What country was formerly known as Persia?

As of 2014, the country formerly known as Persia is the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran is sometimes referred to as Persia, though it is not its official name.

Iran is bordered by Armenia, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Iraq, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The most widely spoken language of the country is Farsi, a member of the Persian language family, but some citizens speak Kurdish, Arabic or Turkish. The country is a theocracy and the official religion is Shia Islam. Prior to the Iranian Revolution of 1978 to 1979, the country did not have an official religion. As of 2014, the Supreme Leader is Ali Khamenei and the President is Hassan Rouhani.