Anatolian Peninsula Black Sea Caspian Sea 5 Turkey

Anatolian Peninsula Black Sea Caspian Sea 5 Turkey Cyprus 15 Syria 3 4 Lebanon Dead Sea Israel 1 2 Jordan Sinai Peninsula Red Tigris & Euphrates Rivers Iraq 6 14 13 of Afghanistan Plateau Iran Kuwait 12 Bahrain 16 Persian Gulf 7 11 Qatar UAE 10 Gulf of Oman Saudi 9 Arabia Oman Sea 8 Yemen Arabian Peninsula Arabian Sea

Major Landforms of the region • This region forms a land bridge connecting Asia, Africa, and Europe. • The Middle East is situated on a huge tectonic plate causing it to pull away from Africa

• Occupied by Turkey, the Anatolian Peninsula marks the beginning of the Asian continent Not occupied by a bunch of these… …The country of Turkey!!!

Arabian Peninsula Most distinctive landform is the Arabian Peninsula. Separated from Africa by the Red Sea and the rest of Asia by the Persian Gulf

• Canal = man-made waterway connecting 2 bodies of water • Strait= naturally occurring waterway connecting 2 bodies of water

Mediterranean Sea to the Suez Canal • Links Red Sea • Completed by the British in 1869

Bosphorus Strait

Why are these waterways so important? Russia Europe Bosphorus Strait Suez Canal Strait of Hormuz

Strait of Hormuz What is unique about this waterway? I’ll give you a hint… There is an abundance of a certain natural resource located right here

• Much of the Arabian Peninsula is covered by barren plains. • For centuries, people living on the Arabian Peninsula had to adapt to the harsh conditions by living nomadic lives in search of water “Even I’m thirsty. ”

• The heart of Iran is a plateau bordered by the Zagros Mountains.

Which country is completely land-locked? What issues might this cause?

• How can mountains and deserts be useful to people? ? ? – A natural barrier to protect from foreign invaders I’m thirsty. This is tough…

A Versatile Land • People picture Southwest Asia as a region of rippling sand dunes and parched land occasionally interrupted with an oasis. • Southwest Asia actually has a range of physical geography from green-coastal plains, to snowpeaked mountains. Golan Heights- Hilly plateau looking over the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee. This landforms strategic location has made it the site of conflict in Southwest Asia for decades.

Plains and Highlands • Much of the Arabian Peninsula is covered by plains. – Because of the dry, sandy and windy conditions, few activities using the land take place here. • Most of the land is barren with some low hills, ridges, and wadis (riverbeds that remain dry except during the rainy seasons).

The most famous desert… Rub al-Khali: “The Empty Quarter” * The size of Texas on the Arabian Peninsula AKA…the place where no one comes out.

Water in the Middle East • Almost completely surrounded by water but because much of the region is arid, there are few rivers that flow the entire year.

The two most important rivers are the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers Mesopotamia: ”Land Between the Two Rivers” aka the Fertile Crescent The Tigris & Euphrates River System

Tigris and Euphrates • Flow through parts of Turkey, Syria, and Iraq • Makes land very fertile and good for agriculture. • Flow almost parallel for hundreds of miles before joining at a place called Shat al Arab.

Jordan River • The Jordan River empties into the Dead Sea • Natural boundary between Jordan and Israel

Dead Sea: Lowest Point on Earth 2, 300 feet below sea level Highest Salt Content (33%) *9 x saltier than ocean

Climate of the Middle East • Extremely arid • Most areas receive less than 18 inches of rain a year! • Mediterranean climate (along the coasts) are in other parts of the region making the land green and lush for parts of the year.

Irrigation Systems • Water is the most precious resource so water usage is one of the many international conflicts in the region. • Irrigation/dam systems are controversial because countries downstream will lose use of the water for irrigation and hydroelectric power.

Oil • Oil fields in Middle East hold ½ of all petroleum reserves in the world! • Oil is transported mostly by carefully monitored above and underground pipelines

Something to think about? • Saudi Arabia is the world’s largest producer of oil. Oil revenues make up 90 -95% of the export earnings and around 35 -40% of the country’s GDP. In the first 8 months of 2000, Saudi Arabia provided the U. S. with 1. 5 million barrels of oil per day. • Do you think the United States should protect Saudi Arabia in a time of war to protect U. S. oil interests?