Iran has a long history of art, music, architecture, poetry, philosophy, Traditions, and ideology. Many Iranians believe their culture to be the one and only reason why their civilization has continuously survived thousands of years of turmoil. که ایران بهشت است یا بوستان همی بوی مشک آید ار دوستان "Whether one thinks of Iran as Eden or Garden, The smell of musk abounds there from friend and companion." --Firdawsi همه عالم تن ...

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Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures. The current administration has continued to follow the market reform plans of the previous one and has indicated that it will pursue diversification of Iran's oil-reliant economy. The Iranian government is attempting to diversify by investing revenues in other areas, including, car manufacturing, aerospace industries, consumer electronics, petrochemicals and nuclear te ...

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Like all ancient civilizations, culture constitutes the focal point and heart of Iranian civilization. The art, music, architecture, poetry, philosophy, traditions, and ideology of Iran have made it a continuously important nation in the global community. In fact, many Iranians believe their culture to be the one and only reason why their civilization has continuously survived thousands of years of plethoric calamities. Another major topic in the culture of Iran is Persian literature. The Persian language being used for over 2500 year ...

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Iran, Iran - History, Iran - Government and Politics, Iran - The Supreme Leader Rahbar, Iran - The President Ra'is-e Jomhoor, Iran - The Parliament Majles, Iran - The Assembly of Experts, Iran - The Council of Guardians, Iran - The Expediency Council, Iran - The Judiciary, Iran - Provinces, Iran - Geography, Iran - Climate, Iran - Economy, Iran - Demographics, Iran - Ethnic groups, Iran - Religion, Iran - Major cities, Iran - Culture, Iran - Miscellaneous topics, Iran - Notes and references

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The Chinese character for tea is 茶, but it is pronounced very differently in the various Chinese dialects. Two pronunciations have made their way into other languages around the world. One is 'te' (POJ: tê) which comes from the Min Nan dialect spoken around the port of Xiamen (Amoy). The other is 'cha', used by the Cantonese dialect spoken around the ports of Guangzhou (Canton) and Hong Kong, as well as in the Mandarin dialect of northern China. Yet another different pronunciation is 'zoo', use ...

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This section describes the most widespread method of making tea. Completely different methods are used in North Africa, Tibet and perhaps in other places. The best way to prepare tea is usually thought to be with loose tea placed either directly in a teapot or contained in a tea infuser, rather than a teabag. However, perfectly acceptable tea can be made with teabags. Some circumvent the teapot stage altogether and ...

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There are certain accompaniments (mokhalafat) which are essential to every Iranian meal at lunch (nahar) and dinner (shahm), regardless of the region. These include, first and foremost, a plate of fresh herbs, called sabzi (basil, coriander, cilantro, tarragon, watercress), a variety of flat breads, called nan or noon (sangak, lavash, barbari), cheese (called panir, similar to feta), sliced and peeled cucumbers, sliced tomatoes and onions, yogurt, and lemon juice. Persian pickles (khiyarshur) and relishes (< ...

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There are four major Iranian flat breads: Nan-e barbari: thick and oval-shaped. Nan-e lavash: thin, crispy and round or oval, and is also the oldest known bread in the Middle East and Central Asia. Nan-e sangak: dark and oval-shaped bread that is stone-baked. Nan-e taftoon: thin, soft and round. Other breads include: Nan-e shirmal: made exactly like barbari, except with milk instead of water, in addition to a bit of sugar, and is eate ...

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As the Venetian explorer Marco Polo failed to mention tea in his travel records, it is conjectured that the first Europeans to encounter tea were either Jesuits living in Beijing who attended the court of the last Ming Emperors; or Portuguese explorers visiting Japan in 1560. Russia discovered tea in 1618 after a Ming Emperor of China offered it as a gift to Czar Michael I. Soon imported tea was introduced to Europe, where it quickly became popular among the wealthy in France and the Netherlands. English use of tea dates from about 1650 and is attributed to Catherine of Braganza (Portuguese princ ...

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The cradle of the tea plant is in Southeast Asia. Spontaneous growth of assamica variant is observed in area ranging from Chinese province Yunnan to the northern part of Myanmar and Assam region of India. The variant sinensis grows naturally in eastern and southeastern regions of China. [5] Recent studies and occurence of hybrids of the two types in wider area extending over mentioned regions suggest the place of orig ...

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Tea is produced from leaves and leaf buds of Camellia sinensis, the tea plant. All tea varieties, such as green, oolong, and black tea, are harvested from this species, but differ by processing. While in nature the tea tree may grow to 5 to 15 meters, and sometimes even to 30 meters[1], planted tea shrubs are usually trimmed to below two metres (six feet), to stimulate the growth of leaves and to ease plucking. Many infectious insects, including the green leafhopper, mites, caterpillars, and termites, ...

