Middle East
NOTES
What do we already know
about the Middle East ?
What do we already know about the
Middle East ?
Pre-Test
1. T/F- The U.S. is currently fighting a war in
the Middle East.
2. Which country in this region is among the
closest allies of the US?
3. Into which middle eastern country did the US
go to war after 9-11-01?
4. T/F- The international community is concerned
with protecting waterways in the middle east.
5. What middle eastern city is significant to
Jews, Muslims, and Christians?
6. T/F- All Muslim women cover their faces.
WHAT WE ARE GOING TO LEARN:

how physical and cultural geography shape the
environment, nations, and people of the Middle East
I. Introduction
A. The term Middle East refers to the region which is between
Europe and the Far East.
• The Middle East is only 'middle' in relation to Europe.
• A very euro-centric term!
• Today, this region is also referred to as the Near East or
Southwest Asia.
• Due to religion, language and culture, North Africa is
also included in this area.
• The Middle East consists of 19 countries and almost
350 million people.
• The major languages are Arabic, Turkish, Hebrew,
Kurdish, Persian, Greek, and Armenian.
• The three major religions are Islam, Christianity, and
Judaism.
B. The Middle East stands at the crossroads to three
continents:
1. Africa
2. Asia
3. Europe
Besides the location, the
region is the crossroad
between
Faiths… has led
to conflict!
C. The Middle East has served as a
melting pot for the world.
• Due to the location,
•
•
traders have passed through
on land and over seas to
transport goods.
Along with traders, this
area has been conquered by
numerous groups of people.
All of these groups
gradually combined to
formulate what is
considered Middle East.
D. The location and the vast amount
of oil reserves, has given the
Middle East a strategic
importance today.
Why is oil so Important???
ARAB MUSIC…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pF-kgZf2nFI
II.
A.
Regions
There are 6 geographical regions of the Middle East.
Region
Advantage
Disadvantage
Northern Africa
Maghreb region is
Atlas mountains block
the rain moving
across the region and
created the Sahara
Desert. Water is
scarce within the
located at the
Mediterranean Sea
and serves as the
access point to the
Atlantic Ocean.
region.
Region
Advantage
Disadvantage
Arabian
Peninsula
Oasis –
Fertile desert area which
can support plants and
animals.
The area has a small
population due to the
lack to water. However,
there are some areas
that are able to sustain
a limited degree of
It also contains a large
agriculture.
amount of oil. The
region is the birthplace of
Islam and the holy city of
Mecca.
Fertile Crescent
The area is known as
"The Cradle of
Civilization". The rich
soil and abundant water
has made it a major
population center.
The area has very few
natural barriers and has
been conquered many
times. Although
plentiful water is a
benefit for farming,
flooding also occurs.
Region
Advantage
Disadvantage
Nile Valley
The Nile River is
protected by deserts
which make it difficult to
conquer the region. It is
also heavily populated.
Annual flooding is
predictable and
dependable.
The soil does have good
drainage but salinity is a
problem.
Red – Water
Blue – Building
White - Desert
Salinity –
Containing salt.
Fertilizing the land is an
option with fresh dirt and
manure. However, most
of the poor farmers
cannot afford it. The
densely populated area
has pollution, disease and
sanitation issues as well.
Region
Advantage
Disadvantage
Iranian Plateau
The birthplace of several
empires.
A dry region with a low
population.
Region
Advantage
Northern Tier
Connects Europe and
Asia
Disadvantage
Some have tried to
conquer it due to it’s
strategic importance!
Turkey has fertile soil in
-to WHOM?
the Anatolian Plateau
due to surrounding
mountains- good for
farming
Strategic locationcontrols access to the
Black Sea
Which is missing?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ro8m4c-o4bc
B. There is several Islamic nations that are located in the former
Soviet Union. They are Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan,
Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan.
YOU MAY HAVE HEARD
OF THIS REGION…
•
Disputed regions &
Violence?
–
–
•
•
Sochi?
Boston?
Energy?
Movies?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_I3tIjztj8&lis
t=RD4_I3tIjztj8#t=71
Shade the following regions
accordingly:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Maghreb- Brown
Nile River Valley- Blue
Arabian Peninsula- Yellow
Fertile Crescent- Green
Iranian Plateau- Orange
Northern Tier- Red
Shade the following regions
accordingly:
•
•
•
•
•
•
Maghreb- Brown
Nile River Valley- Blue
Arabian Peninsula- Yellow
Fertile Crescent- Green
Iranian Plateau- Orange
Northern Tier- Red
1/30/14
http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/29/studentnews/sn-curriculum-thu/index.html
Syria
WHAT WE ARE GOING TO LEARN:

Understand how the physical geography has impacted the
people of the Southwest Asia (aka Middle East) and how they
have adapted to it to meet their needs
III. Geographical Features-
WATER!
A. The key feature of the Middle East is water. There is an old saying from
the region, "Where there is water, there is life". The population
density increases around sources of water. In Cairo, there are almost
350,000 people per square mile. NYC has almost 66,000 and
Pittsburgh has almost 7,000.
The Mighty Nile River:
“Longest River in the World”
EGYPT:
The “Gift of the Nile”
Nile Delta
Annual Nile Flooding
95% of the Egyptian
people live on 5% of
the land!
Aswan High Dam, Egypt
Hydroelectric
Power Plant
Suez Canal
Completed by the British in 1869
The Tigris & Euphrates
River System
Mesopotamia:
”Land Between the Two
Rivers”
Marsh Arabs, So. Iraq
The
Jordan River
System:
Israel &
Jordan--A Fight Over
Water Rights?
Dead Sea: Lowest Point on Earth
2,300’ below sea level
Highest
Salt
Content
(33%)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTcyACmiaho
Wadis – Instant Springs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnOhnzJ5pwo
WHAT WE ARE GOING TO LEARN:

