1. Chapter 7: Southwest Asia and North Africa
FIGURE 7.1

2. Learning Objectives
Learn about the historical roots of Southwest Asia and North Africa, including religious significance
Understand the role of Islam in shaping the history and current political situation in this region
Understand the role of oil and water in shaping this region
Become familiar with the physical, demographic, cultural, political, and economic characteristics of Southwest Asia and North Africa (SW Asia and N Africa)
Understand these concepts and models:
Exotic rivers
Hajj
Islamic fundamentalism
Monotheism
Ottoman Empire
OPEC
Levant and Maghreb
Pastoral Nomadism
Theocratic state
Transhumance

3. Setting the Boundaries
Sometimes called the Middle East (a European perspective)
Region is generally arid, Muslim, and rich in oil (but this is not true of all countries in the region)
This region is a culture hearth: cultural innovations that subsequently diffuse to other parts of world began here
Development of petroleum industry has had large impact on the region
OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries): member countries profoundly influence global prices and production targets for petroleum
Islamic fundamentalism: aspect of Islam that advocates return to more traditional practices, calls for merger of civil and religious authority, and challenges encroachment of global popular culture

4. Environmental Geography: Life in a Fragile World
A long history of human settlement in has left its mark on the environment in the region
Deforestation and overgrazing
Salinization of soils caused by centuries of irrigation
FIGURE 7.5 Socotra’s Dragon’s Blood Tree
FIGURE 7.4 Environmental Issues

5. FIGURE 7.6 Hydropolitics in Jordan River Basin
Managing Water
FIGURE 7.7
Saudi Arabian
Irrigation
– Iran’s qanat system and
Libya’s “Great Man-Made
River” tap groundwater
– Egypt’s Aswan High
Dam generates electricity
– Israel’s “Peace Corridor”
will bring water from the
Red Sea to the Dead Sea
FIGURE 7.6 Hydropolitics in Jordan River Basin
Hydropolitics: interplay of water resource issues and politics

6. Regional Landforms • SW Asia is more mountainous than N Africa
– North Africa
• Maghreb (“West Island”): Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia; the Atlas Mountains of Southwest Asia
• Levant: eastern Mediterranean region of SW Asia mountains and highlands
• Anatolia: peninsula of Turkey (“Asia Minor”), geologically active plateau
• Mesopotamia: in Iraq, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers
FIGURE 7.1 Southwest Asia and North Africa

7. Patterns of Climate
Climate region is complex because of altitude and latitude
Large portions of region are arid
Deserts stretch from the Atlantic Coast across Africa, through Arabian Peninsula, into central and eastern Iran
Arid Iran (Figure 7.12)
FIGURE 7.12 Arid Iran
FIGURE 7.14 Nile Valley

8. Patterns of Climate (cont.)
– Mediterranean climates in the Atlas Mountains and the Levant coastline are caused by both altitude and latitude
FIGURE 7.8 Atlas Mountains
FIGURE 7.11 Climate Map

9. Population and Settlement: Patterns in an Arid Land
The geography of population
– More than 400 million people in the region
– Physiological densities are among the highest on Earth
– Physiological density: the number of people per unit of arable (farm) land

10. Population and Settlement: Patterns in an Arid Land (cont.)
– Dry areas are sparsely settled; moist lands may be overpopulated
– Population clusters:
(1) Maghreb: moister
areas of Atlas
Mountains and
coastal regions
(2) Nile Valley
FIGURE 7.13 Algerian Orange Harvest
FIGURE 7.15 Population

11. Water and Life: Rural Settlement Patterns
Domestication: plants and animals are selectively bred for desirable characteristics; domestication began in this region 10,000 years ago
Fertile Crescent: ecologically diverse zone from Levant through fertile hill country of northern Syria into Iraq
Pastoral nomadism
Traditional form of subsistence agriculture that depends on seasonal movement of livestock
Transhumance: seasonal movement of livestock from winter to summer pastures
FIGURE 7.2
Man at Livestock Market, United Arab Emirates

12. Water and Life: Rural Settlement Patterns (cont.)
Oasis life
Areas where high groundwater or deep-water wells provide reliable moisture (small agricultural settlements or densely settled trade centers)
Exotic river: a river that comes from a humid area and flows into a dry area that otherwise lacks streams; used for irrigation
Kibbutz: collectively worked settlement that produces grain, vegetable, and orchard crops, irrigated by the Jordan River and feeder canals
FIGURE 7.18 Oasis Agriculture in Morocco

13. Water and Life: Rural Settlement Patterns (cont.)
The challenge of dryland agriculture
– Depends on seasonal moisture, precipitation
– Mostly in Mediterranean area (see map)
– Crops: tree crops, livestock, grains, illegal hashish
FIGURE 7.17 Agricultural Regions

14. Many-Layered Landscapes: Urban Imprint
Some of the world’s oldest urban areas are in this region
A long urban legacy
Earliest cities in Mesopotamia (Eridu and Ur, 3500 BCE) and Egypt (Memphis and Thebes, 3000 BCE)
Rise of trade centers around 2000 BCE
Centers of Islamic religious administration and education
Medina: the urban core of a traditional Islamic city has a central mosque and bazaar
Colonialism left European influence
FIGURE 7.20
Fes, Morocco Shown is the commercial district.

