Iran celebrates Persian Gulf National Day

Iran is commemorating the National Day of the Persian Gulf.

Every year, Iranians observe the Persian Gulf Day on the 10th of Ordibehesht, the second month on the Persian calendar, which falls on April 29 or 30.

The date coincides with the anniversary of a successful military campaign by Shah Abbas I in 1622, which drove the Portuguese navy out of the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that separates the Persian Gulf from the Sea of Oman.

The national occasion is meant to call attention to the fact that historians and ancient texts have referred to the inland sea as the Persian Gulf since the Achaemenid Empire was established in what is now modern-day Iran.

The Persian Gulf is also important as an international trade route connecting the Middle East to Africa, India and China.

MG/MG