Name of Iran - Recent History of The Debate

Recent History of The Debate

In the 1980s, Professor Ehsan Yarshater (editor of the Encyclopædia Iranica) started to publish articles on this matter (in both English and Persian) in Rahavard Quarterly, Pars Monthly, Iranian Studies Journal, etc. After him, a few Persian scholars and researchers such as Prof. Kazem Abhary, Prof. Jalal Matini and Pejman Akbarzadeh followed the issue. Several times since then, Persian magazines and Web sites have published articles from those who agree or disagree with usage of "Persia" and "Persian" in English.

It is the case in many countries that the country's native name is different from its international name (see Exonym), but for Persians/Iranians this issue has been very controversial. Main points on this matter:

• Persia is the Western name of the country, and Iranians were calling their country "Iran" for many centuries.
• Persia evokes the old culture and civilization of the country.
• Persia and the name of a province of Iran (viz., "Pars") are from the same root, and may cause confusion.
• The name Persia comes from "Pars" but the meaning shifted to refer to the whole country.
• In Western languages, all famous cultural aspects of Iran have been recorded as "Persian" (e.g., Persian carpet, Persian food, Persian cat, Persian pottery, Persian melon, etc.)

There are many Persians (Iranians) and non-Persians in the West who prefer "Persia" and "Persian" as the English names for the country and nationality, similar to the usage of La Perse/persan in French. According to Hooman Majd, the popularity of the term "Persia" among the Persian diaspora stems from the fact that "'Persia' connotes a glorious past they would like to be identified with, while 'Iran' ... says nothing to the world but Islamic fundamentalism."

However, the name has presented problems for some Iranian ethnic groups who do not identify themselves as Persian, or whose native language is not Persian.