The Strait of Hormuz is a strait between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. It provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean and is one of the world’s most strategically important choke points. It has been so for centuries, with vast hinterlands rich in luxury trade goods, but no easy access to lucrative trading ports. In his memoirs, Babur, the first padishah of the Mughal Empire, recounted how almonds had to be carried from the distant Ferghana region in Central Asia to Hormuz to reach markets.

During 2023–2025, 20% of the world’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) and 25% of seaborne oil trade passed through the strait annually. The strait had never been closed for extended time during Middle East conflicts (until this month) (unlike the Straits of Tiran/Bab-el-Mandeb) though Iran occasionally had threatened to close the strait (and they did), and preparations to mine it have been undertaken.

Etymology

Persian etymology derives “Hormuz” from the Middle Persian pronunciation of the name of the Zoroastrian god Ahura Mazda. Alternatively, it has been suggested that the name derives from the local Persian word Hur-Mogh ‘Place of Dates’. A theory claims that the strait of Hormuz may have been named after Ifra Hormizd, the mother of King Shapur II of Persia, who ruled between 309 and 379 AD.

In the 10th–17th centuries AD, the Kingdom of Ormus was located here. Scholars, historians and linguists derive the name “Ormuz” from the local Persian word هورمغ Hur-mogh meaning date palm.

From the 15th century onward, from a strategic point of view, the geography of the strait maintained and expanded its importance with the arrival of foreign powers such as Portugal, which maintained its presence between the 16th and 18th centuries, also provoking disputes with other emerging powers such as England when it arrived in the region in the 17th century.

Navigation

To reduce the risk of collision, ships moving through the strait follow a traffic separation scheme (TSS): inbound ships use one lane, outbound ships another, each lane being two miles wide. The lanes are separated by a two-mile-wide “median”

In 1959, Iran altered the legal status of the strait by expanding its territorial sea to 12 nmi (22 km) and declaring it would recognize only transit by innocent passage through the newly expanded area.[16] In 1972, Oman also expanded its territorial sea to 12 nmi (22 km) by decree.[16] Thus, by 1972, the Strait of Hormuz was completely “closed” by the combined territorial waters of Iran and Oman. During the 1970s, neither Iran or Oman attempted to impede the passage of warships, but in the 1980s, both countries asserted claims that were different from customary (old) law.

Oil trade flow

During 2023–2025, 20% of the world’s liquefied natural gas and 25% of seaborne oil trade passes through the Strait, illustrating its important location for trade.

More than 85% of these crude oil exports went to Asian markets on a daily basis, with Japan, India, South Korea and China the largest destinations. If shipping through the Strait of Hormuz were significantly disrupted for an extended period, it could lead to a major oil supply crisis for major Asian importers such as India and China.

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  • SuperZutsuki [they/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    38·
    1 month ago

    Just watched yellow Parenti again and it hits so fucking hard. The fact that a liberal can watch a Parenti lecture and be completely unmoved or worse, see him as a puppet of big communism (as if that could ever be a thing), boggles the mind. Parenti said it best himself: "If communists are so hungry for power, why do they side with the powerless?”

    At every turn, communists side with the oppressed peoples of the world and yet that isn’t evidence enough for their character. The liberal is unimpressed by humanity and empathy. But a new Economist article savaging China…that’s fucking heroin to the liberal brain(worms).

  • uSSRI [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    36·
    1 month ago

    Lmao someone at my job crashed out and quit because someone else said trump is a pedophile.

    “Dont talk about my president like that!”

    Hahahahahahaha get fucked loser

  • SuperZutsuki [they/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    28·
    1 month ago

    I can’t fucking stand citation fetishist liberals. Oh, you need “every utterance to be cited or it’s just not sufficient evidence”? Go fuck yourself. It’s a primary account that shows the Soviet Union in a positive light? “Too biased to be trustworthy!” barbara-pit

    "Don’t forget about the Holodom—"ligma-1 ligma-2

  • ClathrateG [none/use name]@hexbear.netEnglish
    27·
    1 month ago

    subway rat made eye contact with me and said “join us. when the train comes we slide under the tracks and feel it rumble over us like a warm thunderstorm. we live forever and we love to live” I said no thank you I am too large he turned away from me I cried

  • Coolkidbozzy [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    26·
    1 month ago

    the old world is dying. it’s monster time gramsci-heh

    I’m not saying the US is about to collapse, but this war is the biggest material threat to US imperialism in a while. The proles (foreign and domestic) will be harmed and understand that the US and it’s allies are the enemy. It’s such a great time to be a communist. We have to use this opportunity to recruit as many people as possible

  • DragonBallZinn [he/him, they/them]@hexbear.netEnglish
    24·
    1 month ago

    I’m getting so many 2000s flashbacks.

    • CHUDs are the winners of the culture wars and they dominate our culture. Hell, one of their strongest arguments is “we’re cooler than the left! Agree with us, popular opinion good!”

    • Another war started and everyone is cheering. Disagree? You’re reverse-racist!

    • opinions not approved by popular opinion = “politically correct”.

    • All religions are evil and you hear everyone scream for genocide on the regular…but don’t you DARE criticize Christianity! They may be dominant but the big guy is so persecuted because you hate him right back!

    • Some section of the LGBT community is everyone’s favorite punching bag and if it word gets out in mainstream society you don’t hate them, there will be hell to pay.

    • mass cheering on of the erosion of personal freedoms, because after all “freedom is for rich people only!”

    • we may or may not be on the tipping point of a mass global recession

    Some dumbass decades down the road will warmly look at today nostalgically as “the good ol’ days.”

  • robotElder2 [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    24·
    1 month ago

    So I’m playing stardew again and a thought occurred. Why is Marnie and Mayor Lewis’ relationship a secret? They act like they’re having an affair but both of them are single. Lewis mentions something about the town losing respect for him but why would a heterosexual romance with a single woman about his age be unbecoming of a mayor? Does the mayoralty of pelican town come with a vow of celibacy?

  • SexUnderSocialism [she/her]@hexbear.netEnglish
    24·
    1 month ago

    The bourgeois media class and their constant lies out of their fucking asses is really getting on my nerves, so much so that I’m getting intense feelings of desperately wanting to beat every Western propagandist to death with my bare hands if I had the chance. This is probably a sign that I should take a break for my own mental health, and do something else for a while. I’ll be back. stalin-shining

  • CrispyFern [fae/faer, any]@hexbear.netEnglish
    22·
    1 month ago

    SCAM ALERT: Stores will sell you a product called “bird seed”, but when you plant them you only get flowers. I planted a whole 30 lb bag and didn’t grow a SINGLE bird.