15. Signatures of Globalization
Urban centers have become focal points of economic growth (Cairo, Algiers, Istanbul)
Oil wealth has added modern element to traditional cities (e.g., Dubai)
FIGURE 7.21 Modern Doha, Qatar

16. A Region on the Move Migration streams Rural-to-urban migration
Outmigration from Iraq because of war
10 percent of population have left
Job-related migration within the region
More than 75 percent of Saudi Arabia’s workers are foreign
Immigration of low-wage workers from other regions
Emigration of workers from the region
2.7 million Turkish guest workers went to Germany
Algerians and Moroccans went to France
FIGURE 7.22 Labor Camp in Shariah City, United Arab Emirates Shown are South Asian workers.

17. Shifting Demographic Patterns
Population growth rates vary within the region
Women in are having fewer children
Causes: delayed marriage, family planning initiatives, greater urbanization; rising consumer orientation
Tunisia, Iran, Turkey, Egypt
High rates of natural increase in West Bank, Gaza, and Yemen
Increasing population strains cities, water supplies, public services, job availability
FIGURE 7.23 Egypt’s Changing Population Shown are data for 2000 and 2050 (projected).

18. Cultural Coherence and Diversity: Signatures of Complexity
Patterns of religion
Hearth of the Judeo-Christian tradition
Jews and Christians trace their roots to the eastern Mediterranean
Monotheism: belief in one God
The emergence of Islam
Originated in Southwest Asia in 622 CE
In the Judeo-Christian tradition: shares prophets, including Abraham, Moses, and Jesus
Qur'an (Koran); Islamic book of revelations received by Muhammad from Allah (God)
Islam means “submission to the will of God”
FIGURE 7.25
Pilgrimage to Makkah

19. FIGURE 7.26 Modern Religions
Patterns of Religion
Schism in Islam
Shiite Muslims favored passing power within Muhammed’s family
Sunni Muslims favored passing power through established clergy; most Muslims are Sunni
Iran is an Islamic theocracy
Theocratic state: state where religious leaders (ayatollahs) guide policy
FIGURE 7.26 Modern Religions

20. Patterns of Religion (cont.)
Modern religious diversity
Muslims are majority in region, except for Israel and Cyprus
Sunni (73 percent)
Shiites (23 percent); majority in
Iran, southern Iraq,
Lebanon, Sudan, Bahrain
Sufism (mystic form of Islam)
in region’s margins
Druze (spin-off of Shi’a Islam)
in Lebanon and Syria
FIGURE 7.27 Old Jerusalem

21. FIGURE 7.24 Diffusion of Islam
Patterns of Religion (cont.)
– The expansion of the Ottoman Empire helped to spread Islam
– Ottoman Empire: vast empire of Turks; it included most of Southwest Asia and North Africa, as well as southeastern Europe (circa 1453)
FIGURE Diffusion of Islam

22. Geographies of Language
• Semites and Berbers
– Arabic and Hebrew (Semite)
– Berber in Atlas Mountains and Sahara
• Persians and Kurds – Indo-European languages
– Persian In Iran
– Kurdish in northern Iraq, NW Iran, eastern Turkey
• The Turkish imprint
– Altaic language: more
Turkic speakers in
Central Asia (Chapter 10)
FIGURE 7.28 Modern Languages

23. Regional Cultures in Global Context
Islamic internationalism
Islamic communities are well established in central China, European Russia, central Africa, southern Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, elsewhere
Muslim congregations are expanding in
western Europe and North America
Globalization and cultural change
Global economy is having impact on traditional cultural values
Fundamentalism is a reaction
Access to satellite TV, cell phones, Internet bring global culture to the region
FIGURE 7.29
Kurdish Family in Eastern Turkey

24. Geopolitical Framework: Never-Ending Tensions
The colonial legacy
European colonialism after World War I
Dominance of Ottoman Empire (1550–1850)
Many political boundaries set by colonial powers
Imposing European power
French in Algeria since 1800, later in Tunisia, Morocco, Syria and Lebanon
Britain in Arabian Peninsula and Persian Gulf by 1900
Suez Canal: British-engineered canal linking Mediterranean and Red seas in 1869
European banks influenced Egyptian economy
British instrumental in establishing Saudi Arabia
Italians in Libya, Spanish in Morocco
Turkey, Iran (Persia) never occupied

