Thursday, December 16, 2004
The Persian-Arabian Gulf
A follow-up to Reuben's post. I was browsing through Bernard Lewis' introductory book on The Middle East at this Italian restaurant called Di Napoli Pizzeria. The restaurant happens to be one of these inconspicuous places on a street I have never been on before, and I thought I would check it out. Anyway, I found this little piece of trivia in the first chapter.
Strictly speaking, Persia, or Persis, is the name not of a country nor of a nation, but of a province - the southwestern province of Pars or Fars, on the eastern shore of the gulf which takes its name from it. The Persians have never applied that name to the whole country. They have, however, used it of their language, since the regional dialect of Pars became the dominant cultural and political language of the country in the same way that Tuscan became Italian, Castilian became Spanish, and the dialect of the Home Counties became English.
I would think that the term Arabian Gulf might also be reasonable, given that only a small
portion of Pars is actually adjoining the Gulf. In any case, a significant section of the Arabian Peninsula is definitely on it. Renaming gegraphic regions can of course be quite a sensitive issue. A few weeks back, the Iranian government banned the sales of National Geographic for using the term in maps, and even banned National Geographic journalists from entering the country. National Geographic has issued a Press Release.
The Society does not follow any single source to make such determinations, and seeks to be
accurate, apolitical and objective. Decisions regarding nomenclature assigned to geographic places, locations, bodies of water, and the like are checked against a number of external entities, including the Board on Geographic Names, recognized reference books such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, and geographical dictionaries. The Arabian Gulf is recognized as a variant naming of the Persian Gulf by many such entities. In fact, the Society first used the primary-secondary dual listing on a Middle East map published in 1991.
Strictly speaking, Persia, or Persis, is the name not of a country nor of a nation, but of a province - the southwestern province of Pars or Fars, on the eastern shore of the gulf which takes its name from it. The Persians have never applied that name to the whole country. They have, however, used it of their language, since the regional dialect of Pars became the dominant cultural and political language of the country in the same way that Tuscan became Italian, Castilian became Spanish, and the dialect of the Home Counties became English.
I would think that the term Arabian Gulf might also be reasonable, given that only a small
portion of Pars is actually adjoining the Gulf. In any case, a significant section of the Arabian Peninsula is definitely on it. Renaming gegraphic regions can of course be quite a sensitive issue. A few weeks back, the Iranian government banned the sales of National Geographic for using the term in maps, and even banned National Geographic journalists from entering the country. National Geographic has issued a Press Release.
The Society does not follow any single source to make such determinations, and seeks to be
accurate, apolitical and objective. Decisions regarding nomenclature assigned to geographic places, locations, bodies of water, and the like are checked against a number of external entities, including the Board on Geographic Names, recognized reference books such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, and geographical dictionaries. The Arabian Gulf is recognized as a variant naming of the Persian Gulf by many such entities. In fact, the Society first used the primary-secondary dual listing on a Middle East map published in 1991.
