Southwest Asia (The Middle East)

Turkey Syria Lebanon Iraq Iran Afghanistan Israel Kuwait Jordan Bahrain Saudi Arabia Qatar United Arab Emirates Oman Yemen Yemen

Geography/Climate Southwest Asia is a large region with many deserts and plains There are three peninsulas in the area – Arabian, Anatolia, & Sinai. Peninsula – a piece of land surrounded by water on three sides. The Sinai Peninsula is separated from Africa by the Suez Canal, which was dug in 1868. Most of the Arabian Peninsula is made up of the Arabian Desert.

Geography/Climate An area in the southern portion of the Arabian desert called the Empty Quarter is the largest sand desert in the world. Water is very hard to find and is very valuable in this region. What little water there is in the desert is found in oases. Oasis- a place in the desert where water is available near the surface. The most fertile land in Southwest Asia is found along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers in modern Iraq.

Geography/Climate Finding water is a struggle throughout the region. Many Southwest Asian countries must use desalination plants to get fresh water. Desalination is the process of removing the salt from the water in order to make it suitable for drinking and farming Many of the major cities in the region are based around ports- which make it easier to ship goods in and out Oil is the main export out of Southwest Asia- which can pollute the water if spilled

History Three major religions of the world developed or originated in Southwest Asia Judaism Christianity Islam All three religions are considered to be monotheistic Meaning you believe in only one god Each religion also has its own sacred text, or book, which stand at the center of their beliefs.

Judaism- facts Judaism is the oldest of the three religions. Its sacred book is called the Hebrew Bible Part of the Hebrew Bible is made up of five books called the Torah which talk about Jewish laws and history The central belief for the Jewish people is that one day a human leader will come as a messenger from God and bring about a golden age. This leader is called the messiah

Judaism- facts Also central to the Jewish religion are the ideas of justice and righteousness in dealing with people Justice- to treat others fairly Righteousness- to do the right thing Hanukkah and Passover are two celebrations that take place in the Jewish religion

Judaism- origin Abraham is considered the father of the Jewish people. God came to Abraham and told him to leave his home in Ur (today’s Iraq) and move his family to Canaan (today’s Israel), which he promised to Abraham and his descendents This is why Jews believe that Israel is considered their “promise land”. The Hebrews (Jewish people) lived in Canaan for many years but eventually… The Hebrew people began to migrate to Egypt- probably because of a famine in the area In Egypt they were forced into slavery by the Pharaoh. The Hebrews were eventually freed from slavery by Moses This was called the Exodus

Judaism- origins continued Moses -> Judaism- origins continued The Jewish people eventually made their way back to Canaan, but were forced off their land by the Persians, who invaded and destroyed the First Temple in 586 c.e. This scattering of Jews outside of Israel is known as the Diaspora. The First Temple was eventually rebuilt by King Herod- then later destroyed again by the Romans.

Christianity- facts The central belief of many Christians is The Christian religion grew out of Judaism. The holy book for the Christian religion is the Holy Bible. It is made up of two parts: the Old Testament (which is very similar to the Hebrew Bible) and the New Testament (stories of the life and teachings of Jesus and the early history of the Christian religion called the Gospels) The central belief of many Christians is that Jesus is the Messiah that ancient Jewish leaders predicted would come and restore greatness to the land of Israel

Christianity- origins Jesus of Nazareth was born in Bethlehem and raised a Jewish boy. At the age of 30 he began to teach ideas that challenged the authority of political and religious leaders He believed that the old laws should be replaced by a simpler system based on love of one’s fellow human beings The Jewish leaders fearing loss of power asked the Romans to arrest him Jesus was found guilty of speaking against the Jewish laws and was sentenced to death by crucifixion He was nailed to a cross According to Christian belief Jesus rose from the dead 3 days later- resurrected- and appeared to his disciples

Christianity- origin con. After his resurrection, Jesus stayed with his 12 disciples (or apostles) to teach them so they could continue what he had started. Paul was the most famous of the apostles. -He helped by continuing to spread the word of Jesus after his death

Christianity- origin con. As Christianity continued to spread and become popular the Roman leaders became worried. Christians were often arrested or killed for refusing to worship the gods of Rome; forcing many to practice the Christian religion in hiding.

Christianity- origin con. Though the religion was band- it continued to grow and spread Eventually reaching members of the Roman Emperor himself- Constantine. 313 C.E.- Going into battle he had his soldiers fight with the Christian symbol- they won the battle. Shortly after Constantine he removed bans against the practice of Christianity and formed a council of Christian leaders to help unify the religion

Islam- Facts The Third religion to develop Its holy book is called the Qur’an The central belief is that there is only one god- Allah and that Muhammad is his prophet The Five Pillars – Five main beliefs Believe in only one God and Muhammad Pray in the direction of Mecca 5 times a day Give money to the poor Fast during the holy month of Ramadan Make a journey or Hajj to Mecca at least once

Islam- origin Muhammad was born in Mecca. At the age of 40 the angel Gabriel (a figure from the Hebrew Bible) appeared to Muhammad while he was praying in a cave The angel gave him messages from Allah, which he began to spread In 622 C.E. Muhammad was forced to flee Mecca (his home) for Medina. This marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar, and is known as a Hijrah

Islam- origin As the Islamic religion moved into Medina it continued to spread and gain followers, even after Muhammad’s death in 632. Eventually the Muslim religion split over how leadership should continue Sunnis (the majority of Muslims today) follow the traditional teachings of Muhammad and losely interpret the Qur’an Shi’as (minority group) believe that the leader must be a direct descendant of Muhammad and tend to be more radical.

The majority of people in Southwest Asia today are Islamic Islam- origin The majority of people in Southwest Asia today are Islamic

THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE The Ottoman Empire began in 1299, in Turkey, which is located in southwestern Asia. The empire later grew and included parts of Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

Growth Of the Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire grew fast by taking over many regions. Soon it was one of the largest empires in the world. By 1451, the Ottomans ruled many cities in the Middle East and Europe. In 1453, the Ottomans took Constantinople (later called Istanbul located in present day Turkey). Constantinople was the capital of the Ottoman Empire. It was one of the largest cities of the time.

The 16th Century (1500’s) was the best time for Ottomans… Suleyman, the son of Selim I, ruled from 1520 to 1566. He expanded the empire **The Ottoman Empire is best known for spreading Islam throughout parts of the world **Suleyman died in 1566, by which time he was the best known Muslim leader in the world. All Ottoman rulers followed Islam

Impact of Ottomans— Spread of Islamic Religion Ottomans controlled many important trade routes Europe & Asia were linked together by Ottoman trade routes---this helped spread the Islamic culture and religion Many countries saw the Ottomans as a threat because they were so powerful Christians did not want the Ottomans to spread Islam

Decline and End of Ottoman… By the 20th century, the Ottoman Empire was weak. It sided with the losing side during World War I, which fought against the Allied powers of England, France, Russia, and the United States. After World War I ended the Ottoman Empire was crushed & it broke up…shortly after and the land was split between Euopean nations. Soon after World War I ended Middle Eastern nations were formed in the land that was once known as the Ottoman Empire