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Greater Iran (in Persian: ایران بزرگ pron: Iran-e Bozorg, also ایران‌زمین pron: Iran-zameen) is a term for the entire region where Iranian languages are today spoken as a first language, or as a second language by a significant minority. These areas roughly correspond with lands that were part of various empires of in Persia until the early 20th century, and conform to the Persian historical understanding of the full territory of Iran. The Encyclopedia Iranica uses the term Iranian Cultural Continent , and other names such as Greater Persia or Persian cultural continent have also been used, especially in Afghanistan and Tajikistan.

Traditionally, and until recent times, ethnicity has never been a defining separating criteria in these regions. In the words of Richard Nelson Frye:

"Many times I have emphasized that the present peoples of Central Asia, whether Iranian or Turkic speaking, have one culture, one religion, one set of social values and traditions with only language separating them."

Only in modern times did western colonial intervention and ethnicity tend to become a dividing force between the provinces of Greater Iran. As Patrick Clawson states, "ethnic nationalism is largely a nineteenth century phenomenon, even if it is fashionable to retroactively extend it." "Greater Iran" however has been more of a cultural super-state, rather than a political one to begin with.

Obviously, "Greater Iran" has had no fixed boundaries, nor even a fixed definition. While some sources specifically define Greater Iran to include the current republics of Iran, Afghanistan, Republic of Azerbaijan, and Central Asian Republics , other sources such as Richard Nelson Frye give a more broader definition and define it to have included "much of the Caucasus, Afghanistan, and Central Asia, with cultural influences extending to China, India, and the Semitic speaking world." According to Frye, "Iran means all lands and peoples where Iranian languages were and are spoken, and where in the past, multi-faceted Iranian cultures existed."

In the work Nuzhat al-Qolub (نزهه القلوب), the medieval geographer Hamdollah Mostowfi writes:

چند شهر است اندر ایران مرتفع تر از همه
Some cities of Iran are better than the rest,
بهتر و سازنده تر از خوشی آب و هوا
these have pleasant and compromising weather,
گنجه پر گنج در اران صفاهان در عراق
The wealthy Ganjeh of Arran, and Isfahan as well,
در خراسان مرو و طوس در روم باشد اقسرا
Merv and Tus in Khorasan, and Konya (Aqsara) too.

A detailed list of these provinces follows in this article.

Background

Patrick Clawson of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy writes:

"Many Iranians consider their natural sphere of influence to extend beyond Iran's present borders. After all, Iran was once much larger. Portuguese forces seized islands and ports in the 16th and 17th centuries. In the 19th century, the Russian Empire wrested from Tehran's control what is today Armenia, Republic of Azerbaijan, and part of Georgia. Iranian elementary school texts teach about the Iranian roots not only of cities like Baku, but also cities further north like Derbent in southern Russia. The Shah lost much of his claim to western Afghanistan following the Anglo-Iranian war of 1856-1857. Only in 1970 did a UN sponsored consultation end Iranian claims to suzerainty over the Persian Gulf island nation of Bahrain. In centuries past, Iranian rule once stretched westward into modern Iraq and beyond. When the western world complains of Iranian interference beyond its borders, the Iranian government often convincesd itself that it is merely exerting its influence in lands that were once its own. Simultaneously, Iran's losses at the hands of outside powers have contributed to a sense of grievance that continues to the present day."

In Persian, Greater Iran is called Iranzamin (ایران‌زمین) which means "The Land of Iran". Iranzamin was in the mythical times opposed to the Turanzamin the Land of Turan, which was located in the upper part of Central Asia.

In the pre-Islamic period, Iranians distinguished two main regions in the territory they ruled, one Iran and the other Aniran. By Iran they meant all the regions inhabited by ancient Iranian peoples. That region was much vaster than it is today. This notion of Iran as a territory (opposed to Aniran) can be seen as the core of early Greater Iran. Later many changes occurred in the boundaries and areas where Iranians lived but the languages and culture remained the dominant medium in many parts of the Greater Iran.

As an example, the Persian language was the main literary language and the language of correspondence in Central Asia and Caucasus prior to the Russian occupation, Central Asia being the birthplace of modern Persian language. Furthermore, according to the British government, Persian language was also used in Iraqi Kurdistan, prior to the British Occupation and Mandate in 1918-1932 .

