Editing Islamic Republic of Iran

'''Iran''', also called '''Persia'''<ref name="Fishman">{{cite book|last=A. Fishman|first=Joshua|title=Handbook of Language and Ethnic Identity: Disciplinary and Regional Perspectives (Volume 1)|year=2010|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|isbn=978-0-19-537492-6|page=266|quote=" "Iran" and "Persia" are synonymous" The former has always been used by the Iranian speaking peoples themselves, while the latter has served as the international name of the country in various languages}}</ref> and officially the '''Islamic Republic of Iran''', is a country in [[Western Asia]]. It is the second-largest country in the [[Middle East]], and its capital and largest city is [[Tehran]].

Iran is home to one of the world's oldest civilizations,<ref>{{cite book|author=Whatley, Christopher|date=2001|title=Bought and Sold for English Gold: The Union of 1707|publisher=Tuckwell Press|author-link=Christopher Whatley}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Lowell Barrington|title=Comparative Politics: Structures and Choices, 2nd ed.tr: Structures and Choices|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=yLLuWYL8gTsC&pg=PA121|access-date=21 June 2013|date=2012|publisher=Cengage Learning|isbn=978-1-111-34193-0|page=121}}</ref> beginning with the formation of the Elamite kingdoms in the fourth millennium BC.

The modern Government of Iran is an [[Islamic republic]] which includes elements of a [[Presidential system|presidential democracy]], which was installed by a [[Iranian Revolution|popular revolution]] against the US-backed Shah. 

Iran's geography makes it geostrategically important for the global oil markets, as it is the northern coast of the Straight of Hormuz which is a maritime choke point where a third of the world's liquefied natural gas and a quarter of global oil trade passes through.

== External links ==
{{External links|Wikipedia=Iran|Leftypedia=Iran|EcuRed=Iran}}

== References ==
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[[Category:Countries]]