Transcript North Africa, Southwest Asia, and Central Asia

Chapter 18
Section 2
North Africa, Southwest Asia,
and Central Asia
History and Government
This region has seen
the birth of some of
the world’s greatest
civilizations and three
of the world’s major
religions.
By 6000 B.C., hunters
and gatherers gave way
to farming communities
along the Nile River, the
Mediterranean Sea, and
the Taurus and Zagros
Mountains.
Domesticate
The region’s farmers were
among the first . . .
to adapt plants and
animals from the wild to
make them useful to
people.
Earliest Civilizations
Emerged about 6000
years ago in
Mesopotamia, the area
between the Tigris and
Euphrates.
Culture Hearth
A center where
cultures developed and
from which ideas and
traditions spread
outward.
The Fertile Crescent
A rich agricultural area . . .
from Mesopotamia to Egypt,
home to the Sumerians.
Sumerians
 Developed Cuneiform.
 Invented the wheel.
 Developed a base 6
number system (time and
circle).
Cuneiform
Sumerian writing
system using
wedge-shaped
symbols pressed
into clay
tablets.
Base 6 Contributions
 Divided time into 60 second
minutes and 60 minute hours.
 Grouped the day into two 12
hour segments.
 Divided the year into 12
months.
 Divided the circle into 360
degrees.
Egyptian Civilization
 Along the Nile River.
 Developed a calendar that
was divided into 365 days.
 Built impressive pyramids.
 Created hieroglyphics.
Pyramids at Giza
Frank and Earnest
on Pyramids
The Sphinx
with Khafra
Pyramid
Sphinx
in the
Louvre
Hieroglyphics
Egyptian writing
system using
pictures and
symbols to
represent words
or sounds.
Frank and Earnest
on Hieroglyphics
Frank and Earnest
on Hieroglyphics
Phoenicians
A trading empire which
arose along the eastern
Mediterranean coast.
Developed an alphabet in
which letters stood for
sounds (phonetics).
Persian Empire
 Emerged around 500
B.C.
 Ancestors of today’s
Iranians.
 Developed Qanats.
Qanat
An
underground
canal used in
water
systems of
ancient
Persians.
Qanat
Silk Road
A trade route from China
to the Mediterranean
Sea.
Samarqand in Uzbekistan
was one of the trading
stations.
Samarqand
 One of the oldest
inhabited cities in the
world.
 Known as the “Crossroads
of Civilization.
 Invaded during the 1200s
by the Mongols.
Monotheism
A belief in one God.
Three major religions
developed in the region;
Judaism
Christianity
Islam
Judaism
 Oldest Monotheistic Religion.
 Followers known as Jews.
 Jerusalem is capital and
religious center.
 Holy book is Torah.
 House of worship is
synagogue.
Christianity
 Originated in about 30 A.D..
 Followers known as Christians.
 Based on teachings of Jesus.
 Holy book is Old and New
Testament.
 House of worship is a church.
Islam
 Originated in about 610
A.D..
 Followers known as Muslims.
 Based on revelations of the
prophet Muhammad.
 Holy book is Qur’an (Koran).
 House of worship is a mosque.
Prophet
A person believed to be a
messenger from God.
According to Islam,
Muhammad is the final
prophet of Allah (God).
Mosque
An Islamic house of public
worship.
Islam began in Makkah
(Mecca) and is the home
of the Grand Mosque.
Grand
Mosque
in
Mecca
Mosque of Djenne, Mali
Muhammad-Ali-Mosque
Minaret
Minarets (Arabic manara
(lighthouse) ‫منارة‬, but more
usually ‫)مئذنة‬. Minarets are
generally tall, graceful
spires, attached to Islamic
mosques from which the
Muezzin calls the faithful
to prayer.
Blue Mosque in Istanbul
Minaret
Minaret
Minaret
One fifth of the
world’s population
follow Islam, and are
called Muslims (“those
who submit to God’s
will”).
Five Pillars of Islam
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Profession of faith
Prayer
Helping the poor
Fasting during Ramadan
The Hajj
Hajj in Makkah
The Crusades and Mongol
invasions brought conflict
and foreign control to the
region.
During 1800s, a European
trained middle class
developed in the region,
with European ideas of
nationalism.
Nationalism
The belief in the right of
each people to be an
independent nation.
During 1960s
Many previously European
ruled North African and
Southwest Asian territories
gained their independence.
Central Asian territories
gained their independence
in 1991.
Nationalize
To place a company or
industry under government
control.
Iran, Iraq, Libya, and Saudi
Arabia took control of
foreign-owned oil companies
within their borders.
Israel
 Not a Muslim or Arab
state
 Zionists began to settle in
Palestine in the late 1800s
 Jewish state founded in
Palestine in 1948
Zionists
An international political
movement, organized in
the 19th century, that
supports a homeland for
the Jewish people in the
Land of Israel.
After World War I
 The British gained control
of Palestine.
 Supported a Jewish
State.
 The Holocaust increased
Western sympathy for the
Zionist cause.
After World War II
 In 1947, the UN
partitioned Palestine into
two separate states.
 Four major wars erupted
between the Jews and the
Arabs over the next 25
years.
Palestinian State
The 1993 peace
settlement gave the
Palestinians the Gaza
Strip and the West Bank
for Arab recognition that
Israel has right to exist.
Barriers to Palestine
 Jewish settlements in the
West Bank.
 Status of Jerusalem.
 In January 2006, the
Hamas gained control of
the Palestinian National
Authority.
Hamas
A Palestinian Sunni Islamist
organization, whose charter
(written in 1988 and still in
effect) calls for the
destruction of the State of
Israel and its replacement
with a Palestinian Islamic
state.
Persian Gulf War
In August 1990, Iraq
invaded Kuwait.
In January 1991, a 30
nation coalition force, led
by the U.S., forced
Saddam Hussein to
withdraw his Iraqi forces
from Kuwait.
Embargo
A ban on trade.
Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait
forced the world
community to impose a
ban of trade with Iraq.
War in Afghanistan
In October 2001, American
and British armies invaded
Afghanistan to remove the
Taliban government and to
capture Osama bin Ladin.
The Taliban were removed,
but bin Ladin is still at
large.
Iraqi War
The U.S. led invasion of Iraq,
officially began on March 20,
2003.
The stated objective of the
invasion was "to disarm Iraq of
weapons of mass destruction,
to end Saddam Hussein's
support for terrorism, and to
free the Iraqi people" .
Saddam Hussein
 Dictator of Iraq from
1979 - 2003.
 Invaded Iran in 1980.
 Invaded Kuwait in 1990.
 Executed Dec. 30, 2006
for crimes against
humanity.
Monarchs Rule
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Saudi Arabia
United Arab Emirates
Morocco
Jordan