n.
officially Islamic Republic of Iran formerly Persia
Country, Middle East.
Area: 629,315 sq mi (1,629,918 sq km). Population (2002 est.): 65,457,000. Capital: Tehr 0101; n . Persians constitute nearly half of its population; other ethnic groups include the Kurds , Lurs, Bakhtyari, and Balochi. Language: Persian (Farsi; official). Religion: Islam (official); most are Sh 012B; 02BD; ites. Currency: rial. Iran occupies a high plateau rising higher than 1,500 ft (460 m) above sea level and is surrounded largely by mountains. More than half of its surface area consists of salt deserts and other wasteland. About one-tenth of its land is arable, and another one-fourth is suitable for grazing. Iran's rich petroleum reserves account for about one-tenth of world reserves and are the basis of its economy. It is an Islamic republic with one legislative house but several oversight bodies dominated by the clergy. The head of state and government is the president, but supreme authority rests with the leader ( rahbar ), a ranking cleric. Human habitation in Iran dates to some 100,000 years ago, but recorded history began with the Elamites 0441; 3000 BC. The Medes flourished from 0441; 728 BC but were overthrown (550 BC) by the Persians, who were in turn conquered by Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC. The Parthians (see Parthia ) created an empire that lasted from 247 BC to AD 226, when control passed to the S 0101; s 0101; nian dynasty . Various Muslim dynasties ruled from the 7th century. In 1502 the Safavid dynasty was established and lasted until 1736. The Q 0101; j 0101; r dynasty ruled from 1779, but in the 19th century the country was economically controlled by the Russian and British empires. Reza Khan (see Reza Shah Pahlavi ) seized power in a coup (1921). His son Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi alienated religious leaders with a program of modernization and Westernization and was overthrown in 1979; Sh 012B; 02BD; ite cleric Ruhollah Khomeini then set up an Islamic republic, and Western influence was suppressed. The destructive Iran-Iraq War of the 1980s ended in a stalemate. During the 1990s, the government gradually moved to a more liberal conduct of state affairs.