What Country Are Persians From?

Ancient Persians carved pictures into pieces of stone.

Modern-day Persians come from the country of Iran. Modern-day Persians are distinct from ancient Persians who came from the Persian Empire that stretched thousands of miles from Greece to India, north to Russia and south to Egypt.

Before 1935

Western society referred to Iran as Persia for hundreds of years mainly because Greek historians referred to present-day Iran as Persia. The people of the country that Western society called Persia called their country Iran, however. So in 1935, the government of Iran officially stated that the country should be referred to solely as Iran.

After 1949

When the government of Iran declared that the country should only be known as Iran, Iranians protested. The Iranians thought there would be a disconnect between the country and the country's history if Iran was to be known as Iran alone. So in 1949, the government of Iran declared that the country would be known as Iran and Persia, synonymously.

International Terminology

Even though the names Persia and Iran can be used interchangeably, the only name used internationally is Iran for legal, political and media-related situations. Modern maps also call the country's geographic area "Iran."

References

• Ancient Persia: Ancient Persia Geography
• Art-Arena: Persia or Iran: A Brief History
• CNN: Iran Marks Anniversary of U.S. Embassy Crisis
• Washington Times: U.S. Mulls Persian New Year Outreach