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Tea, Tea - Cultivation, Tea - Processing and classification, Tea - Blending and additives, Tea - Content of Tea, Tea - Tea origin and early history in Asia, Tea - Tea creation myths, Tea - China, Tea - Japan, Tea - Tea spreads to the world, Tea - The word tea, Tea - Tea culture, Tea - China, Tea - Vietnam, Tea - Britain, Tea - Hong Kong, Tea - Iran, Tea - Ireland, Tea - India, Tea - Pakistan, Tea - Sri Lanka, Tea - Turkey, Tea - Russia, Tea - Czech Republic, Tea - Commonwealth countries, Tea - United States, Tea - Japan, Tea - Taiwan, Tea - Tibet, Tea - Tea preparation, Tea - Enjoying tea the modern way

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The main types of tea are distinguished by their processing. Leaves of Camellia sinensis, if not dried quickly after picking, soon begin to wilt and oxidise. This process resembles the malting of barley, in that starch is converted into sugars; the leaves turn progressively darker, as chlorophyll breaks down and tannins are released. The next step in processing is to stop the oxidation process at a predetermined sta ...

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Main article: Tea blending and additives Almost all teas in tea-bags and most other teas sold in western countries are blends. Blending may occur at the level of tea-planting area (e.g., Assam), or teas from many areas may be blended. The aim of blending is a stable taste over different years, and a better price. More expensive, more tasty tea may cover the inferior taste of cheaper tea. There are various teas which have additives and/or different processing than "pure" varieties. Tea is able to easily receive any aroma, which may cause problems in processing, transportation or storage of tea, but can be als ...

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Tea, Tea - Cultivation, Tea - Processing and classification, Tea - Blending and additives, Tea - Content of Tea, Tea - Tea origin and early history in Asia, Tea - Tea creation myths, Tea - China, Tea - Japan, Tea - Tea spreads to the world, Tea - The word tea, Tea - Tea culture, Tea - China, Tea - Vietnam, Tea - Britain, Tea - Hong Kong, Tea - Iran, Tea - Ireland, Tea - India, Tea - Pakistan, Tea - Sri Lanka, Tea - Turkey, Tea - Russia, Tea - Czech Republic, Tea - Commonwealth countries, Tea - United States, Tea - Japan, Tea - Taiwan, Tea - Tibet, Tea - Tea preparation, Tea - Enjoying tea the modern way

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Cuisine of Iran - Gilan. See Gilan: People and Culture Kateh is the traditional dish of Gilan, and is simply Persian rice cooked in water, butter and salt until the water is fully absorbed. This method results in rice that is clumped together and is the predominant style of cooking rice in the Caspian region. In Gilan and Mazandaran, kateh is also eaten as a breakfast meal, either heated with milk and jam, or cold with Persian cheese (panir) and garlic. Kateh is not commo ...

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Though strictly banned sometime after the Iranian Revolution of 1979, alcoholic beverages are readily available in Iran. The most common beverage is called aragh-e sagi, which is domestically produced, with the best variety available in the province of Qazvin. Vodka is the second most commonly available alcohol, with most quantities imported directly from Russia. Some domestic varieties of vodka are available, but cannot be easily obtained. Beer is the third most common alcoholic beverage, with much of it imported from northern Europe ...

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Iran's economy is a mixture of central planning, state ownership of oil and other large enterprises, village agriculture, and small-scale private trading and service ventures. The current administration has continued to follow the market reform plans of the previous one and has indicated that it will pursue diversification of Iran's oil-reliant economy. Iran is attempting to diversify by investing revenues in other areas, including, car manufacturing, aerospace industries, consumer electronics, and petrochemicals. Iran is also hoping to attr ...

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Iran, Iran - History, Iran - Government and Politics, Iran - The Supreme Leader Rahbar, Iran - The President Ra'is-e Jomhoor, Iran - The Parliament Majles, Iran - The Assembly of Experts, Iran - The Council of Guardians, Iran - The Expediency Council, Iran - The Judiciary, Iran - Provinces, Iran - Geography, Iran - Climate, Iran - Economy, Iran - Demographics, Iran - Ethnic groups, Iran - Religion, Iran - Major cities, Iran - Culture, Iran - Miscellaneous topics, Iran - Notes and references

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Iran - Ethnic groups. The majority of Iran's population speak one of the Iranian languages, though only Persian is an official language. While the number, percentage, and definition of the different Iranian peoples is disputed, the major ethnic groups and minorities in Iran include the Persians (51%), Azeris (24%), Gilaki and Mazandarani (8%), Kurds (7%), Arabs (3%), Baluchi (2%), Lurs (2%), Turkmen people (2%), Qashqai, Armenians, Georgians, Persian Jews, Assyrians and others. These percentages however are only ...

