Regional Map
Southwest
Asia &
North
Africa
2
North Africa and Southwest Asia
• This region is often called the Middle East. This is a
term that is left over from the European colonial
period and reflects a eurocentric view of the world.
Why is this not right?
• The correct term Southwest Asia, will be used here
even though it creates problems because we tend to
include China, India, and Japan.
• Also, there is a problem regarding the incorporation
of Saudi Arabia or Israel. Egypt is clearly more
related to Syria or Iraq than those nations are to
Korea or Vietnam. Geographically Egypt belongs to
Africa. The nations north of the Sahara Desert share
many similarities with the "Middle East" but relatively
few with their neighbors in Sub-Saharan Africa.
North Africa and Southwest Asia
• From the political geographer's point of view, this region
constitutes a shatter belt, that is, a fragmented region,
coveted by outside powers, where the dangers of
confrontation are great, the stakes are high, and the
dangers of escalating conflict all too real. Conflict has
been more or less endemic to this region throughout
recorded history. Several flash points continue to persist
down to the present time.
• Despite its diversity, this region constitutes a unit because
of:
– a. the dominance of dry climates and
– b. the Islamic (Moslem or Muslim) religion. Islam is the
principal religion in all countries except:
• Israel, where Judaism prevails;
• Lebanon, where ancient forms of Christianity are of
major importance.
SW Asia vs. the U. S.
Latitude Lines
North Africa and Southwest
Asia:
Place and Times
• The region’s history includes Fertile
Crescent and Egyptian civilizations, the
birth of three major religions, and the
spread of Muslim empires.
Ancient Mesopotamia
and the Fertile Crescent
• Fertile Crescent – ecologically diverse zone that
stretches through the fertile hill country of northern
Syria into Iraq
• Region called Fertile
Crescent due to its
shape and the fertile
soil that exists there.
Water and Life: Rural Settlement
Patterns
• Fertile Crescent Region is early hearth of agricultural
domestication
• Domestication – process in which plants and
animals were purposefully selected and bred for
their desirable characteristics; it began in this
region 10,000 years ago
Pastoral Nomadism
• Traditional form of subsistence agriculture based on
seasonal movement of livestock
• Transhumance – seasonal movement of livestock
from winter to summer pastures
Nomadic Lifestyles
• Many people in North Africa and the
Middle East still live a nomadic lifestyle.
Nomads live on the Arabian peninsula
and in the Sahara Desert.
• Nomads usually have herds of camels
or sheep and live in oases for short
periods of time.
A Long Urban Legacy
• City life began in Mesopotamia (Eridu & Ur 3500 B.C.),
and Egypt (Memphis & Thebes 3000 B.C.)
• Rise of trade centers around 2000 B.C
Hammurabi—ancient Mesopotamian
emperor, ruled 1792–1750 B.C.
• Mesopotamia—Greek for “land
between the rivers”
• Covers area of Iraq, parts of Syria,
Turkey
•
A Culture Based on Writing
City-States
• Sumerians—first inhabitants form city-states around 3000 B.C.
• City-state—city and areas it controls
• Three challenges influence development of city-states:
- high walls protect from hostile invaders
- irrigation canals provide water to area with little rainfall
- allow safe trading of grain, dates, cloth for stones, metals, timber
Cuneiform
•Cuneiform—one of first systems of writing, developed by
Sumerians
- used to write lists, records, histories, religious
beliefs, science
•Most Sumerians cannot write; scribes trained to keep records
Ancient Egypt
The civilization of the ancient Egyptians developed in
response to both its desert environment and the
flooding waters of the Nile River.
