the United States, led to a group of religious students storming the American Embassy in Iran on November 4, 1979, and taking sixty-six Americans hostage.  Later on, thirteen hostages were allowed to leave, but fifty-three were kept captive until January 1981.  Diplomatic relations between Iran and the US have been severed since then.

For several years after the revolution, Iran’s economy disintegrated.  Unemployment soared, inflation became unbearable and civil disobedience grew more widespread. In 1980, Saddam Hussein, feeling that it was a good time to attack Iran, invaded from the west.  Iranians, though some were unhappy with the new regime, rallied behind the government against the foreign aggressor.  Fighting continued for eight years between the neighboring nations.  Iran lost more than one million of her people and sustained a considerable amount of damage, but finally succeeded in pushing back the Iraqis and recapturing part of their country.  The war terminated in 1989 under pressure from the United States and other nations.  Both embattled countries went back to their international borders. 

Religion

As was discussed in the section on history, the Arabs invaded Iran in AD 632 and introduced the Islamic religion to Iran.  Many Iranians changed from their Zoroastrian religion to Islam.  Some did so because they were required to pay taxes for practicing a non-Moslem faith; others chose Islam because it promised more equality than Zoroastrianism.  Islam is the youngest of the world’s major religions, which include Judaism, Christianity, and Buddhism.  It is more closely related to Judaism and Christianity because it recognizes Moses and Jesus as prophets, and their holy book, the Koran, shares many stories with the Old and the New Testaments. 

Economy

Iran’s Gross National Product in 2003, based on 1997 prices, amounts to 379 trillion Rials ($822 billion).  The GNP by sectors is shown in table 1 below.

Iran’s Gross National Products by major sectors in 2003

1.  Industry and Mining

The Iranian economy grew rapidly with the growth of oil revenue in the 1960’s and escalated in the 1970’s.  Gigantic steel plants, oil refineries, and factories were built by the government.  The private sector was helped through expanded credit facilities to build and run manufacturing companies.  Several industries in auto assembly, textile, glass, housing and construction materials were built during this time.

The Iran-Iraq war, which lasted more than eight years in the 1980s, disrupted economic development in Iran.  It extensively damaged the economic infrastructure, the environment and some of the oil refineries and the production of crude oil.  The death of more than one million, mostly young people, and the enlistment of millions for the war, crippled the manpower needed to run their factories.

Recovery started off in the 1990s.  Repairing the damaged factories, along with development of new power generators and the extension of the natural gas network throughout the country, helped to boost the overall economy.

However, obstacles like tight government control, lack of stability in laws, tariffs regulating commerce, and staggering inflation, needed to be resolved for real development and substantial growth to take place.  The rates of unemployment and underemployment are very high.

Pole

2.  Agriculture

Agriculture comprises almost one-fourth of the Gross National Product in Iran.  It engages around 25 percent of the labor force.  However, the average annual precipitation in Iran is only 250 millimeters, one-third of the world average precipitation.  It is an arid country; the area with more than 500 millimeters’ precipitation per year is limited to only 10 percent of its land.  In other words, Iran’s arable land is about 37 million hectares, of which 18.5 million hectares are under cultivation (including cultivated and fallow lands).  12.1 million hectares are cultivated annually, and 2.1 million hectares are under perennial crops such as fruit orchards and nuts.  The main subsistence crops in Iran are wheat, barely, sugar beets, sugar cane and rice.  Mutton, lamb and poultry are also important for domestic consumption.

The total of agricultural products in 2003-2004 was estimated at 90.3 million metric tons.  Of this, crops cultivated annually accounted for 70.4 percent.  The other sectors within the agriculture were:  fruit and other perennial crops, 15 percent, animal husbandry, 9.6 percent, and fishing, about 5.6 percent.  Iran’s agricultural export in 2002 was about 1.6 billion dollars.

3.  Oil

Iran’s oil fields are located mostly in the south in the province of Khuzestan and around the Persian Gulf.  The major natural gas fields are in the southern part of the country.  Oil and natural gas are transported through pipelines both domestically and into neighboring countries; one major line leads through Ardebil in the northwest into Russia, and another from Tabriz along a 1,590-mile line to Ankara in Turkey.

