We explain everything about the Middle East, where it is located and what its geography is like. In addition, we explain its characteristics, economy and more.
The Middle East is often confused with the Near East or Western Asia.
What is the Middle East?
The Middle East is known as the geographical region located in northeast Africa and southwest Asia. This is a widely used term, although there is no strict agreement as to exactly which countries this region comprises.
The delimitation parameters of the Middle East are geographical, cultural, ethnic and religious., that is why there are differences in its delimitation and there is no single definition on which all authors agree. However, there is usually majority agreement that the countries that make up this region are Egypt, Iran, Turkey, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Syria, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Palestine, Kuwait, Israel, Qatar and Bahrain.
The denomination Middle East It began to be used in America and Europe in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Before that, it was used Far East to refer to the Asian territories furthest from Europe (Japan, China, Korea) and Near East to name the closest Asian and African countries. Today, many of those countries are considered part of the Middle East, which shows that delimitation criteria are not clearly established.
Features of the Middle East
Some features of the Middle East region are:
- They are found between northeast Africa and southwest Asia.
- Its delimitation criteria are variable.
- It occupies almost 7 million square kilometers.
- The population of the countries that comprise it amounts to more than 430 million inhabitants.
- The predominant climate is warm arid.
- Its rainfall does not exceed 300 mm per year.
- Its main economic activities are oil and natural gas production, agriculture, mining and tourism.
- The predominant language is Arabic.
- The majority religion is Islam.
- Political, military and territorial conflicts are very frequent.
Population and territory of the Middle East
If we take into account the countries that are usually recognized within the Middle East, The territorial extension of this region is almost 7 million square kilometers and the population exceeds 430 million inhabitants.. The most populated countries are Egypt, Iran and Turkey, which concentrate almost 40% of the total population.
Territorial issues have sparked numerous political and military conflicts in this region for decades.including the conflict between Palestine and Israel, which have been at war for more than seventy years.
Tensions between Iran and Iraq are also frequent, and the wars in Iraq (2003), Syria (2011) and Yemen (2015) were very significant. The United Nations has tried to intervene to resolve the disputes diplomatically, but despite this, Armed conflicts continue to be frequent in the Middle East.
Climate and relief of the Middle East
In much of the Middle East, rainfall is low.
Most of the territory of the countries that make up the Middle East has a hot arid climate.. It is characterized by having high temperatures, with averages above 18 °C, and little rainfall, which does not exceed 300 millimeters per year.
The relief is varied: There are mountainous areas, such as the Zagros mountain range in Iran; extensive plateaus, such as the Anatolian Plateau in Türkiye and the Arabian Plateau; plains and valleys, such as that of the Nile River in Egypt and those of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Iraq; and depressions, such as the Dead Sea on the border between Israel and Jordan.
Hot deserts extend across much of the Middle East. One of the largest is the Rub al-Khali desert, which occupies sectors of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman and the United Arab Emirates. It is one of the largest sand deserts in the world, with more than 650,000 square kilometers. Despite its large area, it is a completely uninhabited region. In summer, temperatures can exceed 55 °C, and rainfall rarely reaches 50 millimeters per year.
The subsoil is rich in minerals and Petroleum. The latter constitutes the main activity of most Middle Eastern countries, and some of them, such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, are part of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Other abundant minerals in the region are natural gas, iron, phosphate, copper, zinc and gold..
Fauna and flora of the Middle East
Dates are very famous for consumption in the Middle East.
The animal and plant life of the Middle East is determined by extreme climatic conditions. Both the animals and plants found there have adaptations that allow them to survive the heat and lack of water.
Cacti, acacias and palm trees are plants that can be found in the Middle East. These species develop deep roots that allow them to obtain water from underground, or types of leaves and stems in which they store water. The date palm is a characteristic plant of the area, from which the typical dates of the region are obtained.
As for the fauna, Camels are animals characteristic of the Middle East, since their ability to store water and resist high temperatures allows them to adapt to the extreme climatic conditions of the region. Likewise, they have been domesticated and are used as a means of transportation and cargo.
In the slightly more humid areas, agriculture and grazing are possible.very important economic activities for millions of people in the region.
Culture and religion in the Middle East
The most spoken language in the Middle East is Arabic, along with its variants.
The Middle East is considered one of the cradles of human civilization.so there are living or archaeological traces of their ancient cultures of capital importance in the history of humanity.
The Mesopotamian region, for example, was key in the origin of ancient cultures that invented the foundations of civilization.such as writing. Likewise, the Persian civilization, present in Iran, is an ancient culture that competed with Hellenistic Greece for world supremacy in its time.
The three great monotheistic religions of the world also come from the Middle East: Judaismhe Christianity and the Islam. In the city of Jerusalem, in Israel, there are iconic sites of each of these religions, separated by a very short distance: the Omar Mosque, a sacred place for Islam; the tomb of Jesus Christ, fundamental to Catholic belief, and the Wailing Wall, a sacred site for the Jewish religion.
Islam is the predominant religion in the Middle East.with the exception of the State of Israel, where the majority professes the Jewish religion, and Arabic is the majority language in almost all countries, although Persian, Turkish and Hebrew are also spoken.
Middle East Economy
Oil extraction is one of the main sources of employment.
The Middle East region is typically mining and oil, since around 60% of the mineral deposits lie in its subsoil. hydrocarbons of the worldespecially oil. This has allowed the emergence of extremely rich countries such as Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
Mining is also important in the region. In some countries, the exploitation and export of minerals contributes a large part of their income. Phosphate, iron, copper and gold are some of the most commonly found minerals.
In the most humid areas, agriculture is a fundamental economic activityThis is the case, for example, in Egypt, where intensive agriculture is practiced in the Nile River Valley, which is very important for the country’s economy.
Tourism is another prominent economic activity for some of the Middle Eastern countries.. Among the most visited tourist sites are the city of Petra in Jordan, the city of Jerusalem in Israel, the pyramids of Egypt and the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
Middle East politics
Many Middle Eastern nations practice forms of monarchy for their political organization.Some are absolute monarchies, such as Saudi Arabia, and others are constitutional monarchies, such as Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain. Other countries use democracy as a form of political organization, such as Israel and Kuwait.
International politics in the region is complexsince it has been the scene of numerous conflicts, wars and foreign interventions. An example of this is the so-called Israeli-Palestinian conflict.which originated after the First World War, following the fall of the Ottoman Empire, when France and Great Britain colonized the region and encouraged Jewish immigration to Palestinian territory.
Other examples were the Persian Gulf War (1990-1991)a series of armed conflicts between Iraq and Kuwait, the latter supported by a coalition of countries led by the United States; and the Iraq War (2003–2011), in which a new coalition of countries led by the United States invaded the territory with the aim of deposing then-President Saddam Hussein.
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References
- Briceño V., G. (2020). Middle East. Euston96. https://www.euston96.com/
- Martínez de la Garma, A. (2021). Conceptual and geographical constructions of the Middle East and Africa and the influence of Europe. Córdoba Global. Center for International Studies. https://cbaglobal.com.ar/
- United Nations. (sf). Middle East and North Africa Region. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. https://www.ohchr.org/es/
- United Nations Organization. (2023). The war in Yemen. United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. https://eacnur.org/es/