Label	Element	Value
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	iSHARES INC
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	Dec. 31, 2015
iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	iSHARES® MSCI ITALY CAPPED ETF Ticker: EWI                                Stock Exchange: NYSE Arca
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	Investment Objective
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF (the “Fund”) seeks to track the investment results of an index composed of Italian equities.
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	Fees and Expenses
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses that you will incur if you own shares of the Fund. The investment advisory agreement between iShares, Inc. (the “Company”) and BlackRock Fund Advisors (“BFA”) (formerly, Barclays Global Fund Advisors (“BGFA”)) (the “Investment Advisory Agreement”) provides that BFA will pay all operating expenses of the Fund, except interest expenses, taxes, brokerage expenses, future distribution fees or expenses, and extraordinary expenses. You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions and other charges when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the Example that follows:
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	Annual Fund Operating Expenses (ongoing expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investments)
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	Portfolio Turnover.
Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock	The Fund may pay transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Example, affect the Fund's performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund's portfolio turnover rate was 22% of the average value of its portfolio.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	22.00%
Expense Exchange Traded Fund Commissions [Text]	rr_ExpenseExchangeTradedFundCommissions	You may also incur usual and customary brokerage commissions and other charges when buying or selling shares of the Fund, which are not reflected in the Example that follows:
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	Example.
Expense Example Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNarrativeTextBlock	This Example is intended to help you compare the cost of owning shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other funds. The Example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then sell all of your shares at the end of those periods. The Example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions, your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	Principal Investment Strategies
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund seeks to track the investment results of the MSCI Italy 25/50 Index (the “Underlying Index”), which consists of stocks traded primarily on the Milan Stock Exchange. The Underlying Index is a free float-adjusted market capitalization-weighted index with a capping methodology applied to issuer weights so that no single issuer of a component exceeds 25% of the Underlying Index weight, and all issuers with weight above 5% do not cumulatively exceed 50% of the Underlying Index weight. The Underlying Index may include large-, mid- or small-capitalization companies. Components of the Underlying Index primarily include energy, financials and utilities companies. The components of the Underlying Index, and the degree to which these components represent certain industries, are likely to change over time. BFA uses a “passive” or indexing approach to try to achieve the Fund’s investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to “beat” the index it tracks and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform the Underlying Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. BFA uses a representative sampling indexing strategy to manage the Fund. “Representative sampling” is an indexing strategy that involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to that of the Underlying Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Underlying Index. The Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Underlying Index. The Fund will at all times invest at least 80% of its assets in the securities of its Underlying Index and in depositary receipts representing securities in its Underlying Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in other securities, including securities not in the Underlying Index, but which BFA believes will help the Fund track the Underlying Index, and in other investments, including futures contracts, options on futures contracts, other types of options and swaps related to its Underlying Index, as well as cash and cash equivalents, including shares of money market funds advised by BFA or its affiliates. The Fund seeks to track the investment results of the Underlying Index before the fees and expenses of the Fund. The Fund may lend securities representing up to one-third of the value of the Fund's total assets (including the value of any collateral received). The Underlying Index is calculated by MSCI Inc. (the “Index Provider” or “MSCI”), which is independent of the Fund and BFA. The Index Provider determines the composition and relative weightings of the securities in the Underlying Index and publishes information regarding the market value of the Underlying Index. Industry Concentration Policy. The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.
