Geography of the Middle East, anancient and modern crossroads

Image 1: The Nile River runs through the city of Cairo, which is the capital of Egypt and the second largest city on the African

continent. Cairo and its surrounding areas are home to over 20 million people. Photo by: hadynyah/Getty Images

The Middle East is the area of the world where Asia, Africa and Europe meet. This region is at the

crossroads of trade routes for thousands of years. Many different people and cultures have come

and settled in these lands. This has deeply affected the region's culture and economy.

By WGBH Educational Foundation, adapted by Newsela staff on 01.09.18

Word Count 737

Level 820L

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 1

More Than Just Deserts

The landscape of the Middle East has a great deal of diversity. This means it has variety. It is not

all desert the way that movies often show it. Large rivers and rich farmlands were the main reason

cities were built here. Mountain ranges and deserts provided protection from invaders.

The fertile soil of the Middle East led to the growth of early civilizations. The first cities in the world

were built in the area called the Fertile Crescent. This area starts at the Tigris and Euphrates

rivers. It reaches down the east coast of the Mediterranean and ends along the Nile River. On a

map, this whole area looks like a curved, sickle shape called a crescent moon. Here people

farmed, built cities, and prospered.

The lands between the Tigris and Euphrates was called Mesopotamia in ancient times. This was

home to the Sumerians 6,000 years ago, the world's first city-based culture. Their civilization was

protected from invaders by the Zagros Mountains. The Egyptians lived not far away along the Nile

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River where they farmed and had rich harvests due to annual flooding of the Nile. This flooding

made the soil rich again. Egyptians sold wheat and barley to other countries all over the region,

and built large cities. These cities were protected from invaders by vast deserts.

A Well-Traveled Trade Route

The Silk Road was one of many trading routes that crossed into the Middle East. It came all the

way from China through central Asia. Merchants on this route brought products from faraway

countries. They brought the first paper and gunpowder from China. These traders also brought

new ideas with them. These ideas changed how people thought about science and art. They also

brought new understanding of religion.

Another important route in the Middle East was the Suez Canal built by Europeans in 1869. The

canal cut through the desert of Egypt from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea. This allowed ships

to travel to India and Southeast Asia without having to travel all the way around Africa.

Geography Features Bring Economic, Political Riches

Geography and natural resources have always affected political power in this region. Natural

resources are materials that come from nature, like fertile soil or oil. People can use them for

economic gain.

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People in Mesopotamia and Egypt long ago developed successful ways to farm where they had

little rain. They learned how to channel water from the rivers to their fields. The countries grew

rich because of their rich farms.

Today, the wealth in Middle Eastern soil doesn't come from crops. It comes from oil. This region

contains more than half of the world's known oil reserves.

Human Geography

The populations of the Middle East have much ethnic and cultural variety. Many different people

live different lifestyles here. There are herders, farmers, people who fish, and those who live in

cities.

How people put food on their tables is closely tied to geography. Where there are grasslands,

herders move across the land grazing their goats and sheep. Other families depend on the sea or

on rivers for their living. They fish or sell products from boats. Farming communities form

wherever they find fertile land.

Cities grew quickly in the Middle East in the late 1900s. Cairo and Istanbul each have more than

10 million people.

What's In A Name

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"Middle East" is a name that comes from a European point of view. Areas east of Europe that

were nearest were called the "Near East." Those farthest, like China and Japan, were the "Far

East." Now, "Middle East" is the main term for the Southwest Asia and North Africa.

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Quiz

1 Read the section "More Than Just Deserts."

Which sentence from the section helps explain WHY farmers in the Mesopotamian area of the Middle

East prospered?

(A) The fertile soil of the Middle East led to the growth of early civilizations.

(B) On a map, this whole area looks like a curved, sickle shape called a crescent

moon.

(C) The lands between the Tigris and Euphrates was called Mesopotamia in ancient

times.

(D) This was home to the Sumerians 6,000 years ago, the world's first city-based

culture.

2 Use the four images and information in the article to select the TRUE statement.

(A) The landscape of the Middle East is almost all desert.

(B) The Middle East contains countries from only one continent.

(C) Ships use the Suez Canal to travel through the Middle East.

(D) The Middle East is mostly the eastern part of Europe.

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3 Read the paragraphs below from the section "Geography Features Bring Economic, Political Riches."

People in Mesopotamia and Egypt long ago developed successful waysto farm where they had little rain. They learned how to channel water fromthe rivers to their fields. The countries grew rich because of their richfarms.

Today, the wealth in Middle Eastern soil doesn't come from crops. Itcomes from oil. This region contains more than half of the world's knownoil reserves.

Which conclusion is BEST supported by these paragraphs?

(A) The economy of the Middle East continues to be based on farming.

(B) The weather in the Middle East today is different than it used to be long ago.

(C) The source of wealth in the Middle East has changed over time.

(D) The oil reserves in the Middle East were the reason farmers used to be

successful.

4 Which sentence from the article is BEST illustrated by Image 1?

(A) The Middle East is the area of the world where Asia, Africa and Europe meet.

(B) The Egyptians lived not far away along the Nile River where they farmed and had

rich harvests due to annual flooding of the Nile.

(C) The Silk Road was one of many trading routes that crossed into the Middle East.

(D) Cities grew quickly in the Middle East in the late 1900s.

This article is available at 5 reading levels at https://newsela.com. 7