Persia

n 1: an empire in S Asia created by Cyrus the Great in the 6th

century BC and destroyed by Alexander the Great in the

4th century BC [syn: {Persia}, {Persian Empire}]

2: a republic in the Middle East; Iran was the core of the

ancient Persian Empire and was known as Persia until 1935;

rich in oil [syn: {Iran}, {Persia}]