Iran History
The country has always been known to its own people as Iran (land of the Aryans), although for centuries it was referred to as Persia (Pars or Fars, a province in southern Iran) by the Europeans, mainly due to the writings of Greek historians. In 1935 the Government specified that it should be called Iran; however, in 1949 they allowed both names to be used. Both names are widely used today.
Iran has been inhabited by humans since pre-historic times and recent discoveries have begun to shed light upon what these ancient cultures were like in Iran, centuries before the earliest civilizations arose in nearby Mesopotamia.For more than three thousand years Persia was a melting pot of civilizations and demographic movements between Asia and Europe. Under Cyrus the Great, it became the center of the world’s first empire.
The Persian Empire dominated Mesopotamia from 612-330 BC. The ceremonial capital was Persepolis in southern Iran founded by King Darius the Great (522-486 B.C.). The Achaemenid Persians of central Iran ruled an empire which comprised Iran, Mesopotamia, Syria, Egypt, and parts of Asia Minor and India. Persepolis was burned by Alexander the Great in 331 B.C. Its position as a vast natural fortress, with mountain ranges, enabled the Persians to preserve their individuality in spite of the conquests by the Arabs, the Turks, and the Mongols.
National Anthem
Iranian National Anthem before the revolution. The most popular among most Iranians
Ey Iran
Oh Iran our jeweled country
Oh, your soil is the wellspring of the arts
Far from you may the thoughts of evils be
May your lasting eternal be
Oh enemy, if you are of stone, I am of iron
May my life be sacrificed for my pure motherland
Your love is my calling
My thoughts are never far from you
In your cause, when do our lives have value?
May the land of our Iran be eternal
The stones of your mountain are jewels and pearls
The soil of your valleys are better than gold
When could I rid my heart of your affection?
Tell me, what will I do without your affection?
As long the turning of the earth and the cycling of the sky lasts
The light of the Divine will always guide us
Your love is my calling
My thoughts are never far from you
In your cause, when do our lives have value?
May the land of our Iran be eternal
Iran oh my green paradise
Lighted is my fate because of you
If fire rains on my body
Other than your love I will not cherish in my heart
Your water, soil and love molded my clay
If your love leaves my heart it will become barren
Your love is my calling
My thoughts are never far from you
In your cause, when do our lives have value?
May the land of our Iran be eternal
