Southern Iran consists of the southern mountain ranges of

Zagros The Zagros Mountains are a mountain range in Iran, northern Iraq, and southeastern Turkey. The mountain range has a total length of . The Zagros range begins in northwestern Iran and roughly follows Iran's western border while covering much of s ...

and Central Iranian Range,

Khuzestan Plain The Khuzestan Plain is the relatively flat region of Iran where the Khuzestan province and the cities of Ahvaz, Susa and Abadan are located. Khuzestan Plain borders Mesopotamia and is separated from it by the Shatt al-Arab (known as Arvand Rud in I ...

and the northern coasts of

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

and

Strait of Hormuz The Strait of Hormuz ( ''Tangeh-ye Hormoz'' , ''Maḍīq Hurmuz'') is a strait between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. It provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean and is one of the world's most strategica ...

Definition

It includes the provinces of Fars, Kohgiluyeh and Buyer Ahmad, Hormozgan and

Bushehr Bushehr (; ) is a port city in the Central District (Bushehr County), Central District of Bushehr County, Bushehr province, Bushehr province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. Etymology The roots of the n ...

. Sometimes

Khuzestan Khuzestan province () is one of the 31 Provinces of Iran. Located in the southwest of the country, the province borders Iraq and the Persian Gulf, covering an area of . Its capital is the city of Ahvaz. Since 2014, it has been part of Iran's ...

and

Kerman Kerman (; ) is a city in the Central District (Kerman County), Central District of Kerman County, Kerman province, Kerman province, Iran, serving as capital of the province, the county, and the district. History Kerman was founded as a def ...

are also included in this region. The major cities in the region are

Shiraz Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...

, Bandarabbas,

, Bam City,

Rafsanjan Rafsanjan ( ) is a city in the Central District (Rafsanjan County), Central District of Rafsanjan County, Kerman province, Kerman province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. Demographics Population At the time o ...

Sirjan Sirjan (; ) is a city in the Central District of Sirjan County, Kerman province, in the south of Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. The city is from the Iranian capital of Tehran, and from the provincial capita ...

Jiroft Jiroft (; ) is a city in the Central District of Jiroft County, Kerman province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. It is south of the city of Kerman, and south of Tehran along Road 91. In the past it was also ...

and

baft Baft () is a city in the Central District (Baft County), Central District of Baft County, Kerman province, Kerman province, Iran, serving as capital of both the county and the district. It is southwest of Kerman. Baft has an elevation of abo ...

Demographics

The south of Iran is very diverse in terms of ethnicity, which includes

Persians Persians ( ), or the Persian people (), are an Iranian ethnic group from West Asia that came from an earlier group called the Proto-Iranians, which likely split from the Indo-Iranians in 1800 BCE from either Afghanistan or Central Asia. They ...

(including Kohmera, Basri, Etchmi, etc.),

Arabs Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of yea ...

and Iranians of African origin. In addition, other ethnic minorities of Iran migrated to this region for various reasons; these include

Azerbaijanis Azerbaijanis (; , ), Azeris (, ), or Azerbaijani Turks (, ) are a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group living mainly in the Azerbaijan (Iran), Azerbaijan region of northwestern Iran and the Azerbaijan, Republic of Azerbaijan. They are predomin ...

, Mazandaranis,

Gilaks Gilaks ( Gilaki: گيلٚکؤن, ) are an Iranian peoples native to south of Caspian sea. They form one of the main ethnic groups residing in the northern parts of Iran. Gilak people, along with the closely related Mazandarani people, comprise ...

, Talysh, Tats,

Kurds Kurds (), or the Kurdish people, are an Iranian peoples, Iranic ethnic group from West Asia. They are indigenous to Kurdistan, which is a geographic region spanning southeastern Turkey, northwestern Iran, northern Iraq, and northeastern Syri ...

, and

Lurs The Lurs, Lors or Luris () are an Iranian people living in western and southern Iran. The four Luri branches are the Bakhtiari, Mamasani, Kohgiluyeh and Lur proper, who are principally linked by the Luri language. Lorestan province is name ...

, who migrated from other regions of Iran.

Climate

Hot desert climate The desert climate or arid climate (in the Köppen climate classification ''BWh'' and ''BWk'') is a dry climate sub-type in which there is a severe excess of evaporation over precipitation. The typically bald, rocky, or sandy surfaces in desert ...

(BWh) in the plains and the coast of the Persian Gulf. *

Cold semi-arid climate Cold is the presence of low temperature, especially in the atmosphere. In common usage, cold is often a subjective perception. A lower bound to temperature is absolute zero, defined as 0.00K on the Kelvin scale, an absolute thermodynamic ...

(BSk) in the mountain ranges.

References

{{reflist Subdivisions of Iran

Definition

Demographics

Climate

See also

References