The name Persia is a misunderstanding by the Western historians. Iran was always called Iranzamin ( The Land of Iran) and people in Iran are Iranians and not Persians. Iranian and Persian are the same thing. There are no Persians in Iran. Persian is only a language. There are no such people in Iran. All the people in Iran are "Iranians".
The Persian View:
Iranian and Persian are not the same thing. Yes. Iran has been called Iranzamin (the Land of Iran) or Iranshahr (Iran City). Ferdowsi's book from 1000 years ago mentions IranZamin or "The Land of Iran". But people of Iran were not called "Iranians". They were called Sogdians,Parthians, Bactrians,Khorasanis, Khuzis, Persians, Medes etc. Also different parts of Iran were called Pars,Parthia,Bactria, Sogdia, Khorasan, Media etc. We rarely see the term Iran or IranShahr or IranZamin used to describe these parts.
"Iranian" was not used to denote all the people of Iran. "Iranian" is a modern concept since 18 century and simply means the citizens of Iran of any ethnic race. The term "Iranian" has no historical and ethnic or racial significance.
Persian history states that Persians built the Persian Empire. Parthians defeated the Greek Army of Alexander after Alexander the Great death in Babylon and saved Persia from Greek invaders. Alexander the Great could not defeat the Bactrians. Alexander the Great married a Persian princess, Roxxana from Sogdia. There was a Persian Empire and a Parthian Empire. But there was never any "Iranian Empire" in Persian history.
Persian history never states that "Iranians" did this or that as Azeri Turks imaginary history claims.
Replacing the term Persian with "Iranian" Azeri Turks are trying to include themselves in some imaginary history of Persia when Azeri Turks did not even live in Iran. Azeri Turks presence in Iran is mainly from 15 century A.D.
Azeri Turks change the meaning of the term "Iranian" from the citizens of Iran to a concept which has both racial and cultural meaning. That is Azeri Turks since they are citizens of Iran then they are racially related to the natives of Iran. Also for Azeri Turks the concept of "Iranian" assumes such powers that transfers the culture of Kurds and Persians and others to Azeri Turks and they become "Iranians". All this nonsense is to provide Azeri Turks a political platform to hold on to power in Iran.
The way to achieve these objectives is to prove that there was no Persian Empire and it was an "Iranian Empire". And Azeri Turks are "Iranians" and are inheritors of history and traditions of "Iranian Empire" as Azeri Turk Shirin Ebadi claims.
Azeri Turk Shirin Ebadi the Nobel Peace Prize winner claims in a speech when receiving the Nobel Prize in Oslo, Norway:
"I am an Iranian and a descedant of Cyrus the Great Iranian Empire!!!!!"
More on: Are there Persians in Iran?
http://www.network54.com/Forum/487760/t ... s+in+Iran-
Shirin Ebadi: Azeri Turk













