Gilaki people
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| Major Ethnic Groups of Iran |
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Uninhabited
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The Gilaki people (in Persian: Gilak) are an Iranian people [1] whose homeland is the Gilan Province. They are also found in the neighboring province of Mazandaran. Along with the Mazandarani people, the Gilaki form one of the Caspian Sea peoples. They speak the Gilaki language, closely related to Mazandarani.
As of 2000 there were about 2.4 million Gilaki, having risen from numbering 1.9 million in 1990.[2] The Gilaki live in the province of Gilan, however they only inhabit about half of the provinces area.
Since the local Gilaki dialect of Persian does not have any written literature or alphabet, all Gilaki Iranians are fluent in standard Persian are literate exclusively in standard Persian. In 1977 there was a university established in Rasht largely to provide education to Gilaki.[3]
The Gilaki are almost entirely Muslim by religion, most being part of the Twelver Shiah group who form the religious majority in Iran.
[edit] References
- ^ The World Book Encyclopedia By World Book, Inc, 2000, page 401
- ^ The Unreached Peoples Prayer Profiles
- ^ The Unreached Peoples Prayer Profiles
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