Iran has one of the oldest histories in the world, extending more than 5000 years, and throughout history, Iran has been of geostrategic importance because of its central location in Eurasia and Western Asia. Iran is a founding member of the UN, NAM, OIC, OPEC, and ECO. Iran as a major 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 Western Asia. The name Iran is a cognate of Aryan and literally means "Land of the Aryans." (Full article...)
Entries here consist of Good and Featured articles, which meet a core set of high editorial standards.
Image 1
Plate of a Sasanian king hunting rams, perhaps Kavad I
Kavad I (Middle Persian: 𐭪𐭥𐭠𐭲Kawād; 473 – 13 September 531) was the SasanianKing of Kings of Iran from 488 to 531, with a two or three-year interruption. A son of Peroz I (r. 459–484), he was crowned by the nobles to replace his deposed and unpopular uncle Balash (r. 484–488).
Inheriting a declining empire where the authority and status of the Sasanian kings had largely ended, Kavad tried to reorganize his empire by introducing many reforms whose implementation was completed by his son and successor, Khosrow I. They were made possible by Kavad's use of the Mazdakite preacher Mazdak, leading to a social revolution that weakened the authority of the nobility and the clergy. Because of this, and the execution of the powerful king-maker Sukhra, Kavad was imprisoned in the Castle of Oblivion ending his reign. He was replaced by his brother Jamasp. However, with the aid of his sister and an officer named Siyawush, Kavad and some of his followers fled east to the territory of the Hephthalite king who provided him with an army. This enabled Kavad to restore himself to the throne in 498/9. (Full article...)
Alexander III of Macedon (Ancient Greek: Ἀλέξανδρος, romanized: Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), most commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to the throne in 336 BC at the age of 20 and spent most of his ruling years conducting a lengthy military campaign throughout Western Asia, Central Asia, parts of South Asia, and Egypt. By the age of 30, he had created one of the largest empires in history, stretching from Greece to northwestern India. He was undefeated in battle and is widely considered to be one of history's greatest and most successful military commanders.
As governor, Ali Mirza restored Shah Cheragh. He opened the tombs of the Achaemenid kings to obtain gold, but found them empty. During his rule, the city of Shiraz was subjected to high taxation and low security. Ali Mirza gained independence from the government of Hajji Mohammad Hossein Isfahani, rented Bushehr ports to the British and stopped paying taxes after 1828, thus going 200,000 tomans in tax arrears to the crown. (Full article...)
Image 4
The 2008 Qeshm earthquake occurred on 10 September in the Hormozgān Province of southern Iran, 850 kilometres (528 mi) south of Tehran. Its epicenter was near the port city of Bandar Abbas, where an earthquake two years prior had caused damage. The earthquake measured 5.9 on the moment magnitude scale and 6 on the surface wave scale, killing seven people and injuring up to 45. Causing both catastrophic and minor damage, the earthquake devastated up to 200 villages throughout southern Iran, but left the port city of Bandar Abbas almost unscathed. Citizens reportedly panicked when the earthquake hit, emptying into the parks of the city and other open areas. (Full article...)
Image 5
An earthquake occurred on November 27, 2005, at 13:52 IRST (10:22 UTC) on the sparsely populated Qeshm Island off Southern Iran, killing 13 people and devastating 13 villages. It was Iran's second major earthquake of 2005, following the one at Zarand in February. The epicenter was about 1,500 kilometers (930 mi) south of Tehran, close to Iran's southern borders. Initial measurements showed that the earthquake registered about 6.0 on the moment magnitude scale, although that was reduced to 5.8 after further analysis. More than 400 minor aftershocks followed the main quake, 36 of which were greater than magnitude 2.5. The earthquake occurred in a remote area during the middle of the day, limiting the number of fatalities. Iranian relief efforts were effective and largely adequate, leading the country to decline offers of support from other nations and UNICEF.
Qeshm Island is part of the Simply Folded Belt, the most seismically active part of the Zagros fold and thrust belt. Similar to most earthquakes in the area, the 2005 event resulted from reverse slip faulting. Since it lies in such a seismically active area, there is a high risk of destructive earthquakes in Iran; 1 in 3,000 deaths are attributable to earthquakes. One geophysicist has cited the lack of strict building codes as a serious concern. (Full article...)
Image 6
Abdollah Mirza as depicted by an anonymous Armenian painter
Abdollah Mirza Qajar (Persian: شاهزاده عبدالله میرزا قاجار; 25 November 1796 – 18 June 1846) was an Iranian prince (shahzadeh) of the Qajar dynasty, the 11th son of Fath-Ali Shah, king of Qajar Iran from 1797 to 1834. Abdollah was the governor of Zanjan. He had two children, Mohsen Mirza and Shams al-Molok, with his wife. Other than that, he had 19 sons and 9 daughters from his concubines.
