1. The Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, and Iran
World Geography Today
4/15/2017
CHAPTER 9
The Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, and Iran
Section 1: Physical Geography
Section 2: The Arabian Peninsula
Section 3: Iraq Section 4: Iran
Chapter 19

2. Objectives: Section 1 Physical Geography
What landforms and rivers can be found in the Persian Gulf area and the interior of Southwest Asia?
How does the region’s physical geography affect its climates and biomes?
What natural resources does the region have?

3. Physical Features: Section 1 Physical Geography
Saudi Arabia— Arabian Peninsula (largest sand desert in the world)
Iraq—wide plain of Mesopotamia, with two great rivers, Tigris and Euphrates
Iran—Zagros Mountains, Elburz Mountains, and Kopet-Dag Mountains, Great Salt Desert
Persian Gulf – countries of this region form a semi-circle around this Gulf

4. Effects of physical geography on climates and biomes:
Section 1 Physical Geography
Effects of physical geography on climates and biomes:
Mountains provide water to valleys below by blocking moist winds and causing rain.
Saudi Arabian lowlands are hot but humid, due to nearby sea.
Higher elevations have cooler temperatures.
Trees are common only in mountains.

5. Key natural resources in the region are oil and water.
Section 1 Physical Geography
Key natural resources in the region are oil and water.
Water, a scarce resource:
Tigris and Euphrates are critical to Iraq.
Farmers in northern Iran depend on rain; others rely on irrigation.
Desert areas may have oases (oasis – wet fertile area in a desert that forms underground water and bubbles to the surface) and wells (Groundwater in wells is often fossil water).
Fossil Water – water that is not being replaced by rainfall
Desalinization of seawater is possible for wealthy countries.

6. Key natural resources in the region are oil and water. (continued)
Section 1 Physical Geography
Key natural resources in the region are oil and water. (continued)
Oil, plentiful and valuable:
Persian Gulf oil reserves (amount of oil the country has) are the world’s largest.
Oil exports bring great wealth to the countries that have oil fields.
Most of the oil reserves are located near the shores of the Persian Gulf

7. Objectives: Section 2 History and Culture
How have peoples, empires, and Islam affected the history of the Persian Gulf area and interior Southwest Asia?
What are the major features of the region’s cultures?

8. Various peoples and empires have shaped the region’s history.
Section 2 History and Culture
Various peoples and empires have shaped the region’s history.
Sumerians built the first civilization and cities in the Fertile Crescent.
Akkadians created the first real empire in the area, around 2350 B.C.
Persians established a powerful empire around 550 B.C.
Greeks and Romans arrived later.

9. Section 2 History and Culture
Various peoples and empires have shaped the region’s history. (continued)
The rise of Islam had a major impact, beginning in the late A.D. 500s.
Mongols arrived in the 1200s.
Safavid Persians built a flourishing empire in the 1500s.
Ottoman Turks also ruled the region in the 1500s.

10. Cultural features: Section 2 History and Culture
Islam is the unifying element.
Arabs are the major group in the region; Arabic is the main language.
Kurds live in borderlands of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey.
Cultural diversity is more complex in Iran and Afghanistan.
Most Iranians are Persians; other groups include Baloch, Bakhtiari, and Hazara.
Pashtun are the largest group in Afghanistan.

11. Objectives: Section 3 The Region Today
On what activities do the region’s economies depend?
What are the region’s cities like?
What are some important issues in the region today?

12. Economic activities: Section 3 The Region Today
oil and gas production—key activity
agriculture—mainly subsistence, some commercial
nomadic herding
traditional crafts
limited manufacturing

13. Urban environments: Section 3 The Region Today ancient cities
old sections—twisting streets, bazaars, mosques
newer sections—modern buildings, wide avenues, traffic

14. Important issues: Section 3 The Region Today oil wealth—how used
power and authority—democracy versus control by a few
role of Islam—maintenance of Islamic traditions and laws