Geography and Culture of Southwest Asia Test Study Guide


Desalination:
removing salt from
salt water

Qur’an: sacred text
of Islam

Diaspora: scattering
of Jews
Persians: make up
most of Iran’s
population


Exodus: Jews leaving
Egypt after being
slaves
Ethnic Group: born
into, ancestors,
language, race

Strait of Hormuz:
connects Persian
Gulf to Arabian Sea

Suez Canal: connects
Red Sea with
Mediterranean Sea

Religious Group:
shares believe in
same god.
Water Rights:
agreements on how
to use water in a
country


Monotheism: belief
in one god

Five Pillars: 5 acts of
worship of Islam

Muslim: follower of
Islam


Torah: sacred text of
Judaism
OPEC: Organization
of Petroleum
Exporting Countries

Kurds: Live in Turkey,
Syria, and Iran

Arabs: largest ethnic
group in SW Asia

Bible: sacred text of
Christianity
Key People:

Moses: led Jews out of Egypt

Abraham: became the leader of Jews

Jesus: Messiah, savior of men

Muhammad: founder of Islam
Key Ideas:
1. What river do Syria, Israel, and Jordan
share? Jordan
2. How has building dams on rivers in
Southwest Asia caused problems
between countries that share the
rivers? Water supply is greatly reduced
to the countries below the dam
3. What are the 3 ethnic groups in SW
Asia? Kurds, Arabs, Persians
4. What are the 3 religious groups in SW
Asia? Jews, Christians, Muslims
5. What are the two valuable natural
resources used for energy found in SW
Asia? Natural gas and oil
6. How much of the world’s oil supply is
found in SW Asia? Over 50%
7. How has the discovery of oil affected
the economy of those countries? The
countries have become wealthy
8. Countries located around which body of
water have the most oil reserves?
Persian Gulf
Geography and Culture of Southwest Asia Test Study Guide
9. Most cities in SW Asia are located near
what? Major rivers
10. What is the climate like in SW Asia? Hot
and dry
11. Much of SW Asia is what type of
geographic feature? desert
12. What basic belief made Christianity
different from Judaism? Christians
believe the Jesus was the Messiah
13. What are the two main branches of
Islam? What issue led to the split in
Islam? Sunni and Shia: leadership after
Muhammad’s death
14. Which river has caused conflict in
Southwest Asia because of water
rights? Euphrates
15. What is the difference between a
religious group and an ethnic group?
Give two examples of each in
Southwest Asia. Religious groups share
beliefs in what they worship; examples:
Jews and Christians Ethnic groups:
race, ancestors, culture, examples:
kurds, persians, arabs
16. What is OPEC? What is the purpose of
OPEC? Organization of Petroleum
Exporting Countries, controls oil on the
world market
17. How has the prescence of oil in some
Southwest Asian countries affected the
standard of living? It has made many
countries very wealthy.
Geography and Culture of Southwest Asia Test Study Guide