Here is a short report I did for my Geography of the Muslim World class at MUW. Each student was given a different Muslim nation to report on, and mine was Iran. I learned a lot about Iran in doing this report. I hope that you will enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed making it.

1. Republic of Iran جمهوری ایران A slideshow originally produced for my GEO 306 – Geography of the Muslim World Class at Mississippi University for Women Spring 2010

2. The Iranian National Anthem You are listening to Please click to progress to the next slide Played by the New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra ای ایران Ey Iran The Stones of your mountains are jewels and pearls The soil of your valleys are better than gold When could I rid my heart of your affection? Tell me, what will I do without your affection? As long as the turning of the earth and the cycling of the sky lasts The light of the Divine will always guide us Since your love became my calling My thoughts are never far from you In you cause, when do our lives have value? May the land of our Iran be eternal

3. Where in the world is Iran? Iran is located in the Middle East, on the continent of Asia, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan. Please click to progress to the next slide

4. Iran occupies 636,294 square miles. For comparison, that is about the size of Alaska. Iran has a population of 68,917,860 people. 40% of Iranians live in rural areas and 60% live in cities. 51% of Iranians are ethnic Persians, 24% are Azeri, 8% are Gilaki and Mazandarani, 7% are Kurdish, and 10% are others. The major languages spoken in Iran are Farsi (Persian), Azeri, Turkish, and Kurdish. Please click to progress to the next slide

5. Terehan is Iran’s capital city, and home of 1/10 th of the county’s population. Iran’s system of government is called a theocratic republic .

6. Iran’s population is 98% Muslim; 89% Shi’ite and 9% Sunni. The remaining 2% of Iranians are classified as “other,” which includes Zoroastrians, Jews, Christians, and Baha'is Imām Ridhā Mosque Please click to progress to the next slide .

7. Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority vested in a learned religious scholar referred to commonly as the Supreme Leader who, according to the constitution, is accountable only to the Assembly of Experts - a popularly elected 86-member body of clerics. --The CIA World Factbook Grand Ayatollah Ali Hoseyni Khāmene’i has been the leader of Iran’s theocratic republic government since 1989. What exactly is a theocratic republic? I know a theocracy is a system of government where religious leaders claim to get their authority straight from God; and I know a republic is a state in which the supreme power rests in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly by the people… Please click to progress to the next slide