Transcript Middle East Geography

Middle East Geography
Riding camel back is a
great way to travel.
CAMELS ARE
AMAZING
CREATURES!
I can drink up to 30
gallons of water in
less than 10 minutes!
• Crossroads of three continents: Africa, Asia, Europe
• A major trade route over land and sea since ancient
times
• Caravans from India and China brought goods to M.E.
Bedouins
• Traders then carried goods across the Mediterranean
into Europe
• Red Sea to East Africa
Do you guys
want happened
to
• Cultural
Diffusion
over thousands of years
(spreading
ideas, inventions, and achievements ex.
see what aofcaravan
iron making
and alphabet)
looks
like? I happen
to
• They control major sea routes and have the most of the
have
a picture of one!!!
world’s oil supply
• Today the ME nations
command vital sea routes
and sit atop of the vast
reserves of oil in the
world.
• It also controls a few
straits and canals that
bring significance to this
region for shipping
purposes.
• Because of these
resources and ME’s
location the world has a
great deal of interest in
what happens there.
Lucky!!!
• Five Main Physical Regions of the ME
– Northern Tier: stretches across modern day
Turkey and Iran. It is a region of mountains and plateaus
– Arabian Peninsula: is a vast plateau about 1/3 of the
size of the US. It is wedged between major waterways,
however most of it’s land is barren desert.
– Fertile Crescent: land wedge between the Tigris and
Euphrates river valley. Mesopotamia is one of the
world’s 1st civilizations and it forms here.
– Nile Valley: the cradle of ancient civilization where
ancient Egypt will flourish for thousands of years.
– The Maghreb: is mainly the northern part of Africa and is
mostly made up of the Sahara Desert and the rugged
Atlas Mountains.
• Most of the region is desert so
people have clustered in wellwatered areas along the coast
and river valleys.
• Scarcity: less than 10% of the
land produces enough water to
make farming possible. They
have made irrigation systems
that have created a little more
farm land for the people.
• Oil is the number one resource
in this area. However it is only
in certain areas too, creating
great disparities of wealth
among nations. They also
have salt, phosphate, and
copper.