Iran is subdivided into thirty-one provinces (Persian: استان Ostān, plural استانها Ostānhā), each governed from a local center, usually the largest local city, which is called the capital (Persian: مرکز, markaz) of that province. The provincial authority is headed by a Governor-General (Persian: استاندار Ostāndār), who is appointed by the Minister of the Interior subject to approval of the cabinet.
