WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

Persia
    n 1: an empire in southern 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 theocratic Islamic republic in the Middle East in western
       Asia; Iran was the core of the ancient empire that was known
       as Persia until 1935; rich in oil [syn: Iran, Islamic
       Republic of Iran, Persia]

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary:

Persia
   an ancient empire, extending from the Indus to Thrace, and from
   the Caspian Sea to the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf. The
   Persians were originally a Medic tribe which settled in Persia,
   on the eastern side of the Persian Gulf. They were Aryans, their
   language belonging to the eastern division of the Indo-European
   group. One of their chiefs, Teispes, conquered Elam in the time
   of the decay of the Assyrian Empire, and established himself in
   the district of Anzan. His descendants branched off into two
   lines, one line ruling in Anzan, while the other remained in
   Persia. Cyrus II., king of Anzan, finally united the divided
   power, conquered Media, Lydia, and Babylonia, and carried his
   arms into the far East. His son, Cambyses, added Egypt to the
   empire, which, however, fell to pieces after his death. It was
   reconquered and thoroughly organized by Darius, the son of
   Hystaspes, whose dominions extended from India to the Danube.


Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary (late 1800's):

Persia, that cuts or divides; a nail; a gryphon; a horseman


U.S. Gazetteer Places (2000):

Persia, IA -- U.S. city in Iowa
   Population (2000):    363
   Housing Units (2000): 145
   Land area (2000):     0.456645 sq. miles (1.182705 sq. km)
   Water area (2000):    0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km)
   Total area (2000):    0.456645 sq. miles (1.182705 sq. km)
   FIPS code:            62445
   Located within:       Iowa (IA), FIPS 19
   Location:             41.578993 N, 95.570417 W
   ZIP Codes (1990):     51563
   Note: some ZIP codes may be omitted esp. for suburbs.
   Headwords:
    Persia, IA
    Persia