PERSIIGRE, Worcestershire, a market-town, and the seat of a Poor Law Union, is situated on the right bank of the river Avou, in 52° 7 N. lat.„ 2' 4' W. distant 10 miles S.F.. from Worcester, and 102 miles W.N.W. from London. The population of the town of l'erahore In ISSI was 2717. The livings are in the arehdesoonry and diocese of Worcester. Panther. PeotsLaw Union contains 39 parishes and town ships, with an area of 52,269 sere., and a population in 1851 of 13,553.
The town of rends:ire is well built and well paved, and is lighted with gat There are two churches—St. Andrew's, a small ancient structure; and the church of Holy Cross, which is remnant of an abbey church. The lofty square tower and transept of Holy Cross are Norman ; the chancel, which is now used as the church, is early English. The Ilaptiata, 1Vesleyan Methodists, and dlormous have places of worship. There are National and Infant schools, and a mechanic. institute. A county court is held. Tuesday is the market day. The principal fair, at which many horses are sold, is held on the 26th of Jane l'EttSIA, or l'EIISIS, called in the Old Testament Pants, and by the Arabic and Persian writer. Fars, or Farsiatan, is used in two signi fication.: fret, it I applied to the country origivally inhabited by the Permian.; and, secondly, to the various countries in Asia included in the Persian empire founded by Cynic, which extended from the Mediterranean to the Indus. and from the Black Sea and the Caspian to the Persian Oulf and the Indian Ocean.
Perth; proper was bounded N. and N.W. by Media, from which it VMS separated by the mountain range known to the ancients under the name of Parachoadires ; S. by the Persian Gulf; 11 by Carmauia; and W. by Susiana, from which it was separated by rugged and ivac ceesible mountains. The country included within these limits is, according to Chardin's estimate, as large as France. The southern
part of it near the seacoast is a sandy plain, almost uninhabitable on account of the heat and the pestileutial winds which blow from the desert of Cannania ; but at some distance from the coast the ground rises, and the interior of the country towards the north is intersected by numerous mountain ranges. The soil upon these mountains is very dry and barren, and though there are some fertile valleys among them, they are generally fit only for the residence of nomadic shepherds. This part of Perna was the original seat of the couquerors of Asia, where they were inured to hardship and privation. In the inner part of the country however them are many well-watered and fertile plains, hi the largest of which Persepolis is situated.
The Persians were divided into several tribes, of which the principal were the Panargadw, Maraphii, and Maspii, and of these the Pasargadre were the noblest, to the chief clan of which, called the Achminenidie, the royal family of Persia belonged. In addition to these tribes, Iferodotus mentions the Panthiellei, Derouskei, and Germanii, as agrienitrosl tribes; and the Dai, Mardi, Dropici, and Sagartii, as nomadic tribes.
Ilerodotos says (vii. 61) that the Persians were originally called Artsei, which word probably contains the same root as Arii, the original name of the Medea (Meted. vii. 62); and Arya (' excelleut, honourable), the word by which the followers of the Brahmanic religion are designated in Sanserit. The same root occurs in Aria and Arian, front the latter of which the modern Persian name Iran seems to be derived. (Aeue...] The only places of importance in Persia were Pzaserous and PAILARCIADY, of which an account is given in separate articles. (Strabo, Ptolemy, Pliny, Herodotus.)