1. Cheri LaPorte Riverheads High School
The
Geography
of the
Middle East
Cheri LaPorte Riverheads High School

2. Middle East? OR Near East? OR Southwest Asia? OR….?

3. Physical Geography Have Oil Deserts Shipping Locations Have Not Water
Fertile Land
Variety of Resources

4. Bodies of Water Caspian Sea Black Sea Dardanelles Strait
Atlantic Ocean
Tigris River
Mediterranean Sea
Euphrates River
Jordan River
Suez Canal
Strait of Hormuz
Persian Gulf
Nile River
Gulf of Oman
Red Sea
Arabian Sea
Gulf of Aden
Indian Ocean

5. The Mighty Nile River: “Longest River in the World”

6. Egypt: The “Gift of the Nile”
Nile Delta
Annual Nile Flooding
95% of the Egyptian people live on 5% of the land!

8. Hydroelectric Power Plant
Aswan High Dam, Egypt
Hydroelectric Power Plant

9. Completed by the British in 1869
Suez Canal
Completed by the British in 1869

10. Mesopotamia: ”Land Between the Two Rivers”
The Tigris & Euphrates River System
Mesopotamia: ”Land Between the Two Rivers”
Marsh Arabs, So. Iraq

11. Dust Storms Along the Tigris-Euphrates Flood Plains

12. The Jordan River System: Israel & Jordan--A Fight Over Water Rights?

13. Dead Sea: Lowest Point on Earth Highest Salt Content (33%)
2,300’ below sea level
Highest Salt Content (33%)

14. Wadis – Instant Springs

15. Mountains & Plateaus Caucasus Mts. Elburz Mts. Anatolian Plateau
Iranian Plateau
Taurus Mts.
Zagros Mts.
Atlas Mts.
Hejaz Mts.

16. Mountain Ranges in Mid-East
Elburz Mts., Iran
Zagros Mts., Iran
Lebanese Mts.
Taurus Mts., Turkey

17. Deserts Negev Desert Sinai Desert Libyan Desert Arabian Desert
Rub al-Khali
Sahara Desert

18. Rub al-Khali: “The Empty Quarter”

19. Desert Oases: Water at a Premium!

20. Fresh Groundwater Sources

21. Desalinization Plants

22. Heavy reliance on primary activities:
Economy
Heavy reliance on primary activities:

23. Reliance on OIL

24. Persian Gulf Oil Exports (2003)

25. Leading U. S. Oil Suppliers
The U. S. imports 30% of its oil needs from the Middle East.

26. Countries in this region have undertaken efforts to diversify their economies in recent years.

27. The Natural Resources of the Middle East

28. Agriculture
Mediterranean climates grow citrus fruits, olives, and grapes
Semiarid climates grow cereals like barley, oats, and wheat
Desert climates permit only pastoralism from oasis to oasis
Despite the fact that this is the most water-scarce and dry region in the world, many countries especially those around the Mediterranean Sea, are highly dependent on agriculture. 
Contribution of agriculture to the GDP varies significantly from location to location.

29. Middle East: Climate Regions

30. The Middle East: Natural Vegetation

31. Middle East: Population Density

32. Pastoralism
… is the herding of domesticated animals as the primary economic activity of a society.

33. Desert Bedouins

34. Economy of the Middle East
Regional conflicts and political unrest affect tourism
Trade important to region from earliest time
Wide range of per capita income and levels of development. Rich countries such as Qatar, UAE and Saudi Arabia dominate the oil industry around the globe; poor countries such as Gaza and Yemen rely on subsidies and aids.
OPEC controls distribution of oil in the world

35. Birthplace of 3 major religions
Middle East Culture
Birthplace of 3 major religions

36. Art in the Middle East reflects the diversity of religions
Persian (prayer) rugs, stained glass,
geometric tiles, calligraphy

37. Arabic Calligraphy

38. Ka’aba; Mecca, Saudi Arabia
Landmarks
Ka’aba; Mecca, Saudi Arabia

39. Dome of the Rock; Jerusalem, Israel

40. Western Wall; Jerusalem, Israel

41. Hagia Sophia: Istanbul, Turkey

42. Rapid Urbanization

43. Cairo, Egypt: Most Populated City in the Middle East
17,000,000+ People!

44. Kuwait: An Island Floating on a Sea of Oil
Kuwait City

45. United Arab Emirates: Dubai

46. However… Traditional Life continues in Rural Areas