During the war with Iraq, the production of crude oil dropped to 800 million barrels per year. Since the end of the war its production has been resumed, surpassing 1200 million barrels.  Next to Saudi Arabia, Iran has the largest share of crude oil production in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

Oil exports account for more than 80 percent of Iran’s total annual exports.  Its export of oil and natural gas in 2003 exceeded 27.033 billion dollars.

The country is also rich in minerals such as copper, which is mined at Esfahan in Tarum and Hamedan.  Iron, gold, tin, and aluminum are also plentiful.  Some areas in Iran have marble and other high-grade stone, which are used in domestic construction as well as exported.

Khaju

Currency

The Rial is the official currency in Iran.  However, due to staggering inflation after the revolution, the Rial is so small that Iranians usually use the Toman, which is equivalent to 10 Rials.

Coins in circulation are 50, 100, 250, and 500 Rials.  The 5 and 10 Rials are still legal tender but not used anymore.  Banknotes in circulation are 100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000, 10,000 and 20,000 Rials.

As of December 2005, one US dollar bought 9,091 Iranian Rials.

Iranian budget deficits have been a chronic problem, in part due to large-scale state subsidies – totaling some $7.25 billion per year – including foodstuffs and especially gasoline, and a huge number of people is employed in the Revolutionary Guard and in law enforcement.

Education

After the 1960’s, reform in the system of education government expanded its budgetary allocation to education, and Iran embarked on a large-scale program to increase the number of teacher-training institutions, schools and universities.  The quality of education improved, and the literacy level rose.

Literacy education became compulsory for children ages 6 to 12.  High schools are not compulsory and are generally free of charge.  Students in high school are required to pass a major examination at the end of the school year.  Should a student fail a single subject (out of as many as 12), he or she has to repeat the entire year.  Girls and boys study in different schools until they enter the university.

About 95 percent of the children attend school.  Most of the schools are run by the government.  However, there are private schools as well, and their numbers are escalating.  It is not easy to find a place in the universities.  Only a more talented and scholar would pass the national entry examination, competing against other students.  More than a million students attend private universities.

Illiteracy is dying out in the country; Iranians aged 15 and over (excluding those in compulsory education under 15) are 79.6 literate.  Based on gender, 85.6% of males, and 73.6% of females of that group are literate.  Girls are encouraged to pursue their studies.  Their ratio in schools to boys has increased considerably.  Iran has the highest ratio of educated women in the Middle East.

Government

After the revolution of 1979 the Iranian constitution was rewritten and it was approved in a referendum in the same year.  Later on, another national referendum, after Khomeini, approved the amendments made to the 1979 constitution.

Theocracy and religion are the backbone of the new constitution, and they have made it unique in the world.  It is called Islamic Government.  Its founder, Ayatollah Khomeini, created a system of government rules according to God’s law first, and then the law of men.  The government in today’s Iran consists of the following divisions: 

The Leader, Val-ye Faghih

The leader of the country, called the Vali-ye Faqi, is considered to be the representative of the twelfth Imam, according to Shi’a doctrine.  The Faqih, after Khomeini, is elected among theologians for life by an Assembly of Experts -- an assembly of 86 clerics publicly elected for an eight-year term.  His power is plenary and he has final authority in all religious and executives decisions. The Faqih is the supreme authority in the country and oversees all of the three main branches of government; namely the legislative, the executive, and the judiciary branches.  He has the unchallenged power to veto whatever passes or is decided in any branch of the government.  He is the commander-in-chief of all armed forces, including the army and the Revolutionary Guard.  The army protects the country against any foreign intrusion; the Revolutionary Guard enforces Islamic law in the daily life of the people and suppresses any voice raised against the regime.  The current Vali-ye-Faqih is Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei.  His office is called the Office of Leadership. 

The Executive Branch, the President

The executive body consists of various departments called Ministries, headed by the president. Each ministry is headed by a minister appointed by the president, subject to the approval of the Parliament, the Majles.  Indirectly the Faqih appoints the ministers at sensitive ministries.

The President is elected to a four-year term.  The new President was elected in May 2005.  The next presidential election will be held in May 2009.  The president can only run for two consecutive terms. The candidates for the presidential election are screened by the Council of the Guardians.