25. Decolonization and Independence
Europeans began to withdraw before World War II
By 1950 most countries independent
Algeria independent in 1962
Modern geopolitical issues
Across North Africa
Libya formerly a problem; since 2004 moving toward cooperation, including disarmament
Islamist movements in Algeria and Egypt
Sudan had north (Islamist) versus south (Christian and animist) war in 1990s; now has conflict between nomadic Arabs and black African sedentary farmers in the Darfur region

26. Modern Geopolitical Issues
The Arab–Israeli conflict
– Creation of Israel in 1948
– Three wars: 1956, 1967 (when Israel
gained most land), 1973
– Palestinian attacks on Jewish
settlements (ongoing)
• Israel’s construction of wall
around settlements is a new
source of tension;
contributes to economic
woes of Palestinians
FIGURE 7.33
West Bank
FIGURE 7.32
Evolution of Israel

27. Modern Geopolitical Issues (cont.)
• Iraq’s political evolution
– Iraq was born in colonial era:
carved from British Empire,
– Multiethnic: Shi’a Arabs, Sunni Arabs, Kurds, Marsh Arabs
– U.S. troops in Iraq (since )
FIGURE 7.36
Multicultural Iraq

28. Modern Geopolitical Issues (cont.)
• Instability in Saudi Arabia
– Saud family (conservative
monarchy) controls country
– No democratic reforms
– Home to radical Wahhabi
Muslims (15 of 19 9/11
hijackers were Saudi)
– Foreign workers, U.S.
military presence
FIGURE 7.30 Geopolitical Issues
• Iranian geopolitics
– Islamic Revolution 1978
– Supports other Shi’a
Islamists
– Oil and gas reserves
– Nuclear development
– Reformers among Iran’s
educated middle class

29. Economic and Social Development: Lands of Wealth and Poverty
The geography of fossil fuels
– Oil unevenly distributed in the area
• This region has 7 percent of the world’s population, 61 percent of the world’s proven petroleum reserves
• Saudi Arabia, Iran, UAE, Libya, Algeria have much
• Israel, Jordan, Lebanon have none
FIGURE Crude Petroleum and Natural Gas Production and Reserves

30. Regional Economic Patterns
Higher-income oil exporters
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, UAE
Not all benefit, e.g., rural Shiite Muslims and foreign workers do not
Recent economic downturn caused oil prices to drop
Lower-income oil exporters
Algeria: oil and natural gas are its top exports, but political instability remains a problem
Iran: has huge oil reserves, but long war with Iraq (1980–1990) and withdrawal from world trade lowered living standards
Iraq struggling to get its oil industry back on track

31. Regional Economic Patterns (cont.)
Prospering without oil
Israel has highest living standard in the region
Turkey has a diversified economy; has seen growth; 35 percent still employed in agriculture
Economic reforms in Tunisia
Lebanon has potential for prosperity through tourism and telecommunications
FIGURE 7.38 Israeli High-Tech Industry

32. Regional Patterns of Poverty (cont.)
Sudan’s economy ruined by civil war, political instability
Egypt’s prospects unclear, with growth in 1990s, but many are still poor, with a large gap between rich and poor
Brain drain: phenomenon in which some of brightest young people leave for better jobs in western Europe
Yemen is poorest country in the Arabian Peninsula, with marginal subsistence farming and widespread unemployment
Palestinians in West Bank and Gaza: political disruptions discourage investment; Israel has destroyed infrastructure; two-thirds of Palestinians live in poverty; unemployment above 40 percent

33. Development Indicators

34. A Woman’s Changing World
World’s lowest female workforce participation; large gaps between male and female literacy
More orthodox Islamic countries limit female participation
In Saudi Arabia, women are not permitted to drive
Women in Iran wear head scarves (but may also wear Western-style fashions)
Educational opportunities for women are increasing
– Some classrooms segregated by gender
FIGURE 7.40 Women in the Workforce in Algeria

35. Global Economic Relationships
OPEC’s changing fortunes
OPEC no longer controls oil and gas prices globally but still influences availability and cost
Saudi Arabia still dependent on oil and gas
90 percent of exports are crude oil shipments (70 percent) or refined petrochemical products (20 percent)
Recession of 2008–2009 caused drop in oil prices
Regional and international linkages
Turkey asks to join European Union, but the going is slow
Arab League formed in 1945
Greater Arab Free Trade Area (2005) to spur cooperation
Islamic Development Bank; Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development

36. Global Economic Relationships (cont.)
The geography of tourism
Ancient historical sites and globally significant religious localities are a large draw
Tourist hotels and condos on the Mediterranean
Ecotourism
Tourism is a large part of the regional economy in Turkey, Israel, and Egypt
Impacts to visual landscape, physical environment, and archeological sites

37. Summary
Southwest Asia and North Africa have played a critical role in world history and globalization
Important culture hearth and religious center
Oil plays world role
Political conflicts disrupt economic development
Tension between modern ways and fundamentalist traditions