Abdollah Mirza distinguished himself early on in the Russo-Iranian War of 1826. Though his administration was accompanied by growth and development, he was twice ousted from the government due to complaints. The second time, Fath-Ali Shah handed over the rule of Zanjan to his other son, Fathollah Mirza. Following the death of Fath-Ali Shah, Abdollah tried to reclaim his rule by mobilizing and attacking Zanjan but failed. When during the early reign of Mohammad Shah (r. 1834-1848) the eldest sons of Fath-Ali Shah rebelled against him, Abdollah Mirza, unlike his other brothers, went on to confirm his rule. (Full article...)
To block the Persian advance, a small force of Greeks blocked the pass of Thermopylae, while an Athenian-dominated allied navy engaged the Persian fleet in the nearby straits of Artemisium. In the resulting Battle of Thermopylae, the rearguard of the Greek force was annihilated, while in the Battle of Artemisium the Greeks suffered heavy losses and retreated after the loss at Thermopylae. This allowed the Persians to conquer Phocis, Boeotia, Attica and Euboea. The allies prepared to defend the Isthmus of Corinth while the fleet was withdrawn to nearby Salamis Island. (Full article...)
Image 9
Orodes II's portrait on the obverse of a tetradrachm, showing him wearing a beard and a diadem on his head, Mithradatkert mint
Orodes II (also spelled Urud II; Parthian: 𐭅𐭓𐭅𐭃Wērōd), was King of Kings of the Parthian Empire from 57 BC to 37 BC. He was a son of Phraates III, whom he murdered in 57 BC, assisted by his elder brother Mithridates IV. The two brothers quickly fell out and entered into a dynastic struggle, in which Orodes was triumphant.
Meanwhile, the Roman general and triumvirMarcus Licinius Crassus had made an attempt to extend his share of Roman territory by eastward conquest. This attempt proved disastrous, with Crassus meeting his end in 53 BC, in the Battle of Carrhae, by Orodes' general Surena. Orodes himself had invaded Armenia and forced king Artavasdes II (r. 55–34 BC) to submit and abandon his alliance with the Romans. The victory at Carrhae secured for the Parthians the countries east of the Euphrates. Then, the next year they invaded Syria, but with little success. Surena, whose achievements had made him too dangerous, was killed by Orodes, and Pacorus I, the son and heir of the king was defeated by Cassius in 51 BC. (Full article...)
Image 10
Themistocles (/θəˈmɪstəkliːz/; Greek: Θεμιστοκλῆς; c. 524 – c. 459 BC) was an Athenianpolitician and general. He was one of a new breed of non-aristocratic politicians who rose to prominence in the early years of the Athenian democracy. As a politician, Themistocles was a populist, having the support of lower-class Athenians, and generally being at odds with the Athenian nobility. Elected archon in 493 BC, he convinced the polis to increase the naval power of Athens, a recurring theme in his political career. During the first Persian invasion of Greece, he fought at the Battle of Marathon (490 BC), and may have been one of the ten Athenian strategoi (generals) in that battle.
In the years after Marathon, and in the run-up to the second Persian invasion of 480–479 BC, Themistocles became the most prominent politician in Athens. He continued to advocate for a strong Athenian navy, and in 483 BC he persuaded the Athenians to build a fleet of 200 triremes; these proved crucial in the forthcoming conflict with Persia. During the second invasion, he commanded the Greek allied navy at the battles of Artemisium and Salamis in 480 BC. Due to his subterfuge, the Allies successfully lured the Persian fleet into the Straits of Salamis, and the decisive Greek victory there was the turning point of the war. The invasion was conclusively repulsed the following year after the Persian defeat at the land Battle of Plataea. (Full article...)
Somayeh Mohammadi (Persian: سمیه محمدی), born (8 September 1980), is an Iranian woman and a member of the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK). She has received media coverage concerning controversy about her membership in the MEK.
According to her father, Mostafa Mohammedi, a former MEK member, Somayeh is being held hostage by MEK, but she publicly denies these claims and has filed a lawsuit against him. Somayeh claims that her father is an undercover agent of Iran. According to Somayeh, she joined the MEK voluntarily in 1998 "seeking freedom and democracy for Iran." (Full article...)
Khosrow I (also spelled Khosrau, Khusro or Chosroes; Middle Persian: 𐭧𐭥𐭮𐭫𐭥𐭣𐭩; New Persian: خسرو [xosˈroʊ̯]), traditionally known by his epithet of Anushirvan (انوشيروان [ænuːʃi:rˈvɔːn] "the Immortal Soul"), was the SasanianKing of Kings of Iran from 531 to 579. He was the son and successor of Kavad I (r. 488–496, 498/9–531).
Inheriting a reinvigorated empire at war with the Byzantines, Khosrow I made a peace treaty with them in 532, known as the Perpetual Peace, in which the Byzantine emperor Justinian I paid 11,000 pounds of gold to the Sasanians. Khosrow then focused on consolidating his power, executing conspirators, including his uncle Bawi. Dissatisfied with the actions of the Byzantine clients and vassals, the Ghassanids, and encouraged by the Ostrogoth envoys from Italy, Khosrow violated the peace treaty and declared war against the Byzantines in 540. He sacked the major city of Antioch and deported its population to Persia. In 541, he invaded Lazica and made it an Iranian protectorate, thus initiating the Lazic War. In 545, the two empires agreed to halt the wars in Mesopotamia and Syria, while it waged on in Lazica. A truce was made in 557, and by 562 a Fifty-Year Peace Treaty was made. (Full article...)
