List of earthquakes in Iran

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Iran is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major faults that cover at least 90% of the country.[1] As a result, earthquakes in Iran occur often and are destructive.

Earthquakes in Iran from 1990 to 2006, by United States Geological Survey
Iran Faults

Geology and history

The Iranian plateau is subject to most types of tectonic activity, including active folding, faulting and volcanic eruptions. It is well known for its long history of disastrous earthquake activity. Not only have these earthquakes killed thousands, but they have also led to waste of valuable natural resources.[2] Since 1900, at least 126,000 fatalities have resulted from earthquakes in Iran.[2] In addition, the Iranian plate is bordered by the Indian plate (to the southeast), the Eurasian plate (to the north), and the Arabian plate (to the south and west), which is where the Zagros fold and thrust belt (an ancient subduction zone) lies.

Present danger

On Sunday, December 28, 2025, Iranian news media reported the occurrence of an earthquake in the northeastern province of Tehran.[3] They also published a report indicating that in the event of a major earthquake in Greater Tehran, 73% of all highways and roads would be damaged beyond repair, making all rescue operations impossible.[3] The reaction of Mehdi Chamran, Chairman of the Tehran City Council: “We hope and pray to God that an earthquake does not occur; otherwise, we will face a major problem.”[3] Parviz Sorouri, Vice Chairman of the Tehran City Council, said: “Tehran is located on active fault lines, and this is undeniable. In the event of a severe earthquake in Tehran, we may face an unprecedented or nearly unprecedented catastrophe in world history.”[3] Recently, Ali Beitollahi, Head of the Engineering Seismology and Seismic Risk Department at the Road, Housing, and Urban Development Research Center, said: “The phenomenon of land subsidence is increasingly developing across Iran and threatens 40 percent of the country’s population.”[3]