Ancient Egypt and the Nile
The River in the Sand
• Greek historian Herodotus calls Egypt “the gift of the Nile”
• Most of Egypt is desert, which discourages invaders
- Nile is called “the river in the sand”
• Egyptians, farmers plan their year around Nile flooding
- but cannot predict amount of flooding each year
- low floods limit crops; high floods destroy fields, homes
Taming the Nile
•
•
•
•
Build canals to carry water from river to dry areas
Strengthen riverbanks to prevent overflow
Use Nile to travel between cities; build boats, harbors, ports
Nile made trade profitable, removed need for many roads
The Nile’s Gifts
• Nile mud used for pottery, bricks
• Papyrus—paperlike material from papyrus plant found in Nile
marshes
The Great Builders
The Pyramids
• Idea of afterlife important to life, culture
• Build huge temples, monuments, pyramids—
four triangular sides
• Pyramids built as afterlife palaces for pharaohs—kings
Materials and Labor
• Pyramids built with large blocks of stone, capped with gold
• Builders use hieroglyphics—write with pictographs for words, sounds
• All families help with dangerous work, as laborers, food providers
Southwest Asia and the
Birthplace of Three Major Religions
•
Three major monotheistic religions
began in Southwest Asia.
A. Judaism
B. Christianity
C. Islam
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WEbSIn
PEGaY
Jerusalem
• Jerusalem is sacred to three religions.
A. Judaism - Western Wall
B. Christianity - Church of the Holy
Sepulchre
C. Islam - Dome of the Rock
Christianity
• Jesus Christ was Jewish. He preached
that he was the son of God.
• He taught that anyone can reach
salvation through faith.
• His teachings were collected in the first
four books of the New Testament.
• He was crucified, but according to his
followers he rose from the dead.
Church of the Holy Sepulcher
Modern
Religions
(Fig. 7.21)
21
Judaism
Abraham and the Origin of Judaism
Yahweh and Abraham
• Hebrews, first monotheists, believe Yahweh
spoke to Abraham
- has him leave Mesopotamian Ur, settle in
Canaan (now Israel)
• Abraham’s descendants are Jews; religion is
Judaism
Judaism
• Historically, Jewish people lived in the
area of modern day Israel. They had a
kingdom called Judea and built a temple
on the temple mount in Jerusalem.
• The temple held the ark of the covenant
and the ten commandments.
Judaism
Some of the major beliefs of Judaism are:
A. Monotheism - There is one god who is all
powerful and all knowing.
B. God made a special covenant or agreement
with Abraham, who is the ‘father’ of the
Jewish people.
C. God revealed his laws through Moses and
the Ten Commandments.
Temple Mount
• The temple was destroyed by the
Babylonians and later rebuilt. It was
destroyed again by the Romans and the
only remaining section is called the
Western Wall or Wailing Wall. This is a
sacred place in Judaism.
• (Jerusalem, 4000 years in 5 minutes)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=
player_embedded&v=2mR2W43t6tI
THE WESTERN WALL
Globalization & Diversity: Rowntree, Lewis, Price, Wyckoff
26
Islam
• Islam is a monotheistic religion that
developed in Saudi Arabia in the early
600s. Islam is directly related to
Judaism and Christianity.
• Islam was founded by the Prophet
Muhammed who lived from 570 to 632
in Saudi Arabia.
Dome of the Rock
Islam
The five pillars or central teachings of Islam are:
A. A statement of faith
B. Prayer (five times a day in the direction of
Mecca)
C. Charity
D. Pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in your
lifetime (called the Hajj)
E. Fasting (during the month of Ramadan)
Islam
• The teachings of Muhammed were collected
into a book called the Koran.
• Muslims worship in buildings called mosques.
It is forbidden to make pictures or statues of
Allah or Muhammed so most mosques are
decorated with ornate tile work or passages
from the Koran.
• One of the five pillars is a pilgrimage to Mecca
(or Makkah) in Saudi Arabia which was the
birth place of Muhammed.
