Persia
/ˈpɜːr.ʒə, ˈpɜːr.ʃə/noun
A historical name for Iran, especially used in English before 1935.
Did you know?The name ultimately comes from Old Persian Pārsa, the Persians’ own tribal name, while the Greek form Persis spread through the Mediterranean and became the standard Western name for centuries.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*pers-
“A proposed ancestral root meaning is uncertain; the name is not securely traced to a widely agreed PIE base.”
Old Persian
OP
Pārsa
“The name of the Persians and of the Parsa region/tribe in southwestern Iran.”
Ancient Greek
Greek
Persís
“Persia; the land of the Persians.”
Latin
Latin
Persia
“Persia; the Persian Empire.”
Middle English
English
Persia
“The Persian realm, especially the empire known to Europe.”
Modern English
English
Persia
“A historical name for Iran, now mainly used in historical or cultural contexts.”