Geography and Early History of the Middle East

World Cultures

Middle East Unit

Chapter 25

Geography and Early History of the Middle East

Section 1 – The Land and the People

The Middle East lies in southwestern Asian

Middle refers to its location only in relation to Europe

Includes North Africa

Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt

Middle East stands at the crossroads of three continents – Africa, Asia, Europe

Cultural diffusion because of migrating people, traders, conquerors

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam originated in the Middle East

Strategic location

Vital sea routes and vast reserves of oil

Suez Canal – connects Mediterranean and Red Seas

Bosporus and Dardanelles straits – link the Black and Aegean seas

Strait of Hormuz – mouth of the Persian Gulf

Five main physical regions

Northern Tier

Stretches across present-day Turkey and Iran

Anatolian Plateau has fertile soil and receives enough rain to support farming

Large population

Iranian Plateau to the east

Dry region, small population

Arabian Peninsula

Vast plateau

Borders include the Red Sea, Arabian Sea, Persian Gulf

Saudi Arabia is the largest nation in the region

Lack of water is the reason for the small population

Most people live around scattered oases

Oasis – fertile desert area that has enough water to support plant and

animal life

Plays a major role in world economy – huge amounts of oil

Birthplace of Islam

Fertile Crescent

Arc-shaped stretches from eastern Mediterranean along the Tigris and

Euphrates rives to the Persian Gulf

Rich soil and abundant water makes it a major population center

Few natural barriers – multiple conquerors

Nile Valley

Northeastern Africa cradle of ancient civilization

Fertile soil

Maghreb

Includes North African nations of Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco

