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Iran Facts and Figures from Encarta Go to article
Basic Facts
Official name Islamic Republic of Iran
Capital Tehrān
Area 1,648,195 sq km
636,372 sq mi
Iran: Flag and Anthem
Iran: Flag and Anthem
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People
Population 66,429,284 (2009 estimate)
Population growth
Population growth rate 0.88 percent (2009 estimate)
Projected population in 2025 76,779,032 (2009 estimate)
Projected population in 2050 81,490,039 (2009 estimate)
Population density 41 persons per sq km (2009 estimate)
105 persons per sq mi (2009 estimate)
Urban/rural distribution
Share urban 68 percent (2005 estimate)
Share rural 32 percent (2005 estimate)
Largest cities, with population
Tehrān 6,758,845 (2006)
Mashhad 2,926,000 (2007 estimate)
Shīrāz 1,263,244 (2006)
Eşfahān 1,001,000 (2007 estimate)
Karaj 941,000 (2007 estimate)
Ethnic groups
Persian 60 percent
Azerbaijani and other Turkic 25 percent
Kurdish 7 percent
Lur 2 percent
Baluch, Turkmen, and other 6 percent
Languages
Persian (Farsi) and Persian dialects 58 percent
Turkic and Turkic dialects 26 percent
Kurdish 9 percent
Luri, Baluchi, Arabic, Turkmen, and other 7 percent
Religious affiliations
Shiite Muslim 93 percent
Sunni Muslim 6 percent
Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 1 percent
Health and Education
Life expectancy
Total 71.1 years (2009 estimate)
Female 72.7 years (2009 estimate)
Male 69.7 years (2009 estimate)
Infant mortality rate 36 deaths per 1,000 live births (2009 estimate)
Literacy rate
Total 84.7 percent (2007 estimate)
Female 79.4 percent (2007 estimate)
Male 90 percent (2007 estimate)
Economy
Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) $286.1 billion (2007)
GDP per capita (U.S.$) $4,027.80 (2007)
GDP by economic sector
Agriculture, forestry, fishing 10.2 percent (2007)
Industry 44.5 percent (2007)
Services 45.3 percent (2007)
Monetary unit 1 Iranian rial (IR), consisting of 100 dinars
Agriculture
Wheat, barley, potatoes, rice, grapes, fresh and dried fruit, sugar beets, sugarcane, vegetables, pulses, maize, tea, tobacco, oilseeds, pistachio nuts, mutton and poultry
Mining
Petroleum, natural gas, coal, iron ore, chromite, lead, zinc, copper, manganese
Manufacturing
Textiles, food products, construction material, nonelectrical machinery, iron and steel, petrochemicals
Major exports
Crude petroleum and petroleum products, carpets, fruits, nuts, animal hides
Major imports
Machinery, iron and steel, foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, refined petroleum products
Major trade partners for exports
Japan, China, Italy, South Korea, and Greece
Major trade partners for imports
Germany, United Arab Emirates, Italy, Russia, and France
Sources
Basic Facts and People sections
Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org).
Health and Education section
Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org).
Economy section
Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the statistical bureaus of individual countries, latest Europa World Yearbook, and various United Nations and International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.
Note
Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding.
© 2009 Microsoft