FORCES SHAPING THE
MODERN MIDDLE EAST
22-2 KE
Diversity and Nationalism
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Western powers first used the term Middle East to
refer to the region between Europe and the “far
east”
To avoid western bias, some people now call it
Southwest Asia
In this chapter, it is referred the region from Egypt
in the west to Iran in the east and from Turkey in the
north to the Arabian Peninsula
Religious and Cultural Diversity
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Judaism, Christianity, and Islam all emerged
Today, most people are Muslims
Middle Eastern people speak more than 30 different
languages
 Include
Arabic, Turkish, Persian, Hebrew, Kurdish, and
Armenian
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The Kurds are an ethnic group divided by modern
borders among Turkey, Iraq, and Iran
While Muslims share the same basic faith but belong
to different national groups; Arabs, Iranians, and
Turks have their own
Winning Independence
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In the Middle East, imperialism and nationalism
were powerful forces
Iraq won freedom from Britain in 1932
After WWII, British & French mandates won
complete independence as the nations of Lebanon,
Syria, and Jordan
The Pan-Arab dream of a united Arab state
foundered as nations pursued individual goals
Colonial Legacy
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Arab nations remained economically dependent on
the West
Westerners owned industries and banks & provided
the capital and technology needed for
development
Britain and France had drawn borders to serve their
own interests
Religious and ethnic tensions continue to fuel conflicts
in Iraq
Conflict Over Palestine
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Britain issues the Balfour Declaration, which pledged
support for a Jewish national home in Palestine
Both Jews & Palestinian Arabs claimed a historical
right to the land
Jewish migration to Palestine increased after WWII
As turmoil increased, Britain turned over its mandate
to the United Nations
In 1947, the UN drew up a plan to partition Palestine
into an Arab and a Jewish state
 Jews
accepted but Arabs declined
The Birth of Israel
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After Britain withdrew in 1948, Jews proclaimed the
independent state of Israel
The U.S & Soviet Union both recognized Israel, or
formally agreed to treat it as a legitimate gov’t
Israeli forces fought well against the poorly
equipped and badly led the Arab forces
Israel developed rapidly after 1948
In spite of scarce natural resources, a skilled and
educated work force made rapid progress
Kibbutzim, or collective farms, produced crops for
export
The Refugee Issue
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The Arab-Israeli War of 1948 uprooted 700,00
Arabs from Palestine
The UN set up temporary shelters for Palestinian
refugees
Political and Economic Patterns
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After winning independence, Middle Eastern nations
worked to modernize their governments &
economies
Parts of the region sit on top of the world’s largest
oil reserves, which brought regional and global
consequences
Governments
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Most Middle Eastern nations developed
authoritarian governments
In Egypt & Iraq, revolutionary military leaders
toppled monarchs who were closely tied to western
powers
In other countries, hereditary monarchs remained in
power but took steps to adapt to the modern world
Only Israel and Turkey formed multiparty
democratic systems
Impact of Oil
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Because the Middle East commanded vital oil
resources, the U.S & other powers increased their
political & military presence in the region
Only a few countries, on the Persian Gulf, have
large oil resources
Oil-rich nations built roads, hospitals, and schools
Poorer countries lacked the capital needed for that
Water Resources
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Many experts have predicted that water may soon
become the most valuable resource in the Middle
East
Growing populations and rising standards of living
have increased demands for water
Farming accounts for 80% of water use
To meet this demand, oil-rich countries have built
desalinization plants that convert sea water into
fresh water
Economic Policies
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In the 1950’s, some Arab nations turned to socialism
as a way to end foreign economic control &
modernize rapidly
To get capital, gov’ts took foreign loans & built
large projects in industry and agriculture
The Middle East faced grave economic challenges
Islamic Revival
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Islam has been shaping force in the Middle East for
more than 1300 years
The Quran and Sharia provide guidance on all
aspects of life
Western Influences
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During the Age of Imperialism, westerners urged
Muslim nations to modernize
After nearly a century of western influence, some
Middle Eastern leaders adopted western models of
development, promising economic progress & social
justice
Call for Reform
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By the 1970s, in the face of failed development &
repressive regimes, many Muslim leaders and
writers called for a return to the Sharia
Islamic reformers, often called fundamentalists by
westerners, didn’t reject modernization, but they did
reject westernization
Offering Islam as an inspiration, the movement
appealed to poor and educated Muslims alike
Impact
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By the 1990s, the Islamic revival had spread across
the Muslim world
In Iran, revolutionaries overthrew an unpopular shah
In Algeria, voters supported members of a party that
had pledged to restore the Sharia
Across the Muslim world, the Islamic revival sparked
heated debates between reformers and secularists
Many devout Muslims opposed any scientific view of
the world that excluded the belief in God as creator
& ruler of the universe
Women in the Muslim World
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Conditions for women vary greatly from country to
country in the modern Middle East
Since the 1950s, women in most countries have won
voting rights and equality before the law
The changes have taken place at different rates in
different places
In Turkey, Syria and Egypt, many women gave up
wearing hejab, or a cover.
On the other hand, conservative countries have
opposed the spread of many western secular
influences among women
Return to Hejab
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In recent decades, many educated Muslim women
have returned to wearing hejab
For some women, the movement symbolized
resistance to unpopular governments or refusal to
imitate western culture
Continuing Issues
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Still some women in Muslim countries were dismayed
 They
argued against social and political forces that put
severe limits on their lives
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Under Sharia, women traditionally held powerful
positions in the family and played important
economic roles
Many Muslim and non-Muslim women spoke out on
the need for women to realize their full potential &
contribute to national life