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This article is about the Persian people, an ethnic group found mainly in Iran. For Central Asian Persians, see Tajiks. For information about ancient Persians, see Persian Empire
The Persians are an Iranian people primarily in Iran with expatriate communities in many bordering countries as well as the Persian Gulf states. Significant colonies of Persians reside overseas in North America and Europe. Persians are typically characterized by their usuage of the Persian language and a common culture and history.
Persian identity, at least in terms of language, is traced to the ancient Indo-European Aryans who arrived circa 2000-1500 BCE. Starting around 550 BCE, from the province of Fars, the ancient Persians spread their language and culture to other parts of the Iranian plateau through conquest and assimilated local Aryan and non-Aryan groups over time. This process of assimilating other Iranian peoples continued in the face of Greek, Arab and Turkic invasions and would take centuries and continued right up to Islamic times. Lands of Iran Encyclopedia Iranica (July 25, 2005) (retrieved 3 March 2008) Numerous dialects and regional identities emerged over time, while a Persian national orientation fully manifested itself by the 20th century, mirroring developments in post-Ottoman Turkey, the Arab world and Europe. With the losses of Afghanistan and territories in the Caucasus Treaty of Turkmenchay , Treaty of Gulistan and Anglo-Persian War, Persian identity became focused upon the current borders of Iran. Looking to link the modern state with the imperialist past, the Reza Shah government switched the country name from Persia to Iran in 1935, signaling the emergence of Iranian nationalism and later, following the Iranian Revolution, emphasis shifted to Shia Islamic values. The synonymous usage of Iranian and Persian has persisted over the centuries despite the varied meanings of Iranian, which includes different but related languages and ethnic groups.
Persians, even under theocratic governments, have shown a strong predilection towards urbanization and modernity. Exiled communities in the United States and Europe have continued to maintain close ties with their families in Iran and are a source of Western influence. In addition, with the break-up of the former Soviet Union, Persians have also begun to foster closer cultural ties with closely related groups in the Caucasus including the Tats and Talysh as well as Central Asian Persians in Tajikistan and Afghanistan. From the late 1970s to the present Iran hosts a large community of Afghan refugees largely of a Persian-speaking background.
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The term Persia was adopted by all western languages through the Greeks and was used as an official name for Iran by the West until 1935. Due to that label, all Iranians were considered Persian. Therefore, many Western sources, when regarding Iran\'s history, will label many non-Persian Iranians as Persians, which distinguishes nationality, not necessarily the Persian ethnic group. Also, many others who embraced the Persian language and culture are also often referred to as Persian , not necessarily meaning ethnic group, but rather as a part of Persian civilization (culturally and linguistically).
The first known written record about them is from an Assyrian inscription of the 834 BC, which mentions both Parsua (Persians) and Muddai (Medes).Abdolhossein Zarinkoob "Ruzgaran : tarikh-e Iran az aghaz ta soqut-e saltnat-e Pahlevi" pp. 37Bahman Firuzmandi "Mad, Hakhamaneshi, Ashkani, Sasani" pp. 155 The term used by Assyrians, Parsua, was a general designation to refer to southwestern Iranian tribes (who referred to themselves as Aryans). Greeks rendered this word as Persis, which is where the word Persian in English comes from. In Arabic as there is no letter P, they referred to Persia and vs as Fars (Faras) and Farsis.
In its modern definition, the term Persians refers to the people speaking the Western dialect of Persian language and living in the modern country of Iran, as well as the descendants of the people who emigrated from the territory of modern-day Iran to neighboring countries, such as the UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, and more recently, to the West (notably USA, Turkey, United Kingdom, Germany, Canada…).
Ethnic Persians can also be found outside Iran and include the Tajiks and Farsiwan of Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and the Xinjiang province of China. Closely related to the Farsiwan are the Qizilbash of Afghanistan. Another group called the Tats lives mainly in the Caucasus region concentrated in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Russian Dagestan and traces its origin to Sassanid merchants who once settled in the region. Parsis, a Zoroastrian sect of western India, centred around Gujarat and Bombay, are also largely descended from Persian Zoroastrians. The Iranis, another small community in western India, are descended from more recent Persian Zoroastrian immigrants to the subcontinent. In addition, the Hazara and Aimaq are ethnic groups of Persianized Mongol and Turkic origin.
