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SOUTHWEST ASIA (Middle East)

Geographic Understandings

SS7G5 – The student will locate selected features in Southwestern Asia (Middle East).

• Rivers are important because much of this region is dry and desert or semi-desert– Euphrates River • begins in Turkey and flows through Turkey and Iraq

– Tigris River• joins Euphrates in southern Iraq to form one waterway

known as Shatt al-Arab• Then flows along border of Kuwait and Iran and

empties into Persian Gulf

SS7G5 – a. Locate on a world and regional political map: Euphrates River, Jordan River, Tigris River, Suez Canal, Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, Arabian

Sea, Red Sea, and Gaza Strip.

• Persian Gulf– Main way to ship oil from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia,

Iran• Strait of Hormuz– Connects Persian Gulf to Arabian Sea

• Arabian Sea– Once through the Strait of Hormuz you enter the

Arabian Sea



• Red Sea– After the Arabian Sea ships can enter the Red Sea

and go up to the North to the manmade Suez Canal• Suez Canal– Allows ships to get to Mediterranean Sea without

having to sail around the continent of Africa• Jordan River– Main source of water for Israel, Jordan, parts of

Syria, and much of West Bank and Gaza Strip



• Dead Sea– Where did the name come from?• Water that goes here stays here• High salt due to desert evaporation leaving only salt

behind• No animals live in the Dead Sea





http://www.prep-blog.com/2012/03/16/could-the-70s-oil-crisis-occur-today/strait-hormuz-map/

SS7G5 – b. Locate on a world and regional political-physical map the nations of Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey.

• Afghanistan– Located at far eastern edge of Southwest Asia– Landlocked: no seacoast– Very mountainous– Many different ethnic groups or tribes


• Iran– West of Afghanistan– One of the largest countries in Southwest Asia– Mountainous as well with long seacoasts– Uses Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, and Strait of

Hormuz to ship goods



• Iraq– Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flow through Iraq– Number of disputes over access to waterway

known as Shatt al-Arab



• Saudi Arabia– Largest country of Arabian Peninsula

• Turkey– Shares a border with Iraq, Syria and Iran.– Tigris and Euphrates begin in Turkey

• Israel– Created by United Nations in 1948 as homeland for Jewish

people of the world– Bound by the Gaza Strip and West Bank to the east– Jordan River forms boundary between West Bank and

Jordan




http://www.ezilon.com/maps/middle-east-physical-maps.html

SS7G6 – a. Explain how water pollution and the unequal distribution of water impacts irrigation and drinking water.

• Rivers– Tigris– Euphrates– Jordan• What about the rest of the region?• How do they get water?• IRRIGATION!!!


• Irrigation– Found in Southwest Asia as farmers bring water to

their farms– Underground aquifers: layers of underground rock

where water runoff from rains and streams is trapped– Fossil water: water that has been underground for

centuries tapped into by farmers through wells.– Drip irrigation: used to measure how much water

each plant receives– Desalination: process of removing salt from water



• Pollution– Growing problem– Need for irrigation has caused overuse of rivers and

streams– Chemical fertilizers contaminate water supply– Rush to develop cities without effective sewage and

garbage disposal– Poor access to water– Hydroelectric power used to generate electricity reduces

amount of water available to other countries located downstream




http://www.pasadena.edu/wetlands_research/Global%20Issues.htm

SS7G7 – a. Explain how the distribution of oil has affected the development of Southwest Asia (Middle East).

• Middle Eastern Natural Resources– Oil and Natural Gas• Discovered in early 1900’s• U.S. and Europe controlled most drilling at first• Now oil operations are controlled by the countries

themselves• Over ½ of worlds oil is found in Middle East• Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, and Kuwait have the most


• OPEC: Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries

• Developed in 1960’s to have more control over price of oil on the world market

SS7G7 – a. Explain how the distribution of oil has affected the development of Southwest Asia (Middle East).


http://huizen.daxis.nl/~henkt/middle-east-map.html

http://www.arabglot.com/2011/04/does-oil-hinder-economic-development-in.html

SS7G7 – b. Describe how the deserts and rivers of Southwest Asia (Middle East) have affected the population in terms of where people live, the type of

work they do, and how they travel.

