In this qualitative analysis on the national identity of Iranian people, I will address the issue of multi-layered identity of Iranians through the prism of what I call manifested identities. This manifested-identity analysis will allow us to go beyond the usual reductionist approach which focuses on one or two particular attributes as opposed to multidimensional more complex layered identities. My approach to the issue of national identity or even personal identity is more in line with the deconstructive genealogical project of post-modernity. Thus, to speak of any collective identity in terms of ethnicity, racial, or religious attributes is to ignore the complexity of the formation of these manifested identities which are apparent in various contextual historical processes. As such, the latest existential manifestation of “identity” or “identities’ must be de-constructed and traced back to its genealogical origin in order to be fully understood. I will argue that at the core of Iranian collective national identity is an ancient cosmopolitanism promoted through the poetic narratives of diverse literary heroes of Persian literature. In the substantial body of poems by the great narrators like Sadie, Hafez, Rumi, and Firdausi, we find this theme of cosmopolitanism on two different levels. In the works of Gnostic( عرفانی) poets like Rumi and Hafez, we find clear acknowledgment of the infiniteness of humanity and the infinite paths each human being could take to understand that infinity. They argue that the true “self” is accepting of others and is compassionate towards them irrespective of the differences in people’s appearances, loyalties, beliefs and even their narratives. Rumi, specifically, attributes the differences which divides people to ignorance. Hafez, also, eloquently praises pluralism and diversity on the epistemological grounds. On the other hand, the more this-worldly poets like Sadie and Firdausi, express this Persian cosmopolitanism in a more tangible manner. Ferdousi in the first 3 chapters of Shahnameh, praises Qumars, Hooshang and Tahmoures for having a cosmopolitan view of humanity. Sadie also sees humanity as a whole having a shared essence and existence; moreover, he contends that to be a human being is to care for others. I will argue that this contextual reading of these 4 most influential poets of Iran depicts a deeply rooted cosmopolitanism in the Persian culture which is counter to the current commonly held view of Iranians’ national identity defined by their race, ethnicity, or religion.