1. North Africa and Southwest Asia
SSWG3 The student will describe the interaction of physical and human systems that have shaped contemporary North Africa/Southwest Asia.

2. Physical Geography

3. Importance of North Africa and the Middle East’s Features
Essential Questions:
What are the major physical features of North Africa and Southwest Asia?
What is their impact on human culture?

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

5. Sahara Desert Largest hot desert in the world
3rd largest desert in the world
3.629 million square miles in area
Follow this link to explore the Sahara Desert:

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

7. Mesopotamia: ”Land Between the Two Rivers” aka the Fertile Crescent
The Tigris & Euphrates River System
Zagros Mountains
Mesopotamia: ”Land Between the Two Rivers”
aka the Fertile Crescent

8. Sinai Peninsula Forms a land bridge between Egypt (Africa) and the Arabian Peninsula (Asia)
Mediterranean Sea

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

10. Suez Canal Links Mediterranean Sea to Red Sea
Shortest maritime route in the region
Longest canal in the world without locks
No change in elevation
Navigation goes day and night

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

12. Strait of Hormuz
-Most important strait in WORLD. Connects the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea. It is the most vital choke point for transportation in the oil trade industry.

13. Rub al-Khali: “The Empty Quarter”

14. Importance of Mountains & Rivers
Why are mountains and deserts important to people?
They are both NATURAL barriers of protection.
Mountains often form human boundaries between countries.
Why are rivers of great importance?
Supply water to drink
Supply Food
Good source of water for crops
Transportation/Trade

15. Physical Features Map
Complete a physical map of North Africa and Southwest Asia.
Make sure you label all required elements.

16. Climate, Vegetation, and Resources of North Africa and Southwest Asia
SSWG3b, c

17. North Africa/Middle East: Climate Regions

18. Climate Desert Climate 50% of N. Africa & S.W. Asia
Semi-Arid (not as dry as desert)
Mediterranean
Highland

19. The Sahara Largest desert in the world = 3.5 million sq. miles
The size of the US

20. Mediterranean Climate
Hot, dry summers, & cool rainy winters
Found primarily in countries that border bodies of water

21. Highland Climates Tops of mountains and plateaus
Areas where major food crops are grown  cereals
Most rainfall of the region

22. Oasis = places in the desert where water is present
Desertification = land becoming more dry and so turns into desert

23. North Africa/Middle East: Vegetation

24. Desert
The #1 vegetation region throughout North Africa and the Middle East

25. Steppe/Grasslands Area surrounding deserts
Grassy areas where people can live and where animals can be raised  Pastoralism (domesticating and raising animals and living off them)

26. The Natural Resources of the North Africa/Middle East
How is the LAND used?
What are the MAIN resources?

27. Natural Resources Petroleum & Natural Gas
60% of the world’s known petroleum reserves

28. What are your observations from the diagram?
World Oil Flow Routes
What are your observations from the diagram?

29. World Oil Reserves

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

31. The Culture of North Africa and the Middle East
Human Geography
The Culture of North Africa and the Middle East

32. North Africa/Middle East: Population Density

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

34. Desert Bedouins – people who have no permanent home and live off of the land.

35. NOT Turks TURKEY TURKEY
Ottoman Turks – ruled an empire in eastern Mediterranean (modern day Turkey)
Not Arab, but most practice Islam
Unique culture that blends Turkish, Islamic, and Western elements
TURKEY
NOT
TURKEY

36. Arabs Speak Arabic Mostly Muslims
Most trace ancestry back to the Arabian Peninsula
Civilizations such as Egyptians & Babylonians

37. Iranians (Persians)
Speak Farsi, an Indo-European language that is related to English
Practice a form of Islam known as Shi’ite
A religious state  the religious leaders run the government

38. Jews 6 million people in the region Citizens of the country of Israel
Of the people 5 million are Jewish, 1 million Arab (Palestinians)
Fighting between Jews and Palestinians is a constant occurrence because both claim rights to the land and want to be in control

39. Major Middle East Issues
Problem: Access to Water - Iraq, Saudi Arabia and other Persian Gulf Countries, North Africa
Solution: setting up desalination plants that remove salt from the ocean water for drinking
Problem: Middle East Issue – Palestinians want their own govt. – Israel wants to control the area
Solution: Diplomacy with United States and other countries acting as negotiator
Problem: Disagreement between Islamic Sects – Iraq, Lebanon, Syria
Solution: Secular Governments guarantee a percentage of leadership positions to a certain sect; people will still disagree
Problem: Lack of Natural Resources like agricultural lands or forests
Solution: Countries invest in other industries like chemical manufacturing or technology
Major Middle East Issues

40. Common History
In the last 100 years most of the Saudi Arabian Peninsula and North Africa struggled for independence from Great Britain, France, or Italy
1945- After WWII Arabic speaking countries decided to unite
Formed the Arab League, an organization of Arabic speaking nations with common interests
Passes political and economic resolutions
Has little real power because has no military
Many Islamic countries feel ignored or betrayed by English speaking countries
Broken promises to help them with financing new governments
Our Allies – Egypt, Jordan, Syria*, Algeria, Tunisia, Pakistan, Iraq, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar
Non-allies – Iran, Afghanistan, Sudan, Lebanon, Yemen

41. “Middle East Issue” Creation of Israel after the Holocaust
1949 – Great Britain set the boundaries
Promised Arabs a government of their own
Reneged on the promise
Since then, Arabs and Israelis have had problems

43. Israel vs. Palestine
Gaza Strip Smuggling