As a historical region, it includesParthia,Media,Persis, and some of the previous territories ofGreater Iran.[4] The Zagros form the plateau's western boundary, and its eastern slopes may also be included in the term. TheEncyclopædia Britannica excludes "lowlandKhuzestan" explicitly[5] and characterizesElam as spanning "the region from theMesopotamian plain to the Iranian Plateau".[6]
From theCaspian Sea in the northwest to theSulaiman Mountains in the southeast, the Iranian Plateau extends for close to 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi). It encompasses a large part ofIran, all ofAfghanistan, and the parts ofPakistan that are situated to the west of theIndus River,[note 2] covering an area of some 3,700,000 square kilometres (1,400,000 sq mi) In spite of being called aplateau, it is far from flat, and contains several mountain ranges; its highest point isNoshaq in theHindu Kush at 7,492 metres (24,580 ft), and its lowest point is theLut Desert to the east ofKerman, Iran, at below 300 metres (980 ft).
The Iranian plateau in geology refers to a geographical area north of the greatfolded mountain belts resulting from the collision of theArabian plate with theEurasian plate. In this definition, the Iranian plateau does not cover southwestern Iran.
The northwestern Iranian plateau, where thePontic andTaurus Mountains converge, is rugged country with higher elevations, a more severe climate, and greater precipitation than are found on theAnatolian plateau. The region is known as theAnti-Taurus, and the average elevation of its peaks exceeds 3,000 m (9,800 ft).Mount Ararat, at 5,137 meters (16,854 ft) the highest point inTurkey, is located in the Anti-Taurus.Lake Van is situated in the mountains at an elevation of 1,546 meters (5,072 ft).
The headwaters of major rivers arise in the Anti-Taurus: the east-flowingAras River flows into theCaspian Sea, and the south-flowingEuphrates andTigris join inIraq before flowing into thePersian Gulf. Several small streams that flow into theBlack Sea or landlocked Lake Van also originate in these mountains. TheIndus River begins in the highlands ofTibet and flows the length of Pakistan almost tracing the eastern edge of the Iranian plateau.
Southeast Anatolia lies south of the Anti-Taurus Mountains. It is a region of rolling hills and a broad plateau surface that extends into Syria. Elevations decrease gradually, from about 800 meters (2,600 ft) in the north to about 500 meters (1,600 ft) in the south. Traditionally,wheat andbarley are the main crops of the region.
The Iranian plateau may have played a major role in the expansion ofmodern humans after theOut of Africa migration, serving as 'population hub' for 'Common Eurasians', where they subsequently diverged into 'Ancient East Eurasians' and 'Ancient West Eurasians' at c. 50,000 years ago, and from where they expanded in two waves during theInitial Upper Paleolithic (c. 45kya) andUpper Paleolithic (c. 38kya) periods respectively. Ancient and modern populations in the Iranian plateau have a similar genetic component to the Ancient West Eurasian lineage which stayed in the 'population hub' (WEC2), but also display some ancestry fromBasal Eurasians andAncient East Eurasians via contact events starting in thePaleolithic.[8]
In the Bronze Age,Elam stretched across the Zagros mountains, connectingMesopotamia and the Iranian plateau. The kingdoms ofAratta, known fromcuneiform sources, may have been located in the central Iranian plateau. In classical antiquity the region was known asPersia, due to the PersianAchaemenid dynasty originating inFars. The Middle PersianErān (whence Modern PersianIrān) began to be used in reference to the state (rather than as an ethnic designator) from theSassanid period (seeEtymology of Iran).
The plateau is abundant withwildlife includingleopards,bears,hyenas,wild boars,ibex,gazelles, andmouflons. These animals are mostly found in the wooded mountains of the plateau. The shores of theCaspian Sea and thePersian Gulf house aquatic birds such asseagulls,ducks, andgeese. Deer, hedgehogs, foxes, and 22 species of rodents are found in semidesert, and palm squirrels and Asiatic black bears live in Baluchistan.
Wide variety ofamphibians andreptiles such as toads,frogs,tortoises,lizards,salamanders, racers, rat snakes (Ptyas), cat snakes (Tarbophis fallax), and vipers live theBaluchistan region and along the slopes of the Elburz and Zagros mountains. 200 varieties of fish live in the Persian Gulf. Thirty species of the most important commercial fish Sturgeon is found in the Caspian Sea.[11][12][13]
^Y. Majidzadeh,Sialk III and the Pottery Sequence at Tepe Ghabristan. The Coherence of the Cultures of the Central Iranian Plateau, Iran 19, 1981, 141–46.
