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.