The Persians are descendents of the Aryan (Indo-Iranian) tribes that began migrating from Central Asia into what is now Iran in the second millennium BC.http://wwwa.britannica.com/eb/article-230041?tocId=230041The Medes and the Persians, c.1500-559 from The Encyclopedia of World History Sixth Edition, Peter N. Stearns (general editor), © 2001 The Houghton Mifflin Company, at Bartleby.com.Bahman Firuzmandi "Mad, Hakhamanishi, Ashkani, Sasani" pp. 20 The Persian language and other Iranian tongues emerged as these Aryan tribes split up into two major groups, the Persians and the Medes, and intermarried with peoples indigenous to the Iranian plateau such as the Elamites.Iran. The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-05Bahman Firuzmandi "Mad, Hakhamanishi, Ashkani, Sasani" pp. 12-19 The first mention of the Persians dates to the 9th century BC, when they appear as the Parsu in Assyrian sources, as a people living at the southeastern shores of Lake Urmia.
Achaemenid Empire at greatest extent.
The ancient Persians from the province of Pars became the rulers of a large empire under the Achaemenid dynasty (Hakhamaneshiyan) in the sixth century BC, reuniting with the tribes and other provinces of the ancient Iranian plateau and forming the Persian Empire. Over the centuries Persia was ruled by various dynasties; some of them were ethnic Iranians including the Achaemenids, Parthians (Ashkanian), Sassanids (Sassanian), Buwayhids and Samanids, and some of them were not, such as the Seleucids, Ummayyads, Abbasids, and Seljuk Turks.
The founding dynasty of the empire, the Achaemenids, and later the Sassanids, were from the southern region of Iran, Pars. The latter Parthian dynasty arose from the north. However, according to archaeological evidence found in modern day Iran in the form of cuneiforms that go back to the Achaemenid era, it is evident that the native name of Parsa (Persia) had been applied to Iran from its birth.Persia - Britannica Concise EncyclopediaThe Splendor of Persia: The Land and the People - by Robert Payne
The Persian language is one of the world\'s oldest languages still in use today, and is known to have one of the most powerful literary traditions, with formidable Persian poets like Ferdowsi, Hafez, Khayyam, Attar, Saadi, Nezami, Roudaki, Rumi and Sanai. By native speakers as well as in Urdu, Arabic and other neighboring languages, it is called Fārsī, and additionally Dari or Tajiki in the eastern parts of Greater Iran. It is part of the Iranian sub-section of the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Persian-speakers are today in the majority in Iran, where they speak the western dialect, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan,BBC News - Afghan poll\'s ethnic battleground and form a large minority in Uzbekistan as well, where they speak the eastern dialect (Dari or Tajiki). Smaller groups of Persian-speakers are found in Pakistan, western China (Xinjiang), as well as in the UAE, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman and Azerbaijan.
The entrance to Shah Mosque (aka Imam Mosque or Shah Jame\' Mosque) in Isfahan. This mosque is a fantastic example of Persian architecture during the Safavid dynasty.
The Persian civilization spawned three major religions: Zoroastrianism, Manichaeanism, and the Bahá\'í Faith. Other religions such as Mazdakism and Manichaenism also arose from ancient Iran, with the former having been dubbed the first communistic ideology, and the latter heavily influencing Saint Augustine, hence, indirectly influencing Christianity: Both religions were sub-branches of Zoroastrianism. The religion of Zoroastrianism originates from ancient Persia. Zoroastrianism is said to be the first monotheistic religion.
Most Persians in Iran are Shia Muslims, while some communities of Shia Sufis also exist. There is also a sizeable number of Sunni Muslims. Historically, some of the greatest Sunni Muslim scholars were Persian or had Persian descent, including Abu Dawood, Al Muslim, Hakim al-Nishaburi, Al-Tabarani, Ghazali, Imam Bukhari, Tirmidhi, Al-Nasa\'i and Abu Hanifa, amongst many others. There are also smaller communities of Zoroastrians, Christians, Jews, and Bahá\'ís. There are also Persians who are atheist and agnostic. Also see religious minorities in Iran.
The artistic heritage of Persia is eclectic and includes major contributions from both east and west. Persian art borrowed heavily from the indigenous Elamite civilization and Mesopotamia and later from Hellenism (as can be seen with statues from the Greek period). In addition, due to Persia\'s somewhat central location, it has served as a fusion point between eastern and western arts and architecture as Greco-Roman influence was often fused with ideas and techniques from India and China. When talking of the creative Persian arts one has to include a geographic area that actually extends into Central Asia, the Caucasus, Asia Minor, and Iraq as well as modern Iran. This vast geographic region has been pivotal in the development of the Persian arts as a whole.