Most people live along the Mediterranean coast

Major crossroads

Climate dictates where people live

Nearly all of the region is desert

Settlements were scattered

Less than 10% of the land receives enough water to make farming possible

Irrigation systems carry water from rivers to crops

Modern irrigation methods

Drip irrigation delivers measured amount of water to each plant

Nations on the Arabian Peninsula spend huge amounts for desalination plants

Converts sea water into fresh water

Resources include salt, phosphate, copper, oil

Oil is unevenly distributed

Results in great economic differences between countries

Variety of languages, religions, traditions

Major languages – Arabic, Turkish, Hebrew, Kurdish, Persian, Greek, Armenian

Religions – Islam, Christianity, Judaism

Ethnic diversity

Majority group is Arabs

Arab is used to describe anyone whose native language is Arabic

Other ethnic groups – Turks, Iranians, Kurds

Religious diversity

The majority observes Islam

Christian sects – Coptic, Greek Orthodox, Maronite Christians

Judaism is the most ancient of the three religions of the Middle East

Section 2 – Early Civilizations

Sumerian Civilization

First civilization in the Middle East

Fertile Tigris-Euphrates delta

About 3500 BC most successful farming settlements grew into city-states

Sumerians believed gods were all powerful

Priest were very important

Only people who knew the prayers and rituals to keep gods happy

Ziggurat – chief building in each city-state, huge many-tiered temple

Scribes –young men, who learned to read and write, kept the temple records

Sumerians developed a system of writing

Record of information about trade, government, ideas

Important tool for cultural diffusion

First system was in the form of pictographs

Phonetic symbols added to represent sounds

Cuneiform – term used to describe the wedge-shaped writing of the ancient

Sumerians

Achievements

Used the wheel, invented sails, developed accurate calendar,

Used arithmetic and geometry to survey fields

System of measurement based on 60

Used today 60-second minute, 60-minute hour, 360 degree circle

1700BC – Fertile Crescent conquered by Babylonians – King Hammurabi

Hammurabi drew up a single code of law

Hammurabi’s Code – 282 laws

Regulated economic, social, moral affairs

Distinguished between major and minor crimes

1500BC – Fertile Crescent conquered by Hittites

Adopted and adapted ideas from the Babylonians

First to master iron

Phoenicians set up small city-states along the eastern Mediterranean

Earned living through commerce and trade

Never built an empire

Developed an alphabet – evolved into what we use today

Persian Empire

By 500 BC empire spread from Asia Minor to the Indus Valley

Emperor Darius I developed an efficient system of government

Necessary to rule the diverse people of the empire

Divided empire into 20 provinces

Each province corresponded to a particular group or people

Satrap – governor – was responsible for collecting taxes and keeping order

`Special inspectors kept an eye on the satrap

Improved and expanded road system – used relay stations

Set up a uniform system of coinage

Greek and Roman Influences

Alexander of Macedonia defeated the Persian Empire

Culture influence – Hellenistic civilization

Alexandria, Egypt became the center of culture

In the great library of Alexandria scholars pursued research in

Science, mathematics, medicine, philosophy

Under Roman rule trade flourished

Movement of people and goods increased the spread of ideas and technology

Christianity spread across the Roman Empire

Split of Roman Empire into

Roman Empire to the west

Byzantine Empire to the east

Greece, Asian Minor, Egypt, eastern Fertile Crescent

Section 3 – Judaism and Christianity

Drought and famine drove some nomadic Hebrews from Canaan – later called Palestine

Became enslaved to the Egyptians

Moses led the Hebrews out of Egypt to the Sinai Peninsula

About 1025BC migrated to the Fertile Crescent – formed kingdom of Israel

King David unified Israel and made it a power in the Middle East

His son, King Solomon, was noted for his wisdom

Israel (Palestine) was conquered by the Persians, the Greeks, Romans

70AD the Jews revolted against Roman rule

After a savage war, the Romans forced the survivors out of Palestine

Diaspora – scattering of Jews throughout the world

Jews preserved their religious and cultural traditions

Made important contributions to science, medicine, business, arts

Hebrew beliefs developed slowly

Monotheistic – believe in one God - Yahweh

Torah – sacred book of Hebrews – early history, moral and religious laws

Religious beliefs of the Hebrews came to be called Judaism

Belief that people and their rulers should lead moral lives

Taught that individuals are responsible for their actions

People have a choose between good and evil

Rise of Christianity

Some Jews believe Jesus was the Messiah

Messiah – one anointed by God

Most Jewish leaders rejected this view – saw Jesus as a troublemaker

Jesus’ teachings were rooted in the Jewish tradition of monotheism

He also upheld the Ten Commandments

Used parables to teach

Parables – short stories with simple moral lessons

Jesus’ followers believed he was the Son of God

Preserved his teachings – became the New Testament

Followers of Jesus became known as Christians

Romans tolerated the religious beliefs of the diverse people they ruled

Were suspicious of Christians because they refused to show respect for

Roman gods

Christians were often persecuted

Martyrs – people who suffer or die for their beliefs

313AD the Roman emperor Constantine converted to Christianity

By 395 AD, Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire

Formal church was organized

Highest officials were bishops

Bishop of Rome became the head of the Church

Took on tile of pope

Pope – father of the Church

With the split of the Roman Empire (Roman and Byzantine)

The Byzantine emperor refused to recognize the pope in Rome

Emperor controlled the Church himself

The Christian Church split

Roman Catholic Church – centered in Rome

Eastern Orthodox Church – centered in Constantinople

Chapter 26

Heritage of the Middle East

Section 1 – The World of Islam

Islam emerged in the Arabian Peninsula

During the 600s and 700s, Islam spread across the Middle East and into Africa, Asian,

And Europe

Islam remains a powerful influence in the world

Almost one fifth of the worlds’ people are Muslim

Muhammad was born in Mecca in about 570

At about 40 Muhammad heard the voice of Gabriel ordering him to preach to all

At first his teachings were rejected

622, Muhammad and his followers were forced out of Mecca

Went to Yathrib – changed to Medina - city of the prophet

Hejira – name given to the migration of Muhammad and his followers to Medina

This year became the first year of the Muslim calendar

In 630, Muhammad returned to Mecca with a strong army and captured the city

Islam means “submission”

A Muslim is someone who submits to God

Five Pillars of Islam – five duties accepted by Muslims

1 – Muslims proclaim their belief on one God

Muslims honor many prophets – Abraham, Moses, Jesus

Muhammad is the last and most important prophet

2 – pray five times a day, face the holy city of Mecca and pray

3 – charity to the poor and aged

4 – fasting during the holy month of Ramadan, ninth month of the Muslim calendar

5 – hajj – pilgrimage to Mecca

All Muslims who are able are required to make the journey at least once

Some Muslims look on jihad – or struggle in God’s service as a sixth pillar

Jihad includes inner struggle to achieve spiritual peace as well as battle in defense

of Islam

Koran is the sacred book of Islam

Contains the exact word of God as revealed to Muhammad

Koran is authority on all subjects

Religion, politics, law, economic and social life

Muslims had been forbidden to translate the Loran from Arabic

Arabic became a universal language uniting Muslims around the world

Muslims believe that Allah is the same God as the God of the Jews and Christians

Muslims believe in a final day of judgement

Muhammad accepted the original teachings of the Jewish and Christian scriptures as the