Earthquakes

More information Date, Province ...
Date Province Mag. MMI Deaths Injuries Total damage / notes Citations
2024-06-18 Razavi Khorasan 4.9 mb  4 120 Severe damage [4][5]
2023-03-24 West Azerbaijan 5.6 Mw  VIII 165 Severe damage [6]
2023-01-28 West Azerbaijan 5.9 Mw  VII 3 1,750 Widespread damage [7]
2023-01-18 West Azerbaijan 5.7 Mw  VI 252 Severe damage [8]
2022-10-05 West Azerbaijan 5.6 Mw  VII 1,127 Severe damage [9]
2022-07-23 Hormozgan 5.6 Mw  VII 1 Minor damage [10][11]
2022-07-03 Gilan 4.1 mb  1 Minor damage [12][13][14]
2022-07-01 Hormozgan 6.0 Mw  VII 7 111 Severe damage / doublet [15][16]
2022-06-25 Hormozgan 5.6 Mw  VII 1 37 [17]
2022-04-23 Fars 4.4 mb  VI 1 Minor damage [18][19]
2022-03-20 Fars 4.7 mb  VII 2 Minor damage [20][21]
2022-03-16 Hormozgan 5.9 Mw  VII 2 Minor damage [22][23]
2022-01-23 East Azerbaijan 4.0 mb  VII 1 [24]
2021-11-14 Hormozgan 6.4 Mw  IX 2 98 Doublet [25][26]
2020-05-07 Tehran 4.6 mb  V 2 38 [27][28]
2020-02-23 West Azerbaijan 5.8 Mw  VII 10 125 [29]
2019-11-07 East Azerbaijan 5.9 Mw  VII 7 584 [30]
2019-07-08 Khuzestan 5.6 Mw  VII 1 100 [31]
2018-11-25 Kermanshah 6.3 Mw  VI 1 761 Aftershock [32]
2018-08-25 Kermanshah 6.0 Mw  VII 3 243 Aftershock [33]
2017-12-20 Tehran5.2 Mw VI2974.0 Mw aftershock: 1 dead, 75 injured
2017-11-12Kermanshah7.3 Mw IX6308,435
2017-05-13 North Khorasan5.6 Mw VII3370
2017-04-05 Khorasan-e Razavi6.1 Mw VII234
2017-01-06Fars5.0 Mw VI45
2014-08-18Ilam6.2 Mw VIII60–330
2013-11-28Bushehr5.6 Mw VII745
2013-04-13Sistan and Baluchestan7.7 Mw VIII35117
2013-04-09Bushehr6.3 Mw VIII37850
2012-08-11East Azerbaijan6.4 Mw VIII3063,037Doublet
2012-08-11East Azerbaijan6.3 Mw Doublet
2011-06-15Kerman5.32
2010-12-20Kerman6.5 Mw IX11100
2010-08-27Semnan5.8 Mw VII440800 displaced
2010-07-30Razavi Khorasan5.5 Mw VI274Severe damage
2008-09-10Qeshm5.9 Mw VIII745
2006-03-31Lorestan6.1 Mw VIII63–70+1,246–1,418
2005-11-27Qeshm5.8 Mw VII13100
2005-02-22Kerman6.4 Mw VIII6121,411
2004-05-28Māzandarān6.3 Mw VIII35278–400$15.4 million
2003-12-26Kerman6.6 Mw IX34,000200,00045,000–75,600 displaced[34]
2002-06-22Qazvin6.3 Mw VIII2611,500
1999-11-19Semnan 5.6 Mw ----unknownunknown[35]
1999-03-04Kerman6.6 Mw VII1517 houses damaged[36]
1998-03-14Kerman6.6 Mw VIII550[37]
1997-05-10South Khorasan7.3 Mw X1,5672,300
1997-02-28Ardabil6.1 Mw VIII1,1002,600
1997-02-04North Khorasan6.5 Mw VIII1001,948
1990-06-20Gilan7.4 Mw X35,000–50,00060,000–105,000
1981-07-28Kerman7.1 Ms IX1,5001,000
1981-06-11Kerman6.6 Mw VIII+1,400–3,000many
1979-11-14South Khorasan6.8 Mw VIII297–440
1978-09-16South Khorasan7.4 Mw IX15,000–25,000
1977-12-19Kerman5.9 Mw VII584–665
1977-04-06Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari6.0 Mw VIII348–366
1977-03-21Hormozgan7.0 Ms VIII152–167
1972-04-10Fars6.7 Mw IX5,3741,710
1970-07-30Khorasan6.4175450[38][39]
1968-08-31South Khorasan7.4 Mw X15,000
1968-09-01South Khorasan6.4 Mw 900
1965-02-10East Azerbaijan5.120
1962-09-01Qazvin7.1 ML IX12,2252,776
1960-04-24Fars6.0 Muk420[40]
1958-08-16Hamadan6.7 Muk132[40]
1957-12-13Kermanshah7.11,130
1957-07-02Māzandarān7.11,200
1953-02-12Semnan6.6 Mw VIII800–973140
1947-08-05South Khorasan7.3500
1932-05-20Māzandarān5.4 Muk VIII1,070[40]
1930-05-07West Azerbaijan7.1 Mw IX1,360–3,000
1929-05-01Khorasan-e Razavi7.2 Mw IX3,257–3,8001,121
1923-05-25Khorasan-e Razavi5.9 Mw VII+2,200More than 7 villages destroyed[41]
1909-01-23Lorestan7.3 ML IX6,000–8,000
1895-01-17Khorasan-e Razavi6.8 Ms VIII1,000–11,000
1893-11-17Khorasan-e Razavi6.6 Ms X18,000[42]
1872-01-06North Khorasan5.6VII4,000[43]
1871-12-23North Khorasan6.3VII2,000[43]
1864-01-17KermanVIIIMany[40]
1853-05-05FarsIX9,000–13,000[40]
1778-12-15Kashan6.2 Ms >8,000[42]
1755-06-07Isfahan40,000
1727-11-18East AzerbaijanVIII77,000
1721-04-26East Azerbaijan7.7 Ms VIII–X8,000–250,000
1679-06-04Yerevan, Armenia6.4 MsIX–X7,600Under Iranian rule at the time
1667-11-25Shamakhi, Azerbaijan6.9 MsX80,000Under Iranian rule at the time
1641-02-05Tabriz, East Azerbaijan6.8 MsIX30,000Tabriz completely destroyed
1101-??-??Khorasan-e Razavi6.5 Muk X60,000[43]
1042-08-21East Azerbaijan7.640,000
1008-04-11Bushehr6.5 Ms 16,000[43]
978-06-17Bushehr5.3 Ms 2,000[43]
893-03-23Ardabil150,000See also 893 Dvin earthquake
856-12-22Semnan7.9 Ms X200,000
850-07-15Tehran45,000[43]
743-??-??Semnan7.2 Ms IX[43]
662-04-26Semnan40,000[43]
400? BCETehran7.6[43]
Note: Mw = moment magnitude scale, Ms = surface-wave magnitude, and Muk = unknown. The inclusion criteria for adding events are based on WikiProject Earthquakes' notability guideline that was developed for stand alone articles. The principles described also apply to lists. In summary, only damaging, injurious, or deadly events should be recorded.
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