Zoroaster ( or , from
Greek Zōroastrēs), also known as
Zarathustra (; (
Zaraθuštra);
Zartosht,
Zardosht), or as
Zarathushtra Spitama, was the founder of
Zoroastrianism. Though he was a native speaker of
Old Avestan and lived in the eastern part of the
Iranian Plateau, his birthplace is uncertain. Zoroaster lived some time around 1500 BCE.
Zoroastrianism was the official religion of Persia and its distant
subdivisions from 600 BCE to 650 CE.