Word of God

Called Jews and Christians “people of the Book” because they followed God’s teachings

Muslims were to treat Jews and Christians with tolerance

By 732, Muslim Arabs had conquered an empire that reached from the Indus River to the

Atlantic Ocean

Included peoples of Persia, Arabia, Palestine, Egypt, North Africa, Spain

Quick expansion in part due to

Arab armies were united by their beliefs

Idea of jihad

Lure of riches

Some people looked on the Arabs as liberators

Some people found the message of Islam appealing

Muslims were tolerant conquerors

Division of Islam

Within 30 years of the death of Muhammad, a serious dispute split Islam

Sunni and Shiite

Dispute was over who should become caliph

Caliph – successor to the prophet

Shiites – smaller of the sects – believed only a descendant could be caliph

Sunni – majority of Muslims – believe that any devout Muslim could be caliph

Umayyad dynasty – 661-750 Damascus, Syria was the capital

Emphasized Arab culture

Arabic was the language of the dynasty

Highest jobs in government and army went to Arabs

In 750, Shiites and other groups overthrew the dynasty

Set up the Abbassid dynasty

Abbassid dynasty – 750-1258 – Baghdad was its capital

Supported building projects

Mosques, irrigation systems, libraries, hospitals, public baths, schools

Non-Arabs could hold high jobs in government and become religious leaders

Golden Age of Muslim Civilization

Through trade and conquest, Muslim civilization spread

Blended Greek, Persian, Indian influences

Adapted the various traditions to its own needs

Muslim merchants developed new business practices

Set up banks, issued letters of credit, wrote receipts for payment, used bills

of lading

Islamic scholars translated ancient works into Arabic

Preserving learning of early civilizations

Section 2 – Centuries of Turmoil

Foreign Invaders

Seljuks

Turkish-speaking people

Converted to Islam in Central Asia

Captured Baghdad

Their success frightened Christian rulers of Europe

Mongols

Overthrew the Sejuks

Destroyed cities

Killed the last of the Abbassid caliphs

Eventually converted to Islam and absorbed into culture of the Middle East

Crusaders

Byzantine emperor called on the Christian states of Western Europe to help

1095, Pope Urban II called for a crusade against the Muslims

Crusade – holy war

For almost 100 years, Christians poured into Palestine in a movement that became

known as the Crusades

Crusade had limited effect

Civilizations in Western Europe were less advanced than the Islamic world

1187, Saladin, a Muslim general drove the Christians out of Jerusalem

Ottoman Empire

Turkish speaking people from Central Asia

1453, captured Constantinople – ended the 1,000 year old Byzantine Empire

Reached its height under Suleiman I (1520-1566)

Ottoman Empire lasted more than 500 years

Government

Sultan rued with absolute power

Large number of officials to supervise the government

“men of the pen”

lawyers, judges, mathematicians

“men of the sword”

soldiers who guarded the sultan and fount in army

Slaves

People conquered became slaves

Upon conversion to Islam they gained freedom

Millets – non-Muslim communities

Owed loyalty to sultan but ruled by their own religious leaders

Safavid Empire

By the 1500s, the chief rival of the Ottoman Empire

Safavid Empire was in present day Iran

Safavid were Shiite – Ottoman Sunni

Abbas the Great ruled from 1587 to 1629

Safavid rulers were called shahs

Shah – king

Empire declined after Abbas – empire ended in 1736

Iran remained under the rule of a shah until 1979

Section 3 – Patterns of Life

Village Life

Most people lived in small farming villages

Farm families divided their labor

Villages included a mosque and stores that sold what farmers did not produce

A small section of each house was set aside as women’s quarters

Women remained secluded when men outside the immediate family visited

Nomadic Life

Nomadic herders moved with their animals to areas that received seasonal rains

Bedouins – desert nomads – lived in small, tightly knit tribal groups

“people of the tent”

Highland nomads

Mountains and plateaus of the Northern Tier

During the summer moved to cool upland pastures

Returned to the plains during the winter

Many villagers and traders regard nomadic herders as lawless warriors

Central governments found it difficult to collect taxes

City Life

Cities developed for different reasons

Jerusalem – capital of ancient Israel

Damascus – trading center on a key caravan route