ch. 6. #1: physical patterns the middle east – land bridge that connects asia, africa, and...
TRANSCRIPT
Ch. 6
#1: Physical Patterns
The Middle East – land bridge that connects Asia, Africa, and Europe.
Earthquake prone region – Arabian plate colliding with Eurasian plate
Climate – extensively dry and hot, one of the hottest/driest places in the WORLD!
#1: Physical Patterns (continued)
•Landforms/Vegetation: extremely arid – most receive 10 in. precipitation per year. Desertification is occurring.
•Most famous desert is Rub-al-Khali - it’s the size of Texas, has 2000 ft dunes & no vegetation! Could go 10 years without rain.
•Deserts lead to scarcity of water, overpopulation of cities, strain on agriculture, and reduce travel capabilities.
#2: Water
•The most valuable resource in the Middle East is water, not oil!
•Only 8% of the land can be farmed because of deserts and lack of rain.
#2: Water (continued)
•There are many important bodies of water in the Middle East:
Tigris River
Euphrates River
Jordan River
Dead Sea
Red Sea
Persian Gulf
#3: Environmental Issues
The ME uses techniques to conserve due to lack of water:
•Drip irrigation (use of pipe w/ small holes to deliver water drip at a time)
•Desalinization (process to remove salt from sea water for drinking and
irrigation - costs a lot!)
•Ground water pumping (pump up water from underground aquifer fossil waters under Sinai Peninsula and Negev Desert - water bearing rock readily transmits
water to wells and springs)
•Water shortages will be extreme in the future
•Water acquisition strategies strain cross border relations
#4: Sociocultural Issues• Families are patriarchal (father is supreme) and can be
polygynous (men have multiple wives)• Gender Roles – men occupy public spaces and women
occupy private spaces (seclusion, stay out of public view)• Women wear the veil – different types depending on how
conservative or liberal the Islamic country is (cover body vs hair)
• Children – contribute to family welfare at young age (cities vs rural), identify more with family than peers, technology increasingly influences lives
#5: Population
• Fertility Rates – 3.1 children per woman (higher than world average)
• Majority of population under 25 years old (young population) – need educational services!
• 74% of women can read compared to 88% of men (less educated women = more children)
• Preference for sons• Many languages spoken in region (Farsi,
Turkish, Hebrew, Arabic, French, English)
#6: Religion
•The religion of Islam began in the Middle East and unites the
region
•93% of people practice this religion in this region
•Shari’a is Islamic religious law – governs many countries
#6: Religion (continued)• 5 Pillars
– Allah is the only God and Muhammad is his prophet– Prayer 5 times daily– Fasting during month of Ramadan– Almsgiving of 2.5% of income to the poor– Pilgrimage to Mecca once in life if possible
• Different Branches of Islam– Sunni – 85% of Muslims– Shi’ite (Shi’a) – 15% of Muslims (mostly Iran)– After death of Muhammad, argument of who should succeed the
prophet and have the right to interpret the Qu’ran for all– Shi’ites believe direct descendent of Muhammad
#6: Religion (continued) ~Jews (Wailing Wall & Temple of Solomon)
~Christians (Life & Crucifixion of Jesus)
~Muslims (Dome of the Rock & Muhammad ascends to heaven)
•All religions hold the city of Jerusalem as a holy site. This has caused many years of unrest in Jerusalem.
#7: Urbanization
• 1970s – significant migration from rural to urban areas
• 70% in urban vs 30% in rural
• Fuel rich places – highly urbanized with workers from all over the world
#7: Urbanization (continued)
•There are many political refugees in the Middle East including:
oKurds (Iraq, Turkey and Syria)
oPalestinians (Israel)
oIraqis & Afghans (Iran)
#8: Economic & Political Issues
•Wealth from fuel exports in hands of few
elites
•The ME has 2/3 of the oil & natural gas in the world & it has changed
their way of life.*
*A strategic commodity is a resource so important that nations go to war to secure a steady supply.
#8: Economic & Political Issues (continued)
Some of the changes that have occurred with the discovery of oil are:
~Transportation (improved roads, airports)
~Urbanization (70% of pop. in cities)
~Desalinization (remove salt from H2O)
~Education (schools)
~Medical Care (hospitals)
#9: Democratization
• One of least democratized in the world as power remains with wealthy, politically connected, religious leaders, and military
• Most countries do allow women to vote but face barriers to participate in politics
• Demand for political freedoms is increasing (Arab Spring)
#10: Arab Spring
• Middle East (and North Africa) in state of upheaval for most of 2011 and 2012…
• Arab people are no longer resigned to being governed against their will – have a voice in their own politics
• US has stayed on sidelines militarily (except for Libya – backed rebel forces with NATO against Qaddafi regime)
• It could be a long time before changes brought about by Arab Spring become clear…economic, political, demographic consequences play out over decades…
• Middle East
– Syria Civil War – clashes between protesters & military – 60,000 killed
– Jordan – King faces growing unrest
– Yemen – protests & lawlessness raising fears of Al Qaeda influence
– Bahrain – violent crackdown on protesters kept king in power
– Saudi Arabia – King using cash to keep people happy & tightened media censorship