Middle East

The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the <a href="/facts/Arabian_Peninsula/x1fDka2b">Arabian Peninsula</a>, the <a href="/facts/Levant/uuJLt3Af">Levant</a>, <a href="/facts/Turkey/KIYAWAs0">Turkey</a>, <a href="/facts/Egypt/8Ttg0JwB">Egypt</a>, <a href="/facts/Iran/24yukge8">Iran</a>, and <a href="/facts/Iraq/pqYSFJw8">Iraq</a>.
The term came into widespread usage by the <a href="/facts/United_Kingdom/kuPAILt2">United Kingdom</a> and <a href="/facts/Western_Europe/YmWlV59w">Western European</a> nations in the early 20th century as a replacement of the term <a href="/facts/Near_East/gD1vyGQI">Near East</a> (both were in contrast to the <a href="/facts/Far_East/wHcmLNM5">Far East</a>). The term "Middle East" has led to some confusion over its changing definitions. Since the late 20th century, it has been criticized as being too <a href="/facts/Eurocentrism/TDweDqra">Eurocentric</a>. The region includes the vast majority of the territories included in the closely associated definition of <a href="/facts/West_Asia/xXM15vIz">West Asia</a>, but without the <a href="/facts/South_Caucasus/MQaTkhRJ">South Caucasus</a>. It also includes all of Egypt (not just the <a href="/facts/Sinai_Peninsula/SEyERdHm">Sinai</a>) and all of Turkey (including <a href="/facts/East_Thrace/9tznf4uK">East Thrace</a>).
Most Middle Eastern countries (13 out of 18) are part of the <a href="/facts/Arab_world/F8Jouq98">Arab world</a>. The <a href="/facts/List_of_Middle_Eastern_countries_by_population/ypbGegow">most populous countries in the region</a> are Egypt, Turkey, and Iran, while <a href="/facts/Saudi_Arabia/uyUpe1J2">Saudi Arabia</a> is the largest Middle Eastern country by area. The <a href="/facts/History_of_the_Middle_East/qv2JxgHl">history of the Middle East</a> dates back to <a href="/facts/Ancient_history/P0fFQ8z5">ancient times</a>, and it was long considered the "<a href="/facts/Cradle_of_civilization/slYINUco">cradle of civilization</a>". The geopolitical importance of the region has been recognized and competed for during millennia. The Abrahamic religions (<a href="/facts/Judaism/tjQ5Tgs6">Judaism</a>, <a href="/facts/Christianity/nKyJHlqq">Christianity</a>, and <a href="/facts/Islam/zDLbL45C">Islam</a>) have their origins in the Middle East. <a href="/facts/Arabs/E77duPsg">Arabs</a> constitute the main ethnic group in the region, followed by <a href="/facts/Turkish_people/3Rg0k6vU">Turks</a>, <a href="/facts/Persians/4GhM3jl2">Persians</a>, <a href="/facts/Kurds/nfHFlVlq">Kurds</a>, <a href="/facts/Azerbaijanis/nXFAmaLb">Azeris</a>, <a href="/facts/Nubians/0aLIBCzj">Nubians</a>, <a href="/facts/Jews/T9Y4wE6A">Jews</a>, <a href="/facts/Assyrian_people/qfHqDhDc">Assyrians</a>, <a href="/facts/Iraqi_Turkmen/Pb7tW5uB">Iraqi Turkmen</a>, <a href="/facts/Yazidis/EKqxwqte">Yazidis</a>, and <a href="/facts/Greek_Cypriots/aXgtA0dF">Greek Cypriots</a>.
The Middle East generally has a hot, <a href="/facts/Arid/BHJj0qJ3">arid</a> climate, especially in the Arabian and Egyptian regions. Several major rivers provide <a href="/facts/Irrigation/RWX5PEgK">irrigation</a> to support <a href="/facts/Agriculture/TGztqzJs">agriculture</a> in limited areas here, such as the <a href="/facts/Nile_Delta/ItjnDeVk">Nile Delta</a> in Egypt, the <a href="/facts/Tigris/Rc8Ka6k8">Tigris</a> and <a href="/facts/Euphrates/RbCk68gt">Euphrates</a> watersheds of <a href="/facts/Mesopotamia/f0mmbhTK">Mesopotamia</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Jordan_Rift_Valley/3vMk3Thv">basin</a> of the <a href="/facts/Jordan_River/dRFFQcxV">Jordan River</a> that spans most of the Levant. These regions are collectively known as the <a href="/facts/Fertile_Crescent/KLHIjwQe">Fertile Crescent</a>, and comprise the core of what historians had long referred to as the <a href="/facts/Cradle_of_civilization/slYINUco">cradle of civilization</a>; multiple regions of the world have since been classified as also having developed independent, original civilizations.
Conversely, the Levantine coast and most of Turkey have relatively temperate climates <a href="/facts/Mediterranean_climate/gGsJAKE5">typical of the Mediterranean</a>, with dry summers and cool, wet winters. Most of the countries that border the <a href="/facts/Persian_Gulf/W78AfnC1">Persian Gulf</a> have vast reserves of <a href="/facts/Petroleum/IQV0bHVd">petroleum</a>. Monarchs of the Arabian Peninsula in particular have benefitted economically from petroleum exports. Because of the arid climate and dependence on the fossil fuel industry, the Middle East is both <a href="/facts/Climate_change_in_the_Middle_East_and_North_Africa/BhT7n4Xw">a major contributor to climate change</a> and <a href="/facts/Climate_change_in_the_Middle_East_and_North_Africa/BhT7n4Xw">a region that is expected to be severely adversely affected by it.</a>
Other concepts of the region exist, including the broader <a href="/facts/Middle_East_and_North_Africa/nzoEKNlK">Middle East and North Africa</a> (MENA), which includes states of the <a href="/facts/Maghreb/oIcU24Mz">Maghreb</a> and the <a href="/facts/Sudan_(region)/nu7R29qx">Sudan</a>. The term the "<a href="/facts/Greater_Middle_East/CQJLXBMP">Greater Middle East</a>" also includes parts of <a href="/facts/East_Africa/WtsAyphI">East Africa</a>, <a href="/facts/Mauritania/JcP8EJku">Mauritania</a>, <a href="/facts/Afghanistan/v63Auu1C">Afghanistan</a>, <a href="/facts/Pakistan/cbIsvJy1">Pakistan</a>, and sometimes the South Caucasus and <a href="/facts/Central_Asia/rB8k0CyT">Central Asia</a>.

Middle East open-in-new

Middle East