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Mazandaran province is geographically divided into two parts: the coastal plains, and the mountainous areas. The Alborz Mountain Range surrounds the coastal strip and plains of the Caspian Sea like a huge barrier. There is often snowfall during most of the seasons in the Alborz regions, which run parallel to the Caspian Sea's southern coast, dividing the province into many isolated valleys. Mazandaran - Language. Mazanderani or Tabari is an ancient northwestern branch of the Iranian languages, and is ...

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The history of Ardabil has close connections to that of Azarbaijan. The province is believed to be as old as the Achaemenid era. It is mentioned in the Avesta, where Zoroaster was born by the river Aras and wrote his book in the Savalan Mountains. During the Islamic conquest of Iran, Ardabil was the largest city in Azarbaijan, and remained so until the Mongol invasion period. Shah Ismail I started his campaign to nationalize Iran's government and land from here, but consequently announced Tabriz as his capital in 1500CE. Yet Ardabil remained an important city both poli ...

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Iran borders Azerbaijan (length of border: 432 km / 268 mi ) and Armenia (35 km / 22mi) to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan (992 km / 616 mi) to the northeast, Pakistan (909 km / 565 mi) and Afghanistan (936 km / 582 mi) to the east, Turkey (499 km / 310 mi) and Iraq (1,458 km / 906 mi) to the west, and finally the waters of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman to the south. Iran's total land mass is 1,648,000 km² / ≈636,300 mi² (Land: 1,636,000 km² / ≈631,663 mi², Water: 12,000 km² / ≈4,633 mi²).

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Iran, Iran - History, Iran - Government and Politics, Iran - The Supreme Leader Rahbar, Iran - The President Ra'is-e Jomhoor, Iran - The Parliament Majles, Iran - The Assembly of Experts, Iran - The Council of Guardians, Iran - The Expediency Council, Iran - The Judiciary, Iran - Provinces, Iran - Geography, Iran - Climate, Iran - Economy, Iran - Demographics, Iran - Ethnic groups, Iran - Religion, Iran - Major cities, Iran - Culture, Iran - Miscellaneous topics, Iran - Notes and references

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Iran consists of 30 provinces: Tehran Qom Markazi Qazvin Gilan Ardabil Zanjan East Azarbaijan West Azarbaijan Kurdistan Hamadan Kermanshah Ilam Lorestan Khuzestan Chahar Mahaal and Bakhtiari Kohkiluyeh and Buyer Ahmad Bushehr Fars Hormozgan Sistan and Baluchistan Kerman Yazd Esfahan Semnan ...

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Iran, Iran - History, Iran - Government and Politics, Iran - The Supreme Leader Rahbar, Iran - The President Ra'is-e Jomhoor, Iran - The Parliament Majles, Iran - The Assembly of Experts, Iran - The Council of Guardians, Iran - The Expediency Council, Iran - The Judiciary, Iran - Provinces, Iran - Geography, Iran - Climate, Iran - Economy, Iran - Demographics, Iran - Ethnic groups, Iran - Religion, Iran - Major cities, Iran - Culture, Iran - Miscellaneous topics, Iran - Notes and references

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The wide Dasht-e Gorgan (the Plain of Gorgan), lies southeast of the Caspian Sea, bounded by the Caspian Sea in the west, high mountain ranges in the south and east, and the Iran-Turkmenistan border on the north. The plain is located North of the Town of Gorgan and is geographically bounded by 37°00' - 37°30' North latitude and 54°00' - 54°30' East longitude and covers an area of about 1,700 square kilometres. In general, Golestan has a moderate and humid climate known as "the moderate Caspian climate". The effective factors behin ...

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Gorgan has contributed to the rich literature, poetry and science of Iran and even the world by celebrities such as Abdolqaher Gorgani, Sayed Esmail Gorgani, Mirdamad , Mirfenderski, Asad Gorgani and Esmail Hosseini Gorgâni. Gorgan - Handicrafts. Gorgan (and in general, Golestan province), has a world famous carpet and rug industry. Made by Turkmans, they are derived from the ancient Persian city of Boxârâ (Buchara). Jajim carpets are the exclusives of this province. Gorgan - Attractions. ...

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