Understand how the physical geography has impacted the
people of the Southwest Asia (aka Middle East) and how they
have adapted to it to meet their needs
The Middle East is dominated by two features; mountains
and plateaus.
B.
When you combine these two features desertification is the result.
1. Desertification –
The reduction of plant life due to external factors.
C. Desertification is caused by several reasons.
1. Overgrazing livestock in areas that contain mostly
scrub grass.
2. Poor soil that cannot sustain the overuse by the livestock.
3. The mountain affect forces the warm moist air to rise where it then
cools. The moisture which is created then falls on one side of the
mountain.
4. The heavy rainfall may then cause flooding… How does this cause desertification???
5. The Nile River receives flood waters during the rainy seasons.
Geographical Features-
Mountains & Plateaus
Caucasus
Mts.
Anatolian
Plateau
Atlas Mts.
Iranian
Zagros Plateau
Mts.
Mountain Ranges in Mid-East
Elburz Mts., Iran
Lebanese Mts.
Zagros Mts., Iran
Taurus Mts., Turkey
Geographical Features-
Sinai
Desert
Libyan Desert
Deserts
Negev
Desert
Arabian
Desert
Rub
al-Khali
Sahara Desert
Desert Bedouins
Bedouins
A. Traditionally, the people of the
Middle East were nomadic. The Bedouins
tribes used overland caravans to direct
traders through the deserts on camels
and horses. They are famous for
developing the Arabian horse that has
great speed and durability.
B. There are two types of Bedouins.
1. Horizontal Nomads – Follow the
“rains” on “plains”. They travel from
wadi to wadi.
a. Wadi – A river bed
which is dry
except
during the rainy season.
2. Vertical Nomads – Go up and down
the mountains. They travel up during the
dry season and down during the rainy
C. The Bedouins wore a traditional robe, which enabled
them to keep their core temperature low in the desert.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Ginutra – Head scarf worn to reduce sand exposure.
Agal – Headband
Thobe – Robe
Besnt – Outer cape that was generally black or brown.
5. Sandals – They enabled the sand to fall in and out
easily.
D. The Bedouins traditionally lived in a black tent.
The color was chosen to absorb heat. The tents would
contain a pillow and a heater for the lower
temperatures at night. Dried cow or goat dung was
burned in the fires at night. They would bathe two
times year.
Due to the size of the group, the
Bedouins had to establish marriage
practices to ensure their
continuation.
E.
1.
Endogamy – Marrying
someone inside the group.
a. If a group follows endogamy,
it has to be large. The major
problem is the health risks of
marrying someone who is
closely related to you.
2.
Exogamy – Marrying
someone outside of the group.
b. Enforced by small groups.
F. The Bedouins make up only 3% of the
population in the Middle East.
Most of them do not still live in the traditional
manner. Instead of horses and camels, today’s
Bedouin owes Jeeps and pick up trucks. Many of
the younger men have been able to find
employment in the army, oil fields, or deliver goods
from the desert to the city. Those who chose to
live in the traditional manner, mainly herd sheep,
goats, and camels. The changing lifestyle of these
once nomadic herders and traders can be seen in
the creation of “The Bedouin Hour” on radio
Kuwait.
Swarms of Desert Locusts!
Israel Hit By Worst
Locust Plague Since
the 1950s!
Locusts Swarm
the Pyramids
Complex at Giza!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Of7FRRVLR4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L19Zh6Injzw
1.
2.
3.
According to this article, how large
are desert locust swarms?
What detail indicates the
destruction capability of desert
locusts?
What has been different about the
desert locusts this year? What is
this attributed to?
Breeding Areas of Desert
Locusts
Rub al-Khali:
“The Empty Quarter”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwC2I22HBPc
Desert Oases: Water at a Premium!
Fresh Groundwater Sources
D.Interaction:
Over 90% of the North African and Arabian Peninsulas are deserts
that receive less then 10 inches of yearly rainfall. Settlers had to be inventive in
order to improve the soil for agriculture. Today, modern technology is used to
increase yearly agricultural output.
1. Drip irrigation –
Delivering a measured amount of water to each plant.
Modern Drip
Irrigation System
2. Desalination plants –
Converting water from the surroundings into fresh water.
The sun causes water to
evaporate from surface
sources such as lakes,
oceans, and streams. The
water vapor eventually
comes in contact with
cooler air, where it recondenses to form dew or
rain.
This process can be
imitated artificially, and
more rapidly than in
nature, using alternative
sources of heating and
cooling.
Desalinization
Plants
E. The Middle East has had the benefit of resources. The amount and
the type of resources vary greatly between the countries. Resources
include salt, phosphate, copper and oil. Due to the differences in
resources, there is great disparity between rich and poor nations.
Some of the countries are trying to solve
other problems with water. WHAT???
HOW???