<P> The term Iran derives directly from Middle Persian Ērān, first attested in a third - century inscription at Rustam Relief, with the accompanying Parthian inscription using the term Aryān, in reference to the Iranians . The Middle Iranian ērān and aryān are oblique plural forms of gentilic nouns ēr - (Middle Persian) and ary - (Parthian), both deriving from Proto - Iranian * arya - (meaning "Aryan", i.e. "of the Iranians"), recognized as a derivative of Proto - Indo - European * ar - yo -, meaning "one who assembles (skilfully)". In the Iranian languages, the gentilic is attested as a self - identifier, included in ancient inscriptions and the literature of the Avesta, and remains also in other Iranian ethnic names Alan (Ossetian: Ир Ir) and Iron (Ирон). </P> <P> Historically, Iran has been referred to as Persia by the West, due mainly to the writings of Greek historians who referred to all of Iran as Persís (Ancient Greek: Περσίς; from Old Persian 𐎱𐎠𐎼𐎿 Pārsa), meaning "land of the Persians", while Persis itself was one of the provinces of ancient Iran that is today defined as Fars . As the most extensive interaction the Ancient Greeks had with any outsider was with the Persians, the term persisted, even long after the Persian rule in Greece . </P> <P> In 1935, Reza Shah requested the international community to refer to the country by its native name, Iran . As The New York Times explained at the time, "At the suggestion of the Persian Legation in Berlin, the Tehran government, on the Persian New Year, Nowruz, March 21, 1935, substituted Iran for Persia as the official name of the country ." Opposition to the name change led to the reversal of the decision, and Professor Ehsan Yarshater, editor of Encyclopædia Iranica, propagated a move to use Persia and Iran interchangeably . Today, both Iran and Persia are used in cultural contexts, while Iran remains irreplaceable in official state contexts . </P> <P> Historical and cultural usage of the word Iran is not restricted to the modern state proper . "Greater Iran" (Irānzamīn or Irān e Bozorg) refers to territories of the Iranian cultural and linguistic zones . In addition to modern Iran, it includes portions of the Caucasus, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, Afghanistan, and Central Asia . </P>

Who established the modern state of iran in 1935