With Imperial Russia continuously advancing south in the course of two wars against Persia, and the treaties of Turkmanchai and Golestan in the western frontiers, plus the unexpected death of Abbas Mirza in 1823, and the murdering of Persia's Grand Vizier (Mirza AbolQasem Qa'im Maqām), many Central Asian khanates began losing hope for any support from Persia against the Tsarist armies. The Russian armies occupied the Aral coast in 1849, Tashkent in 1864, Bukhara in 1867, Samarkand in 1868, and Khiva and Amudarya in 1873.

Again Patrick Clawson:

"Iran today is just a rump of what it once was. At its height, Iranian rulers controlled Iraq, Afghanistan, much of Central Asia, and the Caucasus. Many Iranians today consider these areas part of a greater Iranian sphere of influence."

"Since the days of the Achaemenids, the Iranians had the protection of geography. But high mountains and vast emptiness of the Iranian plateau were no longer enough to shield Iran from the Russian army or British navy. Both literally, and figuratively, Iran shrank. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Azerbaijan, Armenia, much of Georgia, and Afghanistan were Iranian, but by the end of the century, all this territory had been lost as a result of European military action."

Treaties

• 1639 Treaty fo Zuhab: Persia loses Baghdad and modern Iraq to the Ottoman Empire.
• 1813 Gulestan Treaty: Iran loses control over large areas of the Caucasus.
• 1828 Turkamanchay Treaty: Signed by Fath Ali Shah. Imperial Russia gains sovereingty over the Caucasus.
• 1857 Paris Treaty: Signed by Nasereddin Shah. Iran loses Herat and parts of Afghanistan in exchange for the evacuation of Iran's southern ports by Great Britain.
• 1881 Akhal Treaty: Signed by Nasereddin Shah. Iran loses Merv and parts of Khwarazmia in exchange for security guarantees from Imperial Russia.
• 1893: Iran further loses regions near the Atrak river that were entitled to it from the Akhal Treaty. This treaty was signed by General Boutsoff and Mirza Ali Asghar Amin al-Sultan on May 27, 1893.
• 1907: Persia was to be carved up into three regions, according to the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907.
• 1970: Iran abandons sovereignty rights over Bahrain to Great Britain in exchange for Greater and Lesser Tunbs and Abu Musa islands in the Persian Gulf.

Maps

Persianates and Provinces of Greater Iran (Persia)

Central Asia

"Khwarazm is one of the regions of Iran-zameen, and is the home of the ancient Iranians, Airyanem Vaejah, according to the ancient book of the Avesta." Modern scholars believe Khwarazm to be what ancient Avestic texts refer to as "Ariyaneh Waeje" or "Iran vij". These sources claim that Urgandj, which was the capital of ancient Khwarazm for many years, was actually "Ourva": the eighth land of Ahura Mazda mentioned in the Pahlavi text of Vendidad. Michael Witzel, a researcher in early Indo-European history, believes that Iran vig was located in what is now Afghanistan , the northern areas of which were a part of Ancient Khwarezm and Greater Khorasan. Others such as University of Hawaii historian Elton L. Daniel believe Khwarazm to be the "most likely locale" corresponding to the original home of the Avestan people , while Dehkhoda calls Khwarazm "the cradle of the Aryan tribe" (مهد قوم آریا). Today Khwarazm is split between several central Asian republics.

Superimposed on and overlapping with Chorasmia was Khorasan which roughly covered nearly the same geographical areas in Central Asia (starting from Semnan eastward through northern Afghanistan roughly until the foothills of Pamir). Current day provinces such as Sanjan in Turkmenia, Razavi Khorasan Province, Nothern Khorasan Province, and Southern Khorasan Province in Iran are all remnants of the old Khorasan. Until the 13th century and the devastating Mongol invasion of the region, Khorasan was considered the cultural capital of Persia.

Tajikistan

The national anthem in Tajikistan, "Surudi Milli", attests to the Perso-Tajik identity, which has seen a large revival, after the breakup of the USSR. Their language is almost identical to that spoken in Afghanistan and Iran, and their cities have Persian names, e.g. Dushanbe, Isfara (Esfarayen), Rasht Valley, Garm, Murghab, Vahdat, Zar-afshan river, Shurab, and Kolyab ().