Strategy Portfolio Concentration [Text]	rr_StrategyPortfolioConcentration	Industry Concentration Policy. The Fund will concentrate its investments (i.e., hold 25% or more of its total assets) in a particular industry or group of industries to approximately the same extent that the Underlying Index is concentrated. For purposes of this limitation, securities of the U.S. government (including its agencies and instrumentalities) and repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities are not considered to be issued by members of any industry.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	Summary of Principal Risks
Risk Narrative [Text Block]	rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock	As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund's performance could trail that of other investments. The Fund is subject to the principal risks noted below, any of which may adversely affect the Fund's net asset value per share ("NAV"), trading price, yield, total return and ability to meet its investment objective. Asset Class Risk. Securities and other assets in the Underlying Index or in the Fund's portfolio may underperform in comparison to the general financial markets, a particular financial market or other asset classes. Authorized Participant Concentration Risk. Only an Authorized Participant (as defined in the Creations and Redemptions section of the Fund's prospectus (the "Prospectus")) may engage in creation or redemption transactions directly with the Fund. The Fund has a limited number of institutions that act as Authorized Participants. To the extent that these institutions exit the business or are unable to proceed with creation and/or redemption orders with respect to the Fund and no other Authorized Participant is able to step forward to create or redeem Creation Units (as defined below), Fund shares may trade at a discount to NAV and possibly face trading halts and/or delisting. Concentration Risk. The Fund may be susceptible to an increased risk of loss, including losses due to adverse events that affect the Fund's investments more than the market as a whole, to the extent that the Fund's investments are concentrated in the securities of a particular issuer or issuers, country, group of countries, region, market, industry, group of industries, sector or asset class. Currency Risk. Because the Fund's NAV is determined in U.S. dollars, the Fund's NAV could decline if the currency of a non-U.S. market in which the Fund invests depreciates against the U.S. dollar or if there are delays or limits on repatriation of such currency. Currency exchange rates can be very volatile and can change quickly and unpredictably. As a result, the value of an investment in the Fund may change quickly and without warning, which could have a significant negative impact on the Fund. Cyber Security Risk. Failures or breaches of the electronic systems of the Fund, the Fund's adviser, and the Fund's other service providers, market makers, Authorized Participants or the issuers of securities in which the Fund invests have the ability to cause disruptions and negatively impact the Fund's business operations, potentially resulting in financial losses to the Fund and its shareholders. While the Fund has established business continuity plans and risk management systems seeking to address system breaches or failures, there are inherent limitations in such plans and systems. Furthermore, the Fund cannot control the cyber security plans and systems of the Fund's service providers, market makers, Authorized Participants or issuers of securities in which the Fund invests. Energy Sector Risk. The value of securities issued by companies in the energy sector may decline for many reasons, including, among others, changes in energy prices, energy supply and demand, government regulations, energy conservation efforts and potential civil liabilities. Equity Securities Risk. Equity securities are subject to changes in value, and their values may be more volatile than those of other asset classes. Financials Sector Risk. Performance of companies in the financials sector may be adversely impacted by many factors, including, among others, government regulations, economic conditions, credit rating downgrades, changes in interest rates, and decreased liquidity in credit markets. The impact of more stringent capital requirements, recent or future regulation of any individual financial company, or recent or future regulation of the financials sector as a whole cannot be predicted. In recent years, cyber attacks and technology malfunctions and failures have become increasingly frequent in this sector and have caused significant losses. Geographic Risk. A natural or other disaster could occur in a geographic region in which the Fund invests, which could affect the economy or particular business operations of companies in the specific geographic region, causing an adverse impact on the Fund's investments in the affected region. Index-Related Risk. There is no guarantee that the Fund will achieve a high degree of correlation to the Underlying Index and therefore achieve its investment objective. Market disruptions and regulatory restrictions could have an adverse effect on the Fund's ability to adjust its exposure to the required levels in order to track the Underlying Index. Errors in index data, index computations and/or the construction of the Underlying Index in accordance with its methodology may occur from time to time and may not be identified and corrected by the Index Provider for a period of time or at all, which may have an adverse impact on the Fund and its shareholders. Issuer Risk. Fund performance depends on the performance of individual securities to which the Fund has exposure. Changes in the financial condition or credit rating of an issuer of those securities may cause the value of the securities to decline. Management Risk. As the Fund may not fully replicate the Underlying Index, it is subject to the risk that BFA's investment strategy may not produce the intended results. Market Risk. The Fund could lose money over short periods due to short-term market movements and over longer periods during more prolonged market downturns. Market Trading Risk. The Fund faces numerous market trading risks, including the potential lack of an active market for Fund shares, losses from trading in secondary markets, periods of high volatility and disruptions in the creation/redemption process. ANY OF THESE FACTORS, AMONG OTHERS, MAY LEAD TO THE FUND'S SHARES TRADING AT A PREMIUM OR DISCOUNT TO NAV. Mid-Capitalization Companies Risk. Compared to large-capitalization companies, mid-capitalization companies may be less stable and more susceptible to adverse developments, and their securities may be more volatile and less liquid. National Closed Market Trading Risk. To the extent that the underlying securities held by the Fund trade on foreign exchanges that may be closed when the securities exchange on which the Fund's shares trade is open, there are likely to be deviations between the current price of such an underlying security and the last quoted price for the underlying security (i.e., the Fund's quote from the closed foreign market). These deviations could result in premiums or discounts to the Fund's NAV that may be greater than those experienced by other exchange-traded funds ("ETFs"). Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund's performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers. Non-U.S. Securities Risk. Investments in the securities of non-U.S. issuers are subject to the risks associated with investing in those non-U.S. markets, such as heightened risks of inflation or nationalization. The Fund may lose money due to political, economic and geographic events affecting issuers of Italian securities or Italian markets. In addition, non-U.S. securities markets may trade a small number of securities and may be unable to respond effectively to increases in trading volume, potentially making prompt liquidation of holdings difficult or impossible at times. The Fund is specifically exposed to European Economic Risk. Operational Risk. The Fund is exposed to operational risk arising from a number of factors, including but not limited to human error, processing and communication errors, errors of the Fund's service providers, counterparties or other third-parties, failed or inadequate processes and technology or systems failures. The Fund and BFA seek to reduce these operational risks through controls and procedures. However, these measures do not address every possible risk and may be inadequate for those risks that they are intended to address. Passive Investment Risk. The Fund is not actively managed and BFA does not attempt to take defensive positions under any market conditions, including declining markets. Reliance on Trading Partners Risk. The Fund invests in a country whose economy is heavily dependent upon trading with key partners. Any reduction in this trading may have an adverse impact on the Fund's investments. Through its portfolio companies' trading partners, the Fund is specifically exposed to European Economic Risk. Risk of Investing in Developed Countries. The Fund's investment in developed country issuers may subject the Fund to regulatory, political, currency, security, economic and other risks specific to developed countries. Developed countries tend to represent a significant portion of the global economy and have generally experienced slower economic growth than some less developed countries. Many developed countries experienced a significant economic slowdown during the financial crisis that began in 2007. In addition, developed countries may be impacted by changes to the economic health of certain key trading partners, regulatory burdens, debt burdens and the price or availability of certain commodities. Risk of Investing in Italy. The Fund's investments in Italian issuers may subject the Fund to legal, regulatory, political, currency and economic risk specific to Italy. The Italian economy, along with certain other European Union ("EU") economies, experienced significant economic slowdown during the recent financial crisis. Among other things, Italy's economy has been characterized by slow growth over the past few decades due to factors such as a high tax rate, rigid labor market and a generous pension system. Recently, the Italian government has experienced significant budget deficits and a high amount of public debt, causing credit agencies to lower Italy's sovereign debt rating. The Italian economy is also heavily dependent on trade with other European countries. Securities Lending Risk. The Fund may engage in securities lending. Securities lending involves the risk that the Fund may lose money because the borrower of the loaned securities fails to return the securities in a timely manner or at all. The Fund could also lose money in the event of a decline in the value of collateral provided for loaned securities or a decline in the value of any investments made with cash collateral. These events could also trigger adverse tax consequences for the Fund. Structural Risk. The country in which the Fund invests may be subject to considerable degrees of economic, political and social instability. Tracking Error Risk. Tracking error is the divergence of the Fund's performance from that of the Underlying Index. Tracking error may occur because of differences between the securities and other instruments held in the Fund's portfolio and those included in the Underlying Index, pricing differences (including differences between a security's price at the local market close and the Fund's valuation of a security at the time of calculation of the Fund's NAV), transaction costs, the Fund's holding of uninvested cash, differences in timing of the accrual of dividends or interest, tax gains or losses, changes to the Underlying Index or the need to meet various new or existing regulatory requirements. This risk may be heightened during times of increased market volatility or other unusual market conditions. Tracking error also may result because the Fund incurs fees and expenses, while the Underlying Index does not. Utilities Sector Risk. The utilities sector is subject to significant government regulation and oversight. Deregulation, however, may subject utility companies to greater competition and may reduce their profitability. Companies in the utilities sector may be adversely affected due to increases in fuel and operating costs, rising costs of financing capital construction and the cost of complying with regulations, among other factors. Valuation Risk. The sale price the Fund could receive for a security or other asset may differ from the Fund's valuation of the security or other asset and from the value used by the Underlying Index, particularly for securities or other assets that trade in low volume or volatile markets or that are valued using a fair value methodology. In addition, the value of the securities or other assets in the Fund's portfolio may change on days when shareholders will not be able to purchase or sell the Fund's shares.
Risk Lose Money [Text]	rr_RiskLoseMoney	As with any investment, you could lose all or part of your investment in the Fund, and the Fund's performance could trail that of other investments.
