North Africa, Southwest Asia and Central Asia Chapter 10
Physical Features Atlas Mountains Sahara Desert
Physical Features - Water Seas and Waterways in this region have helped people trade more with Africa, Europe, and Asia The Suez Canal, a man-made waterway, allows ships to pass from the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea. The Nile River is considered to be the longest river in the world. It flows north dumping into the Mediterranean Sea, and it passes through 11 countries. Every year the Nile River floods. The floods not only carry water, but also silt (small particles of rich soil)
Physical Features - Land There are mountain ranges to low-lying deserts. Khyber Pass is a narrow gap between mountains that is used as a trade route linking southwest Asia to Asia. Alluvial plain is an area of fertile soil left by river floods and is used in farming. Dry riverbeds called wadis fill with water when it rains. The Sahara Desert is the world s largest desert.
Physical Features - Land The desert is covered by large sand dunes called ergs. The Sahara also contains oases where the land is fertile as a result of water from a spring or well.
Physical Features - Land Bordering the region s deserts are dry, treeless, but grassy plains called steppes. Some people on the steppes live as nomads, moving across steppe areas to find food and water for their herds.
Need for Water Some practice dry farming, which is a method in which land is left unplanted every few years so that it can store moisture. A large amount of water is need to irrigate dry farmland so some countries use aquifers (underground rock layers through which water flows. Because of water shortages, the water is rationed to people. Another approach to the water shortage is desalinization, treating seawater to remove salts and minerals The method of watering crops is called irrigation.
Natural Resources Has the largest areas of petroleum and natural gas Oil is common because the land is made up of sedimentary rock (when layers of material are formed by hardened layers on top of each other year after year) The remains of plants and animals between the rock layers have turned into oil Refineries (where petroleum is turned into gasoline) pollute the air, as well as the cars. Besides petroleum and natural gas the area is also know for coal, iron ore, and phosphates (mineral salts used to make fertilizer. Poaching (illegal hunting or fishing) has decreased the number of sturgeon fish (used to make caviar an important export)
Oil refinery in Saudi Arabia
North Africa, Southwest Asia, Central Asia Chapter 11
History The early civilizations of Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt had a great impact on later civilization. Mesopotamis is now present day Iraq and lies in the Fertile Crescent, a strip of land that curves from the Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. By 4000 B.C. people settled around the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in an area known as Mesopotamia.
Mesopotamian History By 3000 B.C. they settled in southern Mespoptamis in a region known as Sumer Each Sumerian city formed its own government and came to be known as citystates. At the center of each city was a large, steplike temple dedicated to the city s chief god. Mesopotamia s religion was polytheism (the worship of many gods and goddesses.) At first each city-state was a theocracy (government controlled) but then the military leaders took power.
History Sumerian inventions: First calendars Wheel and plow Cuneiform (early form of writing) Code of Hammurabi one of the first legal laws
Egyptian History 5000 B.C. farm villages began to develop around the Nile River. Egypt was a united kingdom under one ruler. Ancient Egyptians were aware of social status (positions groups of people held in society).
History Worshipped many gods and goddesses A theocracy Egyptian rulers were called pharaohs Developed a system of writing called hieroglyphics
Three major world religions began in Southwest Asia: Judaism- oldest religion practiced by Israelites. 1800 BC, the Jews descended from Abraham, a herder from Mesopotamia. God made a covenant (agreement) with Abraham to move to the land of Canaan. The laws of God s chosen peole were handed down to a prophet named Moses on the Ten Commandments. 1000 B.C. King David created a kingdom in Israel and the capital was Jersulaem.The Tanakh was the Hebrew Bible. Religions
Religions Christianity- about 30 AD under the teachings of Jesus, the Son of God. Those who accepted Jesus as the Savior became known as Christians. Stories about Jesus and the writings of early Christians became known as the New Testament and a part of the Christian Holy Bible.
Religions Islam began in 600AD in the Arabian Peninsula. Muslims, or the followers of Islam believed that Muhammad was the last and greatest prophet. He told people there was only one God, Allah, and the messages were written down in the holy book of Islam the Quran. After Myhammad died leaders known as caliphs ruled the Muslim community.
Religions Jerusalem is, a Middle Eastern city west of the Dead Sea, has been a place of pilgrimage and worship for Jews, Christians and Muslims since the biblical era. Its Old City has significant religious sites around the Temple Mount compound, including the Western Wall (sacred to Judaism), the Church of the Holy Sepulchre (a Christian pilgrimage site) and the Dome of the Rock (a 7thcentury Islamic shrine with a gold dome).
Independence During the 1900s North Africa, Southwest Asia, and Central Asia changed greatly. Independent countries replaced large empires. The discovery of oil brought wealth to several of these new nations. In recent years the region has been torn apart by war between Israel (which was founded in 1948) and the Arab countries, especially Palestine. Since the 1990s this area has seen the dramatic growth of terrorism (use of violence against civilians to achieve a political goal.)