became internationally established as the demonym of the newly created country of Syria. Some Assyrians who were not members of the Church of the East also embraced Assyrian nationalism, such as D. B. Perley (1901–1979), who in 1933 helped found the Assyrian National Federation and religiously identified himself as a Syriac Orthodox Christian but ethnically identified himself as an Assyrian. In 1935, Perley wrote that "The Assyrians, although representing but one single nation as the direct heirs of the ancient Assyrian Empire … are now doctrinally divided … No one can coherently understand the Assyrians as a whole until he can distinguish that which is religion or church from that which is nation …" and even proposed uniting all Assyrians under a single patriarch of the Church of the East. For communities that identify themselves as Assyrian, Assyrian continuity forms a key part of their self-identity. Many modern Assyrians are named after ancient Mesopotamian figures, such as Sargon, Sennacherib and Nebuchadnezzar, and the modern Assyrian flag displays symbolism which is derived from ancient Assyria. From the second half of the 20th century to the present, Assyrians, particularly in the diaspora, have continued to promote Assyrian nationalism as a unifying force among their people. Some denominational groups have opposed being lumped in as "Assyrians" and as a result, they have founded counter-movements of their own; the so-called "name debate" is still a hotly discussed topic within Syriac Christian communities today, especially in the diaspora which lives outside the Assyrian homeland. Among Syriac Christians, followers of the Syriac Orthodox Church are the most noteworthy opponents to identifying as Assyrians. In the centuries that followed the fall of the Assyrian Empire, the Aramaic-speaking population of Syria (those who today belong to the Syriac Orthodox Church) diverged somewhat in culture and beliefs from the Aramaic-speaking populations of Mesopotamia as they were exposed to different neighbors and cultural influences. Followers of the Assyrian Church of the East have historically most often been exposed to cultural influences from Iran whereas followers of the Syriac Orthodox Church have been exposed to cultural influences from Greece. An alternative name promoted by some Syriac Orthodox church officials is Aramean (ʾārāmāyā), for instance advocated by Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem I (patriarch 1933–1957). More recently, Syriac Orthodox adherents have simply preferred to identify themselves as "Syriac", the name of their church and the liturgical language and an alternate transliteration of suryayā. In