Islam
Early major religious split divided Islam - still exists
• Shiites – current name of group that favored passing
power on within Muhammad’s own family
• Sunnis – current name of group that favored passing
power through established clergy; emerged victorious
Modern Religious Diversity
• Muslims majority, except for in Israel and Cyprus
• Sunni (73%); Shiites (23%) dominant in Iran,
southern Iraq, Lebanon, Sudan, and Bahrain
Diffusion of Islam (Fig. 7.19)
THE CRUSADES
A Quest for the Holy Land
Crusades
• A long series or Wars
between Christians
and Muslims
• They fought over
control of Jerusalem
which was called the
Holy Land because it
was the region where
Jesus had lived,
preached and died
Causes of the Crusades
Muslim Turks
captured Jerusalem
from the Byzantine
Empire
Muslims stopped
Christians from
Visiting Holy Land
Christian pilgrims
were attacked
Byzantine Empire
feared attack on
Constantinople
The Call to Arms
• Pope Urban II
called for the
defeat of the
Turks, returning
the Holy Land to
the Christians
Who Answered the Call?
•Feudal Lords
•Knights
•Peasants
The First Crusade (1096-1099)
• Peasant army
– Untrained
– Lacked military
equipment
– Many killed by
Muslim Turks
• Knights
– Succeeded in
capturing Jerusalem
Second Crusade (1147-1149)
• After victory many Christians went back
home.
• The Turks eventually took back much of
the territory.
• King of France and Emperor of Germany
sent troops to stop the Turks.
• German and French invaders were beaten
badly by a more organized Muslim
defense.
Second Crusade (1147-1149)
Third Crusade (1189-1192)
• King Richard I of England
(Richard the Lionheart) fought
Salah al-Din for Jerusalem
• Both armies weakened by
fighting
• Stalemate outside city walls –
peace treaty
Crusades Continue Through 1200’s
• Several more crusades attempted with no
victories for the Christians
• Children’s crusade, - 30,000 soldiers many of them under 12 years old – Never
made it to the Holy Land
Colonialism
• The Colonial Legacy
• European colonialism came late to the region
– Widespread European colonialism after WWI
– Many political boundaries set by colonial
powers
• Imposing European Power
• French in Algeria since 1800, later in Tunisia,
Morocco, Syria and Lebanon
• Britain in Arabian Peninsula and Persian Gulf by
1900
– Suez Canal – British-engineered canal linking
Mediterranean and Red seas in 1869
– British instrumental in establishing Saudi
Arabia (Lawrence of Arabia)
• Italians in Libya, Spanish in Morocco
• Turkey, Iran (Persia) never occupied
Colonialism
Cultural landscape dominated by both
history and colonial powers
• new landscapes neo-colonial in nature
• Urban & rural landscape very different
• Islamic, Jewish, & Christian Symbolism
creates unique and contested landscapes
Colonial Influence
– Italy
– France
– British
Colonialism
Legacy of Colonialism
– Plantation Agriculture (particularly cotton in Sudan &
Egypt)
Uneven Development
– Extremely Rich & Poor countries co-exist
– Even within nations, such as Israel, uneven development
has been devastating
Uneven Resource Distribution of Natural Resources
– oil producing nations have little water
– nations with access to water have little in terms of
‘wealth’ producing resources
Colonialism
Decolonization and
Independence
• Europeans began to withdraw
prior to WWII.
• By 1950 most countries are
independent
• Algeria gained independence in
1962
Palestine
• The central issue in the Middle East
today is the conflict over Palestine.
• In 1948, the United Nations partitioned
Palestine into two countries, Israel a
Jewish state, and Palestine, a Muslim
state.
Palestine Question
First Aliyah sparks modern Zionist Movement when Jews escape
European persecution during 1880s and settle in Palestine
– 1947UN Partitions Palestine in Jewish & Palestinian
Sectors
– 1948 ‘War of Independence’ Unite Jewish & Arab
Sectors
– 1949 Jewish State Declared—Israel (1948)
– 1967 ‘Six Day War’ Unite Sinai, Golan, Gaza, &
West Bank
– 1973 ‘Yom Kippur War’ Israel Occupies more of
Sinai & Golan
– 1979 Camp David Accords to return Sinai to Egypt
– 1993 White House Handshake begins process of
Palestinian Self Rule
Palestine
• Israel occupied Palestine (Gaza Strip
and West Bank). In 1967, Israel
occupied part of Syria called the Golan
Heights after a brief war.
