Activities & nightlife, art, literature, architecture, climate, festivals, food, safety precautions, money and costs, history, geography, maps, visa, and landmarks in Iran  

Western theorists of the political and social sciences have typically held that increasing secularism is an inevitable feature of modern nation-states. Some states may be openly hostile to any expression of religion as a factor in public affairs; others tend to reduce religious life to the realm of nothing more than individual, discretionary, personal behavior […]

If there is one thing Iran is known for around the world, it is undoubtedly its carpets. Persian carpets (many of which are actually made by non-Persian peoples in Iran) represent one of the most distinguished and distinctive manifestations of Iranian culture and art. Hand-woven Persian carpets are among the most treasured possessions of homes, […]

During the late Qâjâr period (i.e., at the beginning of the twentieth century), the continuity of Iranian architectural forms and urban structure was broken. Exposure to and arrival of European styles changed the demands as well as the requirements of housing construction and urban designs. Early imitations of European designs are refl ected in the […]

The invasion of Iran by the Arabs and the introduction of Islam to Iran substantially altered the appearance of classical Iranian architecture. First and foremost, in the new Islamic Iran, the construction of mosques replaced the construction of fi re temples. New mosques were built throughout the land, and in some cases former Sasanid temples […]

Examples of prehistoric and pre-Islamic architecture are found in ancient huts, remnants of old towns and villages, fortresses, temples and fi re temples, mausoleums and palaces, dams and bridges, bazaars, highways and roads, towers and outposts, garden pavilions, and monuments. The earliest forms of architecture known in Iran include peasant huts and farming hamlets. These […]

Iran has a rich and varied architectural history going back over 3,000 years, and the remains of Iranian architectural monuments can be found from Syria to India and China. Iranian architecture make uses of a great variety of techniques such as stone carving, stucco and plasterwork, tile and brickwork, mirror and glasswork, and other ornamental […]

The Parthians emerged around 238 b.c. as a coalition of tribes in eastern Iran led by a king named Arsaces (hence the dynasty is also referred to as the Arsacids). They moved into western Iran during the reign of their king, Mithridates I (171–138 b.c. ). Their empire lasted longer than any other Iranian empire, […]

Contemporary Iran is divided into more than 30 provinces, but these are mostly artificial administrative divisions that are of little real consequence and subject to frequent changes. Geographical factors, however, have created a number of quite distinct regions in Iran, and their identity is often reinforced by ethnic and cultural differences as well. The most […]

The demography of Iran is as diverse and complex as the geography. As of 2001, Iran was estimated to have 66,128,965 inhabitants, which would make it the sixteenth largest country in the world in terms of population. At first glance, this might suggest a fairly low density of population: Turkey, for example, has almost exactly […]

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