Although warfare between the Romans and Persians continued over seven centuries, the frontier, aside from shifts in the north, remained largely stable. A game of tug of war ensued: towns, fortifications, and provinces were continually sacked, captured, destroyed, and traded. Neither side had the logistical strength or manpower to maintain such lengthy campaigns far from their borders, and thus neither could advance too far without risking stretching its frontiers too thin. Both sides did make conquests beyond the border, but in time the balance was almost always restored. Although initially different in military tactics, the armies of both sides gradually adopted from each other and by the second half of the 6th century, they were similar and evenly matched. (Full article...)
He assembled eight art collections—the Khalili Collections—each considered among the most important in its field. These collections total 35,000 artworks and include the largest private collection of Islamic art and a collection of Japanese art rivalling that of the Japanese imperial family. He has spent tens of millions of pounds on conserving, researching, and documenting the collections, publishing more than seventy volumes of catalogues and research so far. Exhibitions drawn from the collections have appeared in institutions around the world. (Full article...)
During his 40-year tenure, Rafsanjani amassed a large amount of power serving as the speaker of parliament, Commander-in-Chief during the Iran–Iraq War, President, and chose Ali Khamenei as the supreme leader of Iran. (Full article...)
As part of the Iranian Economic Reform Plan, the government has proposed income tax increases on traders in gold, steel, fabrics and other sectors, prompting several work stoppages by merchants. In 2011, the government announced that during the second phase of the economic reform plan, it aims to increase tax revenues, simplify tax calculation method, introduce double taxation, mechanize tax system, regulate tax exemptions and prevent tax evasion. (Full article...)
The Little Zab or Lower Zab (Arabic: الزاب الاسفل, al-Zāb al-Asfal; Kurdish: Zêy Koya or Zêyê Biçûk; Persian: زاب کوچک, Zâb-e Kuchak; Syriac: ܙܒܐ ܬܚܬܝܐ, Zāba Taḥtāya) is a river that originates in Iran and joins the Tigris just south of Al Zab in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. The Little Zab is approximately 400 kilometres (250 mi) long and drains an area of about 22,000 square kilometres (8,500 sq mi). The river is fed by rainfall and snowmelt, resulting in a peak discharge in the spring and low water in the summer and early fall. Two dams built on the Little Zab regulate the river flow, providing water for irrigation and generating hydroelectricity. The Zagros Mountains have been populated since at least the Lower Palaeolithic, but the earliest archaeological site in the Little Zab basin, Barda Balka, dates to the Middle Palaeolithic. Human occupation of the Little Zab basin has been attested for every period since then. (Full article...)
Foreign investors have concentrated their activity in a few sectors of the economy: the oil and gas industries, vehicle manufacture, coppermining, petrochemicals, foods, and pharmaceuticals. Iran absorbed US$24.3 billion of foreign investment from 1993 to 2007 and US$34.6 billion for 485 projects from 1992 to 2009. (Full article...)
Image 10
Portrait taken in Paris, 1911
ʻAbdu'l-Bahá (/əbˈdʊlbəˈhɑː/; Persian: عبد البهاء, 23 May 1844 – 28 November 1921), born ʻAbbás (Persian: عباس), was the eldest son of Baháʼu'lláh and served as head of the Baháʼí Faith from 1892 until 1921. ʻAbdu'l-Bahá was later canonized as the last of three "central figures" of the religion, along with Baháʼu'lláh and the Báb, and his writings and authenticated talks are regarded as sources of Baháʼí sacred literature.
He was born in Tehran to an aristocratic family. At the age of eight his father was imprisoned during a government crackdown on the Bábí Faith and the family's possessions were looted, leaving them in virtual poverty. His father was exiled from their native Iran, and the family went to live in Baghdad, where they stayed for nine years. They were later called by the Ottoman state to Istanbul before going into another period of confinement in Edirne and finally the prison-city of ʻAkká (Acre). ʻAbdu'l-Bahá remained a political prisoner there until the Young Turk Revolution freed him in 1908 at the age of 64. He then made several journeys to the West to spread the Baháʼí message beyond its middle-eastern roots, but the onset of World War I left him largely confined to Haifa from 1914 to 1918. The war replaced the openly hostile Ottoman authorities with the British Mandate, who appointed him a Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his help in averting famine following the war. (Full article...)
April 24–April 25, 1980 – Operation Eagle Claw, a commando mission in Iran to rescue American embassy hostages, is aborted after mechanical problems ground the rescue helicopters. Eight United States troops are killed in a mid-air collision during the failed operation.
This is a list of recognized content, updated weekly by JL-Bot (talk·contribs) (typically on Saturdays). There is no need to edit the list yourself. If an article is missing from the list, make sure it is tagged (e.g. {{WikiProject Iran}}) or categorized correctly and wait for the next update. See WP:RECOG for configuration options.