How did Persian come to mean someone from the entire region of Iran as opposed to specifically one group of Iranic speakers in that region?

by AclockworkWalrus
lcnielsen

Sorry, could you be more specific? Today, Persians, Azeri Turks and Iranian Kurds (the three biggest groups in Iran) are generally differentiated since Reza Shah's diplomatic demands. So is there a specific period you are referring to? This is a pretty complex issue, particularly the meaning of "Iran", and it's hard to give a single answer that covers 2500 years of history.