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[[Image:Portal IRAN.PNG|left|770px|Iran Portal]]

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[[Iran]], ({{PerB|<big>ايران</big>}},

''Īrān;'' [[International Phonetic Alphabet|pronunciation]]: {{IPA|[iːˈɾɒn]}}), officially the '''[[Islamic Republic]] of Iran''' ({{PerB|<big>جمهوری اسلامی ايران</big>}}, [[transliteration]]: ''Jomhūrī-ye Eslāmī-ye Īrān''), formerly known internationally as '''[[Persian Empire|Persia]]''', is a [[Southwest Asia]]n country located in the geographical territories of the [[Middle East]], [[Central Asia]] and the [[Caucasus]]. The 18th largest country in the world, Iran is approximately the size of the [[United Kingdom]], [[France]], [[Spain]], and [[Germany]] combined and has a population of over 70 million people. Iran borders [[Armenia]], [[Azerbaijan]] and [[Turkmenistan]] to the north, [[Afghanistan]] and [[Pakistan]] to the east, and [[Turkey]] and [[Iraq]] to the west. In addition, it borders the [[Persian Gulf]], an important oil-producing area, and the [[Caspian sea]]. [[Shi'a Islam]] is the official state religion and [[Persian language|Persian]] the official language. The [[Politics and Government of Iran|political system of Iran]] comprises several intricately connected governing bodies and is based on the 1979 [[Constitution of Islamic Republic of Iran|Constitution]]. The highest state authority is [[Supreme Leader of Iran|the Supreme Leader]], currently served by [[Ali Khamenei]].

Iran has one of the oldest histories in the world, extending nearly 6,000 years, and throughout history, Iran has been of [[geostrategy|geostrategic]] importance because of its central location in [[Eurasia]]. Iran is a founding member of the [[United Nations|UN]], [[Non-Aligned Movement|NAM]], [[Organization of the Islamic Conference|OIC]], [[Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries|OPEC]], and [[Economic Cooperation Organization|ECO]]. Iran as a [[regional power]] occupies an important position in the world economy due to its substantial reserves of [[petroleum]] and [[natural gas]], and has considerable regional influence in Southwest Asia. Iran is also one of the few states that comprise the [[cradle of civilization]]. The name Iran is a [[cognate]] of Aryan and literally means "Land of the [[Aryans]]."

<div class="noprint" style="text-align:right;margin-right:10px;margin-bottom:4px;">[[Image:Nuvola_filesystems_www.png|16px]] '''[[Iran|More about Iran]] ...''' </div>