Some experts even argue that Tajiks are culturally closer to the Persian original root, as the Iranians to the west have mingled and mixed with various empires over the years.

Afghanistan

Afghans take pride in being close descendants of the Aryans, or to be more precise: Ariana - the Greek pronunciation of the ancient Avestan Airyanem Vaejah or the Sanskrit "Aryavarta", Land of the Aryans. Today this Old-Persian, and Avestan expression is preserved in the name of the Afghan national airline, Ariana Airlines. The term 'Ariana Afghanistan' is still popular amongst many people in the country.

Afghanistan was part of Greater Khorasan, and hence was recognized with the name Khorasan (along with regions centered around Merv and Neishabur), which in Pahlavi means "The Eastern Land" (خاور زمین in Persian).

Afghanistan is where Balkh is located, home of Rumi, Khajeh Abdollah Ansari, and where many other notables in Persian literature came from. The Dari language of Afghanistan, is a nearly identical dialect of the Persian language. It is widely spoken in Afghanistan.

At the latest, Nasereddin Shah lost control of Herat to the British in 1857. But still even today, Persian names are far abound across the towns and districts of the country: Gulistan District, Shuhada District, Badghis, Meymaneh, Qal'eh-i Now, Murghab District, Puli Khumri, Mazari Sharif, Band-e Amir, Pusht-e-Koh, Fāryāb Province, Ajristan, Qara Bagh, Jowzjan Province, Safid River, Nuristan, Dih Bala, Hisarak, Nimruz Province, Nurestan Province, Panjshir Province, Parvan Province, Samangan Province, Sar-e Pol Province, Maidan Shahr, and Zabul Province among others.

ززابل به کابل رسید آن زمان
From Zabul he arrived to Kabul
گرازان و خندان و دل شادمان
Strutting, happy, and mirthful
---Ferdowsi in Shahnama

Turkmenistan

Home of the Parthian Empire (Nysa). Merv is also where the half-Persian caliph al-Mamun moved his capital to, inorder to move the center of the caliphate away from Arab speaking lands. The city of Eshgh Abad is yet another Persian word meaning "city of love", and like Iran, Afghanistan, and Uzbekistan, it was once part of Airyanem Vaejah.

Uzbekistan

The famous cities of Afrasiab, Bukhara, Samarkand, Shahrisabz, Andijan, Khiveh, Khujand, Navā'i, Shirin, Termez, and Zar-afshan are located here. Many experts point to these cities as the birthplace of modern Persian language. The Samanids, who claimed inheritance to the Sassanids, had their capital built here.

ای بخارا شاد باش و دیر زی
Oh Bukhara! Joy to you and live long!
شاه زی تو میهمان آید همی
Your King comes to you in ceremony.
---Rudaki

Western China

The Xinjiang regions of China harbored a Persian population and culture.

Kurdish regions

The Kurdish regions together including those in Iraq, Turkey and Syria, in addition to Iran, constitute what is commonly referred to as the greater Kurdistan. The Kurdish regions in Iraq, Syria and Turkey are entwined with the culture and history of that of the rest of Greater Iran. The Kurds and Lurs of Iran are spread out through many provinces, and are thought to also be closely descended from the Aryan tribes of antiquity. Ardashir I of Persia was born from a Kurdish mother of the Shabankareh tribe of Fars Province. Kurdish ancestors are believed to have consisted of the ancient tribes descending from the Caucauses, such as Hurrian tribes, as well as the later Indo-Iranian speaking Medes. The Medes established the Median Empire in 728 BCE, before forming a union with the Persian tribes and creating the Iranian Empire.

Pakistan

The western provinces of Pakistan, which comprise the North West Frontier Province and Baluchistan, are predominantly Iranian-speaking regions where Pashtuns and Baluchis comprise the vast majority of the local populations and remain an extension of Iranian civilization in the east. In addition, many remains of Persian architecture still remain in these areas (e.g. Wazir Khan Mosque, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Kuhestan, Nuristan, Nasirabad District, Panjgur District, Muzaffarabad, Shahpur, Turbat, Khosh-ab district, Sadeq-abad, Shah Bandar, and Nazem Abad), and up to 1 million Persian speakers still exist.

