Persian Gulf

The Persian Gulf, in the Southwest Asian region, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula. Historically and commonly known as the Persian Gulf.
The Persian Gulf was a focus of the 1980-88 Iraq-Iran War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers. In 1991, the Persian Gulf again was the background for what was called the "Persian Gulf War" or the "Gulf War" when Iraq invaded Kuwait and was subsequently pushed back, despite the fact that this conflict was primarily a land conflict.
The Persian Gulf has many good fishing grounds, extensive coral reefs, and abundant pearl oysters, but its ecology has come under pressure from industrialization, and in particular, petroleum spillages during the recent wars in the region.
Geography
This inland sea of some 251,000 km² is connected to the Gulf of Oman in the east by the Strait of Hormuz; and its western end is marked by the major river delta of the Shatt al-Arab, which carries the waters of the Euphrates and the Tigris. Its length is 989 kilometers, with Iran covering most of the northern coast and Saudi Arabia most of the southern coast. The gulf is about 56 kilometres wide at its narrowest, in the Strait of Hormuz. The waters are overall very shallow, with a maximum depth of 90 metres and an average depth of 50 metres.
Countries with a coastline on the Persian Gulf are (clockwise, from the north): Iran, Oman (exclave of Musandam), United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar on a peninsula off the Saudi coast, Bahrain on an island, Kuwait and Iraq in the northwest. Various small islands lie within the Persian Gulf, some of which are subject to territorial disputes by the states of the region.

Oil and gas
See also: Strait of Hormuz
The Persian Gulf and its coastal areas are the world's largest single source of crude oil and related industries dominate the region. Al-Safaniya, the world's largest offshore oilfield, is located in the Persian Gulf. Large gas finds have also been made with Qatar and Iran sharing a giant field across the territorial median line (North Field in the Qatari sector; South Pars Field in the Iranian sector). Using this gas, Qatar has built up a substantial liquified natural gas (LNG) and petrochemical industry.

The oil-rich countries (excluding Iraq) that have a coastline on the Persian Gulf are referred to as the Persian Gulf States. Iraq's egress to the gulf is narrow and easily blockaded consisting of the marshy river delta of the Shatt al-Arab, which carries the waters of the Euphrates and the Tigris Rivers, where the left (East) bank is held by Iran.
History :
Pre-Islamic era
For most of the history of human settlement in the Persian Gulf the southern side was ruled by nomadic tribes. During the end of fourth millennium BC the southern part of the Persian Gulf was dominated by the Dilmun civilization. For a long time the most important settlement on the southern coast of the Persian Gulf was Gerrha. In the second century the Lakhum tribe, who lived in Yemen, migrated north and founded the Lakhmid Kingdom along the southern coast. During the 7th century the Sassanid Empire conquered the whole of the Persian Gulf.
Between 625 BC and 226 AD the northern side was dominated by the Median, Achaemenid, Seleucid and Parthian empires. After the fall of the Parthian Empire, the Sassanid empire ruled the northern half and at times the southern half of the Persian Gulf. the Persian Gulf, along with the Silk Road was very important to trade in the Sassanid empire. Siraf was an ancient Sassanid port that was located on the north shore of the Persian Gulf in what is now the Iranian province of Bushehr.
Colonial era
Portuguese expansion into the Indian Ocean in the early sixteenth century following Vasco da Gama's voyages of exploration saw them battle the Ottomans up the coast of the Persian Gulf. In 1521, a Portuguese force led by commander Antonio Correia invaded Bahrain to take control of the wealth created by its pearl industry. IIn April 29 of 1602, Shāh Abbās, the Persian emperor of Safavid Persian Empire expelled the Portuguese from Bahrain., and that date is commemorated as National Persian Gulf day in Iran. With the support of the British fleet, in 1622 'Abbās took the island of Hormuz from the Portuguese: much of the trade was diverted to the town of Bandar 'Abbās which he had taken from the Portuguese in 1615 and had named after himself. The Persian Gulf was therefore opened by Persians to a flourishing commerce with Portuguese, Dutch, French, Spanish and British merchants, which were granted particular privileges

Back to About Iran

Back to Home