Persians\' artistic expression can be seen as far back as the Achaemenid period as numerous statues depicting various important figures, usually of political significance as well as religious, such as the Immortals (elite troops of the emperor) are indicative of the influence of Mesopotamia and ancient Babylon. What is perhaps most representative of a more indigenous artistic expression are Persian miniatures. Although the influence of Chinese art is apparent, local Persian artists used the art form in various ways including portraits that could be seen from the Ottoman Empire to the courts of the Safavids and Mughals.
The music of Persia goes back to the days of Barbod in the royal Sassanid courts, and even earlier. As it evolved, a distinct eastern Mediterranean style emerged as Persian folk music is often quite similar to the music of modern Iran\'s neighbors. In modern times, musical tradition has seen setbacks due to the religious government\'s policies in Iran, but has survived in the form of Iranian exiles and dissidents who have turned to Western rock music with a distinctive Iranian style as well as Persian rap.
The ruins of Persepolis known as the Takht-e Jamshid or throne of Jamshid is part of the ancient architectural tradition of Persia.
Architecture is one of the areas where Persians have made outstanding contributions. Ancient examples can be seen in the ruins at Persepolis, while in modern times monuments such as the Tomb of Omar Khayyam are displays of the varied tradition in Persia. Various cities in Iran are historical displays of a distinctive Persian style that can be seen in the Kharaghan twin towers of Qazvin province and the Shah Mosque found in Isfahan. Persian architecture streams over the borders of Iran and is clearly seen throughout Central Asia as with the Bibi Khanum Mosque in Samarkand as well as Samanids mausoleum in Bukhara and the Minaret of Jam in western Afghanistan. Islamic architecture was founded on the base established by the Persians. Persian techniques can also be clearly seen in the structures of the Taj Mahal at Agra and the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.
Gottfried Semper called rugs "the original means of separating space". Rug weaving was thus developed by ancient civilizations as a basis of architecture. Persian rugs are said to be the most detailed hand-made works of art.
The Persian gardens were designed to reflect paradise on earth;[citation needed] The English word paradise is thought to come from the Persian word Pardis, which refers to these gardens.
Although having existed since ancient times, the Persian garden gained greater prominence during the Islamic period as Arab rulers cultivated Persian techniques to create gardens of Persian design from Al-Andalus to Kashgar.[citation needed] Persian gardens are immortalized in the One Thousand and One Nights and the works of Omar Khayyam.
Persian women have played an important role throughout history. Scheherazade, though fictional, is an important figure of female wit and intelligence, while the beauty of Mumtaz Mahal inspired the building of the Taj Mahal itself. While in ancient times, aristocratic females possessed numerous rights sometimes on par with men, generally Persian women did not attain greater parity until the 20th century. However, Táhirih, the poet, had a great influence on modern women\'s movements throughout the Middle East. The Táhirih Justice Center is named after her. Females were given such status in ancient Persia that they were the first to ever serve in a national military.[citation needed]
Persian women today serve an active role in society. Persian women today tend to take a more active role in social, religious and family affairs than their Arab counterparts.[citation needed] Persian women can be seen working in a variety of areas such as politics, law enforcement, transportation industries, etc. Universities still tend to be dominated by women in Iran and one may find a large number of female legislators in the Iranian Majlis (parliament),[citation needed] even by western standards. Former Vice President Masoumeh Ebtekar, noted for her eloquence in dealing with western media, set a new standard for aspiring Iranian female politicians while serving under President Khatami. Outstanding Iranian female academics, such as Laleh Bakhtiar have forever left a mark in the fields they contribute to.
Persian culture can be defined through its through the medium of films as Persian cinema has attained a substantial amount of international and critical acclaim through such films as Children of Heaven and Taste of Cherry, which give both insights into the current state of Persian culture and profound depictions of the general human condition.
| Ethnic groups in Iran | |
|---|---|
Major:
Persians (53%-72%) •
Azeris (24%) •
Guilaki and Mazandarani (8%) •
Kurds (7%) •
Arabs (3%) •
Lurs (2%) •
Baloch (2%) •
Turkmens (2%) |
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