Parts of Pakistan east of the Indus river are traditionally thought of as Persianate rather than being part of greater Iran. Pakistan's national language, Urdu borrows heavily from Persian, while the nation's national poet, Muhammad Iqbal wrote the majority of poems in Persian. Pakistan's national anthem is also in Persian, and many educated Pakistanis are fluent in the language. In addition Persian influence resonates in arts and architecture.

Parts of the Caucasus region

Sassanid remains can be seen up far north as "Darband", now in southern Russia (the words Daghestan and darband are both Persian). These parts were mostly annexed by Imperial Russia over the course of the 18th and 19th centuries. yet even today, most of these regions continue to retain their Greater Persian identity, as can be seen in their traditions and customs (e.g. Norouz). For a discussion see

Azerbaijan

Separated from Iran in the mid-1800s, by virtue of the Gulistan Treaty and Turkmanchai treaty. The city of Baku (Bād-kubeh) is another city with an originally Persian name. The word Azerbaijan itself is from the Persian "Azar-Padegan" (Atropatan).

Despite the annexation of this area by Imperial Russia, the main part of Azerbaijan remians inside the modern day Iran.

گزیده هر چه در ایران بزرگان
زآذربایگان و ری و گرگان

All the nobles and greats of Iran,
Choose from Azarbaijan, Ray, and Gorgan.
--Vis o Ramin

Armenia ("Armanestan")

Armenia was a province of various Persian Empires since the Achaemenid period and was heavily influenced by Persian culture. Armenia however, has historically been largely populated by a distinct Indo-European-speaking people who merged with local Caucasian peoples, rather than being directly associated with the Iranian peoples. Ancient Armenian society was a combination of local cultures, Iranian social and political structures, and Hellenic/Christian traditions. Due to centuries of independent indigenous development, conquests by western powers including the Romans and Russians, and its diverse diasporic population that has absorbed many cultural traits, especially those of Europe and Lebanon, Armenia can be termed a Persianate state.

Iran continues to have a sizeable Armenian minority that links Armenians to Iranian culture. Many Armenians such as Yeprem Khan were directly involved and remembered in the History of Iran.

Nakhichevan

Early in antiquity, Narseh of Persia is known to have had fortifications built here. In later times, some of Persia's literary and intellectual figures from the Qajar period have hailed from this region. Also separated from Greater-Iran/Persia in the mid-1800s, by virtue of the Gulistan Treaty and Turkmanchai treaty.

که تا جایگه یافتی نخچوان
Oh Nakhchivan, respect youve attained,
بدین شاه شد بخت پیرت جوان
With this King in luck youll remain.
---Nizami

Georgia and Ossetia

Georgia, or "Gorjestan" was a Persian Province during Sassanid times (particularly starting with Hormozd IV). During the Safavid era, Georgia became so culturally intertwined with Iran that they almost repalced the Qezelbash in the Safavid courts. Persian language was even the official administrative language of Georgia in the time of Shah Tahmasb, and Allah-verdi Khan, whom the famous landmark of 33 pol in Isfahan is named after, was among the Georgian elite that were involved in the Safavid government. And Amin al-Sultan, Prime Minister of Iran, was the son of a Georgian father. Georgia was again a direct province of Persia from 1629 until 1762 when the Russian influence arrived.

The aforementioned is especially true of "Eastern Georgia". Eastern Georgia historically was attached to the south for support, as opposed to Western Georgia, which looked for help to the North. The city of "Teflis" (now Tbilisi) was Persianized for quite some time. The Qajarid heir to the throne prince Abbas Mirza spent much time there.

In the end, Persia was unable to challenge Russia in Georgia, and officially gave up claim to Georgia according to the text of the Gulistan Treaty and Turkmanchai treaty. Today, Georgia continues to be Europeanized.

For a lengthy discussion, see

Modern-Day Iraq

This is what used to be the western part of Greater Iran. At times, it also included what is today eastern Iraq, as it is where the Sassanid capital was located (Ctesiphon). There are still cities and provinces in contemporary Iraq where the Persian names of the city are still retained. e.g. al-Anbar or Baghdad. Other cities of Iraq with originally Persian names include Nokard --> al-Haditha, Budh-Aadashir --> Mausil, Suristan --> Kufa, Shahrban --> Miqdadiya, Anbar --> Falluja, Arvandrud --> Shatt al-Arab, and Asheb --> Imadiyya.

