>>About the only thing they have in common with ancient Persia is geography.
>
>More or less my thoughts - but just to be accurate, wouldn't the people of today be, to a great extent, descendants of the ancient Persans? - I am not sure about this.

I've never heard them being called any other name than Persians or Iranians. They don't seem to be Arabic.

And I think every Persian government in the past was insisting on this heritage. This isn't anything new.