Eight vice-presidents serve under the president, as well as the cabinet of 21 ministers.  The executive branch in Iran does not control the armed forces.

The Legislative Branch 

The Judiciary

In addition to the Ministry of Justice, which handles all legal matters, the court system has a supreme head, appointed by the Leadership (the Faqih).  He in turn appoints the Revolutionary Attorney General and various judges throughout the country.

Trials in Iran are very different from those in the United States.  Most Iranian trials are held in secret, with no observers allowed.

In matters concerning the Revolutionary Court, the judges, who are males and mostly clerics, also act as the plaintiff, the prosecuting attorney, and the jury.  In some cases defense attorneys are allowed and in other cases they are not. 

Local Governments

Iran has 28 provinces, called Ostan.  Each province is made up of counties, called Shahrestan, and each county has several sub districts called Bakhsh.  The Ministry of the Interior appoints a governor for each province.  The governor, subject to the approval of the Ministry, appoints district executives and mayors.  Law enforcement in the cities and provinces is centrally administered, and the governors and mayors have no jurisdiction over it.

Traditions

Iranians have maintained some of their old traditions dating back to the time of the Zoroastrians and the Iranian Empire.  The celebration of Norouz, the revival of the New Year, is the most spectacular holiday in Iran.  It is the celebration of the Iranian New Year and begins on the first day of spring.  That is the vernal equinox, and the moment that spring begins (March 21, in leap years March 20).  Norouz means “new day” and the holiday is meant to celebrate new life, leaving the darkness of winter behind and entering the light of spring.  It is customary that at the moment the sun passes the equator, the family gathers together around the table, decorated with sweets and candies and seven items, each of whose names starts with the letter S in Farsi.  For instance, there is an apple, which in Persian is sib, and it symbolizes health and robustness.  There is garlic, which is sir in Persian, and that signifies warding off evil and illness.  There are also sprouts of wheat already grown on a plate or a tray, and of course, this is symbolic of good crops, of growth and of plenty.  And, of course, since this is a cross-cultural, cross-religious, cross-ethnic celebration, people have their particular holy book on the table.  Norouz actually has its roots in the Zoroastrian religion.  Stone carvings dating from the twelfth century BC display Norouz festivals.

The celebration lasts for thirteen days, during which relatives and friends visit one another in turn. Normally the parents, as the older members of the extended family, are visited. The visits are prioritized by the age, by closeness in the family, and by positions held by the persons to be visited.  When the Shah was in power, he would give a grand audience to the Prime Minister and his cabinets and other dignitaries.  The visits are paid back; the older and more respected people visit the younger ones.  Greeting cards and flowers are sent to those far away. The elders normally give gifts to the younger people.  The rest exchange gifts with one another.

The thirteenth day of Norouz marks the end of the break for school children.  Families and friends leave their homes for outdoor activities such as picnics.  It symbolizes getting rid of the thirteenth, the unlucky day.  The celebration is called Sizdah bedar, translated “13 out the door.”

There is also a celebration on the very last Tuesday night of the year, called Shab-e Chahar Shnbeh Souri.  Its literal translation into English is “the night before partying Wednesday.” Families gather to give thanks for past fortune and the opportunity to decrease future misfortune through the cleansing of the fire, an important element in the Zoroastrian religion.  People build a bonfire and leap over it.  The Islamic Revolutionaries have tried to play it down, especially the Tuesday night fire festivities, as it is Zoroastrian, which is condemned.  The people have, so far, resisted.

In addition to Norouz, there are other holidays, mostly religious, having to do with the birthday or assassination and death of the Prophet Mohammad and his successors according to the Shiite rituals.

Friday is the day of religious prayer, so offices, whether government or private, schools and banks are closed from Thursday afternoon through all of Friday.  The shopkeepers do the same, but some of the shops are open a half-day only.

Iranian entertainment largely revolves around the home, where eating, talking, and socializing are favorite activities.  With exception of a rather small sector of the population who drink alcoholic beverages in secret, most people consider it against their religion to drink them.  A samovar is always on for tea, Chai, which is drunk ceremonially.

