3 ms·

Arab countries are those where the majority of people speak Arabic. Iran is not an Arab county, but Iraq is. Turkey is not an Arab country, but Egypt is.

renewiltord 5y ago
Huh, it looks like usage has shifted over time to mean this. I recall Arab as referring to a Semitic ethnic group but it appears today we use it to refer to speakers of Arabic. Well, TIL.
barry-cotter 5y ago
Iran has a significant Arab community. > Most Iranian Arabs in Khūzestān Province speak Arabic and Persian. The Arabic spoken in the province is Khuzestani Arabic, a mixed of Gulf Arabic and Mesopotamian Arabic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Arabs#:~:text=Most%20Iranian%20Arabs%20in%20Kh%C5%ABzest%C4%81n%20Province%20speak%20Arabic,and%20the%20Mawl%C4%81%CA%BE%C4%AB%20at%20Hoveyzeh%20can%20be%20mentioned https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Arabs#:~:text=Most%20I....
- dogorman 5y ago
  1.6 million people is certainly significant, so you're not wrong. But leaving it at that without more information is likely to mislead people. > The CIA World Factbook (which is based on 2013 statistics) gives the following numbers for the languages spoken in Iran today: Persian, Luri, Gilaki and Mazandarani 66%; Azerbaijani and other Turkic languages 18%; Kurdish 10%; Arabic 2%; Balochi 2%; others 2% (Armenian, Georgian, Circassian, Assyrian, etc.).[20] > Other sources, such as the Library of Congress, and the Encyclopedia of Islam (Leiden)[21] give Iran's ethnic groups as following: Persians 65%, Azerbaijanis 16%, Kurds 7%, Lurs 6%, Arabs 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmens 1%, Turkic tribal groups (e.g. Qashqai) 1%, and non-Persian, non-Turkic groups (e.g. Armenians, Georgians, Assyrians, Circassians, Basseri ) less than 1%.[22] For sources prior to and after 2000, see Languages and ethnicities in Iran. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Iran#Languages_and_ethnic_groups https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Iran#Languages...
- irrational 5y ago
  So does the USA, but the USA isn't an arab country either.

renewiltord 5y ago

Huh, it looks like usage has shifted over time to mean this. I recall Arab as referring to a Semitic ethnic group but it appears today we use it to refer to speakers of Arabic. Well, TIL.

barry-cotter 5y ago

Iran has a significant Arab community. > Most Iranian Arabs in Khūzestān Province speak Arabic and Persian. The Arabic spoken in the province is Khuzestani Arabic, a mixed of Gulf Arabic and Mesopotamian Arabic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Arabs#:~:text=Most%20Iranian%20Arabs%20in%20Kh%C5%ABzest%C4%81n%20Province%20speak%20Arabic,and%20the%20Mawl%C4%81%CA%BE%C4%AB%20at%20Hoveyzeh%20can%20be%20mentioned https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iranian_Arabs#:~:text=Most%20I....

dogorman 5y ago
1.6 million people is certainly significant, so you're not wrong. But leaving it at that without more information is likely to mislead people. > The CIA World Factbook (which is based on 2013 statistics) gives the following numbers for the languages spoken in Iran today: Persian, Luri, Gilaki and Mazandarani 66%; Azerbaijani and other Turkic languages 18%; Kurdish 10%; Arabic 2%; Balochi 2%; others 2% (Armenian, Georgian, Circassian, Assyrian, etc.).[20] > Other sources, such as the Library of Congress, and the Encyclopedia of Islam (Leiden)[21] give Iran's ethnic groups as following: Persians 65%, Azerbaijanis 16%, Kurds 7%, Lurs 6%, Arabs 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmens 1%, Turkic tribal groups (e.g. Qashqai) 1%, and non-Persian, non-Turkic groups (e.g. Armenians, Georgians, Assyrians, Circassians, Basseri ) less than 1%.[22] For sources prior to and after 2000, see Languages and ethnicities in Iran. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Iran#Languages_and_ethnic_groups https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Iran#Languages...
irrational 5y ago
So does the USA, but the USA isn't an arab country either.