Risk Nondiversified Status [Text]	rr_RiskNondiversifiedStatus	Non-Diversification Risk. The Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in securities issued by or representing a small number of issuers. As a result, the Fund's performance may depend on the performance of a small number of issuers.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	Performance Information
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund. Both assume that all dividends and distributions have been reinvested in the Fund. Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future. Supplemental information about the Fund’s performance is shown under the heading Total Return Information in the Supplemental Information section of the Prospectus.
Performance Information Illustrates Variability of Returns [Text]	rr_PerformanceInformationIllustratesVariabilityOfReturns	The bar chart and table that follow show how the Fund has performed on a calendar year basis and provide an indication of the risks of investing in the Fund.
Performance Availability Phone [Text]	rr_PerformanceAvailabilityPhone	1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free)
Performance Availability Website Address [Text]	rr_PerformanceAvailabilityWebSiteAddress	www.iShares.com
Performance Past Does Not Indicate Future [Text]	rr_PerformancePastDoesNotIndicateFuture	Past performance (before and after taxes) does not necessarily indicate how the Fund will perform in the future.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	Year by Year Returns (Years Ended December 31)
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	The best calendar quarter return during the periods shown above was 29.01% in the 2nd quarter of 2009; the worst was -31.23% in the 3rd quarter of 2011. Updated performance information is available at www.iShares.com or by calling 1-800-iShares (1-800-474-2737) (toll free).
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	Average Annual Total Returns (for the periods ended December 31, 2014)
Performance Table Market Index Changed	rr_PerformanceTableMarketIndexChanged	Index performance reflects the performance of the MSCI Italy Index through February 11, 2013 and the MSCI Italy 25/50 Index thereafter.
Performance Table Uses Highest Federal Rate	rr_PerformanceTableUsesHighestFederalRate	After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes.
Performance Table Not Relevant to Tax Deferred	rr_PerformanceTableNotRelevantToTaxDeferred	Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor's tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts ("IRAs").
Performance Table Explanation after Tax Higher	rr_PerformanceTableExplanationAfterTaxHigher	Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.
iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF | iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Management Fees	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.48%
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	none
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.48%
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleYear01	$ 49
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear03	154
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear05	269
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear10	$ 604
2005	rr_AnnualReturn2005	1.49%
2006	rr_AnnualReturn2006	32.85%
2007	rr_AnnualReturn2007	5.42%
2008	rr_AnnualReturn2008	(48.93%)
2009	rr_AnnualReturn2009	25.81%
2010	rr_AnnualReturn2010	(14.70%)
2011	rr_AnnualReturn2011	(24.01%)
2012	rr_AnnualReturn2012	12.63%
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	20.94%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	(9.83%)	[1]
Year to Date Return, Label	rr_YearToDateReturnLabel	The Fund's year-to-date return
Bar Chart, Year to Date Return, Date	rr_BarChartYearToDateReturnDate	Sep. 30, 2015
Bar Chart, Year to Date Return	rr_BarChartYearToDateReturn	6.22%
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	best
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2009
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	29.01%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	worst
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Sep. 30, 2011
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(31.23%)
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(9.83%)
Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.46%)
Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(3.14%)
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Mar. 12, 1996
iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF | Return After Taxes on Distributions | iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(10.02%)	[2]
Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.52%)	[2]
Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(3.20%)	[2]
iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF | Return After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares | iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(4.81%)	[2]
Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(2.83%)	[2]
Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(1.56%)	[2]
iShares MSCI Italy Capped ETF | MSCI Italy 25/50 Index (Index returns do not reflect deductions for fees, expenses, or taxes)
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(10.40%)	[3]
Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	(4.45%)	[3]
Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	(3.21%)	[3]

[1] The Fund's year-to-date return as of September 30, 2015 was 6.22%.

[2] After-tax returns in the table above are calculated using the historical highest individual U.S. federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state or local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on an investor's tax situation and may differ from those shown, and after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt investors or investors who hold shares through tax-deferred arrangements, such as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts ("IRAs"). Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares are calculated assuming that an investor has sufficient capital gains of the same character from other investments to offset any capital losses from the sale of Fund shares. As a result, Fund returns after taxes on distributions and sales of Fund shares may exceed Fund returns before taxes and/or returns after taxes on distributions.

[3] Index performance reflects the performance of the MSCI Italy Index through February 11, 2013 and the MSCI Italy 25/50 Index thereafter.