2. Middle Eastern Territory
(today)
O Saudi Arabia O Yemen
O Egypt O Oman
O Lebanon O United Arab Emirates
O Israel O Qatar
O Jordan O Bahrain Sudan
O Iraq O Turkey
O Iran
O Kuwait
3.
4.
5. Historical Importance
O birthplace of Christianity and Judaism
O Modern English alphabet and numbering
system origin
O a world crossroad: ancient/modern trade
routes
O Countless conflicts: Romans conquered ME,
Crusades, recent and current conflicts over
control of ME oil
6. Geography
O Large territory (Saudi Arabia 2x BC)
O many different land forms: desert plateaus,
mountainous regions, coastlines
O Much of the Middle East is dry and desert-
like
O Average July temperature= 30 degrees C
O Average winter temperature= 16 degrees C
7.
8.
9. Geography (continued)
O Oases important settlement areas
O crops:
oranges, dates, figs, olives, wheat, other
grains, and vegetables
O Geography has an important effect on
history
O All major towns/cities located near water
O Impacted trade and spread of religion
O Islam quickly spread across great distances
10.
11.
12. The Arabs
O Arabia
O Semitic people
O 1000 B.C.E onward
O Lived as Bedouin or in villages/towns around
oases/other water source
O trade was important for both groups-
crossroads of two international trade routes
O Camel domestication- caravans carried
expensive goods across the desert
13.
14.
15.
16. The Arabs (continued)
O town and desert people belonged to clans
O desert (Bedouin) clans led by chiefs who
prided themselves in their generosity,
bravery, fighting ability
O towns- gave people an identity and
connections, protected and supported each
other, clan chiefs ran governments