• What do the Tigris, Euphrates and Jordan Rivers provide?– Boundaries between nations– Drinking water– Irrigation– Transportation for trade routes– Large populated cities found along these bodies of

water


• Deserts of Southwest Asia– Syrian Desert• Shared between Syria and Iraq

– Rub al-Khali or “empty Quarter”• Southern Saudi Arabia

– Create natural barriers against invasion– Bedouins: desert nomads, tent camps, sheep and

camel herders, trade animals and handmade goods…this way of life is disappearing




• Southwest Asia generally has hot and dry climate

• Mountain ranges block rain coming from the nearby bodies of water

• Coastal areas as well as large rivers support agriculture and towns and cities of significant size




• Why is Southwest Asia such a good place for trade?– Between 3 major continents: Europe, Africa and

Asia– Bodies of water: Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea, Gulf of

Aden, Red Sea, Suez Canal and Strait of Hormuz




SS7G8 – a. Explain the differences between an ethnic group and a religious group.

• Ethnic Group– A group of people who share cultural ideas and

beliefs that have been a part of their community for generations.

– Common characteristics: language, religion, shared history, types of food, set of traditional stories, beliefs, or celebrations• What do we share in the United States

– Make a Bubble Map


• Religious group:– Shares a belief system in a god or gods, with a

specific set of rituals and literature.– Different ethnic groups may share same religion,

even from very different cultures– Christianity, Islam, and Judaism started in this

region




SS7G8 – b. Explain the diversity of religions within the Arabs, Persians, and Kurds.

• Shia Muslims– Believed Muhammad’s son-in-law was to be next

Caliph after Muhammad’s death (Ali)– 15% of Muslims are Shia

• Sunni Muslims– Believed Muhammad’s father-in-law was to be next

Caliph after Muhammad’s death (Abu Bakr)– 85% of Muslims are Sunni

• Christians– Many Arabs are Christians

• Persians– Those who live in modern country of Iran– Descended from different group than Arabs and

Jews– Ancestors were Indo-European, from Central Europe

and Southern Russia– Persia became known as Iran after World War I– Speak Farsi: uses Arabic alphabet but is different

language– Most belong to Shia Muslim group


• Kurds– Ethnic group that lives in several different

countries in Southwest Asia– Mostly found in mountains of Syria, Turkey, Iran

and Iraq– Speak their own language (Kurdish)– Hope to have a nation of their own someday• Caused much conflict with countries where they live• Most are Sunni



SS7G8 – c. Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity.

Islam Judaism ChristianityGOD

JESUS

HOLY BOOK

HOLY SITES

PLACE OF WORSHIP

IMPORTANT PEOPLE

Islam Judaism Christianity

GOD

One god - Allah

One god –

God or Lord

One god

a triune being= God

JESUS

A prophet but not the son of

God

A Jewish teacher but not the

Messiah

Devine Son of God who was

virgin born

The world’s savior

HOLY BOOK

Koran or Qur’an

Torah -

1st 5 books of the Old Testament and additional laws and rules for living

Bible

HOLY SITES

Mecca

Dome of the Rock

Wailing Wall – only part of the original temple

Church of the Holy Sepulcher –

where the resurrection took place

PLACE OF WORSHIP

Mosque

Synagogue led by a Rabbi

Church led by a priest, minister, or pastor

IMPORTANT PEOPLE

Muhammad

Messiah – future political and military deliverer

Jesus

SS7G8 – c. Compare and contrast the prominent religions in Southwest Asia (Middle East): Judaism, Islam, and Christianity.

SS7G8 – d. Explain the origin of the division between Sunni and Shia Muslims.

• After Muhammad died, there was disagreement about who should lead the Muslim community

• Battle soon followed and led to death of Muhammad’s grandson transferring power to the Umayyad family and the Sunni supporters

• Sunni– Thought leadership should go to most able to keep the community

together– Abu Bakr

• Shia– Felt leadership should go to direct descendent of Muhammad – Ali

SS7G8 – e. Evaluate how the literacy rate affects the standard of living.

• Does the literacy rate affect standard of living?• Literacy: ability to read and write

– Those who can’t read and write have a hard time finding decent jobs

– What is the key to any society?• EDUCATION!!!

– The higher the literacy rate the higher the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita

• GDP: the value of all goods and services produced within a nation in a given year– Per capita: per person – gives you the general welfare of a

country