Patrick Clawson verifies this:

"Arab nationalists may seek retroactively to extend the present into the past, but this skews reality. Iranian domains once extended well into what is now Iraq. The first Sassanian capital was at Ctesiphon, 21 miles southeast of Baghdad."

Even after Iraq was Arabized during the Islamic conquests of the 7th century, the Persian presence was still quite recognizeable and dominant at times, as many famous Persian Shia clerics are buried in Najaf and Karbala. At the latest, the Safavids lost control of these areas to the Ottoman Empire

References

1. Patrick Clawson. Eternal Iran. Palgrave Macmillan. 2005 ISBN 1-4039-6276-6 p.23
2. Frye, Richard Nelson, Greater Iran, ISBN 1-56859-177-2 p.xi
3. Patrick Clawson. Eternal Iran. Palgrave. 2005. Coauthored with Michael Rubin. ISBN 1-4039-6276-6 p.9,10
4. Dehkhoda Dictionary, Dehkhoda, see under entry "Turan"
5. Homayoun, N. T., Kharazm: What do I know about Iran?. 2004. ISBN 964-379-023-1, p.78
6. Patrick Clawson. Eternal Iran. Palgrave. 2005. Coauthored with Michael Rubin. ISBN 1-4039-6276-6 p.30
7. Patrick Clawson. Eternal Iran. Palgrave. 2005. Coauthored with Michael Rubin. ISBN 1-4039-6276-6 p.31-32
8. Homayoun, N.T., Kharazm: What do I know about Iran?. 2004. ISBN 964-379-023-1, p.111
9. Farahvoshi, Bahram. Iranovich, Tehran University Press. 1991, p.8
10. Javan, Musa. Tarikh-i Ijtima'i Iran-i Bastan (The social history of ancient Iran), 1961, p24
11. Daniel, E., The History of Iran. 2001. ISBN 0-313-30731-8, p.28
12. Lorentz, J. Historical Dictionary of Iran. 1995. ISBN 0-8108-2994-0
13. Dehkhoda, Dehkhoda dictionary, Tehran University Press, p.8457
14. See:
    • Encyclopedia Iranica, p.443 for Persian settlements in southwestern China
    • Iran-China relations for more links on the historical ties.
15. Encyclopedia Iranica: "Caucasus Iran" article, p.84-96.
16. See:
    • Link:
    • Encyclopedia Iranica p.417-483 for a lengthy discussion on this topic. Link: here
17. Patrick Clawson. Eternal Iran. Palgrave. 2005. Coauthored with Michael Rubin. ISBN 1-4039-6276-6 p.168
18. Encyclopedia Iranica's reference on Gorjestan:
19. See: محمدی ملایری، محمد: فرهنگ ایران در دوران انتقال از عصر ساسانی به عصر اسلامی، جلد دوم: دل ایرانشهر، تهران، انتشارات توس 1375.: Mohammadi Malayeri, M.: Del-e Iranshahr, vol. II, Tehran 1375 Hs.
20. Patrick Clawson. Eternal Iran. Palgrave Macmillan. 2005. ISBN 1-4039-6276-6,

Further reading

• "Ethnic Identity in Iran" by Richard Nelson Frye, JSAI 26, 2002, see p.82
• Columbia College Today on "Iranian Cultural Continent"

See also

• Pan-Iranism
• Iranian Plateau
• Iranology
• Greater Khorasan
• History of Afghanistan
• Persianate cultures
• List of Irredentist states
• Anti-Iranianism

Other cultural continents

• Indian cultural continent
• Europe

External links

In English

• CAIS-SOAS article
• Other CAIS-SOAS articles "on the Archaeological & Historical Geography of the Greater Iran"
• A map of the treaties affecting Greater Iran
• Article on Iranian.com
• Persians in China
• Pirooz in China
• Pan-Iranism.com forums
• PanIranism.com
• others

In Persian

• Interview: where "Iran e Bozrorg" is discussed (2) (3)
• PanIranism.org

• Geography of Iran
• History of Iran
• Iranian culture
• Irredentism