Family

After the Revolution in 1979, women were required to cover their heads and wear long, shapeless clothes in public.  Some wear the Chador, a long garment that covers most of the body; only the hands and face are visible.  People who break the rules or speak out against the government, risk punishment.  They may be whipped or put into prison.

Iranians are very much family oriented.  The most important social group is the extended family. In addition to parents and children, it includes uncles, aunts and cousins.  Members of a large family usually live close to one another.  They socialize together and help one another out when needed.  Family members always try to eat together.  Caring for the elderly is traditionally kept in the family.

Iranians, in general, are extremely sociable.  They love to entertain family and friends at home. They, especially the men, go out and spend considerable time in tea houses, restaurants and entertainment centers like the cinema.

The children are taught to respect their parents, older persons, and their teachers.  The children normally stay at home until they are married.  No premarital relationship is allowed in public. Girls and boys attend different schools before entering colleges and universities.  Women, however, are not discriminated against in entering the universities and obtaining jobs.  Many Iranian women work outside of the home, such as teaching, practicing medicine, and working in the government or private offices.  Men do not shake hands with women in public.  Adult children normally seek their parents’ permission to marry.  The wedding is a very big and important ceremony, which is always put on with some fanfare, and mostly financed by the groom.  The groom normally pledges some sort of property, mostly money (Mehrieh), to pay to the wife if they decide to divorce later on in life.  The bride is expected to take some furniture, appliances and utensils as a dowry (Jahizieh) to their new home.

Arts and Literature 

Another major topic in the culture of Iran is Persian literature.  The Persian language, having been in use for over 2500 years, has left distinct marks on the history of the written word.  With world-famous poets, such as Hafez, Omar Khayyam, and Ferdowsi,

Iranians are in love with poetry.  They love to memorize and recite poems.  There are classical poets whose poetry is still recited like classical music.  Some of the poets, notably Ferdowsi, have written Iranian history in poetry.  The Iranians consider them a national epic.

One of the famous Iranian poets is Hafez (about 1324-1389).  He wrote some 700 lyrical poems about love, religion, and human behavior.  In most Iranian houses, there is at least one volume of his poetry used by the Iranians as an oracle.  There are also contemporary poets admired by the people.  In recent years, Iran has been expanding its access to the Internet, thus expanding access to information and self-expression among its younger population.  

Persian miniature painting is another Iranian art cherished internationally with its own history.  Persian carpets are renowned all over the world for their beauty and symbolism.

Iranians calligraphers are some of the best in the world.  Iranians in general highly regard calligraphy, because they so respect the written word.  Calligraphy is used in texts and decorations on mosques.

With 300 international awards in the past 25 years, films from Iran continue to be celebrated worldwide.  Perhaps the best known director is Abbas Kiarostami. 

Food

Iranians’ staple food is rice.  They eat it with a variety of dishes.  The most common food is rice with a kebab on top.  The kebab consists of pieces of marinated lamb or beef that have been threaded onto a metal skewer--usually with onions and tomatoes--and broiled over charcoal.  This nationally popular dish is called, Chelo kebab.

Some of the dishes are mixture of rice with other ingredients like nuts or spices; it becomes polow.  All kinds of things, ranging from cranberries to fresh herbs, are mixed with rice.  There are dishes made with eggplant, meat, onion and split peas mixed with tomato sauce, called khouresht-e baademjaan.  Instead of eggplant, there are a variety of other ingredients used as the main component of the dish, like squashes, meat and potato strings, dry fruit, etc.  The khouresht takes the name of the main ingredient as a suffix.  For example, if it is squash, it becomes Khouresht-e cadou.

Trout and sturgeon are the more popular dishes around the Caspian Sea, and other types of fish and seafood are more popular in the south, by the Persian Gulf.  There are meatballs in a variety called Koufteh.  There are side dishes made with such things as spinach or sugar beets.  Dolmeh is made with vegetables and meat wrapped in grape leaves.

There is a variety of fruit in Iran.  The fruits grown in Iran are well known for their flavors, because the climate and soil of the country is well suited to the specific fruit grown in the region. Yogurt by itself is popular, as well as yogurt diluted with water (dough) as a drink.