>>507988584 (OP)The name Iran is indeed etymologically related to the word Aryan. The modern Persian name Īrān derives from the Middle Persian Ērān, which in turn comes from the Old Iranian root arya-—a term that meant “Aryan” or “of the Aryans”.
This connection goes back to ancient times. In inscriptions from the Sassanid Empire (3rd century CE), rulers like Ardashir I referred to themselves as “king of kings of the Aryans” (šāhān šāh aryān). he term Aryan in this context referred to the group of Indo-Iranian peoples who shared linguistic and cultural ties, not the later racial connotations the word acquired in 19th- and 20th-century Europe.
So, when Reza Shah officially requested in 1935 that foreign governments use the name Iran instead of Persia, he was emphasizing the country’s indigenous name and its historical identity as the land of the Aryan.