• Palestinians are fighting for an
independent country. Over the years
some Palestinian groups have resorted
to terrorism.
Palestine
• In 1993, direct negotiation between Israel and the
Palestinians yielded results.
– On September 12, 1993, Israel and the Palestinians
signed a peace agreement, in Washington D.C.
– According to these agreements, Israel and the
Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) recognized
each other’s right to exist.
– In addition, the Israelis gave the Palestinians a limited
autonomy in the Gaza Strip and the area surrounding
the town of Jericho in the West Bank.
– These agreements were implemented in May, 1994,
with the transfer of power from Israeli to Palestinian
control.
Current Conflicts
OIL!!!!!
• Oil is certainly the most important resource of North Africa
and southwest Asia. Deposits are concentrated around the
Persian Gulf. It is the most economically important export of
the realm.
• During the period 1994-1996, on average, these countries
together produced 28.0 percent of the world total output.
• Saudi Arabia ranked as the world’s leading producer with 13.1
percent followed by: Iran with 5.8 percent; the United Arab
Emirates with 3.6 percent; Kuwait with 3.3 percent; and Libya
with 2.2 percent (Table 6.2).
• Additional detailed statistics on the world’s leading oil
countries are shown in Table 6.3.
• In 1997, the world estimates in petroleum reserves were
1,160,069,500,000,000 barrels.
OIL!!!!!
• The Geography of Fossil Fuels
• Oil unevenly distributed in the area
– Saudi Arabia, Iran, U.A.E., Libya, Algeria contribute
significantly to oil production, while Morocco and Sudan
have few developed petroleum reserves
– This region has 7% of the world’s population; holds 68%
of the world’s proven petroleum reserves
• Regional Economic Patterns
• Higher-Income Oil Exporters
– Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, U.A.E.
– Cultural landscape reshaped because of oil wealth
– Not all benefit – rural Shiite Muslims and foreign workers
Oil!!!!!
• Regional Economic Patterns (cont.)
– Lower-Income Oil Exporters
• Algeria: oil and natural gas are its top exports; but political
instability remains a problem
• Iran: has huge oil reserves, but long war with Iraq (1980-90),
and withdrawal from world trade under fundamentalist
government have lowered living standards
– Prospering Without Oil
• Israel has highest living standard in the region
• Turkey has a diversified economy; has seen growth
Sharia Law
• Body of Islamic religious law
• Legal framework within which the public
and some private aspects of life are
regulated
• There is no strictly static codified set of
laws of sharia. Sharia is more of a system
of how law ought to serve humanity, a
consensus of the unified spirit.
Rights of Women in Saudi Arabia
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Able to attend universities (separated from men)
Work in female only occupations
Can keep their own name when married
Property protected
Cannot drive
Must wear hajib
Can only marry a Muslim
Can only divorce if granted by the man or approved by
court
• Cannot talk to men outside their family
• Gained right to vote in 2004
FAQ
• Do tourists or American women have to
follow these laws?
– In some instances. It is not necessary for
women to wear hajib, but most women will
take one along in order to avoid harassment
by the religious police. If foreign women are
accused of a crime, they are subject to similar
punishments as native women.
• (Jerusalem, 4000 years in 5 minutes)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=play
er_embedded&v=2mR2W43t6tI
• (Destination North Africa)
http://www.watchknowlearn.org/Video.aspx?
VideoID=2191&CategoryID=500
• (Rulers of the Middle East Map Progression)
http://www.mapsofwar.com/ind/imperialhistory.html