Keeping the world's most vital oil exporting waterway named "Persian" is a national touchstone and highly emotive issue for Iranians.
So there was widespread anger in Iran in recent days after internet users spotted that Google Maps now has no name on the body of water that Iran insists must be called the Persian Gulf and nothing else.
The government perceives the omission on the internet giant's online cartographic service as a treacherous and politically-motivated attack on Iran's proud civilisation and long history.
"The efforts of [global] arrogance [America] and its Arab allies to remove the name of Persian Gulf will result in its name becoming more durable," Bahman Dorri, a senior official in Iran's Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, declared on Saturday.
The waterway also touches Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain - the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) that call it the Arabian Gulf.
"Google fabricating lies . will not have any outcome but for its users to lose trust in the data the company provides," Mr Dorri said. "The enemies cannot hide facts and evidence about the Persian Gulf. Documents in the UN and Unesco show the name of this body of water has always been 'Persian Gulf' since a long time ago."
A number of Iranians have posted on Twitter a link to Google Maps demanding "Where's the Persian Gulf?"
The name dispute flares periodically, but the latest spat comes at a time of increasing tension between Iran and its Arab Gulf neighbours.
Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, infuriated the GCC last month by visiting Abu Musa, one of three tiny Gulf islands claimed by both Iran and the UAE.
Iran believes there has been a pan-Arabist campaign since the 1950s, led by the then Egyptian president, Gamal Abdel Nasser, and later by the Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein, to call the waterway the "Arabian Gulf".
Iran regularly hosts conferences where ancient maps and historical texts are produced that refer to the "Persian Gulf". At the height of the Persian empire of Darius and Xerxes the Great, ancient Greek writers called the stretch of water the Persian Gulf, and the name has stuck ever since.
Today, the UN refers to it as the Persian Gulf, as do Britain and the US State Department, although the US navy, which has extensive dealings with Arab Gulf states, mostly uses the "Arabian Gulf".
"Undoubtedly, the correct geographical term in history is the Persian Gulf," said Sir Richard Dalton, a British former ambassador to Iran and senior fellow at Chatham House, a British think tank, said. "Iran recognises it's largely international waters and they're not laying claim to it as part of their territory in terms of hydrocarbon resources and so on."
But, Sir Richard added in an interview: "The correct terminology is an emotional issue for many Iranians and a matter of respect. The British don't mind the French calling the English channel 'La Manche', but Iran just doesn't see it that way."
In 2010, Iran warned that airlines using the term "Arabian Gulf" on in-flight monitors would be barred from Iranian airspace.
A Google representative told the BBC it did not name every place in the world and that the company did not want to take any political stance in response to the angry Iranian reaction.
Google's hapless attempt to avoid controversy by simply not naming the strategic waterway follows equally unsuccessful efforts at compromise by foreign news organisations and other independent bodies that tried not to ruffle Iranian or Arab feathers.
There was uproar in Iran in 2004 when National Geographic published a world atlas that, while acknowledging the waterway's primary name as the "Persian Gulf" added the words "Arabian Gulf" in brackets. Demanding a "correction", Tehran promptly banned the American-owned magazine and barred its reporters from Iran.
The official outcry was echoed in cyberspace. Iranian bloggers at home and abroad orchestrated an eye-catching web action on the Google search engine. A search for the words "Arabian Gulf" triggered a spoof message: "The Gulf you are looking for does not exist. Try Persian Gulf."
When National Geographic later changed the labelling in its atlas, Tehran hailed the move as a "victory for all Iranians".
The most common attempt at a compromise by disinterested parties is to just call the waterway "the Gulf". But this still offends Iran. In 2006, Iran banned distribution of The Economist, a British news magazine, for publishing an article and map that referred to the "Gulf" instead of the "Persian Gulf".
The Economist stood its ground. A spokeswoman for the magazine said: "We've used the description 'Gulf' for a long time and we have no intention of changing it."
Google Earth, a sister site of Google Maps, retains the "Persian Gulf" name. But that is unlikely to appease Tehran because it also carries the alternative; the Arabian Gulf.
mtheodoulou@thenational.ae
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25 Evacuation of injured and sick
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Dhadak 2
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PROFILE OF SWVL
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Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
The years Ramadan fell in May
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Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
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COMPANY PROFILE
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Total funding: Self funded
'The Lost Daughter'
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Starring: Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Dakota Johnson
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
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Henrik Stenson's finishes at Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship:
2006 - 2
2007 - 8
2008 - 2
2009 - MC
2010 - 21
2011 - 42
2012 - MC
2013 - 23
2014 - MC
2015 - MC
2016 - 3
2017 - 8
Abramovich London
A Kensington Palace Gardens house with 15 bedrooms is valued at more than £150 million.
A three-storey penthouse at Chelsea Waterfront bought for £22 million.
Steel company Evraz drops more than 10 per cent in trading after UK officials said it was potentially supplying the Russian military.
Sale of Chelsea Football Club is now impossible.
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Flydubai flies direct from Dubai to Tbilisi from Dh1,025 return including taxes
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
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Lexus LX700h specs
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Cryopreservation: A timeline
- Keyhole surgery under general anaesthetic
- Ovarian tissue surgically removed
- Tissue processed in a high-tech facility
- Tissue re-implanted at a time of the patient’s choosing
- Full hormone production regained within 4-6 months
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Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
Sheer grandeur
The Owo building is 14 storeys high, seven of which are below ground, with the 30,000 square feet of amenities located subterranean, including a 16-seat private cinema, seven lounges, a gym, games room, treatment suites and bicycle storage.
A clear distinction between the residences and the Raffles hotel with the amenities operated separately.
